Elements of modal writing in the “Piano Sonatin” by Peter Vermesy

Abstract

This article constitutes a study of the Romanian modern musical language of the 2nd half of the XXth century, as shown in the Piano Sonatina by Péter Vermesy. In the discourse with an obvious modal fragrance, the composer synthesizes the stylistic elements and composition techniques that have revolutionized modern European music, starting with Stravinski and reaching Bartok with his original harmonic „signature”: the axial system. In our approach, we follow precisely those distinct components and structures in the profile of the tone-modal discourse as they unfold in a miniature work belonging to an instrumental genre flourishing in the consciousness of great classics and reevaluated after two centuries. Thus we discover a classical expression vested in the surprising and original light of the new harmonic conceptions, in a tone-modal blend of the Romanian soul.