Beyond “Gypsy” Stereotypes: Harmony and Structure in theVerbunkosIdiom

Abstract

Verbunkos elements were incorporated into European concert music, to a large extent, in order to represent "Gypsy" exoticism or Hungarian nationalism. Yet this representational impetus does not tell us enough about the transcultural influence of the verbunkos idiom during the long nineteenth century: What were its discrete musical qualities and how have these qualities interacted with composers' thinking and techniques? An examination of representative music-particularly that of Franz Liszt-reveals little-known harmonic practices and structural principles whose obscurity belies their importance to innovative composers, and by extension, to compositional developments in the nineteenth century.

A ‘New Scale’ from the Beyond:Verbunkosand Triadic Transformations in a Piece Attributed to the Spirit of Liszt by Rosemary Brown

“…In place of expressions such as ‘Gypsy’ or ‘Hungarian‐Gypsy’, Loya adopts the term verbunkos . This is because, among other reasons, ‘ Style hongrois describes exotic “Gypsy” musical topics as understood by primarily Austro‐German and then generally European composers’ (Loya 2008, p. 257). Verbunkos , on the other hand, ‘is a more neutral generic term that simply stands for the musical materials and practices derived from verbunkos , materials and practices which may or may not participate in representation, but are always part of a transcultural exchange’ (ibid., p. 258).…”

“…The core of Loya's work is the search for a cross‐cultural music analysis, connecting the theoretical and cultural‐historical branches of musicology, and understanding verbunkos as a structural and authentically transcultural element in Liszt's music. In Loya's words, Liszt's music ‘demonstrates, almost by default, a clear connection between verbunkos material and structural/harmonic innovation’ (2008, p. 257). That is to say, Liszt extracts structural and original consequences from verbunkos for his musical language.…”

“…The terms ‘Hungarian minor’ and ‘Gypsy’ scale usually correspond to the harmonic minor with its fourth degree raised. However, in Loya's words, ‘The concept of a “Gypsy minor scale” does not even begin to do justice to the richness of verbunkos ‐related modality’ (2008, p. 275). More importantly, the idea of a plurality of scales, initially raised by Bárdos, ‘is palpably supported by Liszt's music’ (Loya 2006, p. 47).…”

“…However, in Loya's words, ‘The concept of a “Gypsy minor scale” does not even begin to do justice to the richness of verbunkos ‐related modality’ (2008, p. 275). More importantly, the idea of a plurality of scales, initially raised by Bárdos, ‘is palpably supported by Liszt's music’ (Loya 2006, p. 47). Indeed, ‘Liszt demonstrably uses several scales in his music, and […] he himself referred later in life (in a letter from July 1879) to these scales in the plural – “Certains modes magyars, tristes et nobles, me sont innées …”’ (ibid., p. 47 n. 71).…”

Mixture Strategies

“…(1) Musical hybridity, however, has yet to be thoroughly addressed as a general concept. Specific types of hybridity in music have in fact been approached in the following cases: (1) exoticism and orientalism from the Western perspective, with the important contributions of Bellman (1998), Evere (2004), Locke (2009Locke ( , 2015, Loya (2008, 2011), and Born and Hesmondhalgh (2000; (2) collage works in the research of Watkins (1994) and Losada (2004Losada ( , 2008Losada ( , 2009; (3) mashups in Boone (2011Boone ( , 2013; and (4) specific composers whose personal style is based on disparate combinations like Charles Ives (Burkholder 1995) and Alfred Schni ke (Dixon 2007;Tremblay 2007;Marsh 2017). (2) This scholarship provides useful insights and an informative set of tools for engagement with, and reflection and interpretation of, hybrid expressions.…”