Music Practice Commons^™

Music In The Midst Of Desolation: A Conductor’S Analysis Of Cyril Bradley Rootham’S For The Fallen, Opus 51, Cameron Lee Weatherford

Theses and Dissertations--Music

World War I (1914-1918) brought with it unimaginable disaster and destruction, reshaping the world and its culture forever. Out of the ashes of this unparalleled conflict came numerous triumphs of art, fueled by the surrounding conditions and personal expressions of their artists. English composer, Dr. Cyril Bradley Rootham (1875-1938) set a powerful and haunting poem from the poet Laurence Binyon (1869-1943) titled "For the Fallen” from a larger collection of his poetry called The Winnowing Fan. The poem was published in The Times on September 21, 1914, just seven weeks after the war began.

This monograph seeks to bring …

Tyler Kline’S Render: A Formal Analysis And Performance Guide, John Douglas Handshoe

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Since the 1950s, composers worldwide have explored the use of the trombone in new and exciting ways, from expanding the functional range of the instrument to creating unique timbres through the use of mutes and extended techniques. Since then, many standard works in the literature have been born from this pushing of the envelope from composers like John Cage, Luciano Berio, Iannis Xenakis, and Daniel Schnyder.

On the forefront of the newest crop of composers expanding the voice of the trombone is Tyler Kline (b. 1991). This project will function as a formal analysis and performer’s guide to his 2015 …

Fifths: An Approach To Violin Technique For The Left Hand As Taught By Rodney Friend, Jessica Miskelly

Theses and Dissertations--Music

This document examines Rodney Friend’s approach to violin technique for the left hand, with specific emphasis on the execution of fifths. The application of this technique plays a valuable role in establishing correct hand positioning, creating consistent intonation, improving vibrato, and adding to the palette of colors available to the violinist. Mr. Friend is an esteemed violinist, a perceptive pedagogue, and a dedicated mentor in today’s music world, and, in those roles, he exemplifies the qualities of beauty, truth, and goodness that characterize meaningful engagement in the arts. His thoughtful teaching style is the product of decades of careful observation …

The Language Of Music: Linguistics In Trumpet Pedagogy, Marisa B. Youngs

Theses and Dissertations--Music

For decades, many brass teachers have relied heavily upon speech as a means of conveying pedagogical concepts. Additionally, a significant number of teachers in the brass community continue to use speech sounds to teach specific kinesthetic responses (i.e. using specific vowels for tone production, particular consonants for articulation, and variations of vowels for different pitch registers). These teaching concepts have been perpetuated over time, though many intricate aspects of human anatomy were yet to be understood at the inception of these methods, including the physiological processes used during speech. As technology has evolved, researchers in the field of linguistics have …

A Critical And Performance Edition Of Agustin Barrios’S Cueca: Comparative Analysis Of Form, Notation, And Performance Practice Of Barrios’S Work To Traditional Chilean Cuecas From The Beginning Of The Twentieth-Century, Enrique Sandoval-Cisternas

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Agustin Barrios's guitar music has become increasingly popular over the last forty years. After his death, a revival of interest in his compositions began in the 1970s, motivated by a series of publications and recordings of his music by important guitar performers at that time. The most important of these recordings came from the Australian guitar performer John Williams, who was interviewed in 1976 by ABC Television Australia for a film about the Paraguayan composer. The next year, Williams recorded a collection of fifteen works in his album John Williams-Barrios: John Williams Plays the Music of Agustín Barrios Mangoré. …

High School Choral Students' Perceptions Of Their Use Of Technology In Their Independent Choral Practice Habits, Matthew Kent Johnson

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

This action research was based on an empirical, descriptive design using survey technique. The aim of this investigation was to determine the perceptions of high school choral students taught by the researcher in the Inland Northwest of the USA on their use of technology in their independent choral practice habits. All 45 choral students who provided signed consent forms were given a survey with open- ended questions. Data were analyzed using emergent thematic categories. The researcher asked students to reflect on background questions regarding the general nature of their practicing and, more specifically, on the role technology plays in their …

The Link Between Meditation And Effective Practice: Increasing The Pace Of The Acquisition Of Skill In Musical Practice, Caleb Cole

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis seeks to explore the idea of effective practice as being meditative in nature. Effective practice and meditation are both viewed independently, and elements of both are discussed. Meditation, in the literature, is viewed in different lights and is defined in many ways. This makes it difficult to nail down a single definition of meditation. The process itself is debated and several different categorizations are offered. Some research shows Unwanted Effects (UE) to meditation, but these concerns are not widespread. Meditation appears to be a healthy practice that may have health benefits. Effective practice is viewed next; Grit, deliberate …

Lynne Ramsey, Violist: Biography, Pedagogical Background, Teaching Techniques, And Career Advice, Ignacio Cuello

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This research document explores teaching methods, career advice, and major influences that shaped the professional course of the violist Lynne Ramsey. Ramsey teaches viola at the Cleveland Institute of Music and is first assistant principal viola in the Cleveland Orchestra. For over thirty years, she has taught countless viola students in the US while maintaining a full-time performance career.

The introductory chapter covers Ramsey’s biographical and educational backgrounds during her time as a student of Ramon Scavelli, David Dawson, and Karen Tuttle. It is worth mentioning that Tuttle was the primary student of one of the best-known violists in …

Eighteenth And Nineteenth Century Bassoon Tutors And Their Published Contributions To Bassoon Pedagogy, Gina Michelle Moore

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This research project is a survey of eighteenth and nineteenth century bassoon tutors and their contributions to bassoon pedagogy. Tutors for this project were chosen from the two main schools of bassoon playing and pedagogy during the time centered in France and Germany. Bassoon teachers surveyed will include: Joseph Frölich, Karl Almenräder, Christian Julius Weissenborn, Ludwig Milde, Etienne Ozi, Eugène Jancourt, and Eugène Bourdeau.

A Performer's Guide To Iosif Andriasov's "Concertino For Trumpet", Andrew K. Gerbitz

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Iosif Andriasov’s Concertino for Trumpet is an excellent candidate for study and assimilation into the standard trumpet repertoire. A significant composer of Armenian descent from the former Soviet Union, Andriasov wrote his Concerto for Trumpet in 1960 and dedicated it to Yuri Usov. Timofei Dokshizer performed it on an album released in 1978 under the Melodya label. After immigrating to the United States in 1979, the composer revised the work and retitled it as Concertino for Trumpet in 1995. IMMA Publishing Company in New York made the revised work commercially available in 2001. This paper is presented to increase awareness …

Music And Art: An Aesthetic Experience, Samantha Martin

Honors Projects

This project sought to pair art songs performed at my senior recital with paintings. The paintings chosen had to be within one hundred years of the songs’ composition, from the same country as the composer, and have a similar theme or meaning as the art song. The goal was to create an aesthetic experience, as well as making the meanings of the songs more accessible for the audience, especially if the songs were in a foreign language.

Towards The Recovery Of Authentic Organ Continuo Practice In Haydn's Concerted Sacred Music, Tom Mueller

HAYDN: Online Journal of the Haydn Society of North America

During the classical era, full-size church organs were used in the performance of concerted sacred music. Historical evidence such as treatises and surviving organs offer useful information that can be used to reconstruct organ continuo performance practices. In spite of this evidence, modern performances and recordings of this repertoire often make use of small positive organs that cannot match the capabilities, timbre, and dynamics of larger instrument. Furthermore, the continuo realizations published in modern performance editions rarely reflect the style and techniques of historic practice.

This article explores issues in the performance practice of continuo playing on large church organs …

About This Issue, Michael E. Ruhling

HAYDN: Online Journal of the Haydn Society of North America

No abstract provided.

Worlds Of If: Analyses Of The Composed And Improvised Works Of Robert Dick, Melissa Keeling

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Considered one of the most important publications in twentieth-century flute pedagogy, Robert Dick’s seminal method book, The Other Flute (1975),[1] is an extensive catalogue of multiphonic fingerings, microtonal fingerings, glissandi, circular breathing, and other extended techniques. The Other Flute and a handful of his published solos are widely studied, but these works only represent a fraction of Dick’s creative energies.

Equally comfortable in classical, jazz, rock, electronic, and world music, Dick’s oeuvre demonstrates a sophisticated, musical use of contemporary techniques and his pieces have become standard repertoire. Though Dick was not the first flutist to use or notate these …

Nau, Kathy (Fa 1061), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 1061. Paper titled “Iowa Fiddle Tunes” by Kathy Nau in which she writes about her project documenting fiddle tunes collected by Bill Hamilton of Winfield, Iowa. Includes annotated music for approximately 23 tunes.

The Development And Continued Evolution Of The American Style Of Oboe Playing, Rebecka Rose

Masters Theses

Though the American school of oboe playing did not exist roughly a century ago, its popularity and impact, in all of its variations, currently extends throughout and beyond the United States. Marcel Tabuteau, the founding father of the American school, developed a new and unique style during the early part of the twentieth century. This style became a truly hybrid school grounded in the French oboe school, and developed through his playing and teaching at the Curtis Institute of Music into a style that encompasses beauty, expression, and the vibrancy that has come to typify the American school oboist. The …

Innovation In Digital Music: A Customized Program For Barcelona Sae, Daniel E. Childs

Capstone Collection

Barcelona SAE is a third-party study abroad provider that facilitates study and intern abroad experiences for college-age students from around the world. One branch of Barcelona SAE is its Customized Programs Department, which offers over 45 customized programs to students studying everything from public health to the culinary arts to engineering. They currently have a gap, though, in their portfolio of program offerings: they have never offered a program geared toward students studying music. Through interviews with staff members from Barcelona SAE, this paper demonstrates a need for a music-based customized program in Barcelona. Furthermore, it fills this need with …

Why Music Matters: How Participation In A Professional Learning Community Can Expand The Role Of Music Educators, Melanie M. Harris Ed.D.

Journal of Practitioner Research

Facing steady decline and elimination of music programs due to high-stakes testing coupled with tighter budgets, music educators are searching for ways to show their relevancy within an accountability culture. One potential way for a music educator to contribute to student achievement is through participation in a professional learning community (PLC) with academic teachers to support their shared students’ learning. The purpose of this study was to document the PLC collaborative experiences of a music educator and two core academic subject teachers who worked together to understand, develop, implement, and assess how the music teacher can support academic teachers in …

Music, Politics, And Sociality: Ethnic Tensions And The Performance Of Gikuyu Nationalism, Peter Njagi Mwangi

Foreign Languages & Literatures ETDs

This thesis examines how some selected Gikuyu popular music propagates ethnic tensions in Kenya by promoting Gikuyu nationalism at the expense of Kenyan nationalism. This music derives its themes from the historical period of the Mau Mau armed struggle against British colonists and connects this struggle with everyday experiences of the Gikuyu people. Memory and the performance of everyday life in this music solidifies the Gikuyu community as tied to a common destiny and distances other Kenyan communities from this destiny. The music consolidates Gikuyu ethnic nationalism and authenticates the position of the community as superior and a dominant force …

At The Center Of Things: How An Academic Library Built A Bridge Between Art And Science On Campus, Michelle Catalano, Catherine Essinger, Suzanne Ferimer, Stephanie Lewin-Lane, Porcia Vaughn

Collaborative Librarianship

The University of Houston Libraries sponsored an interdisciplinary event for students, faculty, and the public, titled the Artists’ Health and Wellness Colloquium and Resource Fair. Aspiring and working artists were instructed in how to maintain good health and to avoid overstressing their bodies as they practice their art. Scholars presented both historical and trending perspectives on the intersection of art and health science. The event was held in order to facilitate learning in two key research areas and to demonstrate the library's ability to bridge disparate disciplines and forge new partnerships with multiple academic units simultaneously. This article presents planning …

The Iconic One-Hit Wonder: The History And Reception Of Franz Biebl's Ave Maria, Matthew Oltman

Glenn Korff School of Music: Dissertations, Theses, Student Creative Work, and Performances

Franz Biebl’s Ave Maria is one of the most well-known small-scale choral pieces written in the latter half of the twentieth century. Since its introduction to American choirs in 1970, it has become an important part of the standard choral repertoire and is often performed perennially, especially at Christmas. It was integral to the rise in popularity of Chanticleer, the American professional male chorus, and remains closely associated with the ensemble thanks to it being recorded and published in the United States under Chanticleer’s auspices. Despite these facts, very little has been written about the composer or his iconic setting …

Percussion Instruction In Beginning Band For Programs With A Single Teacher, Micah A. Martin

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

PERCUSSION INSTRUCTION IN BEGINNING BAND

FOR PROGRAMS WITH A SINGLE TEACHER

An Abstract of the Thesis by

Micah A. Martin

The primary purpose of this study was to find the best methods for developing students into total percussionists in beginning band programs with only one band director on staff. A total percussionist is defined as one who is capable of playing keyboard percussion, snare drum, timpani, and the accessory instruments. The study consists of a survey to assess individual approaches to percussion instruction in beginning band.

A questionnaire was developed using Google Forms and a link was emailed to band …

"Composers’ Intentions?: Lost Traditions Of Musical Performance," By Andrew Parrott, Colin Lawson

Performance Practice Review

Colin Lawson discusses Andrew Parrott's 2015 work.

Parrott, Andrew. Composers’ Intentions?: Lost Traditions of Musical Performance. Suffolk: Boydell and Brewer, 2015. ISBN 978-1-783-27032-3.

The Art Songs Of Zachary Wadsworth: A Guide To Style Performance, And Literature, Jordan R. Davidson

Dissertations, 2014-2019

This Doctor of Musical Arts Document explores the role Zachary Wadsworth plays in the development of American Art Song. Born in 1983, composer Zachary Wadsworth has written over forty songs. His music is complex and challenging, with influences from all musical eras, with much of his work focusing on the techniques and sounds of twentieth-century modernism. Wadsworth’s choice of poetry focuses on English literature from many different musical eras, embracing a broad range of themes subjects, and emotions.

Following a brief biography of Wadsworth’s early life and career, the document surveys Wadsworth’s contributions to contemporary American art song regarding his …

A Musical Crusade: Reviving The Music Of Berlioz’S Benvenuto Cellini Through A Comparative Statistical, Pedagogical, And Theoretical Analysis, Jessica R. Spafford

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Abstract

Much of the operatic music of the eccentric French composer Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) is overlooked, especially from his first full opera Benvenuto Cellini. This is due in part to many misconceptions surrounding Berlioz’s vocal compositional style, which stem from the political atmosphere at the time of the opera’s premiere in 1838 Paris when ill-willed critics renamed it Malvenuto Cellini. A general ignorance of this work and its music pervades the world of vocal pedagogy, having been excluded from the standard repertoire anthologies, where it can ironically be the most useful. The research presented in this project comprises …

The Development Of A Fach System For The Tenor Oratorio Repertoire, Randall C. Ball

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Classical singers learn about the European Fach System early in their career. By determining which Fach a voice type fits, one can then understand which operatic repertoire is suited to study and perform. It is a reliable guide, protecting singers as they grow and function in their workplace. Since oratorio roles are predominantly not included in this system, it can sometimes be challenging for singers and pedagogues to place these roles unambiguously into a Fach. Without the security of a pedagogical system or guide, singers may be miscast in oratorio productions, which can result in a less effective performance, …

Entrepreneurship And Pr Skills For Music Students, Tomás Cotik

School of Music + Theater Faculty Publications and Presentations

In a successful ensemble, not only do musicians need to spendcountless hours mastering their instruments and improving their ensemble playing, they also need to be entrepreneurial, media savvy, and their own managers and promoters—in otherwords, able to deal with a variety of non-musical endeavors.

Love Sick The Musical - A Reflection Of My Undergraduate Studies, William Kelly

Senior Theses

No abstract available

The Drums Throughout Time: Rethinking The Beat, Sal Alamillo

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This paper will examine a variety of ways that drum makers approach their craft by comparing the processes of distinct forms of drum construction as well as the philosophies and aspirations of these artists. This dissertation will review the various choices of drum makers by: (1) providing a brief history of the drum set, (2) comparing the processes of manufacturers, both prominent and independent, and (3) narrating a firsthand project of making a drum with an independent drum builder while incorporating a handmade drum into original compositions and recordings. The paper will also explain the creative decisions of drum makers …

Music Therapy’S Impact On Substance Abuse Recovery, Justin Bishop-Williams

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Music therapy has been a viable means of treatment for various medical conditions such as; treating PTSD, mental illness and even used alongside cognitive behavior therapy practices. Since the 70’s licensed therapists have been utilizing music therapy to combat the effect of addiction caused by substance abuse disorders. Addiction impacts the lives of one in ten Americans and only eleven percent seek help in forms of addiction treatment centers or 12-step-programs. With the combination of music therapy, addiction patients can discover feelings and emotions that have been suppressed through years of substance abuse. Forms of music therapy being examined for …