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The Adagio of Mahler's Ninth Symphony: A Schenkerian Analysis and Examination of the Farewell Story
Mahler's Ninth Symphony, since its premier in 1912, has sparked much debate about its programmatic meaning. This thesis provides an in-depth analysis of the Adagio and an examination of the controversy of the farewell story. In the process of the analysis I have compared my findings to some of the important authors in Mahler's field such as Vera Micznik, Henry-Louis de La Grange, and Christopher Orlo Lewis. Some of the conclusions are that a closer investigation of the music is necessary and that the programmatic reading of the farewell story can be appropriate.
Preferential Strategies in Elliott Carter's String Quartet No. 2
For the purposes of expressive intent, Carter developed compositional strategies that possess qualities congruent with the musical language in his Second Quartet (1959). He employed strategies including tempo modulation, triple groupings, and large-scale ratios to assemble the musical discourse and to guide the listener's perception of large-scale continuity. I label these devices collectively as "preferential strategies" because it is Carter who selects certain pre-compositional ideas that organize musical material and demarcate structural locations. Tempo modulations that organize dual meters and triple groupings that interact in transitional and transformational ways demonstrate his concern with controlling the overall time continuity through local level organization. Large-scale ratio relations between nine interlocking sections of this four movement work illustrate how Carter employs a local strategy that projects a large-scale structure. Recognizing that Carter's ultimate compositional goal prioritizes temporal processes, these proposed preferred strategies articulate a convergence of musical elements.
Musical Borrowing: Referential Treatment in American Popular Music
This thesis examines the relationships between popular contemporary musical styles and classic-era art music. Analysis of pop-rock songs, and their referential treatment in art rock, classical music, and society will be examined. Pop-rock musicians borrow from the masters of the past and from each other. Rock guitarists such as Eddie Van Halen employ a virtuosic technique suggestive of Liszt and Paganini. The group Rush borrowed freely from opera seria. Frank Zappa referenced contemporary musicians as well as classical techniques. Referential treatment in popular music and the recent advancements in technology, have challenged copyright law. How these treatments and technologies affect copyright legislators and musicians will be discussed.
The Pitch Content of Selected Piano Works of Toru Takemitsu
The purpose of this study is to examine the pitch content and compositional techniques of Takemitsu's recent solo piano works, which have not been analyzed by Koozin, and to trace the evolution of his techniques in his solo piano works during his career. It also discusses how Takemitsu projects his philosophy and aesthetics of musical composition through Western musical idioms.
Harmonic Organization in Aaron Copland's Piano Quartet
This thesis presents an analysis of Copland's first major serial work, the Quartet for Piano and Strings (1950), using pitch-class set theory and tonal analytical techniques.
Assimilation of Baroque and Classical Essence with Romantic Sentiment: a Structural Analysis of Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy's Sonata in C Minor for Organ, Opus 62, No. 2
The purpose of this study is to examine Sonata No. 2 in detail from many analytical perspectives including melodies, rhythms, harmonic progressions, tonal plans, voice leading, and cadential patterns on macro- and micro-levels. It is believed that a more in-depth discussion of the composition from the perspective of harmony and voice leading may provide answer for the questions raised, and correct some misinterpretations in the works of certain writers. Furthermore, through analysis of Sonata No. 2. this study will show the relationship of the use of formal, stylistic, harmonic features between Mendelssohn and other composers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
Theory and Practice in the Traditional Chinese Music: Observations and Analysis
Chinese music has one of the longest histories of development of all music cultures of the world. A system of music (theory) was formulated, in its unique way, but is differed fundamentally from its occidental counterpart. The discussion of this thesis focuses on the following two aspects: (1) the observations on those musical and non-musical factors, which had conditioned the course of development of Chinese music and (2) the analysis of selected examples to summarize the tonal structures and modal patterns, particularly, on the modal and modulatory analysis. A comparison of similarities and differences on melodic gesture between Chinese and Western tonal practice is also included in this study.
Tonality and Harmonic Motion in Copland's Appalachian Spring
In Appalachian Spring, Aaron Copland creates a unique tonal environment. Although often considered a tonal work, it contains many non-functional progressions and techniques that belie common-practice norms. The entire first movement, and sections of other movements contain no harmonic motion, in part because tonic and dominant chords sound together as a single sonority. In other movements, harmonic motion, in part because tonic and dominant chords sound together as a single sonority. In other movements, harmonic motion is increased by shifts to third-related keys, and non-functional progressions. Also, the variations on the melody "Simple Gifts" never employ common-practice techniques. Through the free use of materials, Copland creates an individualistic example of tonality in twentieth-century music.
Scriabin: A New Theory of Harmony and Structure
The thesis speculates upon the source of Scriabin's pitch selection in several of his atonal works, concluding that Scriabin's "principle" stems from his own "mystic chord," its inversion at the major third, and the transposition of these two chords at the tritone. These four chords share the same invariant harmonic basis, Scriabin's characteristic French-sixth sonority. The quartet of chords combine to form two nine-note scales, each containing as a subset the octatonic scale. The thesis demonstrates how Scriabin composed his works in harmonic blocks, utilizing only the notes from these scales. The thesis traces Scriabin's atonal style back to his tonal period. His fascination with tritone adjacencies and relationships is discussed, and serves to support the theory. Other harmonic and linear theories are discussed. Also, the thesis shows how Scriabin used these scales structurally in his works.
An Analysis of Dominick Argento's "Peter Quince at the Clavier": the Music and Its Relationship to the Text
Dominick Argento (b. 1927) occupies an important position among American composers. This thesis discusses his 1980 choral work Peter Quince at the Clavier: Sonatina for Mixed Chorus and Piano Concertante. On the surface, the choral and piano parts of this four movement work often sound dissimilar. To create unity within this composition, Argento utilizes a small number of generative elements that govern the pitch, intervallic, and rhythmic dimensions of the composition. This thesis also discusses the relationship between the music and the text, a poem by Wallace Stevens (1879-1955).
The Chaconne Bass as a Musical Topos in Mozart's Fantasia Music
This thesis provides evidence that a particular "topos" from the high Baroque's exalted style, the so-called chaconne bass, made a profound impact on a considerable body of Mozart's compositions from the last ten years of his life in Vienna. After identifying the topos in the first chapter, a detailed study in chapter two shows how Mozart's faith in the extraordinary emotional power carried by this topos was enough for him to work it into all of the completed keyboard fantasias. Chapter three illustrates that an understanding of the chaconne bass and its unmistakable association with the fantasia style can shed new light on three of Mozart's most enigmatic compositions from his final period, K. 465, K. 491, and K. 527.
Heroes Are Born Then Made
Heroes Are Born Then Made is a theatre piece involving live actors on stage, and live music originating from an orchestra pit. The script and music is original. The music is meant to literally depict actions and emotions on stage whether the actors are present or not. The duration of the entire production is about two and one-half hours long. Six main actors are used with additional walk-ons. Sixteen musicians are required to make up the orchestra which is organized into a woodwind quartet, a brass trio, a string quartet, a piano, and a percussion quartet. The play is based on the author's conception of how people tend to treat each other when someone is caught at a disadvantage. Specifically it is a depiction of the conflict involved when the minor characters discover that the main character is trying to do something quite different from their definition of "normal."
Analysis of Nocturnal op. 70 by Benjamin Britten
Nocturnal op. 70 is one of the most important large-scale works written for guitar in the twentieth century. Brief biographical data and some background information on Nocturnal show how it exemplifies Britten's compositional approach. The focus of the analysis is on three structural aspects: the rhythmic, the intervallic, and the aspect of underlying pitch patterns. The rhythmic analysis discusses the distortion of rhythmic patterns by the use of compression, expansion, elisions, syncopation, and rhythmic dissonance. The pitch set analysis discusses the intervallic character of the work, identifying and correlating set types as they form networks of relationship. The reductive analysis discusses the underlying connections of focal pitches in the linear material of Nocturnal. The conclusion then correlates the results of the preceding analyses, discussing the large-scale unfolding of the form in Nocturnal.
A Study Of Lu-Pitch Name Signification: A Translation with Commentary
The purpose of this thesis is to provide translation of documents on lu from two primary sources for a study of the theory of ,lu, with the main focus on the interpretation and the signification attached to each of the twelve lu-pitch names. To establish the background information of the lu-10 system, an explanation of its acoustical properties is first presented. Based on the most important and widely used tonal system in ancient China -- the san-fen-sun-i system, the illustration is provided for the process of tone generation. Methods proposed by the main theorists who engaged in the discussion of the system of lu are presented. The introduction of the concept of yin and yang in reference to the twelve lu and the signification of the lu-lu system in relation to the human and natural world will also be discussed. The main body of this study is devoted to the translation of written references on the meaning of the twelve lu. The first part is the translation of the selected passages from The Anthology of the Historical Document of Ancient Chinese Music. edited by Tsai-Ping Liang; the second part is the translation of a modern exegesis from an article written by Deh-I Liu. This translation offers a perspective to understand the concept of l-pitch names from the ancient points of view in relation to philosophy, education, religion, and science.
The Elements of Jazz Harmony and Analysis
This study develops a method for analyzing jazz piano music, primarily focusing on the era 1935-1950. The method is based on axiomatic concepts of jazz harmony, such as the circle of fifths and root position harmonies. 7-10 motion between root and chordal seventh seems to be the driving force in jazz motion. The concept of tritone substitution leads to the idea of a harmonic level, i.e., a harmony's distance from the tonic. With this method in hand, various works of music are analyzed, illustrating that all harmonic motion can be labelled into one of three categories. The ultimate goal of this analytic method is to illustrate the fundamental harmonic line which serves as the harmonic framework from which the jazz composer builds.
The Fantasias of John Dowland: An Analysis
In spite of an increasing interest in the analysis of Renaissance music by contemporary theorists, few analyses of lute music exist. It is hoped that this thesis will serve to open a new area of analysis to scholars of Renaissance music. Chapter I deals with the background information necessary for the analysis, including Dowland's biography, lute history, technique, and notation, and the practice of modality on the lute. An overview of Dowland's music, especially the solo lute music, ends the chapter. Chapter II traces the form and development of the fantasia and surveys Dowland's seven fantasias. In Chapters III-V, the works are divided according to mode and analyzed in terms of counterpoint, dissonance, motivic development and modality. Chapter VI provides concluding remarks.
History and Development of Theory of Lü: A Translation of Selected Chapters of Huang Ti-Pei's Perspectives of Chinese Music
This study first narrates on the importance of theory of lü-lü (theory of tone generation) in the history of Chinese music from the Chou Dynasty (ca. 400 B.C.) to the Chin Dynasty (ca. end of 19th century), its symbolism and ramification. The main body of this study is devoted to critical translation of Huang Ti-Pei's Perspectives of Chinese Music, particularly those sections which give chronological narratives and comparative critiques of major theories of lü-lü, in order to provide the western scholarship with documents toward understanding the evolution of tone system of Chinese music. The study concludes with a comparison of Chinese tone systems from ancient time to present, and offers comments on comparison of tone systems between the eastern and western musics.
Messiaen's Influence on Post-War Serialism
The objective of this paper is to show how Olivier Messiaen's Mode de valeurs et d'intensites influenced the development of postwar serialism. Written at Darmstadt in 1949, Mode de valeurs is considered the first European work to organize systematically all the major musical parameters: pitch, duration, dynamics, articulation, and register. This work was a natural step in Messiaen's growth toward complete or nearly complete systemization of musical parameters, which he had begun working towards in earlier works such as Vingt regards sur 1'Enfant-Jesus (1944), Turangalila-symphonie (1946-8), and Cantyodjaya (1949), and which he continued to experiment with in later works such as Ile de Feu II (1951) and Livre d'orgue (1951). The degree of systematic control that Messiaen successfully applied to each of the musical parameters influenced two of the most prominent post-war serial composers, Pierre Boulez and Karlheinz Stockhausen, to further develop systematic procedures in their own works. This paper demonstrates the degree to which both Boulez' Structures Ia (1951) and Stockhausen's Kreuzspiel (1951) used Mode de valeurs as a model for the systematic organization of musical parameters.
Harry Partch: And on the Seventh Day Petals Fell on Petaluma
Harry Partch's tuning system is an important contribution to tuning theory, and his music is original and significant. Part One of this study presents a brief biography of Partch, a discussion of his musical aesthetics (Monophony and Corporeality), and a technical summary of his tuning system. These elements are placed in historical perspective. Part Two presents a comprehensive analysis of "And on the Seventh Day Petals Fell on Petaluma," discussing the organization of formal, textural, rhythmic, linear, and tonal elements in the thirty-four "verses" of the work. Part Two concludes by showing how large-scale structure in the work is achieved through an overlay process.
The Two-Part Framework in Selected Choral Works as a Harmonic and Stylistic Determinant
The problem with which this investigation is concerned is the determination of compositional styles in terms of manners of employing monadic and dyadic intervals in the music of the common practice period. An aspect for determining style is proposed by way of comparing the frequency of occurrence of dyads and monads in selected musical examples from the baroque, classical, and romantic periods. Chapter I is a discussion of the problem and methodology of the study. Chapters II, III, and IV present analytic comparison of examples in the baroque, classical, and romantic periods respectively. Chapter V presents a summary of the findings with references to the pedagogical applications of the two-part framework principle.
Seven Early Songs of Arnold Schoenberg from the Nachod Collection
Arnold Schoenberg viewed himself as an extension of the German Romantic tradition. Schoenberg's early unpublished songs prove his indebtedness to nineteenth century music, but they also show a great deal that is strictly Schoenbergian. This paper investigates the musical elements that Schoenberg assimilated from tradition, especially from the great Lied tradition of the nineteenth century. lements that may be associated with his later works are also investigated, namely the 2rundgestalt principle, and his use of the "primal cell," a trichord set that appears in works of all his periods. This paper shows how these elements are manifested in seven early songs. These songs are from the Nachod collection, an assemblage of correspondence and early unpublished music manuscripts by Schoenberg. This collection is owned by North Texas State University.
Béla Bartók's "Four Dirges" for Piano, Op. 9a: A Complete Analysis
The study of Bela Bartok's Four Dirges for piano (1909- 1910) is significant in that this period of 1908 to 1910 was particularly experimental and formative for Bartók, especially in tonal aspects of his compositional style. Furthermore, very little research and analysis has been done on these smaller works. This thesis contributes an analytical study of this early style and also shows its influence on larger mature works in subsequent years. A complete analysis on each dirge contains graphs of tonal structures and patterns constructed by Bartok within each composition. The concluding chapter summarizes overall characteristics of the dirges.
A Study of the Effects of Frequency Variance on Duration Perception
This study investigates the effects of frequency variance on duration perception, using musically trained subjects. In the experiment three silent duration intervals were examined (4.75, 5.00, and 5.25 seconds); each interval was preceded and followed by tone markers. The onset marker was preceded by seven discrete tones one second apart, on the frequency 174.968 Hertz. This established a pulse or an external standard time measure. The subjects made judgments as to whether the offset marker fell "before," "on," or "after," the pulse. The offset marker had a variable frequency. In the study, the direction of the frequency change, the distance of frequency change, and the mathematical intervallic relationships of the two frequencies show possible influence on duration perception.
A Study of Part Forms in the Selected Intermezzi (opp, 116-119) of Johannes Brahms
This study is an attempt to investigate part form structures in Brahms' Intermezzi, Opp. 116-119. Chapter One deals with the stylistic perspective in Brahms' piano writing in general as compared to his late works. Chapter Two concerns three aspects: 1) structural norms in part forms which are presented in many currently available textbooks on musical forms, 2) application of selected Brahms Intermezzi to above norms, and 3) the role of cadential types in part forms. Chapter Three analyzes structural aspects of all the Brahms Intermezzi in Opp. 116-119 and comments on pieces which appear problematic in terms of structural layout. Chapter Four, deals with the relationship between different thematic types and overall formal schemes.
Debussy's Use of the Motive in Thematic Construction as Found in "Images I" for Piano
This study seeks to discover the extent and manner of Debussy's use of the motive in thematic material. A total of 40 melodic examples were analyzed in order to show their relationship to a single motive, a three-note figure having a step-leap relationship. Using eighty-four series of examples, the study shows the melodies analyzed to be 85% motive-derived. The study concludes, therefore, that Images I is a remarkably economical work, using a single three-note motive as a unifying and developmental basis.
An Analysis of Growth in Karel Husa's Music for Prague, 1968
The problem is to relate four parameters, thematic development, chord tension, tonality, and rhythm to musical Growth in Karel Husa's Music for Prague 1968. The analytical technique consists of determining a typology and relating that to Growth and is applied in small dimensions to the "Introduction" and in large dimensions to the whole composition. Movement in the composition is goal oriented, and each parameter contributes in different ways, one providing contrast, another continuity, and another variety. Shapes are delineated by cadences characterized by a decrease followed by an increase in Movement. Growth is characterized by Shapes in which Movement starts at a low level, moves to a climax three quarters through, and relaxes for the end of the Shape.
Key Schemes and Modulation Techniques in the Development Sections of First Movements in Sonata-Allegro Form of Piano Sonatas by Haydn
Sections of Haydn's piano sonatas chosen for study have been analyzed to determine the composer's technique in modulation and the key schemes resulting from these modulations, and to discover the consistent patterns and exceptional patterns in these sonata movements as a group. As revealed in this analysis, Haydn is consistent in that the key scheme patterns of several development sections are identical. Also modulations, as categorized according to key relationships, are often accomplished by the same or similar procedures. However, there are important and interesting exceptions to these consistent practices which add variety and seem to contribute to Haydn's growth as a composer
A Comparative Analysis of the Expositions in the Fugues of J.S. Bach in the Well-Tempered Clavier and Those of Paul Hindemith in Ludus Tonalis
The problem with, which this thesis is concerned is that of analyzing and comparing the fugal writing and contrapuntal style of J. S. Bach in the fugue expositions of The Well-Tempered Clavier and that of Paul Hindemith in the fugue expositions of the Ludus Tonalis. This comparison is made on the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the fugal expositions both collections of fugues mentioned ( The Well-Tempered by Bach and the Ludus Tonalis by Hindemith). Chapter I includes a discussion of the careers and compositional techniques of Bach and Hindemith. An emphasis is placed on a comparison of Bach's fugal writing with that of his immediate predecessors (composers of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries who were writing in the fugal style) and on a comparison Of Hindemith's theory of tonality, as expressed in The Craft of Musical Composition, with that of the traditional harmonic concept of Bach's day. Chapter II deals with the evolution of the fugal concept. In this chapter, imitative forms of composition which gradually evolved toward the fugue are traced from their very early beginnings through the sixteenth, seventeenth, eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth centuries. Emphasis is placed on the fugal form that Bach used and on Hindemith's neo-Baroque approach to fugal writing in the twentieth century. In Chapters III and IV, analyses are made of the expositions in the forty-eight fugues of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier and Hindemith's Ludus Tonalis .There is a discussion of the number of voices, order of entries", order of statements of the theme, key relationships, and redundant entries. Also discussed In these chapters are the beginning and ending notes of the Subject, a change in tonality of the subject range and length of the subjects. There is, further, a discussion of the real and tonal answers and the reasons for the …
A Comparison of Sixteenth Century Polyphonic Devices Used by Pierluigi da Palestrina and William Byrd
This thesis is a study of the usage of sixteenth-century polyphonic devices as employed by the English composer William Byrd and the Italian composer Pierluigi Palestrina. Both men represented a culmination of sixteenth-century contrapuntal composition in their respective school and period, Byrd of the Renaissance Tudor period, and Palestrina of the Roman school and Renaissance period. Palestrina's work became a pattern for sacred Roman music during the late Renaissance because of its consistency, its origin in the modes, and its compositional style. As it became a popular standard for Latin liturgical music, Catholic composers of all nationalities began to use it as a guide for their writing. At this time in England, one such young composer named William Byrd began to emulate Palestrina. Up to this time few of the English composers had taken advantage of the progress made by the musicians of the Netherlands school. These two composers lived about the same time, and their vocal works are quite comparable, yet there was never any known contact between them. There seem to be some notable differences, but each of these is as consistent as the similarities. Both men were prolific writers of motets, which mirrored all of the Roman Catholic Church activities in an ecclesiastical year. Twelve motets by each composer, six from the early works and six from the late works of each, were chosen for contrast and comparison. In his book, Direct Approach to Counterpoint in 16th-Century Style, C.F. Soderlund set forth a conclusive and concise set of rules which he felt particularly characterized the music of Palestrina. A select group of rules or practices, some pertaining to the melodic line and others concerned with dissonances, was chosen from Soderlund's book to be used as a basis for comparison and contrast of the motets of Palestrina and …
Pandiatonicism in Three Ballets by Aaron Copland
Analysis of Appalachian Spring, Rodeo, and Billy the Kid
An Analytical Study of Prokofiev's Sonata, Opus 119, for Violoncello and Piano
Sergei Prokofiev experimented with styles which shocked the public because his ideas were far ahead of his time. In the 1930's, the Soviet composer turned to a neoclassical style. His Sonata, Opus 119, for violoncello and piano, is a product of this final period of composition. The purpose of this study is to determine the stylistic characteristics of this sonata. This study includes a detailed description of the compositional techniques Prokofiev used in this work. These techniques are categorized according to the basic stylistic elements. The sources of data are comprised of the score of Prokofiev's Sonata, Opus 119, as well as books on twentieth-century music and on Prokofiev as a man and as a composer. The score was used for purposes of analysis.
The Comparative Usages of the Ninth, Eleventh, and Thirteenth Intervals, in Chordal and Contrapuntal Context, as Analyzed in Richard Wagner, Die Walküre, Act I, and Götterdämmerung, Act I
The purpose of this thesis is to contrast Wagner's usages of the ninth, eleventh, and thirteenth intervals and chords, as found in Die Walküre, Act I and Götterdämmerung, Act I.
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