Browsing by Author "Pidgorna, Anna"

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    On the Eve of Ivan Kupalo
    (2013-04-25) Pidgorna, Anna; Eagle, David
    This paper examines the process behind the creation of "On the eve of Ivan Kupalo," a chamber opera in a prologue and four scenes scored for seven singers, accordion, piano, and percussion. Drawing heavily on Ukrainian folklore, the opera explores the particular singing style used in Ukrainian villages and incorporates existing folk repertoire into a musical language, which freely mixes diatonicism, chromaticism, and atonality. The work frames the experience of village dwellers within the ritualized structure of the Kupalo festival, a pagan tradition, which merged with the Christian persona of St. John the Baptist. The analysis of the music and libretto concludes with a discussion of how this opera fits into post-19th century operatic development as a whole, and where it stands in relation to contemporary operatic composition in Ukraine and Canada.