Composition Commons^™

Bluegrass: A Voicing, Cade Botts

Masters Theses

In 2010, Fred Bartenstein’s detailed the voice stackings found in bluegrass in his article “Bluegrass Voicings.” [1]This paper will go beyond this discussion of the arrangement of voices to an examination of the harmonic voicing styles found in bluegrass music. Stamps-Braxter’s 1937 arrangement of “Farther Along”[2] and transcriptions of recordings by bluegrass legends Bill Monroe, Stanley Brothers, Reno & Smiley, the Osborne Brothers, Dolly Parton, and the Grascals will be used as a case study to look at multiple chord voicings. Based on the analyses of these transcriptions, a list of “voice leading conventions” for bluegrass compositions will …

Horned & Hidden Child: The Minotaur & Modern Opera, Mikeila Ashley Mcqueston

Masters Theses

Picture a world in which stories never die. Just down the street is the Halfway House for the Mythically Challenged, where fairytale creatures learn how to prepare for job-interviews. This is the world of Pasiphae, a beautiful sorceress, queen, and former wife of the ancient King Minos. After millennia on her own, she enlists the help of her Greek Chorus to rescue her children from their respective prisons – first Ariadne from the island Naxos, and now the Minotaur from Daedalus’ labyrinth. Horned & Hidden Child is a contemporary opera with music by Mikeila McQueston and libretto by Nicole Yackley. …

The Chamber Of Prayer: Oratorio Without Words, Hyowon Bong

Masters Theses

ABSTRACT

The Chamber of Prayer: Oratorio Without Words is a piece in eight movements with additional opening and closing movements (prologue and epilogue). It is written for choir (soprano/alto/contralto/bass), string ensemble (violins I/II, viola, cello, and double bass), and two percussionists. Its duration is approximately forty minutes.

Traditionally, an oratorio employs texts to convey a dramatic narrative and is based on scripture; thus, the word-music relationship plays a central role in this genre. However, this experimental piece deconstructs the traditional oratorio structure to explore whether the music alone can deliver the substantive content that is usually provided by …

An Exploration Of Topical Interaction In Symphony For Wind Band, Paul Royse

Masters Theses

Symphony for Wind Band is a single-movement tonal piece for wind band. It features four overarching sections with numerous changes in key, meter, tempo, and mood. The juxtapositions and contrasts of mood reflect a narrative conflict between two music topics: the pastoral and the city. Each of these topics possess musical signifiers present in the piece as well as extra-musical associations that add levels of significance to a narrative interpretation.

This paper will outline my reasons for composing for wind band and present a topical analysis of the piece. This analysis will include hermeneutic interpretations based on how the topics …

Manifestations: A Fixed Media Microtonal Octet, Sky Dering Van Duuren

Masters Theses

Manifestations is a composition in three movements, scored for an octet comprising the following instruments: flute (doubling piccolo), clarinet in B♭ (doubling bass clarinet), trumpet in C, tenor trombone, piano, marimba, violin, and cello. This piece serves as a vehicle for demonstrating the use of pitch adjustment software to incorporate microtonal aspects into a fixed-media piece. By utilizing this software, acoustic instruments may accurately provide pitches outside of the traditional twelve-tone chromatic scale in ways that impart expressiveness and/or provide structural significance without any physical alteration or extended techniques.

The microtonal elements of this piece are incorporated via three primary …

Symphony No. 1, Robert Alden Clark

Masters Theses

Symphony No. 1 is a three-movement composition for full orchestra. This piece is composed in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree Master of Music with a concentration in Composition from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The symphony was composed during the 2015-2016 academic year and is roughly twenty-two minutes in length. The first movement is written in sonata form with prefacing material that encapsulates the essence of an Adagio as well. The second movement is a lighthearted scherzo and trio with elements of sonata form. The final movement is an Allegro in modified rondo form that recapitulates previous …

Requiem For The Transient, Brian Palmer Gee

Masters Theses

Requiem for the Transient is a six-movement piece of music for full orchestra and choir. The six movements are the “Prelude,” “Introit,” “Sequentia,” “Agnus Dei,” “Lux Aeterna,” and “In Paradisum,” As with most Requiems, the music is a setting of prayers from the Roman Missal. Historically composers have used various prayer choices, sometimes even including texts outside of the Missal. Requiem for the Transient contains only one source of text outside of the Missal; the first movement, “Prelude”, uses text from the New King James version of Ecclesiastes 12:1-7.

This document will compare and contrast Requiem for the Transient with …

Augmentation Of Delusion, Christopher Lynn Adams

Masters Theses

Augmentation of Delusion is a single-movement piece for chamber orchestra composed by Chris L. Adams. The piece was originally written for a four-person percussion ensemble in 2013 and orchestrated in 2014. This document will analyze the major musical elements of form, harmony, melody, rhythm and meter, and genre of the piece, as well as compare and contrast these variables with other composers’ works.

Music theory terminology and figures will be applied in this document as follows:

1. Set theory functions will be expressed as:
a. Normal order indicated by brackets – [2367]
b. Prime form indicated by parentheses – (0145) …

Les Vosges A Suite For Orchestra, Glenn Robert Kahler

Masters Theses

Les Vosges, a programmatic suite for orchestra in three movements, features dance-like rhythms, folksong-influenced melodies, and formal characteristics and stylistic qualities that combine elements of modern composition with those reminiscent of Baroque dance. Les Vosges was composed in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree Master of Music with a concentration in Composition from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

This paper offers a supplementary analysis of the Les Vosges while referencing influential compositions and composers of the last century (Milhaud, Grofe, Kodaly, and Holst) regarding musical parameters of form, melody, harmony, rhythm and meter, and genre.

The Wilderness For String Quartet, Samuel Moore Lewis

Masters Theses

The Wilderness is a single-movement work for string quartet with a performance time of approximately 14 minutes. This piece was completed in the spring of 2014.

The purpose of this paper is to place the composition within the context of concert music by analyzing its form, melody, harmony, rhythm, and meter and comparing those elements with those in similar examples by 20^th and 21^st century composers, in particular the post-Romantic string quartet literature.

String Quartet, Zachary Pentecost

Masters Theses

String Quartet is a work scored for standard string quartet, consisting of two violins, viola, and cello. The composition was completed in early August 2013, and was written in part to fulfill the requirements for the Masters of Music degree with a concentration in composition. The primary purpose of this thesis is to highlight various aspects of String Quartet and then offer comparisons between it and multiple works from the twentieth century centering on various musical elements such as; form, melody, harmony, rhythm, and texture.

Cimmerian River: A Concerto For Cello And Orchestra, Nicholas David Powell

Masters Theses

Cimmerian River is a four-movement concerto for solo cello and symphony orchestra. The work was composed by Nicholas D. Powell. The initial version (for piano and cello) was written in 2012 and orchestrated in 2013. The movements are titled “Dark Cascades,” “Shaded Current,” “Past Shadow Things,” and “Deluge.” This document will compare and contrast Cimmerian River with other works containing comparable parameters, such as similarity in melodic construction or harmonic language. The concerto will also be set in the context of other cello concertos, ranging from historic (as early as Dvořák and Elgar) to recent (as late as Williams and …

Exodus Concerto For Guitar And Chamber Orchestra, Spencer Joel Kappelman

Masters Theses

Exodus is a four-movement composition for solo guitar accompanied by a chamber orchestra. This piece is composed in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree Master of Music with a concentration in Music Composition from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Exodus was composed during the 2010-2012 academic years.
This paper provides a narrative analysis of Exodus in terms of its musical content, and relationships to other composers of the last century. Similarities to these composers refer to form, orchestration, melody, harmony, rhythm, and meter.

Suite For Chamber Orchestra, Liahna R. Guy

Masters Theses

Suite for Chamber Orchestra is a three-movement composition for an orchestra of reduced size. Over the course of the three movements, a variety of influences can be seen from the 19th and 20th centuries in regard to harmony and rhythmic practices. This Suite is scored for flute, oboe, Bb clarinet, bassoon, French horn, trumpet in C, timpani, violin (I and II), viola, cello, and double bass, and utilizes a moderate level of dissonance, harmonies consisting of perfect fourths and fifths, as well as a high level rhythmic activity.

This paper provides an analysis of the Suite in terms of musical …

Literal Imagery In Music: A Thesis To Accompany Constellation Suite, Evelyn Marie Pursley-Kopitzke

Masters Theses

The relationship between music and its sources of inspiration probably has been debated for as long as people have created instrumental music. Baroque tone painting is a documented early correlation of musical theme to subject. Subsequent musical imagery and mood creation for the later programmatic music could be an outgrowth from this Baroque practice. Composers used several approaches to create each music-to-subject connection.

One compositional device was using music that had become a cliché for its most common use to evoke a reference to that setting. Another device created music that “sounds like” its meaning—musical onomatopoeia—instrumental mimicry of extra-musical sounds. …

Concerto For Bassoon And Chamber Orchestra, Timothy Patrick Cooper

Masters Theses

The Concerto for Bassoon and Chamber Orchestra is a three-movement composition for solo bassoon accompanied by an ensemble of modest proportions. This piece is composed in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree Master of Music with a concentration in Composition from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The Concerto was composed during the 2010-2011 academic year. This paper provides a narrative analysis of the Concerto in terms of the parameters of its musical content, and relationships thereof. In so doing, references are made to related or influential compositions of the last century in respect to genre, style, form, pitch …

William Walton's Belshazzar's Feast: Orientalism And The Continuation Of The English Oratorio, Elissa Hope Keck

Masters Theses

This study investigates aspects of Orientalism found within the genre of the English oratorio, specifically William Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast (1931). Building on Edward Said’s research on Orientalism, analyses of Orientalist representations in music exploded the field of musicology in the 1980s and 90s. However, the examination of Orientalism in sacred genres remains lacking. Bringing forth cultural, political, and musical conflicts between East and West, Walton’s oratorio encourages further investigation in previously unaddressed genres. I argue that, by combining dramatic operatic elements with sacred text, Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast reflects a continuation of Orientalist ideologies through binary opposition aimed at perpetuating the …

Seasons For A Cynic: A Compositional Process Utilizable For A Program Symphony, David Anthony Pegel

Masters Theses

The technique of symphonic composition requires a deliberate and methodical process by the composer; when the symphony is intended to aesthetically convey a specific subject matter, the compositional process must become even more deliberate. First a subject must be chosen and examined in a contemporary standpoint. Then the composer must determine how to reflect this subject through his or her composing. Ideally, the end result of this composition should encompass the subject matter as thoroughly as possible.

While the great majority of textbooks on music theory and composition centralize themselves on elements of pitch in music, the composer has many …

Wandering Into The Dusky Plains For Winds, Percussion, And String Quartet, Jess Hendricks

Masters Theses

Wandering Into the Dusky Plains is a work composed for winds, percussion, and a string quartet in seven movements. It was written to fulfill a portion of the requirements to receive a Master' degree in Music composition from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. The composition of the work was completed in December of 2006. All of the orchestration was done during the process of composition and edited later by the composer using Finale 2007. The MIDI realizaton of the score was completed using Logic Express 7.2, Garritan Personal orchestra sound software library, and Virtual drumline sound software library.

This …