Analysis of a recital: a report on four saxophone works by Paul-Agricole Génin, Fernande Decruck, Ida Gotkovsky, and Luciano Berio inspired by four important saxophone figures: Adolphe Sax, Marcel Mule, Daniel Deffayet, and Claude Delangle.

Abstract

In 1838, Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax created the saxophone. The saxophone was officially patented on June 24, 1846. Sax became the first Professor of Saxophone at the Conservatoire de Paris. This conservatoire has been and continues to be a historically important school of music in Europe. There have been four saxophone professors at the Conservatoire National Supèrieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris since the instrument’s creation. These professors include: Adolphe Sax (1814-1894), Marcel Mule (1901-2001), Daniel Deffayet (1922-2002), and Claude Delangle (born 1957). Each instructor has championed the saxophone to new heights by refining pedagogical approaches and by advocating for the creation of new saxophone compositions. The music examined in this document represents pieces composed for each of the four saxophone professors who have taught at the Conservatoire de Paris. Paul-Agricole Génin’s composition Variations sur un thème espagnol: pour saxophone alto et piano was inspired by Adolphe Sax, Fernande Decruck composed Sonata in C-Sharp for Alto Saxophone and Piano (1943) for Marcel Mule, Ida Gotkovsky wrote Variations pathétiques: pour Saxophone Alto et Piano (1980) for Daniel Deffayet, and Sequenza IX for Alto Saxophone (1980) by Luciano Berio was dedicated to Claude Delangle. All of these pieces demonstrate how composers continually strive to expand the boundaries of the skilled saxophonists’ musical style, technical facility, and overall flexibility on the saxophone. This master’s report, presented as extended program notes, includes biographical information about the composers, a historical and stylistic overview of the selected compositions, and a harmonic and formal analysis of the music with respect to performance considerations.