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...And The Songs Of Another... For Six Voices & Live Electronics, Matthew David Becker

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

…and the songs of another… is a composition of five songs for six voices and live electronics. Voice is the principal tool of sound generation, and the sounds produced by voice are transformed using extended and non-conventional vocal techniques plus electronics. I hence use voice in this manner with electronics to create unique sound development in a new work.

The text in the composition is generated using phonemes through which syllabic sounds are constructed. The electronics are pre-installed modules that come with the software Max/MSP, and each of the five songs applies different processing. These modules are: a spectral harmonizer, …

Six Blake Songs, Willyn Whiting

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Six Blake Songs is a song cycle for Soprano and mixed chamber ensemble (Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone, Violin and Viola). The work sets several texts by the English poet William Blake (1757-1827), which all share the central theme of Time. Nearly all of these texts are excerpts from larger works, with the exception of the poem Ah, Sunflower, which is presented at the work’s conclusion. Discrete collections of frequencies, which are derived from either the frequency modulation of two notes or from the overtones of a single fundamental, provide the pitch content for the entire piece. In addition, many of the …

Capriccio For Mixed Ensemble And Piano, André Mcevenue

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Capriccio is a 12 minute, single movement “mini concerto” for piano and small chamber ensemble. The music is of a virtuosic and capricious nature; at times it is dance-like and rhapsodic, at others, pensive and introspective. The formal construction concerns the techniques of fragmentation and pitch symmetry. My interest in these techniques is informed from the study of works by Igor Stravinsky and Béla Bartók. Therefore, the title is reminiscent of Stravinsky’s own work, Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra. In my piece, a symmetrical pitch collection is used as the main musical material. Small repeating fragments of this collection …

The Old House, Eric Swiatoschik

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The Old House is a programmatic children's suite in four movements based on a short story of the same name by Hans Christian Andersen. The story is about a young boy who befriends a man who lives in an old house on his street. The narrative of the music focuses on the beginning of the story when the boy enters the house for the first time with each movement musically depicting something the boy sees. The piece utilizes straightforward programmatic elements in conjunction with Neo-Romantic harmonic and melodic content to appeal to younger audiences (children), while still maintaining the same …

The Donnelly Opera, Joshua L. Richardson

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The Donnelly Opera is a one-act chamber opera based on an infamous Southwestern Ontario event: the murder of the Donnelly family in 1880. The libretto was written with the consultation of various historical sources. Modern text setting practices are utilized with careful attention to the use of perfect rhymes and natural syllabic emphasis to help maximize audience comprehension. The opera uses traditional vocal archetypes of aria, recitative, and ensemble singing. The focus of the opera is the dramatic portrayal of the events that took place leading up to the second murder trial. It is written for four vocalists (soprano, mezzo-soprano, …

Job: An Oratorio For Voices And Chamber Ensemble, Kevin Gibson

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Job is a dramatic oratorio consisting of twelve individual movements, with an approximate duration of twenty minutes. It is a summarization of the plot and prose contained in the biblical book of Job (English Standard Version). The events of the oratorio depict Job, a devoted and prosperous man, being tested to the limits of his faith by acts of God, who was incited first by Satan. Throughout the oratorio, the philosophical and theological elements of humanity versus divinity are represented musically by intervallic relationships. Job is written for seven principle vocalists and a narrator, accompanied by an instrumental ensemble consisting …