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The Devil and the Details: Negotiating Virtuosity, Agency, and Authenticity in Karlheinz Stockhausen’s Kathinkas Gesang als Luzifers Requiem for Solo Flute

Description: Karlheinz Stockhausen’s Kathinkas Gesang als Luzifers Requiem presents mental, physical, and musical challenges that go beyond the usual expectations of an instrumentalist, extending and redefining the traditional idea of virtuosity. Using firsthand performance experience, score and recording study, and flutist interviews, this document explores the effects of some of these heightened demands and argues that the particular performance situation presented by Kathinkas Gesang brings up critical q… more
Date: May 2015
Creator: Chambo, Wayla Joy Ewart
Partner: UNT Libraries
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An Instructional Guide to Teaching Kurtág’s Játékok Volume I to Beginning and Intermediate Piano Students

Description: Pedagogical methods in piano instruction are constantly evolving. Traditional approaches for beginning students typically focus on teaching music theory and developing the skills necessary to read music. Some contemporary methods, however, are centered on training students to use their whole body while playing the instrument. These more recent methodologies allow students to bond with the piano in a more personal manner, as if they were playing a game with a big toy. One of the most representat… more
Date: May 2015
Creator: Jang, Jeongwook
Partner: UNT Libraries
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A Performance Edition of the Alessandro Rolla Concerto in F for Viola and Orchestra, Op 4 (Bi 549)

Description: The Concerto in F, Op. 4 (BI 549) by Alessandro Rolla (1757-1841) is a relatively unknown work that can serve as a complement for existing standard Classical repertoire for the viola, thus providing the means for greater stylistic education and technical foundation for viola study from this time period. In order to make the music from this lesser-known composer more readily available for future performers, a performance edition has been created from uncirculated sources using the notation soft… more
Date: December 2014
Creator: Beall, Stephen J.
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Selected Operas of Isabelle Aboulker As Repertoire for the University Opera Studio

Description: Aboulker’s operatic works present an opportunity for opera workshop programs in the United States to perform contemporary operatic works in a foreign language, revitalizing the operatic repertoire and giving students the opportunity to prepare and perform roles without the weight and influence of significant performance history. Aboulker’s style, which has been called “effectively simple,” allows developing students to work on new French language repertoire without the burden of excessively dif… more
Date: December 2014
Creator: O'Keefe, Patricia Beatrice
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Under the Influence of Marc Blitzstein: Examining Leonard J Lehrman’s Uses of Serial Techniques for Dramatic Purposes in Karla

Description: American composer, author and conductor Leonard J. Lehrman (b. 1949) has spent a majority of his lifetime devoted to the scholarship on the music of Marc Blitzstein (1905-1964). Lehrman completed Blitzstein’s Idiots First in 1973, and finished his own one-act opera Karla in 1974. In an effort to honor Blitzstein, Lehrman included Karla along with Idiots First to begin the set of one-act operas to be titled Tales of Malamud. Lehrman coined the term “selective serialism” in reference to Blitzstei… more
Date: December 2014
Creator: Blackwood, Jeremy B
Partner: UNT Libraries
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The 1896 Vienna Tonkünstler-verein Competition: the Three Award-winning Works and Seven Anonymous Submissions with Clarinet

Description: The Vienna Tonkünstler-Verein (1885-1929) was established for the sole purpose of providing extensive support to the music and musicians of Vienna. The society became renowned in Vienna for its outstanding performances of chamber music and counted among its members many of the city’s foremost musicians and composers. Johannes Brahms had a significant influence on the society as its honorary president and assisted in establishing its composition competitions, aimed at promoting and reviving unde… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Harrell, Andrea
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Carlos Guastavino’s Sonata Para Trombón O Trompa Y Piano: Analysis of Argentine Song and Formal Western Music Tradition Applied to Trombone Repertoire

Description: Very few Latin American pieces for trombone as a solo instrument have entered the canon of trombone repertoire worldwide, despite the large number of compositions in this medium. Therefore, when a major composer writes a full sonata for trombone efforts need to be made to bring these compositions to light. The Argentine composer Carlos Guastavino wrote a sonata for trombone and piano that is virtually unknown outside of Argentina, despite the composer’s importance. He is known for his artistic … more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Rego Borges, Lucas
Partner: UNT Libraries
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The Combination of Eastern and Western Musical Worlds: Korean Performance Techniques Applied to Western Symphony Orchestra in Relation to Isang Yun’s Tänzerische Fantasie Für Großes Orchester, Muak (1987)

Description: Isang Yun employed several contrasting methods to achieve the combination of two different musical worlds, Eastern and Western, in his Tänzerische Fantasie für Großes Orchester, Muak. In presenting Eastern elements, he adopts Taoism as his musical philosophy, describes the Korean traditional dance motion Chun-Aeng-Mu (Dance of the Oriole), and applies Korean traditional performance practice in the use of Western instruments. Showing the influence of aspects of Western music, he employs a musica… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Lo, MeeAh
Partner: UNT Libraries
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A Comparative Examination of Six American Master Trumpet Teachers and the Regional Schools of Playing That They Represent

Description: Jet travel and the widespread availability of recordings are factors that have led to an increasingly homogenous sound concept in American trumpet playing; this is a stark contrast to the unique regional sounds that existed in the United States in the middle of the twentieth century. Despite the growing dissipation of these regional sound concepts from the mid-century, it is important to understand the styles and pedagogy associated with these schools. In this paper, six player/teachers are a… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Bloss, Laura L.
Partner: UNT Libraries
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A Comparison of Rhythm, Articulation, and Harmony in Jean-michel Defaye’s À La Manière De Stravinsky Pour Trombone Et Piano to Common Compositional Strategies of Igor Stravinsky

Description: À la Manière de Stravinsky is one piece in a series of works composed by Jean-Michel Defaye that written emulating the compositional styles of significant composers of the past. This dissertation compares Defaye’s work to common compositional practices of Igor Stravinsky (1882 – 1971). There is currently limited study of Defaye’s set of À la Manière pieces and their imitative characteristics. The first section of this dissertation presents the significance of the project, current literature, an… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Mullins, Dustin Kyle
Partner: UNT Libraries
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An Examination of Text Reflection and Imagery in Zoltán Gárdonyi’s Fünf Lieder Nach Gedichten Von Rainer Maria Rilke

Description: Zoltán Gárdonyi is described as having exemplified “the continuation of the Liszt tradition” in his music; however, since for so much of his compositional life he was forbidden to publish by the Communist government in Hungary due to his connection to the Christian church, he has been largely forgotten. Shortly after the composer’s death in 1986, Gárdonyi’s son, Zsolt (b.1946) began publishing his father’s music in addition to his own. However, the elder Gárdonyi’s works are still not widely kn… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Beloncik Schantz, Anne
Partner: UNT Libraries
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The First Movement of Piano Sonata in B-flat Minor by Julius Reubke: a Comparison of Three Editions From the Performer’s Point of View

Description: The objective of this dissertation is to review the discrepancies between the first edition, Stradal’s edition and Marzocchi’s edition of Reubke’s piano sonata, providing assistance for performers by clarifying inconsistencies between the three editions. Information in reference to major aspects such as fingerings, pedaling, phrasing, tempo markings is presented. Examples of discrepancies found throughout the first movement are discussed in Chapter 3. Detailed assessment of these discrepancies,… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Pátkai, Imre
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Gordon Binkerd’s “Intermezzo” From Essays for the Piano (1976): a Comprehensive Analysis of Brahmsian Compositional Influences and Stylistic Elements

Description: Gordon Binkerd (1916-2003) was an influential and well-known twentieth century composer. While his choral works are renowned worldwide, his piano music is rather unfamiliar to present-day scholars and performers. Binkerd’s Essays for the Piano (1976) is a set of six pieces that was greatly influenced by Brahms’ music. Especially noteworthy is the first piece of the set, titled “Intermezzo,” which is based on Brahms’ “Intermezzo” Op. 118, No. 1. The fact that Binkerd’s compositional procedures a… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Noh, Kyung-Ah
Partner: UNT Libraries
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The Influence of Indigenous Bushmen Musical Elements and Significant Compositional Traits on Niel Van Der Watt’s Song Cycle, Die Wind Dreun Soos ‘N Ghoera, ‘N Siklus Boesman-mites

Description: In Ghoera, Afrika-verse vir kinders, poet Hennie Aucamp demonstrates an affiliation with and reflection of his surroundings, such as the tribal communities he experienced as a child. This group of African children’s poems, published by Protea Boekhuis in 2011, became the source of inspiration for composer Niel van der Watt’s song cycle Die wind dreun soos ‘n ghoera, ‘n Siklus Boesman-mites. This study investigates and identifies significant compositional traits that contributed to van der Watt… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Bester, Christiaan
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Pedagogical Applications of Scat-singing Within the Jazz Trombone Studio

Description: This study investigates the pedagogical applications of scat-singing within the jazz trombone studio. In addition to the obvious ear-training benefits that the student player can gain from this synthesis, the palette of articulation subtleties and overall musically expressive qualities for trombonists can also be greatly enhanced. These commonalities will encompass the pedagogical focus of this document, utilizing performance recordings and publications by prominent jazz artists and writers to … more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Schneller, Aric Lewis
Partner: UNT Libraries
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A Performance Guide for the Unique Challenges in Concerto for Tuba and Chamber Orchestra by Jan Bach

Description: In 2003, Jan Bach completed his monumental Concerto for Tuba and Chamber Orchestra. This concerto requires unique performance techniques and technical skills unlike the majority of available tuba repertoire. In addition to these techniques, the guide explores the influence of popular songs, jazz/rock/funk styles, implied humor, and personal experience through an interview with the composer.
Date: August 2014
Creator: Robinson, Ryan J.
Partner: UNT Libraries
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A Performance Guide to the Dramatic, Vocal, and Musical Challenges of Judith Weir’s Opera, King Harald’s Saga

Description: Judith Weir (b. 1954) composed King Harald’s Saga: Grand Opera in Three Acts for Unaccompanied Solo Soprano Singing Eight Rôles (1979) for radio broadcast. She wrote the libretto for the opera based on Snorri Sturluson’s book, King Harald’s Saga. This opera illustrates Weir’s remarkable compositional style, including her treatment of the libretto in narrative style and her representation of multiple characters by one singer. Despite Weir’s fame as an opera composer, King Harald’s Saga is rarely… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Park, Sang Hee
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Prokofiev Beckons the Double Bass Into the Modern Age: a Pedagogical Study of the Op 39 Quintet

Description: Until Serge Prokofiev’s 1924 ballet score Trapèze, the double bass occupied a background or at best a doubling role in almost all composers’ use of the instrument. Technical challenge was limited in these pieces, because composers did not see the instrument’s potential in a chamber music environment. As luthiers developed the instrument, the technical ability of players grew, and composers began writing more challenging music for the instrument. As one of the first major composers to see the… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Jones, Kathryn E.
Partner: UNT Libraries
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“The Scherzo for Trombone Quartet” by John La Montaine: A Performer’s Edition

Description: In 1939, during his studies at the Eastman School of Music, John La Montaine (1920-2013) composed a Scherzo for four trombones. The Scherzo was revised more than 60 years later, becoming the third movement of a three-movement trombone quartet completed in 2001. Interestingly, the same Scherzo subsequently appeared in two of his later works: first the final movement of his Piano Concerto No. 4 Op. 59 (1989) and 12 years later as the final movement of a three-movement Trombone Quartet. The thesis… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Begnoche, David J.
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Shostakovich's Use of Satire in Anti-formalist Rayok with a Focus on the Music of the Character Dt Troikin

Description: In January 1989, a much-rumored work by Dmitri Shostakovich titled Anti-Formalist Rayok received its public premiere. Rayok is a single-act satirical opera/cantata for bass soloist and mixed chorus. Each character represents a prominent Soviet political figure: Joseph Stalin, Andrei Zhdanov, and Dmitri Shepilov. The text of the libretto is either taken directly from actual speeches given by these political figures or follows their idiosyncratic style of public speaking. Rayok often falls victim… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Grabowski, Gregory
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Sitting Next to Bach: the Influence of Js Bach on Sven-david Sandström’s Bach Motet Project with a Focus on the Motets “Der Geist Hilft” and “Singet Dem Herrn”

Description: In many of his choral works, Swedish composer Sven-David Sandström has sought a connection with the musical masters of the past. The number of Sandström works that bear a strong connection to Bach’s music is quite extensive and includes High Mass (1994), Magnificat (2005), the six motets (2003-2008) which constitute the Bach Motet Project under current discussion, and St. Matthew Passion, which recently premiered in Germany and Sweden in 2014. This study explores the extent to which Sven-David… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Franklin, James Christopher
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Temporality and Rhythmic Structure in Thirteen Drums by Maki Ishii and Rebond a by Iannis Xenakis

Description: This dissertation will focus on the concepts of musical time of two solo multiple-percussion compositions, Thirteen Drums (1985) by Maki Ishii and Rebond A (1987-1989) by Iannis Xenakis. The aesthetic experience of musical works is tied to the perception of musical time. Performers have to understand the concepts and methods of construction of musical time in order to interpreting composer’s works. The model of cognitive process in neuroscience of music and the information processing theory fro… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Liu, Yi-Jan
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Utilizing Standard Violin Orchestral Excerpts As a Pedagogical Tool: an Analytical Study Guide with Functional Exercises

Description: Orchestral excerpts have been used as a teaching material by violin pedagogues to develop violin techniques in addition to scales and etudes in the twentieth century. However, instructions on developing specific techniques and the relationship to its musical content have been left out. This dissertation provides an analytical study guide addressing the common challenges for violinists. Ten orchestral excerpts are selected from surveying frequently requested orchestral excerpts for the first vio… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Chang, Ai-Wei
Partner: UNT Libraries
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