Fine Arts Commons^™

The Dilemma Of Empty Halls, Joanna Lauer

Musical Offerings

Today, live classical concert attendance is low, a fact which threatens the careers of professional musicians. This paper examines recent statistics of classical concert attendance, theories as to why attendance rates are low, marketing methods for target audiences, and finally, recommendations to solve the dilemma of empty concert halls. To encourage concert attendance, classical music must be tastefully marketed to present-day audiences through the experience of technically excellent, musical, and interesting live performances. Ultimately, the relationship between art and its audience (the consumer) reveals that the key to the dilemma is the audience.

Singing Planets Don't Sing; They Speak, Joanna R. Lauer

Musical Offerings

Ancient Greek philosophers conceived a theory called Music of the Spheres. This ancient theory progressed for almost one thousand years before finally proving itself untrustworthy. However, this examination uncovers an overlooked fact: the large amount of natural order in sound and music existing before the creation of man. Scripture reveals that God is a God of order, and an extensive amount of natural order is found in the universe. Evidence points to God being the creator of the universe. Specific examples of such evidence are the inherent order of sound laid out in pitches, interval ratios, the overtone series, the …

Medieval Methods: Guido D’Arezzo’S Innovative Approaches To Music Education, Lydia C. Kee

Musical Offerings

Music education has been influenced by many people throughout history, but arguably none of them have done so as much as the monk, Guido D’Arezzo. His teaching methods have been embraced and developed by music educators throughout the centuries. For example, it is recorded that Guido was the first to use the five-line staff as we use it today. This was especially groundbreaking in a world of rote memorization. Today it is used globally in music education. The roots of solfege are also found in Guido’s writings; his syllables have been adapted by Zoltan Kodály. Not only that, but John …

The Doctrine Of Affections: Where Art Meets Reason, Sharri K. Hall

Musical Offerings

The Doctrine of Affections was a widespread understanding of music and musicality during the Baroque era. The Doctrine was a result of the philosophy of reason and science as it coincides with music. It aimed to reconcile what man knew about science and the human body, and what man thought he knew about music. It was a reconciliation of practical musicianship and theoretical music which had begun to rise in the time. Though it is generally understood as being apart from Enlightenment thinking, the Doctrine is a result of Enlightenment-style philosophy. As the Enlightenment sought to explain why things occurred …

Music And The Mind: Music's Healing Powers, Carolyn S. Ticker

Musical Offerings

Music makes you smarter: or at least that is what the "experts" are saying. CDs are sold of Mozart's Sonatas for babies, and parents are urged to give their children music lessons in the belief that music does something to our brains which in turn makes us more intelligent. But is this really true? Does music really affect the brain in the powerful way that scientists are suggesting, or is it hearsay? In this paper I investigate the effects of music on our brain's plasticity and cognition by looking at several different experimental studies. Specifically I will address how music …

From Silence To Golden: The Slow Integration Of Instruments Into Christian Worship, Jonathan M. Lyons

Musical Offerings

The Christian church’s stance on the use of instruments in sacred music shifted through influences of church leaders, composers, and secular culture. Synthesizing the writings of early church leaders and church historians reveals a clear progression. The early musical practices of the church were connected to the Jewish synagogues. As recorded in the Old Testament, Jewish worship included instruments as assigned by one’s priestly tribe. Eventually, early church leaders rejected that inclusion and developed a rather robust argument against instruments in liturgical worship. The totalitarian stance on musical instruments in sacred worship began to loosen as the organ increased in …

The Effect Of Richard Wagner's Music And Beliefs On Hitler's Ideology, Carolyn S. Ticker

Musical Offerings

The Holocaust will always be remembered as one of the most horrific and evil events in all of history. One question that has been so pervasive in regards to this historical event is the question of why. Why exactly did Hitler massacre the Jewish people? Why did he come to the conclusion that the Jews were somehow lesser than him, and that it was okay to kill them? What and who were his influences and how did they help form Hitler’s opinions leading up to the Holocaust? Although more than one situation or person influenced Hitler, I believe that one …

Coursing With Coils: The Only Orchestral Instrument Harder Than The French Horn, Sarah R. Plumley

The Research and Scholarship Symposium (2013-2019)

Playing the horn has become not only more sophisticated and accurate, but simpler and more efficient for the horn player than what it was three hundred years ago. The natural horn, used in a variety ways in early history, demanded an incredible level of skill and precision, more than our valved horn today in some ways because it required a more accurate ear, more embouchure dexterity, and the necessity of wrangling crooks for different keys. Thus, it required many practiced skills of the player that are no longer as necessary as they once were. This paper discusses each of these …

Coursing With Coils: The Only Orchestral Instrument Harder Than The French Horn, Sarah R. Plumley

Musical Offerings

Playing the horn has become not only more sophisticated and accurate, but simpler and more efficient for the horn player. The natural horn, used in a variety ways in early history, demanded an incredible level of skill and precision, more than our valved horn today in some ways because it required a more accurate ear, more embouchure dexterity, and the necessity of wrangling crooks for different keys. Thus, it required many practiced skills of the player that are no longer as necessary as they once were. This paper discusses each of these demands along with the history of the horn, …

Give My Regards To The Book, Kevin A. Hicks

Musical Offerings

This project is an analysis of the construction of American Musical Theatre. The research for this project has been drawn from direct quotes and writings from Musical Theatre writers, scores and scripts, and from historical books. Reading of these sources reveal principles of Musical Theatre writing which the authors use and the audience expects. This project analyzes how the book, lyrics, and music to a show are written and demonstrates that the writing of Musical Theatre has developed its own unique craft which is grounded in the book.

Ruling The Market: How Venice Dominated The Early Music Printing World, Elizabeth M. Poore

Musical Offerings

This paper attempts to prove that Venice was the main geographical center of music printing and publishing from the 1300s to the late 1500s using several economic, legal, and cultural factors. The primary research method was examining secondary sources on music printing, publishing, and European and Venetian history.

From the 1300s to the late 1500s, Venetian commercial trade and activity, including book publishing, reached unheard of levels. Venice held a powerful position in the European economy and its merchants were able to leverage this to great advantage when the new technology of printing became available. The specialized business of music …