A Study On Szymanowski's 12 Piano Etudes

Karol Szymanowski was one of Poland's most important composers after Chopin. His appearance promoted Poland's music to a higher level. He is not inferior to Chopin in . terms of contributions made to Poland's music. However, his works did not receive due attention and had not been spread widely in that particular historical period.This thesis attempts to study Szymanowski's 12 etudes composed when he was 34, which represented his mature musical style. The etude is originally a musical form used for the purpose of practicing. Chopin developed it into conceit etude, in which the magnificent performing skills and the esthetic taste were well combined. Szymanowski inherited this tradition. His etudes, characterized by the brief and consummate form, outstanding technique, fresh music vocabulary, strong and abundant emotions, are of great training and appreciation value.The body of this thesis consists of two parts.The first part briefly introduces Karol Szymanowski's music career. The second part is a study of his 12 etudes. The first part describes three phases of his music career, i.e. music composition in his early life, the first and the second turning point in his career. These three phases respectively represented his pursuing tendency in music-post-romanticism, impressionism, and nationalism. Then some factors which exercise influence on his composition, especially composition of etudes are analyzed. These factors include the historical environment, his personality, some musicians who influences him such as Chopin, Skryabin, Debussy, Stravinsky, etc.The second part makes a comprehensive analysis of Szymanowski's 12 piano etudes.First, it introduces the background and general features of these works. Then a thorough analysis is conducted to display the style and characteristics of his music. The analysis mainly covers the following respects including form, texture, modes, tonality, harmony, melody, rhythm, performance and aesthetic value. This thesis presents a detailed description of each etude, attempting to reveal his inner world, and experience the abundant emotions-agony, joy, sensibility, rage, and passion.