Music Practice Commons^™

Violin Intonation: The Connection Between The Violin’S Tuning System And Performance, Marion J. Johnson

Musical Offerings

The history of the violin’s intricate tuning system is rich with various pitch standards, the influence of musicians, and diversity of violin craftsmanship. The violin offers a wide array of tuning techniques, and even the smallest intonation adjustment can wildly impact the violin’s pitch and playability. Violinists possess an enormous capability to facilitate effective tuning in a solo and ensemble setting. The design of the instrument’s body, dating as far back as the early Renaissance and extending to the modern violin, impacts timbre, resonance, and string tension. Every detail of the violin, even those that may seem inconsequential, affects its …

Orthography, Jeremy Gill

Music & Musical Performance

The myth of Pope Gregory I taking melodic dictation from a magical singing bird is the imaginative starting point of Western musicʼs love-hate relationship with the music notation systems it later developed. This essay traces that development through Thomas Tallis and J. S. Bach to the dichotomous modern examples of Brian Ferneyhough and Arvo Pärt. In it, I suggest that Western musicʼs eventual development hinged upon that earliest desire to document and codify melodies, answering Gregoryʼs contemporary Isidore of Seville, who lamented that “unless sounds are held by the memory of man, they perish, because they cannot be written down.”

Metric Expressivity: An Introduction, Felipe Avellar De Aquino

Music & Musical Performance

This article discusses how meter and musical impulses can generate distinct character traits in music according to a performer’s interpretation of the metric notation. It is part of an ongoing research project focused on interpretative elements and using analytical as well as auto-ethnographical methods. This article includes analysis and comparisons of historical recordings contiguous to performance-focused analysis. It is based on the study of metric components, organizational structures, and metric-structuring elements and concepts developed by Edward T. Cone (1968), David Epstein (1995a, 1995b), Roy Howat (1995), Mine Doğantan-Dack (2012, 2014), and Nicholas Cook (2001). These writers’ thoughts are placed in …

Hidden Meanings In Elementary Instrumental Music Method Books: A Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis, Mara Hope Thompson

Education Doctorate Dissertations

Textbooks serve as the primary resource utilized to deliver curriculum in a variety of subject areas and educational contexts. However, much previous research has found that texts often convey concealed meanings in the form of hidden and null curricula. This Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis (MCDA) explored the musical discourses and cultural contexts of musical examples in two elementary instrumental music textbook series to investigate whose values, cultures, perspectives, and knowledge are conveyed by the texts and whose are excluded or misrepresented. Framed by the social theory of Postcolonialism, the research revealed binary ideologies of exoticism embedded in many aspects of …

Reflection, Reflexivity, Learning And The Influence Of Formalised And Experiential Piano Training, Dorothy Li

The Qualitative Report

This autoethnographic study examines how music learning is influenced by teachers and socio-cultural environments and how this influences not only our musical journeys but the way we view our lives, of the progress we have made, the goals in which we hope to achieve, and the way we perceive we will achieve them. This study explores how my musical background, understanding, learning, music-making abilities, and skills have shaped my present beliefs, attitudes and identity as a musician, educator, and researcher. Focusing on teacher pedagogy and practice, the study reveals how prevailing teacher-centred and didactic approaches to teaching impact the perspectives …

All Things New: An Analysis Of Alfred Gaul’S “A New Heaven And A New Earth”, Hope V. Dornfeld

Montview Journal of Research & Scholarship

These program notes originally accompanied the performance of a vocal piece, “A New Heaven and a New Earth” by English composer Alfred Robert Gaul. The notes provide a brief overview of the historical context of Gaul’s work as well as an examination of classification difficulties that arise when dealing with sacred works of the mid-to-late nineteenth century. They further detail the unique challenges that are inherent in presenting an underperformed musical work. As part of a performing arts research project, these program notes also address the methods of expression and creative process that went into preparing the performance of this …

Ecuadorian Vocal Anthology In Four Rhythms, Wagner Mauricio Pástor Pazmiño Dr.

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Ecuador is a pluricultural and multilingual territory with four natural regions, several musical genres, and interpretations. Amazon, Galápagos, Mountain Range, and Coastal region. In the following dissertation, the author develops concepts of four traditional rhythms, their composers, and harmonic and phonetic characteristics from the mountain range region of his homeland, Ecuador.

The present document is a descriptive study of vocal Andean music and the application of the operatic style in classical vocal technique for performance practice.

The dissertation will support a lecture recital to fulfill the doctoral program's requirement in voice performance from the University of Kentucky.

Sculpting Time: A Performance Guide To Four Fragments Of Time By Marcus Siqueira, Luis Felipe Vargas Magdaleno De Moraes

Theses and Dissertations--Music

This dissertation investigates the musical and phenomenological aspects of Four Fragments of Time by Marcus Siqueira (b. 1974) and provides a performance guide for this work. Furthermore, this dissertation analyzes previous guitar works by the composer, seeking to understand Siqueira’s compositional idiosyncrasies and to provide context for the interpretation of Four Fragments of Time. This dissertation includes a biography of the composer, an analysis of the compositional process of Four Fragments of Time, an analysis of the recurrent idiomatic procedures in Siqueira’s guitar works, and an overview of the collaborative process between the composer and the author. Additionally, an analysis …

An Examination Of Maria Schneider’S Big Band Artistry Through The Lens Of Wind Band Arranging, Amy Birdsong

Dissertations, 2020-current

Within the world of instrumental music there tends to be strict adherence to styles and genres that have historically been connected to a standard collection of instruments. Wind ensembles are expected to perform contemporary art music, orchestral transcriptions, or military marches, with little expectation of individual creative interpretation. Jazz ensembles, or “big bands,” are expected to perform styles of music such as “swing,” which cannot be properly notated using western notation, while also being rigidly glued to reduced instrument choices, repetitive chord cycles and standard song forms. While wind ensemble performers are confined to read and perform all aspects of …

A Survey Of The Comparative Performance Demands Of Performing Mozart’S Fourth Horn Concerto On The Natural Horn And Modern Horn, Brandon Garrison

Doctoral Projects

The four horn concertos by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart are fundamental standards of horn repertoire. Since the production of Dennis Brain’s early recordings in 1953, many virtuoso horn players have recorded these concerti on the modern horn. However, there are few professional recordings made on the natural horn. Though Mozart’s four horn concertos are prominent in horn study across the world, they are rarely executed with correct performance practice techniques. In my presentation, I will demonstrate passages from Mozart’s Horn Concerto No. 4 to survey the challenges when performed on natural horn versus the modern horn. It is important to understand …

Villa-Lobos Choros No. 1: A Study Of The Recordings, Andrei Jan Hoffmann Uller

Dissertations

This dissertation explores changing perspectives on performance practice for the well-known solo guitar work Choros No.1 composed in 1920 by Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959), by documenting different interpretations heard on selected recordings from across the 20th century and into the 21st century. The methodology considers the recordings as the main object of study. Choros No. 1 features a hybrid style that makes it especially interesting for a research method that captures performance details such as articulations, dynamic and agogic accents, timbre, and tempo flexibility. This dissertation will consider performance decisions that are not often discussed in the research. For example, the …

Aum314.1 Music For Non-Linear Narrative Example 2, Sae Institute

Exemplars

HD / Exceeds Specification exemplar for AUM314.1 - Music for Non-Linear Narrative

Aum314.1 Music For Non-Linear Narrative Example 1, Sae Institute

Exemplars

Exceeds Specification exemplar for AUM314.1 - Music for Non-Linear Narrative

Mus113.1 Collaborative Musicianship: Project Development And Pre-Production Example 2, Sae Institute

Exemplars

Development of pre-production strategies for the creation of audio media in a collaborative context.

Mus113.1 Collaborative Musicianship: Project Development And Pre-Production Example 1, Sae Institute

Exemplars

Development of pre-production strategies employed in the creation of audio media in a collaborative context.

Sonorous Movement: Cellistic Corporealities In Works By Helmut Lachenmann, Simon Steen-Andersen, And Johan Svensson, John Popham

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In Sonorous Movement: Cellistic Corporealities in Works by Lachenmann, Steen-Andersen, and Svensson, I analyze three compositions that foreground the cellist-body, its physical gestures, and instrumental interactions: Helmut Lachemann’s Pression für einen Cellisten (1969/2010), Simon Steen-Andersen’s Study for String Instrument #3 (2011), and Johan Svensson’s marionette for string instrument, electro-mechanical devices and lights (2018). These works center sound production and the performing body as sites of ontological and creative exploration. Their physical gestures serve multiple sensorial functions, heightening the visual and kinesthetic dimensions of a traditionally aurally oriented practice. For each work, I develop a corresponding analytical method based on …

Aum314.2 Music For Non-Linear Narrative Example 1, Sae Institute

Exemplars

HD / Exceeds Specification exemplar for AUM314.2: Music for Linear Narrative

Conference Report: Reassessing Haydn’S Sacred Music, 12–14 June 2023, Eisenstadt, Austria, Robert B. Wrigley

HAYDN: Online Journal of the Haydn Society of North America

A conference entitled "Reassessing Haydn's Sacred Music" took place in Eisenstadt 12-14 June, 2023. Historical, political, and religious contexts, reception, compositional and religous influences upon Haydn, and stylistic characteristics of specific works were all discussed.

Concert Programming Simplified For The Overwhelmed School Conductor, Adam L. Compton

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

This document is a basic guide for preparing and programming a concert. It contains five chapters, each of which covers one aspect to consider while going through the process of concert preparation. Some key points are an analysis of the Audience, an analysis of the Ensemble and the selection process of music. It also contains steps of putting together a viable order to a concert. The last two chapters give insight on different approaches to concert programming and some of the aspects of concert programming that does not deal primarily with the music and therefore is often found lacking in …

A Performer's Guide To Two Song Collections: “Mementos Of Innocence” And “Three Yeats Songs” By Malaysian Composer Chee Yean Wong, Wu Ji Khoo

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Despite the flourishing existence of Asian Art Music for over half a century, relatively little has been done to advance its recognition and prominence. Through this project, the author hopes to shed light on the beauty and richness of Asian Art Music and encourage its inclusion in the repertoire of American classical music. The purpose of this document is to supply a comprehensive performer’s guide to Malaysian composer, Chee Yean Wong’s song collections: “Mementos of Innocence” and “Three Yeats Songs.” The collections feature settings of English poems by Jean Blewett, Christina Rossetti, Edwin C. Ranck, Rabindranath Tagore, and William Butler …

Tracking The Harmonium From Christian Missionary Hymns To Sikh Kirtan, Gurminder Kaur Bhogal

Yale Journal of Music & Religion

The harmonium is prominent in Sikh practices of devotional music known as kirtan and yet its significance has barely been addressed in Euro-American scholarship. Following on the heels of a recent ban against using the instrument at the holiest temple of the Sikhs, Harmandir Sahib (popularly known as the Golden Temple), this article explores how the ban seeks to discard this colonial instrument and return to playing traditional string instruments (tanti saz) associated with the courts (darbar) of the Sikh Gurus. This study is the first to examine primary missionary sources from the nineteenth and early …

Why Not Be Free: The Black Worldmaking Praxis, Research Method, & Manifesto For Developing Music Interventions Against Stress In Black Youth, Armond Epps Dorsey

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

Why Not Be Free? is an interdisciplinary exploration of music intervention development demonstrating the application of my integrated research and artistic practices through an outlined antiracist method for designing music to reduce stress in Black college youth and a manifesto detailing the compositional process. I draw from Black feminist and womanist thought, music cognition, and public health literature to outline a framework for designing music interventions to reduce stress among Black populations: the Music Medicine Critical Race Praxis. I situate my work among Black speculative artists reimagining experiences in everyday Black life as well as music intervention researchers integrating …

Play Makes Perfect: An Exploration Of Game And Play Elements In Composition And Performance, Gabrielle Chou

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation aims to explore the intersection of play and games in Western classical music and define a new category of pieces, “ludic pieces,” which contain play structures and game mechanics within their composition. Starting with surveying perspectives in ludology and ludomusicology, including those by Roger Caillois, Johan Huizinga, Jesper Juul, Katie Salen, and Eric Zimmerman, I will examine various definitions of a “game” and what its qualifying aspects are. I will then turn to music and consider pieces that interact with play and games without containing game structures, including examples of musical humor and pieces which evoke the imagery …

Reevaluating Student Engagement: Exploring And Applying Alternative Assignments In Higher Education Undergraduate Applied Saxophone, Anthony S. Cincotta Ii

Dissertations, 2020-current

Undergraduate applied saxophone study revolves around the conservatory model. This inflexible model, often referred to as a master-apprentice relationship, can create an instructor-centric power dynamic which does not address the needs of the modern student. A classroom where the power lies so heavily with the instructor can stifle student engagement and can create a sense of disenfranchisement. In this setting, students have limited input on their assignment selections. While curricula have evolved with regards to being more culturally diverse, relevant, and inclusive, the approach that educators use to deliver the material has remained largely unchanged. There is limited research on …

Scordator: A Digital Map Of All Scordature, Paulo Vaz De Carvalho, Rui Penha

The 21st Century Guitar

Scordatura is often used in stringed instruments to overcome constraints posed by their tuning. Finding the right scordatura for a particular situation may be a time-consuming task, especially for non-guitarist composers. In this contribution, we present a web application designed to show a tuning chart for any chordophone equipped with a maximum of eight strings, each tunable to a pitch in the range of a full keyboard. The application also provides visualization of the available positions for live MIDI notes within a given scordatura.

Composing Idiomatic Music For Guitar Using Distant Reading Strategies, Giovanni Albini, Matilde Oppizzi

The 21st Century Guitar

The composition of new music for guitar can involve two issues: 1) composers that have no experience with the instrument might not be able to compose a score that is idiomatic, accommodating and highlighting the unique characteristics and features of the conventional guitar techniques; and 2) composer-guitarists might repeat clichés that can origin from their performance habits. In this respect, the aim of this paper is to answer the following questions: can distant reading methods help in defining strategies for composing new idiomatic music for guitar? If so, how they can be defined and implemented? Distant reading methods allow to …

Largo Teso: The Seven Studies For Guitar By Maurizio Pisati, Maurizio Pisati, Elena Càsoli

The 21st Century Guitar

In this contribution, composer and interpreter talk about the Seven Studies from their respective points of view. Maurizio Pisati explains how he developed a new guitar, departing from a single study and arriving at the overall formal conception through timbres, techniques and articulations; and how the soloistic studies led him to a guitarled ensemble piece. Elena Càsoli deals with issues such as the score's indications and the instrumental techniques.

The Morphological And Audiative Interconnectedness Of Sound: Equivalence In A Multidimensional Soundscape, Martin Vishnick

The 21st Century Guitar

This paper draws on the authorʼs recent theoretical and practical research into the morphology of sound and audiation. In particular, it explores the notion of equivalence in a multidimensional soundscape. Correlations between the interconnectedness of sound-based morphologies emanating from extended guitar techniques and comprehending internal auditory imagination when sound is not physically present will be assessed. To express an all-encompassing mental and visual image of apprehending the value of sound from a morphological and audiative perspective, three-dimensional topological diagrams will be evaluated ‒ a development of previous two-dimensional visualisations. In regard to morphologies, topics of interest are spectromorphology, spatiomorphology, spectral …

Noise Peddler: An Exploration Of The 21st Century Pedalboard, Danny Bright, Lee Westwood

The 21st Century Guitar

Noise Peddler is a practice-based research project exploring the 21st century guitar pedalboard as composition and performance interface. Recent growth in the guitar pedal industry has seen a notable increase in popularity of the pedal platform, expansion in the number of manufacturers, the scope of effects available, and solidification of the concept of the pedalboard. The widespread adoption of MIDI/CV control, alongside the packaging of increasingly experimental and complex processing into stompbox formats has expanded the pedalboardʼs potential as a flexible canvas for the creation of unconventional guitar sounds. Performers such as Sarah Lipstate, Nels Cline and Ed OʼBrien have …

Guitars With Ambisonic Spatial Performance (Gasp): An Immersive Guitar System, Duncan Werner, Emma Fitzmaurice, Bruce Wiggins, Matthew Hart

The 21st Century Guitar

The GASP project investigates the design and realisation of an Immersive Guitar System. It brings together a range of sound processing and spatialising technologies and applies them to a specific musical instrument ‒ the Electric Guitar. GASP is an ongoing innovative audio project, fusing the musical with the technical, combining the processing of each stringʼs output (which we called timbralisation) with spatial sound. It is also an artistic musical project, where space becomes a performance parameter, providing new experimental immersive sound production techniques for the guitarist and music producer. Several ways of reimagining the electric guitar as an immersive sounding …