Second Piano Sonata

Charles Ives - Second Piano Sonata: 'Concord, Mass., 1840-1860'

George Pappastavrou - piano
Bonnie Lichter - flute

Each movement of the Second Piano Sonata bears one of the names that made the village of Concord, Massachusetts famous during the mid-nineteenth century. The first, "Emerson," is a substantial sonata-form movement; the second, "The Alcotts" is simple and religious. The third movement bears the name "Hawthorne" - it is a fantastic scherzo; and the last, "Thoreau," is a kind of mystic reflection on man's identification of himself with nature.

The Sonata is built on two motifs. One, epic in nature, consists of three repeated notes and a drop of a third to the fourth note - in other words, it is the opening motif of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. The second motif is lyrical and moves mostly in conjunct motion. There is usually some interweaving of the two, whenever they appear.

Ives names the contrasting sections of the "Emerson" movement, prose and verse. In addition to an initial theme, a statement of form and idea opens the work, in the sense that all the musical means (melodic line, polyphony, rhythm and harmonic implications - atonal to tonal) are applied to the materials in such a way as to make obvious the concept of diversity drawing toward unity as its culmination.

Both motifs appear freely in both sections. Almost every conceivable type of variation is applied to the epic motif. Often several of these developments appear, polyphonically, in contrasting time values, usually with elements from the other motif mixed in at the same time. The rhythmic and thematic development does not proceed from the simple to the complex, but the reverse.

"The Alcotts" presents a wholehearted simplicity. The movement opens with the epic motif in lyric form, simply harmonized, with all the parts in one key. The rhythm is as uninvolved as a hymn. Indeed, the spirit of this movement derives from the contained religion of the family church, and the domestic music of daughters playing the piano in the parlor.

The "Hawthorne" movement opens with light, rapid sixteenth and thirty-second notes, and darting melodic leaps spaced widely apart; followed by a section with pre-jazz syncopation against rippling broken chords. One page later occurs the cause of great hilarity and bafflement at Ives' expense during the 'twenties: a piece of wood to hold down the piano keys (black and white) for a range of two octaves and a second. Their resentment kept the audience deaf to the resultant fine tone.

The middle section has frequent changes of pace, i.e., short sections which each introduce new aspects of the fundamental theme. There is a return to the very fast tempo of the beginning, rising to a fortissimo, and finally landing unexpectedly on the "Beethoven motif."

The two large movements ("Emerson" and "Hawthorne") are continuously active: many polyphonic strands, complex chords and polychords, and rhythmical irregularities. There are only momentary suggestions of an underlying key.

The final movement, while very slow in tempo, is subject to sudden darting runs. Contemplative in mood, its inner calm denies the seemingly capricious lack of order with which materials from other movements are introduced.

The apparent clash leads with powerful drive toward the denouement, in which the Sonata's epic and lyric themes are blended in one long melody. To voice this melody Ives unexpectedly calls for a flute, although there has been no hint until now that this is anything but a piano sonata.

At the final cadence the epic motif appears over the tonic and dominant triads. This is the culmination of the whole work - a quiet conclusion on identical pitch, which refuses to rise or fall but is complete where it stands - yet one senses that the ending is not final and that the music will continue to grow in the imagination. (from the liner notes)

Note: The LP copy sequenced the movements by putting "Emerson" and "The Alcotts" on side 1 and "Hawthorne" and "Thoreau" on side 2. Ives published the movements in this order: "Emerson", "Hawthorne", "The Alcotts", and "Thoreau". The first two movements were too long to fit onto one side of a record which is why the sequencing is different. The sequencing of the tracks in this post are in the order that Ives intended instead of the order on the LP.
Tracklisting:

1. Emerson {16:03}

2. Hawthorne {12:11}

3. The Alcotts {5:46}

4. Thoreau {11:49}

(1) or (1) (2) or (2) [links coming back soon, (1/22/2012)]