René Espere’s concert pieces: from the composer’s concept to the performance interpretation

Abstract

Statement of the problem. Under consideration is René Eespere’s piano works created during the period of his maturity. The composer’s work is marked not only by its depth and originality, but also reflects the spiritual wealth and national identity of the Estonian people. Estonian music remains little known in Ukraine, therefore the article proposes to popularize the work of René Eespere, which will contribute to the establishment of cultural communication between Ukraine and Estonia. The research is based on performance experience and scientific analysis of three concert pieces by the composer: “Ludus tactus”, “Alter ego” and “Persona mea”. Analysis of recent research and publications. The article based upon the studies by K. Pappel (1992) and S. Pylypenko (2021, 2023) who highlight René Eespere’s piano works created by him during the period of creative searches (until 1995). Information pertaining to the mature phase of the composer’s career, is derived from various sources: the press materials (Hinn, 2016), interviews (Colucci, 2012), and our personal correspondence with the composer. The theoretical base of the study is formed by the works of Ukrainian musicologists, contributed to the theory of interpretation of musical works (Moskalenko, 2013) and musical communication as an interpretive phenomenon (Nikolaievska, 2021), performance issues (Bezborodko, 2017; Verkina, Bondarenko, Sagalova, & Timofeyeva, 2020; Chernyavska, Ivanova, Timofeyeva, Syriatska, & Mits, 2023), typologies of compositional styles (Serhaniuk, Shapovalova, Shehda, Kazymyriv, & Kolubayev, 2021). Objectives, methods, and novelty of the research. The purpose of the study is to highlight the conceptual aspects of compositional thinking and its embodiment in performance on the example of René Eespere’s three concert pieces for piano. The genre and stylistic, functional and structural, compositional and dramaturgical, as well as interpretive methods were used in the study. The article presents the first theoretical and performance analysis of René Eespere’s concert pieces in the Ukrainian musicological field. Research results and conclusion. The history of creation of works is described; the conceptual principles of compositional and performing thinking are highlighted; the regularities of the musical dramaturgy of each of the opuses were analyzed; a complex of expressive means is revealed; a brief description of the content and a scientific analysis of the works are given. It has been established that the concert piece “Ludus tactus” has significant compositional and performing potential, because the multifaceted author’s idea of the piece requires of flexibility and freedom in its pianistic implementation. The first performance of the piece by Ralf Taal is analyzed, which is of great interest, because the pianist’s artistic and technical skill allows him to find harmony between the author’s idea and his own performance vision of the composition . The piece “Alter ego” is aimed at revealing the artistic possibilities of a pianist, promotes the development of his artistic and emotional thinking, which is demonstrated by Polina Abolimova’s interpretation of the piece, the young performer who skillfully conveys its content aspects, its artistic sophistication. The piece “Persona mea” is the composer’s “small-format self-portrait”, an example of sound self- expression of the artist. The rendition of the piece by famous Estonian pianist Kalle Randalu, analyzed in the article from the point of view of the objectification of the composer’s idea, is a bright example of its interpretation, impeccable in the technical aspect, exceptionally detailed and refined in the sound.