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open access

Background, Compositional Style, and Performance Considerations in the Clarinet Works of David Baker: Clarinet Sonata and Heritage: A Tribute to Great Clarinetists

Description: David Baker (b. 1931) is an educator, composer, and jazz legend. He has composed at least fifteen works that include the clarinet. Baker’s Clarinet Sonata (1989) has become a standard of clarinet repertoire and a popular recital inclusion. His chamber work Heritage: A Tribute to Great Clarinetists (1996) interweaves solo transcriptions of five jazz clarinetists. The compositional style of Baker’s clarinet works frequently links jazz and classical idioms. The two works discussed in this document… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Lin, Sheng-Hsin
open access

A Comparison of Methods for Sight-Reading Development Utilizing Collegiate Saxophonists

Description: The ability to sight-read well is held as a highly regarded and important skill in music performance and education. Over the past 90 years, researchers have investigated several aspects of music sight-reading, especially those attributes possessed by skilled sight-readers. A significant and recurrent finding from this body of research is the relationship between sight-reading and rhythm recognition. Though these studies have found positive effects and correlations between rhythm recognition and… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Campbell, Scott (Saxophonist)
open access

A comparison of Petar Christoskov’s Op. 1 and Op. 24 Caprices for Solo Violin: The effect of the changing Bulgarian political climate on his compositional style

Description: Bulgaria, though a fairly small Eastern European country, boasts an ancient history of folk traditions and music; however, very few notated works exist due to the people's primitive lifestyle throughout Bulgaria's history. Singing and dancing as well as creating instruments from wood and animal skin were considered an integral part of everyday life, equal to cooking, sewing, herding, or farming; in fact, one almost always accompanied the other. Thus, more than 1500 years of folklore was orally … more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Vassileva, Veronika
open access

Compositional approaches within new media paradigms

Description: "Compositional Approaches to New Media Paradigms" is the discursive accompaniment to the original composition BoMoH, (a new media chamber opera. A variety of new media concepts and practices are discussed in relation to their use as a contemporary compositional methodology for computer musicians and digital content producers. This paper aligns relevant discourse with a variety of concepts as they influence and affect the compositional process. This paper does not propose a new working method; r… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Oliveiro, Mark, 1983-
open access

The Concerto for Bassoon by Andrzej Panufnik: Religion, Liberation, and Postmodernism

Description: The Concerto for Bassoon by Andrzej Panufnik is a valuable addition to bassoon literature. It provides a rare opportunity for the bassoon soloist to perform a piece which is strongly programmatic. The purpose of this document is to examine the historical and theoretical context of the Concerto for Bassoon with special emphasis drawn to Panufnik's understanding of religion in connection with Polish national identity and the national struggle for democratic independence galvanized by the murder… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Ott, Janelle (Bassoonist)
open access

Helen Kotas (1916-200): A Female Pioneer in Major US Orchestras

Description: Helen Kotas was an accomplished musician and teacher who helped open the door for women in major US orchestras. In 1941 the Chicago Symphony hired its first female brass musician, principal hornist Helen Kotas. With that daring move, she became a pioneer for her gender in the major orchestras of North America. Despite her many contributions to the musical community, Kotas's life has not been researched and documented. This paper looks at Helen Kotas's career as well as a glimpse at her life an… more
Date: May 2011
Creator: Thayer, Heather Leweise
open access

Intraoral Pressure and Sound Pressure During Woodwind Performance

Description: For woodwind and brass performers, intraoral pressure is the measure of force exerted on the surface area of the oral cavity by the air transmitted from the lungs. This pressure is the combined effect of the volume of air forced into the oral cavity by the breathing apparatus and the resistance of the embouchure, reed opening, and instrument’s back pressure. Recent research by Michael Adduci shows that intraoral pressures during oboe performance can exceed capabilities for corresponding increas… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Bowling, Micah
open access

Looking through a Different Lens, Beyond Censorship: The American Reception of Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District

Description: The censorship of Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District is a familiar story to musicologists, but reception of the opera is not frequently mentioned. Examining the reception of a work can bring a work's relative importance into focus. In this thesis, German literary and reception theorist Hans Robert Jauss's model of the horizon of expectations is applied to reviews of American productions of Lady Macbeth. Curiosity about communism following the Great Depression in 1930s, America and American mu… more
Date: August 2017
Creator: Cassell, Holly
open access

Louis Vierne’s Pièces de Fantaisie, Opp. 51, 53, 54, and 55: Influence from Claude Debussy and Standard Nineteenth-Century Practices

Description: The purpose of this research is to document how Claude Debussy’s compositional style was used in Louis Vierne’s organ music in the early twentieth century. In addition, this research seeks standard nineteenth-century practices in Vierne’s music. Vierne lived at the same time as Debussy, who largely influenced his music. Nevertheless, his practices were varied on the basis of Vierne’s own musical ideas and development, which were influenced by established nineteenth-century practices. This resea… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Lee, Hyun Kyung (Organist)
open access

Modern Api Design and Physical Computing Techniques in Just Intonation Performance Practice

Description: approached previously by both Harry Partch and Ben Johnston, and proposes the decoupling of interface and sound production as a way forward. The design and implementation of a software instrument and a hardware prototype are described, both using a simple API for variable tuning instruments. The hardware prototype uses physical computing techniques to control the tuning of a string with a servo motor, while the software instrument exists entirely in a web browser. Finally, potential algorithms … more
Date: May 2013
Creator: Sonnabaum, Mark
open access

The Natural Learning Process and Its Implications for Trombone Pedagogy

Description: This thesis considers the natural learning process as defined by Timothy Gallwey and Daniel Kohut. This learning theory is examined and applied to trombone pedagogy while also considering physiological attributes to trombone performance. a brief synopsis of the history and lineage of the trombone is considered in order to understand the current setting of the trombone medium.
Date: May 2012
Creator: Reider, Shane Robert
open access

Nihilism and the Formulation of a Philosophy of Art

Description: Nihilism is often associated with feelings of despair, hopelessness and meaningless. It is certainly true that once the implications of this philosophy become apparent that these feelings are valid. However, this reaction is merely the first stage of dealing with nihilism and stopping here fails to examine the various types of nihilism that deal specifically with knowledge, ethics, metaphysics, truth, and art. Nihilism at its base is a philosophy that recognizes the history of human thought and… more
Date: May 2011
Creator: Hernandez, Brian
open access

Orchestra Bells as a Chamber and Solo Instrument: A Survey of Works by Steve Reich, Morton Feldman, Franco Donatoni, Robert Morris, Marta Ptaszyńska, Will Ogdon, Stuart Saunders Smith, Lafayette Gilchrist and Roscoe Mitchell

Description: This dissertation considers the use of orchestra bells as a solo instrument. I use three examples taken from chamber literature (Drumming by Steve Reich, Why Patterns? by Morton Feldman, and Ave by Franco Donatoni) to demonstrate uses of the instrument in an ensemble setting. I use six solo, unaccompanied orchestra bell pieces (Twelve Bell Canons by Robert Morris, Katarynka by Marta Ptaszyńska, Over by Stuart Saunders Smith, A Little Suite and an Encore Tango by Will Ogdon, Breaks Through by La… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Douglass, Mark
open access

A Pattern Oriented Data Structure for Interactive Computer Music

Description: This essay describes a pattern oriented data structure, or PODS, as a system for storing computer music data. It organizes input by sequences or patterns that recur, while extensively interlinking the data. The interlinking process emulates cognitive models, while the pattern processing draws specifically from music cognition. The project aims at creating open source external objects for the Max/MSP software environment. The computer code for this project is in the C and Objective-C compute… more
Date: May 2011
Creator: Lockhart, Adam
open access

The Recorded Legacy of Enrico Caruso and its Influence on the Italian Vocal Tradition

Description: This dissertation presents evidence for the influence which tenor Enrico Caruso had on the Italian Vocal Tradition. This impact was clearly boosted by the revolution realized in the fledgling recording industry, and the recordable disc. In the years of 1902-1920 gramophones became commonplace, and collecting recordings became an interest for many. This new technology required specialized skills, and was especially suited to certain qualities of voice. Caruso enjoyed immense success in this med… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Garst, John
open access

Reviewing Commercial Music Resources: a Guide for Aspiring Singers and Vocal Professionals

Description: Contemporary commercial music is a broad label used to describe the styles of popular music including pop, rock, rhythm and blues, jazz, hip-hop, country and heavy metal. the vocal ability required for each of these genres varies greatly but may require the use of screaming, belting, utilizing vocal fry and growling or singing with a breathy or dark tone. Singers who wish to perform in these genres may need assistance with vocal technique to assure the longevity and the quality of their singing… more
Date: May 2012
Creator: Hanlon, Susan Christina
open access

A Schenkerian Analysis of Beethoven's E Minor Piano Sonata, Opus 90

Description: This thesis examines the history and origins of Beethoven's E minor Piano Sonata and examines the possibility of the programmatic conception of the work. Dedicated to Beethoven's friend Count Moritz Lichnowsky, the sonata may have been inspired by the Count's illicit affair with his future wife, the singer and actress Josefa Stummer. Providing a thorough Schenkerian analysis of both movements, the inner harmonic structure of the composition is revealed and explained. The author also investigate… more
Date: May 2010
Creator: Treber, Stefan L.
open access

The Sound-Poetry of the Instability of Reality: Mimesis and the Reality Effect in Music, Literature, and Visual Art

Description: This paper uses the concept of mimesis to clarify the debate concerning the representation of reality in music. Specifically, this study defines the audio reality effect and the three main practices of realism as a way of understanding mimetic practices in multiple artistic media, in particular regarding the multimedia works of the "Landscape series." After addressing the historical debates concerning mimesis, this study develops a framework for the understanding of mimesis in sound by addressi… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Underriner, Chaz, 1987-
open access

A Study of Neoclassical Elements in Ernst Krenek's George Washington Variations, op. 120

Description: The purpose of this study is to explore neoclassical elements present in Krenek’s George Washington Variations. By identifying the stylistic features associated with the eighteenth and twentieth centuries, the study will examine Krenek’s application of his neoclassical tendencies. Key neoclassical elements include musical form and structure, key relationships, melody and harmony, and chromaticism. Since at this time there is little research on Krenek’s piano works, and none on the George Washin… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Jeon, Eun Deok
open access

Transient Delete: Original Composition with a Critical Examination of the Compositional Process and a Survey of Digital Technology in Opera

Description: This paper explores various technologies available to the modern composer and utilized in recent modern opera, providing creative approaches to producing aural, visual, and theatrical performance environments. It also explores my own use of digital technology in Transient Delete. Transient Delete is a digital miniature-opera that explores different aspects of a community of post-human cyborgs. The story follows Iméra, a newly converted cyborg as she acclimates herself to this new cybernetic exi… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Shirey, Benjamin, 1985-
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