Music Theory Commons^™

Producing ‘Bedroom Pop’ Music: A Compositional Project That Employs Production And Compositional Techniques Identified Through Analysis Of Select Chelsea Cutler Songs, Anna Therese Dabbs

Theses : Honours

This study explores key production and compositional techniques in popular music, specifically within the genre of ‘bedroom pop,’ focusing on the distinctive style of artist and producer Chelsea Cutler. The aim of this project was to compose an entirely new work grounded in existing genre structures and shaped by Cutler’s unique approach. To achieve this, available literature on popular music production and composition, specifically ‘bedroom pop’, was reviewed to identify common processes and techniques. A listening analysis featuring five of Cutler’s songs was conducted to establish her unique production and compositional style, with findings applied in an original song, ‘You …

Investigating The Structure Of Acoustic And Electronic Noise : An Analysis Of 'Volumina' By Gyorgy Ligeti And 'Canaanda' By Merzbow, Sam Gillies

Theses : Honours

The term noise as it pertains to music is a subjective one and open to interpretation. What we find is that over 20th century discourse, the term noise has been used as a broad label to encapsulate all musical sound that functions in a way that opposes what would widely be considered 'musical'. While much of the literature covers the categorisation and political theory of noise in music, there is comparatively little literature that analyses musical construction of noise music beyond that of a purely aesthetic or political reaction.

This thesis seeks to explore the world of noise music with …

New Indeterminate Music: The Influence Of The Cagean Trajectory In The Importance Of Being Earmarked, Brett Philip Murray

Theses : Honours

This paper explores the influence of John Cage (1912-1992) on contemporary experimental music focusing on the indeterminate work The Importance of Being Earmarked (2008). Firstly through an investigation of selected works from Cage (written between the 1930s- 1960's) and the concepts that form a Cagean trajectory, and secondly by showing how a contemporary composer has adopted this trajectory in the composition of a new work that combines sound-installation, theatre, and Max/MSP programming.

In Genius-Lee : An Analysis Of The Improvisational Style Of Lee Konitz, Andrew Brooks

Theses : Honours

The following dissertation seeks to provide a detailed introduction to the musical language and body of work of the American saxophonist Lee Konitz. It aims to investigate and gain an understanding of the musical language of one of the jazz idioms most unique improvisers, and will do this by firstly discussing Kanitz's life and career in order to contextualize his music. The work will then examine his major musical influences in some detail, to gain an understanding of how his highly original style developed. Finally, through transcription and analysis, it will investigate the techniques of Kanitz's musical language and will …

God's Lonely Men : Bernard Herrmann's Musical Voice For The Lonely And Tortured Men Of Cinema, Clare Nina Norelli

Theses : Honours

Bernard Herrmann (1911-1975) has long been regarded as one of the most important composers of film music. Emerging during a time when the majority of film scores worked primarily with the physical action onscreen or what was immediately obvious in the dramatic narrative, Herrmann's innovative compositional style instead focused on the unconscious and the psychological states at work. The following thesis is a discussion of the key elements of Herrmann's unique film score style and, via case studies of the three lonely male protagonists in the films Citizen Kane (Welles, USA, 1941), Vertigo (Hitchcock, USA, 1958) and Taxi Driver (Scorsese, …

"Everything I'Ve Listened To With Love" : A Study Of Guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel And His Integration Of Classical Music Elements Into Jazz, Johanne Druitt

Theses : Honours

No abstract provided.

The Direction Of Memory For Music For Popular And Novel Songs, Susan Rose Sibma

Theses : Honours

Previous research on memory for music has typically measured participants' reaction times (RTs) and accuracy in tests of recall and recognition of songs presented to them. The current study was interested in what occurs during the time that elapses between stimulus onset and the generation of a response. It has been suggested that people sing or hum to themselves as they search for an answer (Rubin, 1977), but a question that has been overlooked to date is in what direction this occurs. As music unfolds in time, it was proposed that in memory for music, 'forward is best'. In the …