Thomas de Dobay - Lorca Works

Yale University Department of Music
The Evolution of Harmonic Style in the Lorca Works of Crumb

Author(s): Thomas R. de Dobay
Source: Journal of Music Theory, Vol. 28, No. 1 (Spring, 1984), pp. 89-111
Published by: Duke University Press on behalf of the Yale University Department of
Music
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THE EVOLUTION OF HARMONIC STYLE
IN THE LORCA WORKS OF CRUMB
Thomas R. de Dobay
The music of George Crumb has gained wide recognition for its u
of unusual timbres and expressive means to portray symbolism an
ritual. While Crumb has become a cult figure to some, others have d
missed him by arguing that his music lacks sufficient intricacy an
structural rigor.' The purpose of this article is not to prolong this c
trovery, but to refocus discussion of Crumb's music toward two inte
lated topics of unrecognized importance: harmony and form.
Examples drawn from the Lorca Cycle will illustrate Crumb's for
methods. This cycle, a loose group of chamber pieces sharing texts
the Spanish poet Garcia Lorca, includes Night Music I, four books o
madrigals (three per book), Songs, Drones, and Refrains ofDeath, Ni
of the Four Moons, and Ancient Voices of Children. Composed dur
the eight years between 1963-1971, these pieces constitute a repres
tative sampling of Crumb's work over an extended period. Pronoun
stylistic changes occur from the earlier to later pieces in motive,
mony, and timbre, but these changes take place within structu
norms that remain reasonably constant.
As a group the Lorca pieces embody surface traits that are a hallm
of Crumb's style-qualities that have prompted the criticism that t
music is lightweight in design. Many passages avoid an overtly rigor
89
interplay of melodic/harmonic entities. Textures are often lean and
spare, avoiding counterpoint in favor of events taking place one at a time.
Despite its brevity and surface simplicity, his music reflects Crumb's
ample concern with structure. "The most difficulty for me [in com-
posing]," Crumb has said, "has always been the form of a piece. This
costs me the most hours of work." 2 Close scrutiny of the Lorca works
reveals the fruits of those hours-a plethora of ingenious solutions which
rely on harmony for their effect. As shown in the subsequent analyses,
most of Crumb's constructions are either parallel or symmetric. Bolster-
ing these structural designs are strategically placed sonorities which are
closely related to one another.
The harmonic relationships in Crumb's music emerge naturally
through the use of pitch-class sets. The transparency of texture, which
includes many dividing points marked by rests, allows for confident
indentification of distinct harmonic/melodic entities-verticalities or
fragmentary motives sometimes extended through manipulations and
reordering of pitch. Applying set-theory labels to these entities is ap-
propriate since the distinctiveness of their melodic contour is subordi-
nate to the interval content taken as a whole.
Crumb's affinity for fragmentary designs, reflected in the brevity of
his motives and sectional constructions, extends also to his method of
constructing harmony. Crumb's miniaturist outlook is apparent in the
definition of what he terms his "mozaic" technique: 3
Basically this method of construction consists of the elaboration and
expansion of minute pitch and rhythmic elements. From these I
tend to build larger shapes, as opposed to beginning with and working
with larger units.
Crumb typically constructs his harmonies from small trichordal cells

which are prominently displayed within larger pitch configurations. In
the first movement of the early Night Music I (1963), he sets forth in the
first measure alone six occurrences of the trichord 3-3: [0,1,4]. (Where
integers in brackets following the set name begin with pitch class 0, the
normal order of the set is given for identification, not as a specific musi-
cal reference.) Timbre makes especially prominent the two forms of tri-
chord 3-3 stated in the vibraphone. (See Ex. 1.) Also typical, especially
within the earlier Lorca pieces, is the octave displacement of trichordal
pitches, as shown by Example 1.
The prevalence of a given trichordal type such as 3-3 points to the
importance of the equivalence relation in Crumb, defined by the iden-
tity of interval content between sets.4 In addition, certain larger equiva-
lent harmonies are found at strategic locations within the Night Music
movement. One such harmony-the set 6-Z13:[0,1,3,4,6,7]-is of
special importance. Comprised each time of different pitch classes, this
90
3-3: 3-3: 3-3: 3-3: 3-3:
[8,11,0] [3,4,7] [9,10,I1] [2,5,6] [0,1,4],
Percussion 1.
in,3ncy.o . io
Piano '.1 -4-
(and. Celesta) .
3-3:m
8,9,0O] ... ..
Ca tte ed...(s,, e), r-
Percusseon I. --
vibr1,91P & b Z 1 " , iib 3 - 3 :

"t (low"Ic) fZ [516,91 3-3: 3-3:
[10,1,21 [3,4,7]
Example 1. Trichordal Cells, Night Music I (sco
91
sonority plays a strong role in articulating the movement's parallel
design (shown below): 5
Section: A A' A"
Subsection:
Page/System: 1/1 1/2 1/2-2/1 2/1 2/1-2/2 3/1
Two of the three parallel subsections (a and a') conclude on prolonged
sonorities that set forth the hexachord 6-Z13; two other parallel sub-
section (a and a") also begin with this same hexachord. In subsection a
the 6-Z13 sonority functions as a frame. Significantly, both of the
framing sonorities (Example 2) display the pervasive 3-3 trichord as a
prominent subset.
In the following movements, pc set 3-3 combines in numerous ways
with a second trichord, pc set 3-5:[0,1,6], whose interval content (half
step, perfect fourth, tritone) contrasts sharply with that of trichord 3-3
(half step, major third, minor third). Here we find that the structural
6-Z13 is temporarily abandoned until its telling reappearance in move-
ment five after the climax of the piece, over the words y los arcos rotos,
donde sufre el tiempo ("and the broken arches where time suffers").
The appearance of 6-Z13 at this point (Ex. 3) produces a highly audible
harmonic "softening" which follows in the wake of tense, climactic har-
monies based on tritone and half steps. It is at this point that the two
intervallic polarities in Night Music I-the tritone (in harmonies con-
nected pc set 3-5) and the thirds (in pc sets 3-3 and 6-Z13)-are juxta-
posed most clearly. The music following the 6-Z13 chord to the end of
the work expresses greater lyricism and reinstates the ascendency of pc
set 3-3.
Of special interest in Example 3 is the congruence of structural and
symbolic aspects accompanying the return of pc set 6-Z13. The arch
design for the work as a whole turns precisely where the arch concept is
mentioned in the text (los arcos rotos).6 Shortly after the emphasis of
3-3 reasserts itself with these words, the piece comes around full circle,
bringing back in its final movement the music of its beginning. With
harmony as a vehicle, the arch symbolism expressed in the text is aud-
ibly linked to the structure of the work as a whole.
Parallel and symmetric designs find equally strong harmonic reinforce-
ments in the other Lorca works as well. Several of the early madrigals
(1965) contain codas which restate statically materials presented in a
dynamic fashion at the beginning. For instance, madrigal I1, one of
Crumb's most intricate pieces, has the following form: 7
Section: A A' B-Coda
Subsection: 'a b a' b'' '
Page/System: 4/1-4/2 4/2-5/1 5/1 5/2 5/2-5/3
92
6-Z13 frame
6-Z13 6-5 5-7: 6

[5,6,8,9,11,0O] [7,8,11,0,1,2] [8, 9, 10, 2,
5-30: 6-Z44: 6-
[9,10,1,3,5] [9,0,1,4,5,6] [1,3,
[8,11,0] 3-3:
1p s. i 1 p [
Glockeon il WI
Percussion I. _
i cy[7mb10s1
7-28 # 4-9: 9
6-Z42: 5-3: 5-3
[1,2,3,4,7,101 [1,2,3,5,6] [5,6,8,9,
Example 2. The framin
y los or-cos ro-tos "end f con-de u -s -freel item-pa.
men Tp
o ----- -5-19:----
[6,7,9,0, 1]
-----
sos - oft l t 5 r 1
5-7: (8,9,1,2,31
Vbph. (lase ( ibr) seft wJlS. v

oPrc. P /
3-53-5
[3,8,9]
6-Z13:
[6,7,9,10,0,1]
6-Z6:
[8,9, 10, 1,2, 3]
Example 3. Reappearance of 6-Z13, Night Music I (score p. 12/2)
94
Crumb creates a parallel design by beginning both of the A sections
with similar headmotives comprised of octave-displaced forms of tri-
chord 3-5. The term headmotive indicates a short, distinct musical seg-
ment comprised of one or several chords or motives. It is treated by
Crumb as a point of reference through its varied repetition at sectional
beginnings.8 The first headmotive statement in 11-the madrigal's open-
ing three measures-contains as many as six instances of set 3-5, suggest-
ing at the outset the building-block function of the set (Example 4).
Similar to the opening measures, both the headmotive to A" and the
coda are comprised of octave-displaced pitches which project trichord
3-5. Linking the two headmotive statements with the coda are pitches
held invariant between the three (Ex. 5). These common tones com-
prise the structural set 5-7:[2,3,4,8,9]-a harmony which, occurring at
the beginning and end of the madrigal, functions as an embedded frame.
This sonority, included in both of the headmotive statements, also but-
tresses the madrigal's parallel design. Pc set 5-7 is one of the most com-
mon structural harmonies found in the music of Crumb; as with 6-Z 13,
its use highlights the surface prominence of the trichordal cells that
comprise it.
The music that follows the headmotive beginnings employs rapid
shifts in harmony, generating tension and instability. The interval con-
tent of pitch groupings in the interior of A and A' varies considerably.
Pronounced sectionalism-a trait especially typical of the madrigals
from Book One-is enhanced by the use of harmonies for the b-sub-
sections which are unrelated to pc set 3-5. These latter harmonies make
use of pc set 3-1:[0,1,2], the chromatic trichord which of course
omits the tritone. The coda, similar to the headmotive, is active and
quick moving. A feeling of closure is established by prolonging groups
of registrally invariant pitches that appear earlier. Codas of this type
appear also in a number of other madrigals (13,II1,II3, and III3). These
latter include strata in which two or more layers of distinct pitch and
rhythmic elements are repeated. The stasis that results at the ends of
these madrigals provides an effective balance to the momentum and
instability of earlier passages.
Like I1, the opening madrigal to Book Two highlights pc set 3-5 and
incorporates structural features such as parallelism, symmetric harmonic
placements, headmotives, and a static coda. The form for the madrigal
can be diagrammed as follows:
Section: A B A' B' A" (coda)

Measures: 1-8 9-15 16-22 22-28 29-35
Though similar in certain respects to I1, Ma

atic working out of limited headmotive ma
95
"D
Cl\
33-5: 83-15 :2
3y A
Soprano
*.rL /7\
0i/p 1] 5: [10 [03-15:6]
tt
8-6:
I1, 2,3, 4,6,7, 8,911
8-9: 8-6
[2,,3,,4,,5, 8, 9, 10, 11] [10, 11,0, 1
Example 4. Headmotive activit
A --------- t-A
Codfia
cL k.ti;lk
Soprano
oJ.) 0&-- " (rco) j
Example 5. The
Madrigal Ia (score pp. 4/1, 5/1, and 5/3)
harmonic rhythm found in the earlier piece. Based upon pc set 3-5, the
headmotives for the first three sections employ the following rhythmic
figure: .Y Section A elaborates this motive in a

complex, stratified manner that plays off the polarities of stasis and
change. Crumb anticipates later stylistic developments by extending the
opening trichord through the manipulation and reordering of pitch.
Within the stasis created by pitch repetition, a gradual transformation is
created with the insertion of new tones. The trichord 3-5:[9,10,3]
headmotive (Ex. 6a) includes the additional pitches C : and G, expand-
ing to form the harmonies 4-Z15:[9,10,1,3] and 5-28:[7,9,10,1,3].
Section A' unfolds in a parallel manner; here the headmotive figure,
based on trichord 3-5 [11,0,5], is kept invariant in the adjacent tetra-
chordal sonority, 4-6:[10,11,0,5] (Ex. 6b). In both A and A', the alto
flute is pitted against a stratum of accumulating pitches in the voice,
which form octave displacements of pc set 3-1 (not shown). Consider-
able tension is generated by the interaction of strata based upon these
opposing harmonic entities.
Section A', typically altered in many small ways from A, carries the
stratification process a much shorter distance, soon abandoning it in
favor of a more dynamic interchange between parts. The climax to the
piece (Ex. 7) sets forth the dynamic, sequential transfer of a 3-1 motive
from the voice ([3,4,5]) to the flute ([1,2,3]) where the latter is re-
tained as a stratum for the two remaining measures of A'. Following in
the wake of sequential activity, the static Coda in this madrigal-like
that in 11-rounds off the work by returning to its beginning pitches.
The opening headmotive is entirely subsumed in the coda (Ex. 8),
creating an especially clear point of arrival at score p. 6/1.
In the handling of continuity, the dynamic developmental madri-
gals of Book Two represent a transitional style. These works, like the
earlier ones, retain a rich, dissonant harmonic vocabulary based on half
steps and tritones. The melodic lines display a network of intricate
motivic exchanges, and when taken together, they tend to exploit the
complete chromatic within a short span. The dynamism that results
from this activity is tempered, however, by the occasional insertion of
small, stratified passages. The introduction of strata seems to reflect
Crumb's attempt at this time to create a new type of cohesiveness.
Pitches held invariant between adjacent events provide links mitigating
the abrupt contrasts of sonority and quick harmonic rhythms found
earlier. Older pitches are overlapped with new ones, prompting the
creation of large-scale shapes (for small pieces) that peak and fall off
gradually and that make maximum use of minimum material.
Songs, Drones, and Refrains of Death (1968), the work following
98
5-28:
3-5: 4-Z15: [7,9,10,1,3]

[9,10,3] [9,10,1,3] fco" brio!
Alto Flute
J Ani -'.z
3-5:
b) 3-[1I,0,5]
Soprano
111, 0, 5 10,11,0, 5 ] j1c? br a
Alto Flute
A 4 &4 lo wr %an miffe"
Example 6. Parallel sectional beginnings, Madrigal II (score pp. 4/1 and

5/2)
[3-1 -
Soprwno
Ah (ho)
Atto Flutis
3-1: [1,2,3] "
4-5:
[1,2,3,7]
Example 7. Sequential activity, Madrigal II1 (mm. 18-20)
99
a)
- 3-5:
Alto Flut [9,10,3]
?s ocknee
b)
3-5:
[3, 5,9O,1- [9 10,31
Alto Flut.
c. "if)
Example 8.
and 6/1)
3-8:
[11,3,5]
(on keys) ft I++ + + 4+ + - + ++ + + + (sempre $im.)
Electric iono "I I A A))I

mute strings obout one
' inch from end (nter pinbor(d)le. vibr
e ..... (spre) s-mpre /
Example 9. Refrain motive, Songs, Drones, and Refr
p. 1/1)
100
the second madrigal book, represents a more drastic break with earlier
procedures. One departure involves the choice of the harmonic materials
themselves: sonorities based on whole tones are freely and liberally
interspersed with the earlier more dissonant harmonies (for example,
3-1, 3-5 and 4-9) that emphasize half-steps and tritones. The new ap-
pearance of whole steps is accompanied by the marked lengthening and
more frequent use of ornamental strata comprised of limited groups of
pitches. Based on the whole-tone trichord 3-8:[11,3,5], the refrain mo-
tive that opens the work is prolonged in a repetitive manner throughout
the entire first refrain (See Ex. 9). Crumb applies new, decorative norms
to the motive: he groups the reiterated pitches into rhythmically irregu-
lar units by inserting an articulative element (grace notes) and he presents
the motive with an unusual timbre (muted piano strings). The tones of
the stratum typically are in a close-interval position which avoids
octave displacements and their static unfolding blocks the inclusion of
new pitches.
With the climactic movement, "Song of the Rider" (score pp. 8-
12), Crumb uses extended strata on a broad architectural plane: a laby-
rinth of shouts, horselike neighs, drum figures, four-part glissandi, and
rapid instrumental motives. Here timbre and rhythm dominate more
than in any of the other Lorca Cycle movements. Yet once again Crumb
insures continuity by his choice and placement of harmonies. He ar-
ranges recurring harmonic events in an isorhythmic format, counter-
balancing what otherwise might sound like a chaotic juxtapositioning
of disperate effects. Recurrences include the glissando figures (men-
tioned above), the rhythmic pattern j :- , and prolonged strata

involving three to six notes. Table 1 lists these items in their order of
appearance. The spacing of these events-a critical aspect of Crumb's
design-is maintained from their first to second appearances, as shown
in the rearranged listing of Table 2. Of special importance is the parallel-
ism that results from the overlaps involving the rhythm f - be-
tween items two and three and between items five and six.
Recurrences of items are modified in a fashion typical for Crumb:
subtle alterations in pitch take place within a framework of similar
rhythms and contour. Items two and five return (score p. 11) with har-
monies equivalent to those in their first statements on p. 9 of the score.
(Ex. 10). (As in earlier pieces, equivalent interval-class content provides
an important link between parallel events.) In both appearances of item
two (Ex. 10a) the trichord 3-1 is prominent; tetrachord 4-9 (which con-
tains pc set 3-5) fulfills a similar connective role for item five (Ex. 10b).
One polarizing factor however appears between the earlier and later
101
Table 1
First Second
Event occurrence occurrence
1) First glissando 8/3 10/2

2) First pitch-cell strata 9/1 11/1
3) Unpitched antique cymbols: 9/1 11/1
4) Second glissando 9/2 11/2

5) Second pitch-cell strata 9/2 11/2
6) Vibraphone-glockenspiel 9/2-10/1 11/2-12/1
(pitched- )
Table 2
1), 2)- > 4), 5)

First Other Other
Occur- 3)-- acti- 6) ---- acti-
rence ( ) vity vity
Second 1), 2) Other

> 4), 5) -za
"Caden-
ap-
Occur- 3)--- acti- 6) --- passion-
rence vity ( ata"
)two for
drum-
mers
102
3-1: -------------- ----0
-a) E 2: --. ElEt 49Arml A0A 3-1:--1 E

mpRI,
[6,7,81 -1, , 3 - -3,

[2,3,4,5 5]1Psc3,
b) Cb
Ele4-9:ct sub.
3-E1:__-__9 49: Eetc
12,,4.,8o', 1, 1f.0, ' 1 '
2,4,8,103,4,9,10]
4-9( [3,4,9,10] [1,

(5,6,11,0
3O
4-9:--1-
13,4,9,101
Example 10. Pitch-cell strata, Songs, Dro

(score pp. 9/1, 11/1,9/2, and 11/
statements of the two items: the whole-tone tetrachord 4-25 appears in
both on score page 9 but is ommitted on page 11.
The strata above are of interest in their internal structure as well as
in their contribution to form. Several exemplify what becomes an al-
most stereotyped handling of harmony in Songs, Drones, and Refrains
and the third madrigal book-works which were completed in the pe-
riod from 1968 to 1969. During this time Crumb uses static, repetitive
motives derived from the following specific group of harmonies: 3-1,
3-5, 4-9, 4-25, and 5-28. A typical instance occurs in the lowest har-
monies shown in Example 10b; here forms of set 4-9, transposed by a
whole step, alternate with one another. Crumb usually bases these alter-
nating harmonies on pc sets 3-5 or 4-9.
Crumb's reliance during this period on stock harmonies represents a
distinct break from the flexible intervallic makeup of his earlier motives.
The composer's stereotyped handling of line is compensated in part by
the contrasts in sonority and texture obtained from the overlapping of
strata. A schema of dovetailing plays a subtle role in the shaping of
Madrigal III3. The climax of this piece (p. 8/3) is prepared by super-
imposing the set 5-28:[1,3,6,7,9] as a stratum over the sustained tri-
tone E-B b (Ex. 11 a). The climax itself (Ex. 1 ib) pits the continuing set
5-28:[1,3,6,7,9] in the harp against literal transpositions of 5-7 in the
soprano and vibraphone. Pitch-class set 3-5 is a clearly articulated cell
within each statement of pc set 5-7 and hence becomes a primary
component of the rich vertical sonorities formed by the 5-7 sequences
and the prolonged 5-28. (The latter is itself a hybrid mixture of two
trichords: 3-8 and 3-3.)
In contrast to Songs, Drones, and Refrains and the Third Madrigal
Book, a quality of ritualism is expressed in the late Lorca Cycle works.
The Book-Four madrigals, Night of the Four Moons, and Ancient Voices
(which date from 1969 to 1971) make sparse use of vertical aggregates
and dynamic interplays. The broad architectural designs and overlapping
strata of the middle period give way to a fragile, primary monophonic
unfolding of events frequently separated by rests. On the motivic level a
more pronounced turn toward miniaturism is evident. A decorative stra-
tum tends less to elaborate one harmony throughout. One type of motive
restricts a pc set with whole-tone components (4-25 or 5-28) to a central
position, framing it on either side with a secondary harmony (Ex. 12).
Another small-scale design involves the melodic interlocking of tri-
chordal entities. As shown by Example 13, motives are formed by
combining in a single stratum the older, more dissonant pc sets (3-1
or 3-5) with the newer whole-tone trichord (3-8). (In earlier works,
Crumb carefully separated such contrasting motives.) The interlocking
of these older and newer sets represents a level of harmonic integration
which culminates Crumb's use of the trichordal unit.
104
a)
4-27:11,3,6,91 5-28:[1,3,6,7,9]
$ Y
b) G
5-7: 5-7: 5-7:
[3,4,5,9,10] 11,2,3,7,81] 9,10, 11,3,4]
(9,10,31 (7, 8,113, 4, 9
c3-5: 3-5:
41,3,5,7,9
45 102 10f11 w
Example 11. Stratified activity, Madrigal III3 (score pp. 8/3 and 9/1)
105
5-5: [8,0,1,2, 3]
5-28:
[0,2,5,6,8]
F.te i- C
b) 3-1: 4-5: 3-1:

S 5,,6, 71
t N
Example 12. Mot

4/2), b) Ancie
106
5-28: 3-
[10,0,1,4,6] [10,
a)
3-5:---- 3-1:--
0, ,6] [6,7,8]
Piccole
3-8: 4-25
[4,6,10] [2,4,8,1
- 3-1:
[b) 0,1,2] 7-13:

[7,9,1]
. 3-8: .- - - t
(F ,t.)"
Alto Fluts
5-14:
0~ [7,9,0,1,2]
--
Example 13. Repetitive strata, a) Madrigal

rigal IV3 (score p. 8/1-8/2)
In monophonic passages that are more extended, Crumb employs a
combination of the miniature techniques discussed above. The opening
climactic vocal line of Ancient Voices (Ex. 14a) begins with the tri-
chord 3-1: [3,4,5] whose distribution of pitches emphasizes the whole-
tone interval D#-F. (The interval of a major second functions as a
unifying element throughout the song.) The D -F is prolonged through
the adjacent whole-tone pentachord 5-33:[11,1,3,5,7] and also through
the restatement of 3-1:[3,4,5]. The trichord both frames the penta-
chord and functions as a parallel beginning to the second phrase (Ex.
14b). Phrase two builds to a climax with the addition of a new pitch,
Ab, illustrating the continued significance of pitch accretion noted
earlier in Madrigal IIl. (See Ex. 6.) Introduced with Ab is a network of
interlocking trichords: trichord 3-1: [3,4,5] links with trichord 3-7:
[3,5,8], which in turn frames the whole-tone trichord 3-8:[7,11,1].
The passage above fairly represents in miniature landmarks along the
path traversed by Crumb during the years that span the Lorca works.
These include the importance of trichords as building blocks; the free
juxtapositioning of whole-tone sets and the earlier more dissonant
sets; and finally, the creation of continuity by overlapping familiar sets
with pitches newly introduced. And equally important is the use of har-
mony to shape parallel and symmetric forms.
These analyses should reveal not only Crumb's more important
compositional techniques but also the importance of set theory in bring-
ing these to light. Set theory is particularly important for demonstrat-
ing the strength of the inclusive bonds among Crumb's more frequently
used sets. I mentioned above that smaller harmonies in the music are
overtly displayed within larger ones. This inclusiveness however extends
beyond what may be aurally apparent. In addition to containing a
smaller set, a larger harmony may be included (in some transposed
form) in the complement of the smaller, defining what is known as the
Kh relation between the sets.
It is on the basis of this relation that we can identify distinct families
of harmonies in Crumb's music. Structural sets that share the Kh rela-
tion with 3-5 and with each other are 4-9, 5-7, and 6-7. In addition to
being connected by the exclusive Kh relation, each of the smaller sets in
this family is contained in the larger ones a maximum number of times
The breakdown in the inclusion of trichord 3-5 lineage is as follows:
trichord 3-5 is contained in 4-9 four times, in 5-7 five times, and in 6-7
eight times; 4-9 is contained in 5-7 once, and in 6-7 twice; 5-7 is con-
tained in 6-7 as many as four times.
Deriving from trichord 3-3 are harmonies that apply to specific sit-
uations (unlike those of the 3-5 group that appear in a more widespread
and general fashion throughout the cycle). Pitch-class set 6-Z13, the
only hexachordal harmony dealt with in this article, is important only
108
3-1:
[3,4,5]
a)
5-33:
[11,1,3,5,71
(tOcl It
(t. . - ti Aft p
3-1o- ---- ------3-7:
[3, 4, 5] ,3o 5[3,5,8] 3-8:
[7, 11,11 I
(Pose accel. - -
Soprano
5-33:
,i 3,5,7]
7-26:
[11,1,3,4,5,7,81
Example 14. Climactic vocalese, Ancient Voices of Childr

1/4-1/5)
109
in Night Music I. It is Kh-related to set 3-3 and contains this trichord
four times-the maximum number possible. Harmonies deriving from
trichord 3-8 are included mainly in pieces dating from 1968. Beginning
with Songs, Drones, and Refrains, the whole-tone family (3-8, 4-25,
and 5-28) appears frequently. The latter two sonorities are Kh-related
to 3-8 as well as to each other. The trichord is included in 4-25 as many
as four times and 4-25 is included in 5-28 once. As noted above, pc set
5-28 is a hybrid unit embodying characteristics of both 3-8 and 3-3.
This set is considered a member of the 3-8 family because of its use in
situations where the whole tone dominates and also because it contains
trichord 3-8 four times and trichord 3-3 only once.
These analyses reveal the cohesiveness that Crumb achieves from the
properties joining sets within a family. During the eight years between
1963 and 1971, a time of pronounced stylistic change for Crumb, his
use of related structural harmonies remained the norm. This constancy
applies to various levels of a piece: the sets outlined on the surface are
the same as those that function covertly to delineate form. Critics who
perceive in Crumb's music a lack of intricacy or rigor may find lacking
an interplay between surface harmonies and background sets with con-
trasting interval contents, but they should recognize Crumb's rigorous
and intricate pursuit of intervallic unity on all levels.
NOTE
The Lorca Cycle Scores referred to are as follows:

Ancient Voices of Children. New York:
C. F. Peters, 1970.
Madrigals, Book I. New York:
C. F. Peters, 1971.
Madrigals, Book II. New York:
C. F. Peters, 1971.
Madrigals, Book III. New York:
C. F. Peters, 1971.
Madrigals, Book IV. New York:
C. F. Peters, 1971.
Night of the Four Moons. New York:
C. F. Peters, 1971.
Night Music I. New York:
Belwin-Mills Publishing, 1967.
Songs, Drones, and Refrains of Death.
New York: C. F. Peters, 1971.
(A later 1973 edition of this work
exists with the pagination altered.
Referral within this study however
is to the former.)
110
NOTES
1. The most prolific writer on Crumb is Donal Henahan. Two of his reviews i
clude "Current Chronicle, United States," The Musical Quarterly 54: 83-87
(a review of Echoes of Time and the River) and "Eleven Echoes of Autumn
The Musical Quarterly 55: 280-284. An admirer of Crumb, Henahan poin
to aspects enhancing Crumb's mystique: the mixture of a Webern-influenc
concern for economy, spare textures, and fine dynamic distinctions with
nonserial approach emphasizing exotic instrumental sounds and the influenc
of visual images and ritual. Like Henahan, Robert Hall Lewis in his "Georg
Crumb: Night Music I," Perspectives of New Music 3: 141-151 deals with th
issues of timbre and imagery. Lewis, however, goes beyond Henahan in ana-
lytic detail, singling out for discussion, passages in Night Music which illustra
Crumb's use of aleatory, arch designs, improvisatory handling of meter, an
variation processes applied to fragmentary motives. For a complete bibliog
raphy on Crumb see my "Harmonic Materials and Usages in the Lorca Cycle
of George Crumb" (Ph.D. diss., University of Southern California, 1982),pp
272-273.
2. Vernon Shuffet, "The Music, 1971-1975, of George Crumb: A Style Analy
sis." (D.M.A. diss., Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, 19
p. 400.
3. Shuffett, p. 459.
4. Harmonies that are identical have the same pitch-class and interval-class
tent; harmonies that are equivalent have the same interval-class content,
differ in pitch-class content. For a fuller explanation of set relations, see A
Forte's The Structure of Atonal Music (New Haven: Yale University Press
1973); the introduction to Forte's The Harmonic Organization of the Rit
Spring (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1978) pp. 1-18; Donna Schultz's
"Set Theory and Its Application to Compositions by Five Twentieth-Century
Composures" (Ph.D. diss., Michigan State University, 1979); and most recent-
ly, the first two chapters of my "Harmonic Materials and Usages in the Lorca
Cycle of George Crumb."
5. The symbol 1/1 refers to page 1, system 1 of the score. This page/system desig-
nation and those which follow apply to the specific editions of Lorca works
listed at the end.
6. The image evoked by this phrase has a potent meaning for Crumb. The
Spanish words are included in at least two of his other works, Echoes of Time
and the River and Eleven Echoes of Autumn.
7. The symbol I1 refers to Madrigal One within the first book of madrigals.
Larger collections, if numbered, are designated by a roman numeral; move-
ments or pieces within are designated by an arabic subscript.
8. The demarcation of parallel sections by the use of headmotives is frequent in
Crumb; six madrigals in fact make use of this technique (12,II2 ,II3, IV2 and
IV3). The centerpiece fourth movement to Night Music I provides the most
dramatic instance of headmotive usage. Four rapid statements of the motive
(score pp. 6-8) are, in typical fashion, followed by short pauses and activity
which is varied each time in harmonic content and length.
111

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Yale University Department of Music

The Evolution of Harmonic Style in the Lorca Works of Crumb

IN THE LORCA WORKS OF CRUMB

Crumb typically constructs his harmonies from small trichordal cells

[8,11,0] [3,4,7] [9,10,I1] [2,5,6] [0,1,4],

vibr1,91P & b Z 1 " , iib 3 - 3 :

Example 1. Trichordal Cells, Night Music I (sco

6-Z13 6-5 5-7: 6

6-Z42: 5-3: 5-3

[1,2,3,4,7,101 [1,2,3,5,6] [5,6,8,9,

Example 2. The framin

Vbph. (lase ( ibr) seft wJlS. v

Example 3. Reappearance of 6-Z13, Night Music I (score p. 12/2)

Section: A B A' B' A" (coda)

Though similar in certain respects to I1, Ma

0i/p 1] 5: [10 [03-15:6]

Example 4. Headmotive activit

oJ.) 0&-- " (rco) j

Madrigal Ia (score pp. 4/1, 5/1, and 5/3)

figure: .Y Section A elaborates this motive in a

3-5: 4-Z15: [7,9,10,1,3]

A 4 &4 lo wr %an miffe"

Example 6. Parallel sectional beginnings, Madrigal II (score pp. 4/1 and

3-1: [1,2,3] "

Example 7. Sequential activity, Madrigal II1 (mm. 18-20)

[3, 5,9O,1- [9 10,31

(on keys) ft I++ + + 4+ + - + ++ + + + (sempre $im.)

Electric iono "I I A A))I

tioned above), the rhythmic pattern j :- , and prolonged strata

1) First glissando 8/3 10/2

4) Second glissando 9/2 11/2

1), 2)- > 4), 5)

Second 1), 2) Other

-a) E 2: --. ElEt 49Arml A0A 3-1:--1 E

[6,7,81 -1, , 3 - -3,

4-9( [3,4,9,10] [1,

Example 10. Pitch-cell strata, Songs, Dro

5-7: 5-7: 5-7:

[3,4,5,9,10] 11,2,3,7,81] 9,10, 11,3,4]

(9,10,31 (7, 8,113, 4, 9

b) 3-1: 4-5: 3-1:

Example 12. Mot

[b) 0,1,2] 7-13:

Example 13. Repetitive strata, a) Madrigal

3-1o- ---- ------3-7:

[3, 4, 5] ,3o 5[3,5,8] 3-8:

Example 14. Climactic vocalese, Ancient Voices of Childr

The Lorca Cycle Scores referred to are as follows:

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