Man's struggle for salvation: A programmatic interpretation of Franz Liszt's B minor Sonata
(2023)
author(s): Leone Monaco
published in: KC Research Portal
Research question: “What can be learned about the programmatic relationship between Franz Liszt’s B Minor Piano Sonata and its programs?”
My research started as an investigation of the traditional programmatic relationship between Franz Liszt B minor Piano Sonata and Goethe’s Faust, but it had an unexpected outcome: Liszt B minor Sonata can be programmatically connected to multiple programs at the same time. Through the study of symbols behind themes and harmonies used by the composer, connections with other compositions, and the composer’s notes and letters, my research explains why and how the Sonata is programmatically inspired by Goethe’s Faust, Milton’s Paradise Lost and the Bible not only in its structure, but also from a philosophical and spiritual point of view.
I propose to look at the Sonata in a different way, considering a more general and Christian “leading thought” which connects all its possible programs and permeates the whole work: Liszt’s Sonata tells the story of every man and his lifetime struggle against temptations and damnation to reach salvation. At the end, I give practical suggestions on the interpretation of specific passages of the Sonata based on the considered symbolic connections with its programs and composer’s notes.
The chosen format of presentation is the exposition, because it gives me the possibility not only to include explanatory pictures and score excerpts, but also to use my own recordings to explain better the symbolism of themes or harmonies in certain passages and to show the practical and interpretive outcomes of my research.
Think-Tank 0.0
(2023)
author(s): Yamil Hasbun Chavarría, Pamela Jiménez Jiménez
published in: Research Catalogue
Systematiation of the experiences lived in a space of reflection and dialog among teachers, researchers and students from various artistic and design fields. This particular activity, coined ‘think-tank 0.0’ is the culmination of three similar experiences in which the Nodos team explored how the concept of ‘Artistic Research’ takes shape in practice and as a complex system of intertwined concepts. Hence, the ‘think-tank’ experience initiates with a ‘hands on’ exercise in which participants construct a personal interpretation of a certain ‘phenomenon’ (i.e. Body, light, space and movement) by means of ordering images, drawings, objects, sounds, materials and bodies as symbolic representations of meaningful concepts. Followed these hands-on experiments, participants reflect on the methodological processes followed to construct their interpretations while exposing what sort of learnings, limitations and opportunities where identified. Finally, the various participants engage in a dialogue about their common findings, interests, and sensibilities, allowing them to identify potential theoretical, methodological, epistemological, and empathic partnerships for the future. At the same time, this space for interaction allowed participants to further experience the heterogeneity and similarity of CIDEA’s artistic research constellation and identity.