Music Performance Commons^™

Preparing To Perform: Brillance, By Ida Gotkovsky, Connor J. Fast

University Honors Theses

For a musician, preparing music for performance is a task undertaken daily. While the audience will only see the completed product, dozens of hours of dedicated work went into preparing that product. This thesis pulls the curtain back on preparing music and gives an insight on the type of preparation and work a musician might do to get a piece to the stage. Brilliance by Ida Gotkovsky is used as an example for how performance is developed. From the early stages of practicing, through rehearsal, and culminating with a performance, Preparing to Perform encompasses all of the steps in musical ...

The Art Of Listening: A Conversational Approach To Lecture Recitals, Javor Bracic

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Lecture recitals as the practice of pairing live music performance with verbal explication have been around since at least the end of the eighteenth century, but research on them is surprisingly scarce despite how ubiquitous they have become. What exactly are lecture recitals? Where did they originate? How are they conducted? Is there anything we could do to improve upon them?

In this dissertation I not only consider these questions but also propose a new kind of lecture recital I call a conversation concert. After a brief historical overview of lecture-recitalists from Johann Nikolaus Forkel to Rob Kapilow, I showcase ...

Listening To The Internet: Cultural Discourses, Vicente FernáNdez, And Hearing Youtube Comments, Alex Miguel Medina

Lawrence University Honors Projects

Here’s a story: It’s well after midnight. I sit there, at my laptop, tequila in hand.Like a good machista(if I could ever become one), I don’t drink my tequila with much in it: a single ice cube, a squirt of lime, and a dash of tajín. I can feel my cheeks warming up as the alcohol kicks in. I remember what my mom told me about tequilaonce, “you feel it in your chest.” Rancheramusic isn’t for sober listening—for sober ears—you feel it in your chest. No charro(Mexican cowboy)would sing “Por ...

The Rise Of The Rock Star, Derik Sibit

Recital Papers

A history and analysis of hard rock and heavy metal from the 1960s through the 1980s, the musical elements that make these genres unique, and an evaluation of the sound and style of songs, vocalists, and instrumentalists of some of the most important bands of this era and the techniques and methods they used to achieve their sounds and styles. A pedagogical analysis of some of the greatest singers in hard rock and heavy metal helps the reader better understand the anatomy and physiology of the voice and of heavy belting and screaming in rock and metal music.

Villa-Lobos’S Segunda Sonata-Fantasia For Violin And Piano: An Analysis And Performance Guide, Maira Braga Cabral

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study focuses on Villa-Lobos’s Segunda Sonata-Fantasia for Violin and Piano, written between 1913 and 1914. A brief biography of Villa-Lobos until 1915 provides the context of the period during which he composed the piece. Next, Villa-Lobos’s main influences are presented, a list that includes European nineteenth-century aesthetics, Impressionism, Brazilian popular music, Wagner’s motivic treatment, and Brazilian indigenous music. Next, the main compositional devices used by the composer are discussed, providing examples from the Segunda Sonata-Fantasia and from other pieces by Villa-Lobos. A structural analysis of the piece is presented, focusing on the form, thematic approach, and ...

"It's The Way You Sing It": Translating Music Therapy For Isolated Older Adults Affected By Covid-19 To The Television Screen, Eunice Wong

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

The current Covid-19 pandemic has increased the likelihood of loneliness and social isolation among older adults due to the restrictions on movement and visitations in care facilities. Loneliness and social isolation have consistently been identified as risk factors for poor mental and physical health in older people. Meanwhile, a growing number of older adults are utilizing technological resources to enhance their interpersonal relationships and overall quality of life. In the winter of 2020/2021, an innovative music therapy-informed television program was designed and produced for isolated older adults in need of mental and emotional support. This project, produced jointly by ...

Music Video Review: "O Superman" - Laurie Anderson, Jacob Thomas (Kiko) F. Yago

Backstage Pass

Laurie Anderson's "O Superman" music video is a commentary about the progression of technology. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vkfpi2H8tOE

A Line In The Sand Album Review, Robert N. Moore

Backstage Pass

On July 3rd, 2020, American Arson released their first full-length album. A Line In The Sand has a tight and powerful sound while still feeling raw and untamed, thanks to the help of high production standards. The lyrics somehow find a balance between bold, catchy, and beautiful. Their message mainly revolves around the current American socio-political sphere, challenging their listeners to seek compassion and unity instead of giving into apathy and ignorance.

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Ishmael Album Review, Robert N. Moore

Backstage Pass

This is an extensive review of the metal album Ishmael, written, performed, mixed, mastered, and released all by Jared Smith. The album combines religion, intricate guitar riffs, and metal to create an avant-garde piece of art.

Copyright And Copywrong, Noah Granard

Backstage Pass

This paper attempts to offer a critique of the music industry and modern copyright law via analysis/individual case study in order to provide suggestions for possible reform. Topics include: background information and commentary on the status of the public domain, why the current laws/statures hamper creativity, and what steps should be taken next to remedy these issues. In order to both promote new music, while also respecting the intellectual property of artists and groups with existing content, there must be genuine reform at the highest levels; copyright and music industry laws must stem from the basis of supporting ...

The Heart Sutra, Brian Bùi

Backstage Pass

The Heart Sutra is one of the most recited texts in the Mahayana Budddhist tradition. Traditionally, it is chanted rhythmically on a single pitch with a wooden drum. This setting of the Heart Sutra instead expresses the text through harmony and text painting.

The piece opens with a Hindustani-style invocation, referencing Buddhism’s Indian roots. Following that, a solo alto recounts a story of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara before all voices deliver his Insight, addressed to his disciple Shariputra.

In the first movement, lush harmonies are contrasted with open fifths, which represent “Shunyata,” or emptiness. This portion of the text discusses ...

Producer Interview: Teak Underdue, Kris Jones

Backstage Pass

This interview is with three-time Grammy-nominated music producer Teak Underdue of Hallway Productions. He discusses his background and the path he has taken to become a well respected music creator and producer. The interviewee offers advice for aspiring producers on how to build their reputation and credits in the music industry.

Industry Profile: Tour Manager, Lisa Policaro, Elizabeth Shearrow

Backstage Pass

Lisa Policaro is a Tour Manager from Long Island, New York with over 20 years of experience in the music business. She has worked in all areas of the industry from Interning for Columbia Records to working her way up to being Tour Manager. In this interview, Lisa talks with Elizabeth Shearrow (‘23) about how she got her start in the industry, what qualities students need to have to become a Tour Manager, and how COVID-19 has impacted her career.

Interview With Bonnie Gallanter, Dylan Bliss

Backstage Pass

Bonnie Gallanter, President of Muse Artist Management, is a talent manager, music consultant and event producer for high profile music, film, and television clients. Gallanter is currently the Director of the Women’s International Music Network and Co-Producer of the She Rocks Awards, Events and Showcases. She Co-Produced CMJ Music Marathon, New York’s largest and longest running music festival, for over 20 years as well as numerous festivals, events, panels and symposiums, trade shows, concerts, personal appearances and tours. As a manager, she has specialized in artist development, tour production and management, music development, film and commercial production, distribution ...

Letter From The Editor-In-Chief, Keith Hatschek

Backstage Pass

Outgoing Editor-in-Chief, Keith Hatschek, relates what accomplishments the editors of the journal have achieved, as well as previewing the content from this issue.

2020-2021 Performance Forum - May 11, 2021, Davron Ziyodjanov, Sheng Yuan Kuan, Amy Han, Griffin Ives, Zulfiya Bashirova, Mario Zelaya, Mario Rivera, Yunus Rajabiy, Jin Cai, Kari Jenks, Sarah Rodnick, Kelsey Castellanos

Performance Forum

No abstract provided.

Performing With Purpose: Finding Value In Standard Classical Vocal Repertoire As A Twenty-First-Century Teacher-Performer, Hallie Bisaga

Recital Papers

Performing with Purpose: Finding Value in Standard Classical Vocal Repertoire as a Twenty-first-century Teacher-performer

Developing A Multimedia Interface For Electrical Biosignal Interpretation, Christopher Cox

Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium

In the last ten years, a great deal of interest has been generated around the practice of using plants’ electrical signals to create sound or music. In order to render biosignals capable of producing sound electronically, some kind of interface is necessary that converts a plant’s natural electrical signals into data that a computer can understand. Existing commercial interfaces cost at minimum $3001,2 . Worse yet, two popular off-the-shelf interfaces conform their output signals to stereotypical human notions of what a plant might “sound like”. In this project we fabricated a simple but high-performance interface for less than $5 ...

An Exploration Of Classical Guitar Literature Through The Ages, Sam Burns

Recital Papers

An Exploration of Classical Guitar Literature Through the Ages

Recital 4: Program, Peter Bloom

The Timeless Genius of Chopin, Jiayan Sun, piano

No abstract provided.