| Summary: | John Weinzweig was the first Canadian composer to use techniques of serial
organization in his compositions. Through his teaching, composing, and promotion of
Canadian music, he has been influential in the development of Canadian music. Because
of this, it is of interest to study one of his significant works, the Woodwind Quintet
(1963/64). This work exemplifies Weinzweig's serial techniques, including the use of
row forms that share common segments (such as dyads, trichords, tetrachords, and
hexachords), as well as an allusion to octatonic sounds.
This thesis approaches Weinweig's work first from a serial standpoint, and then
examines how the composer approaches the idea of motivic development within his
work. Thorough analysis of twelve-tone relationships, themes, textures, and rhythms
reveals how Weinzweig focuses not just on serial materials, but also on other aspects of
composition.
Following a brief introduction about the composer and the piece, Chapter 1
examines the properties of the row used in the Woodwind Quintet. The discussion
continues, in Chapters 2, 3, and 4, by examining each movement from a different
analytical perspective, giving an overview of the work as a whole. Texture and
instrumentation are the focus of the discussion of the first movement; segmentation is
examined in the second movement; and rhythmic motives are studied in the third
movement. Rotation, inversion, and other serial techniques are examined in the work as
a whole. This thesis attempts to give an overview of Weinzweig's compositional style
while discussing specific passages from the Woodwind Quintet and their unique manner
of development.
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