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The songs of Richard Faith: 1990-1995
Abstract
On March 20, 1997, American-born composer, Richard Faith turned 71 years old. Although the decade is not concluded, Faith has already composed more songs during it, than in any other decade of his life, and he is still composing. His neo-romantic style of composition is one which attracts many singers. The fact that he began his professional career as a pianist explains why his accompaniments are also very inviting. In his dissertation, The Songs of Richard Faith, written in 1991, William J. Lavonis discussed the first fifty-seven songs of this composer. They were written over a forty-five year period, from 1944-1989. An avid reader, Richard Faith often set his favorite American and British poets, such as Shakespeare, Yeats, Shelley, Poe, Joyce and Wordsworth, using them for forty-nine of the fifty-seven songs. Since 1989, however, Faith has composed thirty more songs and only ten of them include British poetry. His textual choices have become more exotic, including Moorish, Chinese, and Middle-Eastern poetry in eleven of his latest songs. The other nine consist of a set of four Mother Goose lyrics, four settings of poems by personal friends, and a setting of the traditional"God Be In My Head." Included in this document is a brief biography of the composer and a summary of his compositional style. As there is such a close relationship between the poetry and Faith's musical settings, a short discussion of each poet and the chosen text will be presented. The musical elements utilized by Faith to express the poetry will then be examined. An extensive analysis of the song cycle Incantations will provide a basis for observing the various aspects of Richard Faith's compositional practices. The rest of the songs will be presented in groups, some of which were defined by Faith, such as the Christina Rosetti Lyrics, Five Moorish Poems, and Four Mother Goose Lyrics. The other three chapters will consist of the songs based on Chinese, British, and Miscellaneous Poetry.
Subject Area
Music
Recommended Citation
Wieck, Julie Anne, "The songs of Richard Faith: 1990-1995" (1997). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9815912.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9815912