Archaeological Testing at the John Brice II (Jennings-Brice) House, 18AP53, 195 Prince George Street, Annapolis, Maryland

In the fall of 1989, emergency excavation was undertaken in conjunction with restoration work at the John Brice II (Jennings-Brice) House, 18AP53. The exact date of construction for this brick home is problematic, and it was hoped that archaeological investigation could provide conclusive evidence to firmly establish the structure's date of construction. Excavation of one 5 X 5 ft. unit revealed the presence of 10 separate soil layers and four features of note, described in detail below. Unfortunately, no builders trench or similar feature by which we might date the house's construction was recovered. Future plans and possibilities for excavation at the property are outlined with the hopes of performing subsequent work at this rich site. We anticipate a focus on the arrangement and changes in use of the houselot, amassing evidence to support the presence of a vernacular garden on the property during the 18th century, as well as researching refuse disposal patterns, and clues to changing lifeways through the 18th century.

THE PIANO MUSIC OF ROBERT SCHUMANN (1810-1856) AND JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833- 1897): A SURVEY OF CONCERTI, VARIATIONS, AND CHARACTER PIECES

Robert Schumann (1810-1856) and Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), in some ways Robert Schumann's artistic descendant, are the most important and representative German piano composers during the Romantic period. Schumann was already a mature and established musician in 1853 when he first met the young Brahms and recognized his talents, an encounter that had a long-lasting affect on the lives and careers of both men. After Schumann’s mental breakdown and death, Brahms maintained his admiration of Schumann’s music and preserved an intimate relationship with Clara Schumann. In spite of the personal and musical closeness of the two men, Schumann’s music is stylistically distinct from that of Brahms. Brahms followed traditions from Baroque and Classical music, and avoided using images and expressive titles in his music. Brahms extraordinarily intermingled earlier musical forms with multicolored tones of German Romanticism. In contrast, Schumann saw himself as a radical composer devoted to personal emotionalism and spontaneity. He favored programmatic titles for his character pieces and extra-musical references in his music. While developing their own musical styles as German Romantic composers, Schumann and Brahms both utilized the piano as a resourceful tool for self-realization and compositional development. To investigate and compare the main characteristics of Schumann and Brahms’s piano music, I looked at three genres. First, in the category of the piano concerto, I chose two major Romantic works, Schumann’s A minor concerto and Brahms’s B-flat major concerto. Second, for the category of piano variations I included two sets by Brahms because the variation framework was such an important vehicle for him to express his musical thoughts. Schumann’s unique motivic approach to variation is displayed vividly in his character-piece cycle Carnaval. Third, the category of the character piece, perhaps the favorite medium of Romantic expression at the piano, is shown by Schumann’s Papillons and Brahms’s sets of pieces Op.118 and Op.119. This performance dissertation consists of three recitals performed in the Gildenhorn Recital Hall at the University of Maryland, College Park. These recitals are documented on compact disc recordings that are housed within the University of Maryland Library System.