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Sociocultural Considerations and the Parallel Agendas of Music and Text in the Lullaby

Description: This research is an investigation of how the lullaby, which is often viewed as purely a simple and pretty song, is a multifaceted vocal tradition that carries historical and cultural significance. As an exploration of how sociocultural factors impact the emotions expressed and the stories told in lullabies, this research encourages deeper examinations of lullaby texts in relation to the historical, cultural, and social aspects reflected in their textual themes. Through the close analysis of tex… more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Estwick, Brandi
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Re-Assessing Nationalism in the Art Songs of Jaime León

Description: Colombian composer Jaime León (1921-2015) is known for his art songs. Most of the current scholarly literature about León defines him as a nationalist composer even though a majority of his songs do not appear to have nationalist traits. This document examines a representative selection of León's songs divided into three categories: songs influenced by the bambuco (the Colombian genre most present in his songs); songs whose text refers to Colombian culture; and songs without Colombian elements … more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Ávila Martínez, Juan Sebastián
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Epidemiologic Survey of a Unique Type of Task-Specific Dystonia in Brass Musicians

Description: Brass musicians are known to experience a performance problem that is sometimes called valsalva maneuver or musical stuttering. This problem is known to cause difficulty starting a first note, tension in the throat, and tightness in the chest. Unfortunately, the research literature lacks sufficient details for evidence-based interventions. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to characterize and define this performance problem as experienced by brass musicians. An online epidemiologic survey… more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Wallace, Eric (Trombonist)
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

A Performance Guide to George Enescu's Violin Sonata No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 25, Emphasizing Its Use of Romanian Lăutari Violin Techniques and Style

Description: In Romanian, the word lăutari refers to highly skilled professional Romani (Gypsy) musicians. By interacting with Romanian culture and tradition, the lăutari settled down in the country and developed a unique musical tradition. Their music is characterized by intricate, elaborate, and refined ornamentation; its execution requires a highly level of technique. George Enescu, regarded as Romania's most influential musician, was affected by lăutari music. He created a unique musical language that r… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Noh, Yuri
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Charlotte Bray's "Here Everything Shines": Interview, Analysis and Performance Guide

Description: This dissertation examines a recent work for flute and piano, Here Everything Shines, by a living composer, Charlotte Bray, including a study, analysis and performance guide. The composition was largely inspired by the late Cape Verdean singer Cesária Évora and her song Petit Pays. My research explores the influence of Évora's song on Here Everything Shines, including the melodic development, tonal center, style and freedom of her singing and the impact the song has on a performer's interpretat… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Kuscer, Lana
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

A Survey of 21st Century Gay-Themed American Art Songs for Baritone

Description: The majority of repertoire catalogs for singers, printed and digital, often list works by voice type, language, and/or genre. The 21st century has seen an emergence of online classical music catalogs where the user can seek repertoire by searching composers from underrepresented communities (i.e., women, Black, LGBTQ, Latinx). What does not currently exist is a resource that catalogs songs for solo voice dealing specifically with gay subject matter. This dissertation surveys seventeen 21st cent… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Cardwell, Robert Ewell
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

A Conductor's Guide to Lionel Daunais's Figures de danse

Description: Lionel Daunais was an eminent and beloved 20th-century Québécois musician who contributed greatly to the performing arts in Canada. Through his work with the Trio Lyrique, Les Variétés Lyriques, and his numerous compositions, he wielded a potent sphere of influence on the Canadian musical landscape. Lionel Daunais's compositions constitute a significant oeuvre, comprising solo vocal works, song cycles, folksong arrangements, individual choral works, and multi-movement choral works. Marked by ir… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Murray, Brian C. (Brian Clark)
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Beyond Fourths and Pentatonics: A Critical Analysis of Selected Recordings of McCoy Tyner from 1962 to 1963

Description: In this paper, I explore the early musical language of McCoy Tyner. Today, Tyner is recognized mostly for his use of quartal harmony and pentatonic scales despite having made recordings in his early career that reflect a more mainstream approach. In an effort to expand how Tyner is represented, I argue that Tyner's early style was characterized by a graceful balance of tradition and innovation, a masterful blend of bebop syntax with pentatonic melodies and quartal harmonies. The recordings that… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Satterthwaite, Gregory
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Soviet Music as Bricolage: The Case of the Piano Works of Nikolai Rakov (1908-1990)

Description: Much socialist realism art from Soviet-era Russia has been misunderstood by scholars. It has been considered "synthetic art," which ordinary citizens were forced to admire under the Soviet regime. It also has been interpreted as peasant kitsch art because of its seemingly unacademic and unchallenging theoretical language utilized in order to meet the expectations of Soviet communism. This ideology conditioned artists to make art accessible and nationalistic to serve the perceived needs of the R… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Kumamoto, Yuki
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Benjamin Britten's Neglected "Gemini Variations," Op. 73 and Its Place in the Chamber Music Repertoire

Description: In 1964, Benjamin Britten met the multi-instrumentalist twins Zoltán and Gábor Jeney while traveling in Budapest. At their behest, Britten composed Gemini Variations: Twelve Variations and Fugue on an Epigram by Kodály, a work which exploited the brothers' abilities on multiple instruments: Zoltán on flute and piano, and Gábor on violin and piano. In foreseeing the difficulties of programming this work, Britten simultaneously arranged a version for four players: flute, violin, and four-hand pia… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Gibb, Charles, 1991-
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

The Vocal Pedagogy of the Behnke Family: The Behnke Method

Description: Emil Behnke was a highly esteemed vocal pedagogue of the late nineteenth century. Perhaps rare for the time, the art and science of teaching vocal methods of speech and singing was a Behnke family business, one that Emil shared with his wife and daughter, who were both named Kate. Indeed, Emil's daughter, Kate Emil Behnke, was equally regarded and valued in the field of vocal pedagogy, carrying her father's teachings into the twentieth century. Meanwhile, the elder Kate Behnke, wife to Emil and… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Stapleton, Megan
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

The Innovation and Influence of Jazz Harpist Dorothy Ashby (1932-1986)

Description: A comparative analysis of the musical transcriptions of Dorothy Ashby with those of her predecessors proves that Ashby was a uniquely powerful and innovative influence on the genre of jazz harp. This dissertation begins with a summative biography of Ashby, following her education in both jazz and classical music through to her career highlights as a performer, arranger and composer. An analysis of Ashby's recordings reveals the development of her groundbreaking musical style throughout her life… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Betzer, Jennifer
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Sacred Sound at the Symphony: A Conductor's Guide to Faith Traditions in Choral-Orchestral Repertoire

Description: Since most historical composers of Western art music were European Christians (or resided in areas that were primarily populated by Christians), a vast majority of the sacred choral-orchestral repertoire is based on major figures and themes from the most prominent denominations, including Catholicism, Lutheranism, and Anglicanism. As a corollary this is also the case for analytical, pedagogical, and exegetical literature related to the topic. However, in the late nineteenth century some compo… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Bott, Robert (Conductor)
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Così fan tutte? A Study of Character Development through Key Characteristics in the Prima Donna and Soubrette Roles from Four of W.A. Mozart's Late Italian Operas

Description: This dissertation investigates how W. A. Mozart applies the concept of key characteristics—the affective properties of each tonality—as discussed by three of his contemporaries, Johann Mattheson, C.F.D. Schubart and G.J. Vogler, to four soubrette and four prima donna characters from four of his late Italian operas: La Contessa and Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro; Donna Anna and Zerlina in Don Giovanni; Fiordiligi and Despina in Così fan tutte; Vitellia and Servilia in La clemenza di Tito. The ana… more
Date: August 2020
Creator: Tsai, Meng-Jung
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

A Pedagogical Approach and Strategies for the Trumpet Ensemble

Description: The trumpet ensemble has increasingly become a popular chamber ensemble inside music programs at the secondary and collegiate level. Chamber music ensembles are frequently guided by both democratic processes and ensemble coaches with limited chamber music experience. As trumpet ensembles grow in popularity, pedagogical resources are needed to guide rehearsals. This project serves as a guide for educators and performers to focus on fundamental issues related to trumpet ensembles as well as strat… more
Date: August 2020
Creator: Jensen, Aaron (Trumpeter)
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

A Performance Guide to Cécile Chaminade's "Concertstück for Piano and Orchestra," Op. 40

Description: Cécile Chaminade (1857-1944) was a remarkably successful French composer and pianist for a woman in the early part of her career, although her reputation waned rapidly after her death. Concertstück (1888), a single movement for piano and orchestra, was her only work in this medium. It requires many traditional piano skills and therefore can serve admirably as a comprehensive technical and artistic study. This dissertation includes a formal analysis of this piece, a discussion of each type of sp… more
Date: August 2020
Creator: Zhuang, Yuan (Pianist)
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

A Pedagogical Guide to Teaching Tone Production for Elementary-Level Piano Students, with Examples from Appropriate Elementary-Level Music

Description: The early stage of piano students' training is one of the most important, because it is then that they establish their habits for life. Those who teach beginners need clear principles for developing a solid technical foundation and for preventing bad technical habits. One of the most difficult principles to inculcate in young students is that of tone production and quality. The primary purpose of this study is to provide a pedagogical guide to help piano teachers teach tone production to elemen… more
Date: August 2020
Creator: Kim, Gyuwan
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Bridging the Gap: Introducing Extended Techniques and Contemporary Notation through Newly Composed Etudes for Clarinet

Description: This dissertation aims to address the pedagogical gap in introductory material for contemporary clarinet instruction. Through examining the most prominent contemporary methods for the clarinet, the pedagogical gap is highlighted, particularly regarding material aimed at newcomers and early undergraduate students. To address these needs, a new collection of etudes is proposed, introducing extended techniques and contemporary notation for newcomers to modern music.
Date: May 2020
Creator: Ellard, Luke
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

An Investigation of Euphonium Valve System Design

Description: The four-valve automatic compensating system as developed by David James Blaikley has become an integral part of the professional euphonium in use today. While the Blaikley system was designed to allow a euphonium to play chromatically down to the fundamental pitch of the instrument, it was hardly the only design to do so. Using a historical analysis of euphonium valve systems, the case is made for why Blaikley's design has been widely adopted in the face of criticism about the four-valve autom… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Watkins, Jonathan, 1986-
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

An Analysis of the Representation of Queen Elizabeth I of England in the Operas by Rossini, Donizetti, and Thomas in the Context of Nineteenth-Century Vocal Style and Historical Influence

Description: The purpose of this research is to analyze representations of Queen Elizabeth I of England in nineteenth-century Franco-Italian opera, and the relationship of these representations to contemporaneous singing style and the historical background. The basis for this analysis is three arias: "Quant'é grato all'alma mia" from Elisabetta, regina d'Inghilterra (1815) by Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868), "Sì, vuol di Francia il rege...Ah! quando all'ara scorgemi...Ah! dal ciel discenda un raggio" from Mar… more
Date: August 2020
Creator: Hsiao, Han
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

"Worlds Beyond": A Stylistic Analysis of Collage in the Music of Daniel Schnyder as a Universal Model for the Bass Trombone Repertoire

Description: The modern trombone player can experience a variety of styles on any given day. There is a need for the ability to switch between a plethora of styles ranging from avant-garde pieces to many forms of popular music to masterworks of the symphonic repertoire. It is the responsibility of the musician (performer or educator) to be familiar with all music due to global access via the internet. There is a responsibility to properly perform and respect music as more composers are beginning to blend di… more
Date: August 2020
Creator: Norton, Colby
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

How a Schenkerian Analysis May Inform the Interpretation and Performance of J. S. Bach's Lute Music on the Guitar Using Selective Movements of Bach Lute Suite No. 4 in E Major (BWV1006A) as a Demonstration

Description: Continuing the discussion of interpreting J. S. Bach's lute music on the guitar, this dissertation seeks to demonstrate that Schenkerian analysis can assist the modern classical guitarist to better understand Bach's music. In particular, the Schenkerian approach provides an important methodology for studying Bach's music in depth, and then guiding performance practice on the guitar. Although there are many books and articles about transcribing, interpreting and performing Bach's music on the gu… more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Li, Zhi (Guitarist)
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

The Guaraldi Sound: The Musical Devices that Characterize Vince Guaraldi's Improvisational and Compositional Idiom

Description: Vince Guaraldi (1928-1976) was a jazz pianist who achieved tremendous financial and commercial success in the 1960s with his popular recordings and his work for the Peanuts animated shorts. He cultivated a musical style that drew from several identifiable sources: boogie-woogie, bebop, Brazilian and Afro-Cuban jazz, and rock ‘n' roll. The result was a distinct approach to jazz which, although it may not have been as influential as that of some of his contemporaries, nevertheless constituted a u… more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Huntley, Alec Villars
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

An Orchestral Approach to Johannes Brahms' "Variationen und Fuge über ein Thema von Händel," Op. 24: Orchestral Transcription as an Interpretive Tool

Description: This dissertation provides an interpretive guide to Variationen und Fuge über ein Thema von Händel, Op. 24, written in 1861 by Johannes Brahms (1833–1897), in orchestral terms, using as basis the orchestral transcription by Edmund Rubbra (1901–1986), published as his Op. 47 in 1938. Not only does Brahms' Variationen present players with considerable pianistic difficulties, its intense harmonic and polyphonic structures make the music sound symphonic. The English composer Edmund Rubbra, a great … more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Yun, Hee Sun
Partner: UNT Libraries
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