Jacobus Kloppers (born 1937) acquired fame in South Africa for his compositions of organ music for liturgical purposes. Internationally, he is especially recognised for his studies on Johann Sebastian Bach. Although Kloppers has been residing in Edmonton, Canada, from 1976, a variety of his organ compositions have already been published in South Africa.
In this research study, the focus will be on Kloppers as musicologist and composer. The aim of this study is to acquire more knowledge about Jacobus Kloppers' creative outputs as musicologist and composer of organ music by determining the link between his unique music philosophy and organ compositions after 1993.
Qualitative research was selected as research method for this empirical study. The research method includes an intrinsic single case study with two units of analysis, namely Kloppers' music philosophy and the organ works composed after 1993. Each of the units of analysis involved thematic and content analysis as respective data processing methods.
In this research study a link was found between these two interdisciplinary fields in Kloppers' life. It exists in the foundation and principles of his music philosophy, in the characteristics of his compositional style, and includes integration and coherence for the purpose of creating unity within variety.
This study provides new information about Kloppers' compositional oeuvre after 1993, as well as his unique music philosophy. The juxtaposition of these two interdisciplinary fields creates scope for unlocking knowledge and insight. This study will be of interest to organists, composers, pianists, saxophonists, singers, philosophers, theologians, as well as researchers of South African music history.
Afrikaans: Jacobus Kloppers (gebore 1937) het veral bekendheid in Suid-Afrika verwerf vir sy
komposisies van orrelmusiek vir liturgiese doeleindes. Internasionaal word hy veral
erken vir sy studies oor Johann Sebastian Bach. Alhoewel Kloppers vanaf 1976 in
Edmonton, Kanada, woonagtig is, is ʼn verskeidenheid van sy orrelkomposisies reeds
in Suid-Afrika gepubliseer.
Daar word in hierdie navorsingstudie lig gewerp op Kloppers as musikoloog en
komponis. Die doel van hierdie studie is om meer kennis oor Jacobus Kloppers se
kreatiewe uitsette as musikoloog en komponis van orrelmusiek te bekom deur die
verband tussen sy unieke musiekfilosofie en orrelkomposisies ná 1993 te bepaal.
Kwalitatiewe navorsing is as navorsingsmetode vir hierdie empiriese studie gekies.
Die navorsingsmetode sluit ʼn intrinsieke enkelgevallestudie in met twee eenhede van
analise, naamlik Kloppers se musiekfilosofie en die orrelwerke wat ná 1993
gekomponeer is. Elk van die eenhede van analise het onderskeidelik tematiese en
inhoudsanalise as dataverwerkingsmetodes behels.
In hierdie navorsingstudie is daar ʼn verband tussen hierdie twee interdissiplinêre velde
in Kloppers se lewe gevind. Dit manifesteer in die onderbou en beginsels van sy
musiekfilosofie en in eienskappe van sy komposisiestyl en sluit integrasie en
samehang in met die doel om eenheid in verskeidenheid te skep.
Hierdie studie verskaf nuwe inligting oor Kloppers se komposisie-oeuvre ná 1993,
asook sy unieke musiekfilosofie. Die twee interdissiplinêre velde in jukstaposisie skep
ruimte vir die ontsluiting van kennis en insig. Hierdie studie sal vir orreliste,
komponiste, pianiste, saksofoniste, sangers, filosowe, teoloë, asook vir navorsers van
Suid-Afrikaanse musiekgeskiedenis van belang wees.
