Rupert
Luck has kindly allowed us to reproduce here his explanation
of the restoration of the Sonata:
The
Sonata is a single-movement work (the given title is Bliss's
own), dating, it seems, from about 1914, and has, hitherto,
existed only in manuscript form. This manuscript is in the
care of Cambridge University Library; and it appears that
the work was played privately, probably several times: the
pages show considerable wear at the edges and are 'dog-eared',
presumably in order to facilitate page-turns. Perhaps as a
result of these private playings, it seems that Bliss became
dissatisfied with several passages, crossing them through
in pencil. The revisions he composed, intended as substitutes
for these deleted passages, have only fairly recently come
to light, and are written on separate sheets of manuscript
paper which, nevertheless, are similarly stamped to those
on which the original version is written; the handwriting
is also similar, indicating that the revisions were composed
not long after the original was completed.
In
restoring the work, I was able to determine the intended order
and placement of the revisions within the context of the original
and thereby to complete a version which, I believe, is as
close as it is possible to come, at this stage, to Bliss's
final intentions.
©
Rupert Luck 2010