Music Practice Commons^™

A Mixed Methods Study Of The Process Of Commissioning New Music For Choirs, Kyle Justin Brazell

Dissertations

This study provided an in-depth look at the commissioning process for choral music. The pursuit of new music has a storied tradition in western culture, deeply connected with the Catholic church, starting in the medieval era. In modern times, there is a substantial amount of research on commissioning new music. However, most of the existing research is focused on band and orchestra ensembles, with very few exploring choral music commissions. Using a mixed methods design, this study identified a process for pursuing new music for choral ensembles and measured attitudes and perceptions of the director and composer during the commissioning …

Befitting Bach: Prelude And Fugue Transcribed For Horn Quartet, Caitlin Murphy

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This thesis, titled “Befitting Bach: Prelude and Fugue Transcribed for Horn Quartet,” consists of horn quartet transcriptions of Prelude 1 and Fugue 1 from Johann Sebastian Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I. The prelude and fugue pair were originally written for harpsichord during the Baroque period, and the pieces remain commonly performed on keyboard instruments. The transcription translates the pieces into four-part horn music while preserving the original musical ideas and accounting for the different technical capabilities between the instruments. The accompanying written component provides a brief history of the original compositions. Further, the report delves into the transcription …

Analytical Perspectives For The Wind Band Conductor: Discovering The Musical Growth Of A Composition Through Focused Observation Using The Elements Of Shmrg From Jan Larue’S Guidelines For Style Analysis, Eric Elker

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Productive score study and analysis is one of the most essential skills conductors need for preparing rehearsals and performances of repertoire. Musical conductors acquire score study skills and tools early in their educations. Much of their attention is given to achieving the composer’s intention by searching for and discovering significant musical moments created by several musical elements such as form, harmony, melody, rhythm, timbre, texture, and dynamics. This analytical approach is necessary for learning a piece of music, but conductors miss musical and creative opportunities if they confine themselves solely to their analytical observations for studying, rehearsing, and performing musical …

Idiosyncratic Approaches To Electronic Music-Making Through Mobile Technologies, Nick E. Wilson, Martin K. Koszolko

Staff Scholarship - Australia & Dubai

This paper examines the transformative impact of mobile technologies on electronic music-making, highlighting how portable apps and hardware enable idiosyncratic approaches beyond traditional live and studio setups. Drawing on the authors’ extensive experience within and beyond Clan Analogue—Australia’s longest-running electronic music collective—the research contrasts conventional configurations with innovative mobile instruments and apps. By analysing a range of tools, from budget-friendly synthesisers to advanced smartphone and tablet apps, the paper explores how mobile technologies foster new creative possibilities. Using qualitative methods, the authors integrate personal experiences and a broad examination of music equipment to investigate the setting-based mobile music creation model, …

A Comprehensive Guide To A Trumpet Embouchure Change, Megan E. George

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Abstract

The purpose of this project is to expand the literature related to the subject of trumpet embouchure change and provide a comprehensive resource that will assist both student and teacher in navigating a trumpet embouchure change. This resource will not only help them determine whether to go through with the process but will present them with multiple options regarding embouchure change starting methods. It can be used for a variety of ages but primarily intended for use with students high school age or older.

In current method books, one trumpet embouchure is usually presented and is often a “one-size-fits-all” …

"Come Tempesta In Mar": Awe And Terror In Haydn’S Sacred Music, Clive Mcclelland

HAYDN: Online Journal of the Haydn Society of North America

Haydn’s so-called Sturm und Drang symphonies are renowned for exhibiting a range of disruptive features. While some commentators have attempted to link this with a personal crisis in Haydn’s life, there is no evidence to support the idea. Furthermore, it is misleading to make an association here between stormy musical writing in general and the German literary Sturm und Drang. The principal musical topos that Haydn employs is one that I have termed tempesta, and its origins lie in the storm scenes of Baroque opera. Here there was often a supernatural association involving a deity either as instigator …

An Interdisciplinary Analysis Framework For Found Object Experimental Music, Erin Demastes

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Found object experimental music consists of compositions and performances created with objects not intended for musical performance. Found objects can range from appliances and household items to power tools and consumer products to souvenirs and heirlooms. Although these objects are used with the intent of creating musical compositions, new characteristics that are not found in traditional music emerge. One major characteristic that differentiates found object music from traditional music is that the objects have inherent cultural associations and meaning outside of their use in the composition. While an analysis of the sonic structures and scores of found object experimental music …

A Conversation With Loe Gino, Loe Gino, Seb Taylor

Digital Laboratory: Publisher of Internet Journal

LOE Gino is a Bay Area native from Berkeley, California and an independent artist. He has been a pioneer in the music industry for new age artistry. His ability to be a voice for independent artists parallels his wordsmith-skills as a rapper. As a part of the Bay Area cultural scene, he is a real life example of how to set a vision and build it as you go. Every aspect of his creative vision is thought out and executed with the accuracy of a freestyle. LOE Gino stands as an example of what it means to never conform to …

Harmonicthreads – An Interface That Supports Accessibility In Musical Interaction, Ellie Nguyen, Miyuki Weldon, Franceli L. Cibrian

Engineering Faculty Articles and Research

Traditional musical instruments often can create boundaries due to their cost, training, mobility, and cognitive requirements, making musical expression inaccessible. To address this challenge, we developed HarmonicThreads, a novel pervasive computing interface consisting of a responsive, flexible fabric. HarmonicThreads provides a tactile and auditory experience, allowing users to easily create and control sounds. Using embedded sensors and real-time processing, HarmonicThreads interprets the user's natural movements and interactions to create adaptable musical outputs. This enables context-aware musical interaction, demonstrating the potential of pervasive interfaces in reducing barriers and making musical expression more accessible.

Reassessing Haydn’S Orfeo In The Theatre, Dorian Bandy, Caryl Clark

HAYDN: Online Journal of the Haydn Society of North America

Haydn’s last opera, L’anima del filosofo (The Soul of the Philosopher), is a highly unusual retelling of the Orpheus myth. Written for London in 1791 to a libretto by C. F. Badini, the opera was never staged during the composer’s lifetime. Shut down in rehearsal and banned from performance, the opera never reached the stage because many of its themes—including the apocalyptic storm at the end—piqued British anxieties towards events unfolding in revolutionary France. The opera finally premiered in 1951, with Maria Callas singing the role of Euridice. Universal Edition prepared the performing material from sources photographed behind …

Cueing Motions In A String Quartet, An Exploratory Study Of Motion Trajectories, Maren Rothfritz

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

A string quartet performance involves an array of different body movements which serve many functions, including sound production, expression, and communication. This dissertation examines the ways string quartet players execute specific communicative body motions called cues, which are anticipatory gestures meant to communicate tempo and timing as well as the musical intentions such as dynamics, articulation, and character to the co-performers. Some scholarly research exists on cueing, but a formalized description of the cueing motions involved has not yet been developed. This dissertation serves as an exploratory study examining the motion trajectories of cueing motions employed by the Argus Quartet, …

Echoes Of Chinese Tradition: A Guide To Mandarin Diction Through Fixed-Ipa And Traditional Phonology, With Insights Into Intertwined Intonation Contours Of Chinese-American Art Songs, Xiaoming Tian

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation presents a comprehensive guide to Mandarin Chinese diction and articulation, rooted in traditional Chinese phonology and articulated through Fixed-International Phonetic Alphabet (Fixed-IPA). It unfolds in two primary segments, with the initial section delving into the historical underpinnings and phonetic nuances of traditional Chinese opera singing. This inquiry not only systematically introduces Chinese pronunciation rules but also illuminates the influence of traditional Chinese opera elements on contemporary Chinese art songs and operas. This part also reflects upon the significant strides made in Chinese language Romanization since the Wade-Giles system's introduction in the 19th century, discussing how it facilitated literacy …

Jazz And Politics: Was Ornette Coleman Inspired By The Civil Rights Movement?, Jason Dreher, Josiah Boornazian

The IASJ Journal of Applied Jazz Research

Due in part to increasing intellectual and political polarization in the United States in recent decades, there has been a resultant decrease in viewpoint diversity and an increase in instances of groupthink and widespread conceptual bias in the construction of many jazz history narratives. One example of these phenomena is the historiographical narratives linking free jazz and avant-garde jazz with the Civil Rights Movement in twentieth-century America. In the past several decades, the narrative that free jazz and/or avant-garde jazz was predominantly artistically inspired by the Civil Rights Movement has become broadly espoused by a wide variety of both scholarly …

Sentimental Aesthetics In D-Flat Major: Adagio Of Haydn’S Hob. Xvi:46, Keri Hui

HAYDN: Online Journal of the Haydn Society of North America

Although the concept of key characteristics was widely affirmed in the eighteenth century, the key of D-flat major was rarely adopted by composers. The so-called Romantic period, however, saw a remarkable increase in the use of this key, as demonstrated in the many well-known pieces written by composers such as Chopin. The article first reviews the different receptions of D-flat major in the eighteenth century and explores how the clavichord might have allowed Haydn to hear D-flat major as a key of sentimentality, one that echoes Christian Daniel Friedrich Schubart’s interpretation. It then examines ways in which Haydn presents the …

Lee Konitz’S Use Of Standards’ Melody In Improvisation, Gonçalo Pazeres, Ricardo Pinheiro

The IASJ Journal of Applied Jazz Research

The main goal of this article is to examine the mechanisms through which Lee Konitz uses the melody of jazz standards in his improvisation process. Beginning with the transcription and comprehensive analysis of five improvised solos, and using the thematic analysis method, we identified melodic ideas coming from the songs on which the saxophonist builds some of his solos. Our conclusion is that Lee Konitz, besides clearly quoting the melody of jazz standards on which he improvises, also frequently uses some of its notes as target-notes, and develops melodic motifs inspired by that same melody.

Scale Choices, Modal Harmony, And The Interpretation Of Slash Chord Notation For “Naima” By John Coltrane, Josiah Boornazian

The IASJ Journal of Applied Jazz Research

This analysis of Naima is intended to provide useful conceptual tools for those who are interested in analyzing the harmonic language of modal jazz. The goals: to demonstrate the value of thinking about jazz harmony using slash chords, to suggest specific scale choice options to fit each chord in “Naima,” and to offer an explanation of how jazz composers can use modal harmony to create a sense of harmonic tension, release, and motion. Such an approach can provide a useful framework which will open new vistas of harmonic and melodic vocabulary for jazz composers, performers, and educators.

Audiotactile Music Theory And Jazz Education: Historical And Pedagogical Perspectives, Stéphane Audard

The IASJ Journal of Applied Jazz Research

The Audiotactile Music Theory offers new perspectives for considering the issues associated with the institutionalization of jazz education and the gradual transition from informal transmission situations to formalized curricula. The aim of this article is to show how certain central the concepts of the ‘Audiotactile Music Theory’ can be used in a dual historical and pedagogical perspective, to overcome certain dichotomies that structure discourses on jazz teaching at different times: written/oral, formal/informal and art/popular music. The Audiotactile Music Theory also allows us to question the place of jazz in music teaching institutions today, and our own pedagogical practice.

Twin Sons Of Different Mothers: Harmonic Convergence In Jazz And Classical Music, Kurt Ellenberger

The IASJ Journal of Applied Jazz Research

Jazz and classical music are two of the most celebrated genres of “art music.” Their origins could not be more disparate. The two genres are, on the surface, very different from one another. Yet, the humanity and creativity that shines through across time and space speak to something else at play: an unfathomably deep connection that defies the temporal, geographical, racial, and cultural differences, revealing instead the shared human spirit that is manifested in these powerful artistic expressions.

The Shape(S) Of Jazz To Come. Jazz Studies, Interpretation, Theory And Education Research Project, Ricardo Pinheiro

The IASJ Journal of Applied Jazz Research

Jazz Studies: interpretation, theory and education is a research project developed at Escola Superior de Música de Lisboa, Polytechnic University of Lisbon, that involved the collaboration between the Jazz and Composition Departments. The focus of the project coordinated by Ricardo Pinheiro (with the collaboration of Carlos Caires and Carlos Marecos) was to rethink artistic research outputs in the field of jazz studies, questioning the hegemony of the current musicological paradigm (Cook, 2014; Pinheiro and Caires 2019; Pinheiro, Caires and Neto 2024), and to explore the broad academic, scientific and artistic scope that this field can provide.

European Jazz Does Not Exist, Wouter Turkenburg

The IASJ Journal of Applied Jazz Research

Marion Dunkel and Josiah Boornazian have critically analyzed and evaluated important questions such as: What is jazz, and what it is not? How have its histories been written in the past? What are the various approaches in jazz historiography? Both authors provide useful suggestions to move past the confusing, standard teleological presentation of jazz history, and the methods used in the construction of jazz historiographies. I argue that jazz history must function as a dynamic and life-long applicable tool assisting the jazz musician in the decisions to be taken in musical, social, and cultural interactions.