Partnership in Modern Music: Charles Seeger and Ruth Crawford, 1929-31

Abstract

newed attention.' Important studies that seek to illustrate the use of Seeger's theory in Crawford's own compositions have preceded and followed the publication of this treatise. Fortunately, a major recent biography sheds new light on Crawford's influence on the formation of Seeger's composition theory.2 My work expands on the idea that during the crucial period from 1929 to 1931 the partnership between Seeger and Crawford generated the core of inquiry through which Crawford crystallized her musical expression in composition and Seeger synthesized his thoughts on modern musical composition-ideas that would eventually find expression in his treatise. This core of inquiry may also have contributed to the notable evolution of Seeger's treatise during the period of Crawford's study with him.3 In order to examine the Crawford-Seeger partnership in modern music, this article will study various sketches and versions of Seeger's treatise, tracing the shifting focus on selected theoretical/compositional issues that emerged at different stages of its development. The treatise is treated not as a self-contained compositional theory but rather as a thinking and working process in which the focus was significantly modified over the period encompassing Crawford's involvement. This article will then analyze the governing principles of the much-