A Study: Steven Stucky's Notturno."": an Interpretation and Analysis of a Late Twentiethcentury Work for Saxophone and Piano

Scholars and professional saxophonists regard thecompositions for saxophone written during theinter-war period (1918-1945) to be the foundation ofthe modern saxophone repertoire. However, many workscomposed during the third and fourth quarter of thetwentieth century surpass those of the previousperiod and clearly establish a new standard ofwriting for the modern saxophone. This new standardof classical performance practice for the saxophonerepresents an evolution in technique and sound. Thisstudy examines the composition Notturno (1981) forsaxophone and piano by the American composer StevenStucky. The express purpose of this study is toelicit a greater understanding of present-daysaxophone performance practices by examining a workthat contains quintessential characteristics of thenew modern performance practice standard. Specificperformance techniques contained in Notturno arebriefly contextualized historically, and described indetail. Performance suggestions are also offered toassist the performer in realizing those techniques.