Digital Commons Network^™

Composition Portfolio, Gabriel I. Gonzales

Music ETDs

This composition portfolio consists of a series of works written during my master’s program at the University of New Mexico. Each chapter in this collection includes a brief description of its corresponding piece. The compositions featured in this portfolio are: Axaxaxas Mlö (2020), for live bass with fixed audio accompaniment; Conflagrations (2020), for fixed audio-visual media; Fumiko/Yukio, Mov. I (2021), for six voices, Preliminary Materials for a Piece About a Drum (2021), for live bodhran with fixed audio accompaniment and sound-processing; Everyday War, Pt. 1 (2022) for fixed audio, and Everyday War, Pt. 2 (2023) for live found percussion with …

"Azat, Ankakh, Artsakh": Music, Memory, And The Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, Sasha Linn Arteaga

Music ETDs

In this thesis, I examine a selection of music videos, from those created in 2015 at the centenary of the Armenian Genocide, to those created in response to the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, considered by Armenians to be a continuation of the Armenian Genocide. To the Armenian people, Nagorno-Karabakh is part of their ethnic homeland and has maintained a majority-Armenian population and separatist government backed by the Republic of Armenia since the First Nagorno-Karabakh War. I apply a music-as-text approach in this thesis, examining these music videos through examination of the visual, musical, and lyrical elements. I then analyze these videos …

A Theory Of Text Setting Contour: A Proposed Theory That Places Text At The Structural Foreground Of The Analysis Of Vocal Music, Grace K. Weaver

Music ETDs

How can contour theory be used to analyze a composer’s setting of a poem? Can this approach provide insights that lead to an interpretation of the composer’s setting of the text? This study presents a new contour theory on text setting by examining two different settings of the same text. This theory examines one aspect of the music, the vocal line, and plots syllable’s locations in two dimensions of music: pitch space and duration. Using these data points, one can suggest an interpretation of the poem. Through the application of this theory to Fanny Hensel and Franz Schubert’s setting of …

Student Voice And Choice: Factors Influencing Student Participation In Secondary Arts Classes In An Urban Public School District, Alan D. Lambert Ed. D.

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

The purpose of this study was to capture the student voice regarding the value, importance, and relevance of visual and performing arts education in public schools. The host institution for the study was an urban school district in the southern central United States serving 75,000 students, with 55% students identified as Hispanic, and 52% of students experiencing poverty. Graduating seniors responded via questionnaires with forced choice and open-ended items regarding several topics, including what they do in their free time, how they perceive the value of arts classes at school, access to arts classes and the match of their interests …

'Ahora Estamos Más Unidos': Claiming Resilience In The Musical And Visual Aftermath Of The El Paso Mass Shooting, Eduardo Garcia

Music ETDs

The El Paso Wal-Mart Mass Shooting on August 3, 2019, prompted swift response from the local community to create artistic spaces of remembrance. This study examines the musical (mariachi and corrido) and visual (altares, murals, and memorials) manifestations present at makeshift and formal memorials for the victims. I analyze how members of the El Paso-Ciudad Juárez borderland situated their artistic work in the aftermath of the shooting. I argue that these artists responded to the attack with symbolic acts of resilience rooted in cultural and collective memory, embodiment of trauma, and the lived experience of corporeal …

Composition Portfolio, Jose E. Orea Dominguez

Music ETDs

This composition portfolio consists of a series of works written during my master’s degree at the University of New Mexico. Each chapter in this collection includes a brief structural and aesthetic description as well as specific annotations regarding its instrumentation, writing style/system, and pitch collection (if existent). The compositions featured in this portfolio are: Orbits (Interstellar Cloud 1, 2021) for amplified large ensemble, Centaurus (2021) for amplified variable ensemble from 2 to 8 performers, Prisma (2020) for amplified modified Pierrot quintet, Sirius (2022) for amplified vocal ensemble, Wormhole (2021) for amplified solo violin, Space-Time Burst (2021) for amplified solo trombone …

Jesus Woodlą́Ą́Jí Sin: Sounding A Self-Determined Navajo Christian Church, Renata Yazzie

Music ETDs

Jesus Woodlą́ą́jí’ Sin: Navajo Hymns of Faith, the first and only extensive Navajo hymnal, was published in 1979. This hymnal contains 365 hymns for congregational singing, translated into the Navajo language. The Navajo Hymnal Committee, responsible for the seven years of intensive translation work, formed in 1972 under the direction of Reverend Dr. Paul Redhouse (1925-2019), an ordained Navajo minister within the Christian Reformed Church. Redhouse wholeheartedly believed that Navajo people had the right to worship in their own language and argued that pre-issued English hymnals by outside church leaders were not suitable for obvious reasons—a language barrier. Through …

Composition Portfolio, Joshua A. Aguiar

Music ETDs

A collection of music compositions, composed and imagined during study at the University of New Mexico.

Musical Wonder And Awe In Narnia: Comparing Two Related Emotions, Laura Steiner

Music ETDs

Wonder and awe are often considered to be synonyms. But though these emotions are similar, a more nuanced look at their musical representations reveals that they are not entirely the same. This thesis examines the difference between musical wonder and awe in music from The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, a 2005 film about siblings who find a magical world in a wardrobe. After a review of the literature on musical wonder, the music from two scenes is analyzed. The wardrobe scene, in which the youngest child discovers the land of Narnia, depicts wonder visually. Certain musical characteristics, both …

Mindfulness, Flow And Self-Care For Double Bass Musicians, Samuel R. Brown

Music ETDs

In this qualitative multi-case study, three college-age music majors from the local state university were interviewed, observed, and asked to complete reflections in order to answer the following questions: How do mindfulness activities affect collegiate double bass music students’ perceptions of their own playing and practicing? My secondary questions were 1) how do mindfulness activities affect flow experiences among collegiate double bass music students, and 2) how do mindfulness activities affect students’ perception of self-care? The interviews were transcribed, coded using “concept coding” (Miler, Huberman, & Saldaña, 2020), and then grouped into categories, themes, and sub-themes. The themes were time, …

The Metamorphosis Of Marching Band: A Case Study Exploring The Evolution Of Marching Bands From A Specific State In The Southeastern United States, Addison Murphree

Music ETDs

ABSTRACT

How has the evolution of marching band in the Southeastern United states effected bands and their programs? This study investigates the many factors of marching band by gathering data in the form of interviews. The participants within this study are three band directors that are retired from high schools with a consistent record of superior ratings in marching band; the directors represent different levels of teaching from middle school, high school, and community college. After artifacts were compiled, the gathered information was transcribed, documented, and coded for common themes. The common themes explored the evolutionary factors of band between …

Sounding The Nile: River Politics, Environment And Nubian Musical Expression, Regan L. Homeyer

Music ETDs

ABSTRACT

In the mid 1960s, almost 100,000 Egyptian Nubians, people Indigenous to the Nile River Valley, were removed from their ancestral homeland due to the creation of the Aswan High Dam. In the years surrounding their displacement, Nubian musicians in Cairo and villages in new settlement areas gathered traditional Nubian songs and composed new songs to form a distinctive Nubian musical repertoire. This thesis addresses contemporary Nubian musical performance and the role of these reclaimed and newly-written songs in maintaining and revitalizing not only Nubian languages and culture, but especially senses of self in relation to place and, above all, …

Composition Portfolio, Levi Raleigh Brown

Music ETDs

The four pieces selected for this portfolio represent a variety of interests and pursuits over two years at UNM. Together they are unified through their attention to the universality of the daily human experience, particularly as it contrasts to human desire for control through constructed means such as art, although each approaches this relationship in a distinct way. Musically, these ideas are explored with a sense of spontaneity, drawing from a variety of musical styles, and experimenting with concepts of texture and form, with special attention to elements of live performance.

Included pieces are A Moment of Some Complexity, …

Freirean Pedagogy In Music Education, Tyler Slamkowski

Music ETDs

This is a qualitative, multiple case study rooted in grounded theory. It explores how music teachers might implement Paulo Freire’s theories in their classrooms, as well as best practices in Freirean music teaching. Paulo Freire was a Brazilian educational theorist who claimed that education, rooted in dialogue and co-creation of knowledge, could confront major structural injustices, such as inequality, exploitation, and violence.

The three participants in this study worked in the same large, Southwestern district. Participants were selected based on how their teaching fit with characteristics of Freirean Pedagogy. Three music educators, Robert, Eliza, and Jackie, the participants in this …

Npr's Tiny Desk Concert Series: Vocalities Of Outrage And Acts Of Gaiety, Aubrie M. Powell

Music ETDs

The Tiny Desk concert series features live video-recorded performances of artists at the desk of NPR Music’s Bob Boilen, the series’ main host. This thesis interrogates NPR Music’s values and the ways artists both manifest and queer those ideals in performance. I argue, in light of the 2016 election, performers challenge NPR Music’s taste system through two modes of subversion. The first mode considers vocalities of outrage specifically in the performances of Saul Williams and the Drive-By Truckers. These performers shift their social positions in expressions of outrage through vocality—as the embodied materiality of the voice and its constructed meanings …

A New Theory Of Musical Semiosis, Matthew Stanley

Music ETDs

Musical semiotics is the study of the various ways in which musical structures become meaningful. This thesis is an attempt to create a logical, systematized, transformational theory of musical semiotics that can elucidate the various ways in which music conveys meaning. While the semiotic exploration of music is by no means novel, this thesis presents a unique, highly rigorous, and truly theoretical approach to musical semiotics that differs significantly from previous theories. By combining all aspects of the semiotic theory of Charles Sanders Peirce with the metaphor theories of George Lakoff, Mark Johnson, and Zoltan Kovecses, a theoretical apparatus is …

The Index Of The Quotidian: Folk Music And Language Poetry, Gus Tafoya

2020 Award Winners

No abstract provided.

New Mexico Composers Archive, Unm Digital Initiatives & Scholarly Communication

Love in the Archives 2019

Merging the digital with the physical, the New Mexico Composers' Archive (MSS 904 BC) was featured on screen and in print during Love in the Archives. Begun in 1973 by then-Dean of Libraries Dr. John Harvey, the collection has been partially digitized. Exhibit-goers were able to interact with the digital and physical objects and draw their own conclusions about the pros and cons of each format. A few pieces were newly digitized for the exhibit and they are included here.

Curated by Amy Winter, Program Specialist, Digital Initiatives and Scholarly Communication

"Sounding The Nile" In Nubian Musical Expression, Regan L. Homeyer

Shared Knowledge Conference

Nubians are indigenous peoples of the Nile River Valley whose ancient civilization parallels that of ancient Egypt. In 1964, 50,000 Egyptian Nubians were removed from their homeland along the Nile because of President Gamal Abdel Nasser’s initiative, the Aswan High Dam Project. With fertile lands and sacred temples doomed to inundation by the waters of what is now Lake Nassar, Nubians were resettled in government built villages that promised both preservation of culture and modern conveniences. What these riverine people received, in fact, were poorly constructed, unfinished dwellings located in the desert, more than five miles from the Nile. A …

Characteristics Of High Achieving High School Band Programs In Low Socioeconomic Settings, Steven W. Iliff

Music ETDs

The goal of this study is to determine several best practices for teaching high school band in low socioeconomic settings. University professors with over 25 years of experience teaching in the state were asked to recommend three high school band programs in different settings that exhibited the following characteristics: 1) a high level of musical skill and achievement, 2) an excellent teacher responsible for the program, and 3) a high number of program alumni continuing to play music after high school, and 4) eligible for federal Title 1 funds-at least 40% of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch. …

Selected Works Of Steven Matthew Gomez (Diaz) 2015-2018, Steven M. Gomez

Music ETDs

Abstract

The focus of my work as a composer during my Master’s program at the University of New Mexico from 2015 to 2018 has been multidisciplinary collaboration between artists and the exploration of timbre through the integration of improvisation and electroacoustic manipulation. Operating under the pseudonym of Steven Diaz, the musical scores contained within consist of five separate scores that exemplify this artistic pursuit. The four artists that I collaborated with over the span of three years ranged from instrumental performers to visual artists. The exploration of timbre through improvisation and electroacoustic integration stems from a desire to explore musical …

Indeterminacy As Social Practice In Contemporary Art Music, Lauren V. Coons

Music ETDs

This work examines the social practice element of contemporary indeterminate music. Through historical and critical research, and analysis of some contemporary indeterminate works, I provide a view of indeterminacy as a subversive experimental music practice that challenges both the forms of alienation present in Western art-music culture and the concepts and power structures that have contributed to them. I compare and contrast indeterminacy with other terms and concepts related to “open works,” specifically aleatory, chance, and improvisation. A discussion of various philosophical viewpoints regarding the concept of the musical “work” and the role of the composer reveal ways in which …

Mixing In Too Much Jewish: American Klezmorim In New York City From 1950-1970, Clara Byom

Music ETDs

In secular Jewish American music, the 1950s through 1970s are often viewed by scholars and musicians as a period of discontinuity. Building on Kirshenblatt-Gimblett’s (2002) call for a greater understanding of music from this time, I show that the work of second generation klezmorim, the children of immigrant klezmorim, maintained the traditional characteristics of their predecessors and foreshadowed the creative innovations of the klezmer revitalization beginning in the late 1970s. Drawing from recordings of select second generation klezmorim- Ray and Sammy Musiker, Sidney Beckerman, and Marty Levitt- and from interviews with Pete Sokolow, Dave Levitt, Margot Leverett, and other contemporary …

Selected Musical Works From 2013 - 2016, Christian M. Newman

Music ETDs

This manuscript is a collection of musical compositions written by Christian Newman while a graduate student at the University of New Mexico. Each musical work fulfills at least one composition portfolio requirement as stated in the 2012 – 2013 Music Theory/Composition Student Handbook: the basic requirements include a piece with large orchestration, a piece featuring the voice, a piece featuring electronics, and a collaborativepiece. Newman’s composition portfolio includes numerous works in addition to the requirements that illustrate the depth and consistency of his progress as a composer while a student in the program.

The pieces included in this collection are …

New Mexico Musician Vol 63 No 3 (Spring 2016)

New Mexico Musician

No abstract provided.

New Mexico Musician Vol 63 No 2 (Winter 2015)

New Mexico Musician

No abstract provided.

New Mexico Musician Vol 63 No 1 (Fall 2015)

New Mexico Musician

No abstract provided.

New Mexico Musician Vol 62 No 3 (Spring 2015)

New Mexico Musician

DEPARTMENTS

President’s Report 2

Office Notes 6

From the Editor’s Desk 8

Vice Presidents’ Reports

Band 11

Orchestra 18

General Music 20

Choral 22

Guitar 24

Collegiate 30

ORGANIZATIONAL MATTERS

NM Jazz Educators Article 39

University News 40

NMMEA Music Industry Council Members 43

Advertisers 44

New Mexico Musician Vol 62 No 2 (Winter 2014)

New Mexico Musician

CONTENTS

DEPARTMENTS

President’s Report 2

Office Notes 6

From the Editor's Desk 10

Vice Presidents’ Reports

Band 13

Orchestra 16

General Music 17

Choral 20

Guitar 21

Collegiate 24

ORGANIZATIONAL MATTERS

NM Jazz Educators Article 29

Mentor Article 30

University News 31

NMMEA All-State Conductors 35

NMMEA All-State Honor Groups 40

NMMEA All-State Clinicians 49

NMMEA Music Industry Council Members 49

Advertisers 50

New Mexico Musician Vol 62 No 1 (Fall 2014)

New Mexico Musician

DEPARTMENTS

President’s Report 2

Office Notes 6

From the Editor’s Desk 8

Vice Presidents’ Reports

Band 11

Orchestra 17

General Music 19

Choral 20

Collegiate 23

Guitar 35

ORGANIZATIONAL MATTERS

NMMEA 2014 Award Winners 24

Retirees/Mentoring Report 31

NM Jazz Educators Article 34

University News 36

NMMEA Music Industry Council Members 41

Advertisers 42