Arts and Humanities Commons^™

A Comparison Of Music Therapy Apporaches Utilized With Persons Diagnosed With Autism Spectrum Disorder (Asd), Sally M. Gibson

Honors Theses

Music therapy is a clinical practice wherein music is used in the context of a therapeutic relationship to address client needs relating to their physical, emotional, cognitive, social, and spiritual health and wellbeing. Two contrasting approaches to music therapy treatment have been identified by Bruscia (2014) as outcome-oriented and experience-oriented. Both approaches provide opportunities for clients to reach their health-related goals, but the planning and implementation of therapy is different from each approach. The purpose of this project was to examine how these two orientations are represented in the professional literature related to autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This paper includes …

Music Therapy In Adult Medical Settings: Recommendations And Advocacy For Sustainable Programs, Margaret Moore

Honors Theses

This thesis research provides advocacy, strategies, and recommendations for sustainable music therapy program structures in adult medical settings. A review of the related literature justifies the need for and benefits of music therapy programs in adult medical settings. Recommendations for establishing and growing a music therapy program in these settings are based on semi-structured interviews conducted with three music therapists who have successfully implemented cost-effective and sustainable programs. Important considerations identified for program development include what to incorporate in a development pitch, the workload and well-being of the music therapist, and staff perceptions and relationship to the music therapy program.

The Muted Woman: A Lovey-Dovey Themed Recital, From A Man's Point Of View, Raven Williams

Honors Theses

This senior thesis consists of a vocal recital, accompanying program notes, and research regarding the struggles of women composers as music evolved through its Ancient, Baroque, Classic, Romantic and Contemporary periods. The recital includes a compilation of love songs by French, Italian, English, and German composers, in particular Gabriel Fauré, the often-forgotten Stefano Donaudy, Samuel Barber, Roger Quilter, Ralph Vaughan Williams, and Joseph Haydn. This paper incorporates biographical information, analysis, performance history and cultural insights into the overshadowed women composers that prospered around the same time period as the men of the former. Specifically, Nadia Boulanger, Nannerl Mozart, Alice Mary …

Making Culture-Centered Music Therapists: Resources For Working With Latinx Young Adults, Michaela A. Miller

Honors Theses

This thesis investigates the lack of music therapy literature related to this topic and identifies considerations music therapists should take when working with Latinx communities. I illustrate how social justice and culture-centeredness can be integrated into music therapy practice with the identified communities. I use interviews collected from Latinx university students to learn about the diverse musical preferences and cultures that different members of Latinx communities hold. I describe necessary changes in the American Music Therapy Association’s Competencies for Music Therapists to equip music therapy students to better work with diverse populations. Finally, I provide examples of music experiences and …

From Prop To Partner: The Evolution Of Female Roles In American Opera, Mariah J. Berryman

Honors Theses

For many years, women in opera have been in service to their plots. They have always been present but have either been relegated to passive roles in their own stories or actively considered societal outcasts. They were dramatically stereotyped as either airheads or witches, mothers or daughters, love interests or foes to be conquered. And, along with the character stereotypes came typically associated vocal stereotypes. Lighter and higher voices were assigned to roles that portrayed virtue, innocence, and other general characteristics of the “feminine ideal.” Conversely, lower voices were assigned to sinful, outcast, “fallen women.” These vocal stereotypes are especially …

Advanced Technologies In Music Production And Collaboration, David Besonen

Honors Theses

My Honors Senior Creative Project was to compose and produce a short album of original music alongside talented musicians here at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) as well as around the world.

Isometric Exercises And Stretching Warm-Up Program For University String Musicians: An Intervention Study, Emma Porter

Honors Theses

In this study, the purpose of this investigation was to find the effects of reducing pain through combining isometric and stretching warm-up exercises for stringed instrument musicians. In Lee’s et al. (2013) study, it showed that about 75 % of musicians have work-related musculoskeletal disorders and experience pain because of playing. In this study, they also saw that string players have the highest prevalence of both musculoskeletal disorders and pain while playing (Lee et al., 2013). In Nawrocka’s et al. (2014) journal article, the study showed the correlation of more pain in musicians that did not meet the recommended criteria …

The Role Of The Piano In The 12 Poems Of Emily Dickinson By Aaron Copland, Krista Benesch

Honors Theses

In the song cycle 12 Poems of Emily Dickinson by Aaron Copland, one may observe the interplay between the piano and the narrator. Throughout all twelve songs, the piano plays different roles. In several songs, the piano plays a certain character: in “Nature, the gentlest mother,” the piano is personified as Nature, while in “Dear March, come in!” the piano is March. In other songs, the piano reacts to the narrator—for example, in “Going to Heaven!”, the narrator announces a statement, and the piano follows with fast, tumbling eighth notes that portray the narrator’s scattered thoughts. Every song in the …

The Unique Demands Of Playing Posture On Youth Violinists And Violists, Liam Carroll

Honors Theses

The high prevalence of performing arts injuries is an acknowledged challenge facing the performing arts medicine community. The injuries seem to affect string players the most among orchestral musicians, specifically violinists and violists. The asymmetrical posture, head and neck displacement, and spinal displacement required by the posture to play violin and viola can lead to discomfort or injury in the performer. Performance related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMDs) can have an adverse impact on the life of a musician, preventing them from performing or making it uncomfortable. While there is a large body of research on PRMDs relating to adult musicians, there …

Evolving Structures In Peter Klatzow's "Dances Of Earth And Fire", Chris Goulet

Honors Theses

Peter Klatzow’s Dances of Earth and Fire is a staple of modern marimba repertoire. However, there has been no previous music theory-based analysis of this piece, and this thesis is meant to fill that analytical gap. This document will delve into the harmonic techniques utilized by Klatzow in this piece, which is comprised primarily of symmetrical scales such as the Octatonic scale and Hexatonic scale. There will also be an extensive analysis of the unique form of this piece, which Klatzow dubs “Evolving Structures”. Both of these elements are vital to understanding how the music is constructed. The primary focus …

Developing A Model For Clinical Song Analysis, Or Why Music Therapists Still Need Music Theory And Musicology, Lesley Wray

Honors Theses

In the music therapy literature, there is a distinct lack of research on clinical song analysis. Analyzing songs can be beneficial for music therapists when choosing songs to use in a session, when discussing songs with a client, and when arranging songs to play with or for clients. In this thesis, I start to bridge the fields of music therapy, music theory, and musicology to create a language of analysis upon which music therapists can draw for clinical song analysis. I focus first on foundational concepts such as timbre, style, and form, which I explain through the analysis of four …

Music Therapists’ Knowledge Of And Attitudes Towards Sustainability: Instruments, Sarah Whitehouse

Honors Theses

Sustainability has become a common point of conversation and concern in today’s society. The purpose of this project was to explore salient issues, attitudes and practices in music therapy sustainability. Information was gathered through an in-depth review of the materials used in the make and manufacturing of commonly used instruments in music therapy practice. In addition, a survey was sent to music therapy professionals with the MT-BC (Music Therapist – Board Certified) credentials to ascertain current knowledge of and attitudes toward sustainability within the profession.

Inform: A Mobile App To Teach Untrained Listeners Of Classical Music About Fugue, Sonata, And Rondo Form Through Interactive Information Graphics, Miranda Finn

Honors Theses

This thesis introduces adult non-musicians to large-scale structural components of three fundamental musical forms (fugue, sonata, and rondo) through a mobile application containing interactive information graphics and audio examples. This provides the knowledge and vocabulary necessary to discuss and listen critically to classical music, as well as enhance the overall listening experience. The written component of this project describes the content of the app and how it is presented, as well as the reasoning behind creative decisions such as color palette, page design, and development of the information graphics. Also reviewed are the programs used in the creation of the …

The Influence Of Selected Demographic Factors On The Retention Of Middle School Instrumental Music Students, Evan Hoylman

Honors Theses

Music programs across the country, particularly at the secondary level, are much smaller than should be expected. Large numbers of students (and adults, for that matter) report that they enjoy music and listen to it often for pleasure. Yet, in many high schools, less than a quarter of the school population participates in school music. Why is this so? Students in elementary schools are typically engaged in music study, either through general music classes and/or band or orchestra participation, but retention of students in secondary school music study is a problem. The purpose of this study was to examine the …

From Rain’S A-Gonna Fall To Bricks In The Wall: A Comparative Analysis Of Humanity’S Core Themes In The Music Of Bob Dylan And Pink Floyd, Alec Williams

Honors Theses

The 1960s were turbulent times of musical creation and revolution. From Motown to Dinkytown, the world suddenly became filled with blooms of creativity that stemmed from the freshly planted roots rock ‘n’ roll. Artists that garnered infamy in this flourishing era, including household names like Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, and Janis Joplin, would become immortalized in music and pop culture. However, few stand out as pinnacle lyrical and musical influences, devout to the art of perpetual creation and development of the global music scene. Of those artists, Bob Dylan and Pink Floyd have contributed immensely to the synthesis of genres …

Studiohub: Streamlining Communication In Private Music Studios, Joseph Klinck

Honors Theses

At the start of the project, I asked the question “what technology is available to horn players today?” Through an independent study in Spring 2017, I surveyed websites, blogs, YouTube channels, computer software, and mobile apps, reviewing and rating each one, and discussing their strengths and weaknesses.

From this project, I determined that one key piece of technology missing in the music world was some way to unify and streamline the activities of private music teachers and their students. Through my own experiences, and through talking with other music students, I determined three objectives for this streamlining technology: assign and …

“Thy Kingdom Come”: Catholicism And The Nueva Canción, 1966-1982, Elizabeth Turnwald

Honors Theses

Within Latin America’s tumultuous political atmosphere during the 1960s through the 1980s, a grassroots musical genre called the Nueva Canción emerged. Meaning “new song,” it sought to unify the poor and marginalized through a combination of folk influences, indigenous musical styles, and politically-charged lyrics. Although they achieved similar commercial success to U.S. contemporaries such as Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, and Joan Baez, the folkloristas [folksingers] of the Nueva Canción often incorporated references to and elements of Catholic liturgical practice. Considering the reforms of the Second Vatican Council and the advent of a Latin American Liberation Theology, the time was ripe …

Music Education For Mental Health: Creating A Participatory Music After School Program, Nicole A. Shively

Honors Theses

This thesis project, titled “Music Education for Mental Health: Creating a Participatory Music After School Program,” consists of a research paper and curriculum guide for the creation of a nonprofit after school program that will use music education to help youth with depression and anxiety. This program provides participatory music experiences to students in a supportive, cathartic environment. The paper details the research behind the psychological benefits of music, the activities that would be done with the students, and why there is a need for this program in current society. The curriculum guide consists of the addressed national music education …

Coding Dna Into Music: An Alternate Way Of Analysis, Samuel Fesenmeier

Honors Theses

In the study, we are analyzing the human genome in order to determine patterns that may tell something about how DNA functions. Patterns require an explanation: it is highly improbable that they are random occurrence. These patterns may hint to something about how DNA functions. There are known patterns already discovered in DNA. For example, in the coding portion, three base pairs translate to a specific amino acid. In the non coding portion, however, specific patterns are not as simple.

We will search for patterns by applying a coding system that turns DNA into music. Music may serve as a …

Story Telling: A Comparative Analysis Of Three Works By Michael Colgrass, Joseph Schwantner And Ross Lee Finney, Erick C. Von Sas

Honors Theses

This research project examines music by twentieth-century American composers Michael Colgrass, Joseph Schwantner, and Ross Lee Finney in order to compare how different composers present an aural conception to their audience through the wind ensemble medium. An aural conception is the subject upon which the music is commenting; sight (subject) through sound. The study includes an analysis of soundscapes- collections of sounds that form an acoustic representation of an action or objectin works created by Colgrass, Schwantner, and Finney. The project involves analyses of form, orchestration, and of the text, or story, about which the composer is writing. The works …