Intertextuality, Subjectivity, and Meaning in Liszt’s Deux Polonaises

Abstract

This article brings the concepts of intertextuality and subjectivity into dialogue in order to advance our understanding of both and to generate new readings of two pieces that are rich in intertextual relationships and also raise complex questions about subjectivity: Liszt's Deux Polonaises. I argue that, not only are intertextuality and subjectivity codependent, intertextuality also influences the way subjectivities behave and their characteristics. Furthermore, the performer has a fundamental influence on how subjectivities are expressed, challenging our understanding of who retains authorial control. The Deux Polonaises are also related to a literary intertext: Liszt's F. Chopin, written in the wake of Chopin's death. This book offers fascinating insight into the potential meanings behind the intertextual references and the play of subjectivities within the pieces, and connects the Deux Polonaises to the emotive historical and political context of their composition. It opens up multiple meanings that are related to contemporary conceptions of the polonaise, and the symbols of Polish cultural Romanticism with which the genre was intertwined.

Program, Tonality, and Sonata Deformation in Leopoldo Miguéz’s Symphonic Poems

“…These are just some common cases that occur in sonata deformations, but they do not exhaust all possibilities. 5 In addition to sonata deformation, thematic transformation and the use of double-tonic complex are procedures that contribute to the uniqueness of these works. Thematic transformation is defined as "the process of modifying a theme so that in a new context it is different but yet manifestly made of the same elements" (Macdonald 2001 Isolde and defines the "double-tonic complex" as "the new feature in Tristan with the most far-reaching consequences for large-scale organization is the pairing together of two tonalities a minor 3 rd apart in such a way as to form a 'doubletonic complex'" (Bailey 1985, p. 121).…”