East meets West: reconciling performance tradition in the clarinet works of Isang Yun

© 2019 Dr. Sungpil LeeThis research project explores the clarinet works of Korean composer Isang Yun (1917-1995). Yun spent his formative years in Europe and pioneered a fusion of Eastern and Western musical styles through his appropriation of Korean traditional techniques, East Asian philosophies and what he called Hauptton (main-tone) technique. He is widely recognized as the most influential Korean composer of the twentieth century and his contribution has been acknowledged internationally, especially in Europe. This performance-based thesis consists of a portfolio of performance recordings (75%) and a written dissertation (25%). The three recordings focus on the clarinet music of Yun in both solo and chamber contexts alongside other contemporary compositions. Yun’s ties to European modernism inform Program 1 while works of his Asian influences are highlighted in the second recorded program. Program 3 presents Yun’s chamber music for clarinet. This amalgam of performance recordings is supported by a dissertation detailing influences, contexts and techniques relevant to the performance of Yun’s clarinet works. The instrumental techniques of Korean wind instruments such as piri and daegeum are considered and analysed for insights relevant to the clarinet, and the application of contemporary techniques such as multiphonics are explored in the dissertation. Yun’s solo oboe piece Piri (1971) takes its inspiration from the Korean instrument piri. The re-interpretations of this piece by many renowned clarinetists have been observed through an analysis of three clarinet recordings, and the realisation of my transcription for clarinet has been added to the research project to help clarinetists perform this piece with a specific clarinet score and instructions. Performance suggestions, including fingering charts, are provided at the end of the dissertation, and are based on my research and intensive practice sessions. Through a combination of performance recordings, research, analysis and transcription, this project offers a guide to the performance of Yun’s clarinet works and draws implications for the performance of clarinet music by his contemporaries