Music Theory Commons^™

Essays From The Fifth International Schenker Symposium (Part I), William M. Marvin

Gamut: Online Journal of the Music Theory Society of the Mid-Atlantic

No abstract provided.

Do It Again: Sequences In Gershwin And Kern’S Popular Songs, Maxwell Ramage

Gamut: Online Journal of the Music Theory Society of the Mid-Atlantic

Melodic sequences can create musical unity, enhance extra-musical drama, and make a piece memorable. In constructing their popular songs for Broadway and Hollywood, Gershwin and Kern both employed melodic sequences, but did so in mutually differing ways. This article opens with a broad-brushed comparison between the composers’ most popular songs and finds that Kern had a greater predilection for sequences than did Gershwin. Next, I closely analyze several songs by each composer in order to specify differences between the two songsmiths’ approaches to sequence. It is determined that Gershwin often reserves melodic sequence for musical climaxes, whereas Kern tends to …

Concise Manual Of Harmony, Intended For The Reading Of Spiritual Music In Russia (1874), Piotr Illyich Tchaikovsky, Liliya Shamazov (Ed. And Trans.)

Gamut: Online Journal of the Music Theory Society of the Mid-Atlantic

No abstract provided.

Preface To Piotr Illyich Tchaikovsky, Concise Manual Of Harmony, Intended For The Reading Of Spiritual Music In Russia (1874), Liliya Shamazov

Gamut: Online Journal of the Music Theory Society of the Mid-Atlantic

No abstract provided.

Establishing Human Identity Through Randomly-Generated Lyrics: A Comprehensive Performer's Analysis Of Robert Paterson's Captcha And Its Performance, Kyle Yampiro

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Robert Paterson’s CAPTCHA is a five-song cycle for baritone and piano that comes with some unique challenges from an interpretive standpoint. The text is comprised of CAPTCHAs: two-word phrases originally designed to test human identity versus that of a computer. Nearly every phrase contains a gibberish word and a real word and there is no proper syntax. The composer leaves interpretation open to the performer, which prompts the primary question explored in this document: how can a singer create an effective performance of this piece, given its unique challenges?

This document takes a multidisciplinary approach to discover the range of …

The Matter Of Voice: Sensual Soundings [Table Of Contents], Karmen Mackendrick

Philosophy & Theory

“The Matter of Voice is a work of philosophical theology in a multidisciplinary and poetic key. Its central organizing insight is that voice and voicing are productive of corporeality and rhythm in language. As MacKendrick shows, at the heart of the voice is ‘an irreducible and carnal strangeness’ that refuses closure and invites passion back into thinking. The book is a sterling exemplar of the richness that results from attending to the somatic quality of words, yielding a layering of ideas that forms a virtual chorus of multiperspectival thinking.” —Patricia Cox Miller, Syracuse University

Compositional Intent: A Presentation Of Original Music, Daniel R. Key

Music Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper summarizes the inspiration, compositional techniques, and performance history of three works by composer Daniel Ryan Key: cling (2015), for euphonium, tuba, and piano; GAIA (2014), for two flutes; and Hours (2016), for chamber orchestra. Hours is a work in two movements, "0400" and "1700."

Music-Play And Communication In Children With Autism And Their Families: An Ethnographic Study, Melanie Makovsky

Masters Theses

This is an ethnographic research study regarding the nature of commun-, ication, musical behavior, emotional expression, and social relationships in children with autism. Four children completed the study by participating in at least three private music-play sessions attended by the child, his or her mother, and the researcher. All music-play sessions were person-centered and child-led. A local public elementary school hosted the music-play sessions in the music classroom after school hours. In addition, the school supplied all the musical instruments used in the study. The researcher utilized the SCERTS Model assessment tool to examine each child’s abilities in socio-musical communication …

Five Principles To Empower The Worship Leader, Stacey Brown

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The role of the worship leader exists in most churches. These leaders serve in roles from volunteer choir directors to the directors of large worship staffs. They are the standard-bearers of worship for their teams and their congregations. To successfully serve, they must possess knowledge of worship practices and leadership skills. While students of worship may have a firm foundation of biblical, historical, and philosophical principles, many current leaders do not have strong leadership backgrounds and, therefore, lack basic foundational skills for leadership. Through a study of current literature and a survey of leaders of worship in churches of various …

Cello Technique: A Result Of Cello Construction And Its Effect On Virtuosic Playing In The Works Of Dvořák And Pärt, Mineo P. Yasutake Mr.

Music: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

No abstract provided.

A Study Of The Improvisational Style Of Theodore "Fats" Navarro, 1949–1950, Russell C. Zimmer

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

This study analyzes improvisatory techniques of Theodore “Fats” Navarro (1923-1950). Live improvised solos of the trumpeter from 1949-1950 were examined to better understand the improvisational style through the analysis of transcribed solos. Chapter one gives a brief overview of Navarro’s brief professional career and why he was chosen as the subject of this study. Chapter two sets out the methodology for this study and reviews related literature to the study of Fats Navarro. Chapter three provides a brief background of each performance from which the transcriptions were selected. Chapter four identifies those aspects of his improvisation that occur often harmonically, …

Musical Contextualization In The Local Church: A Pragmatic Exploration Concerning The Philosophy And Methodology Of Assimilating Sacred Music Into The Worship Vocabulary Of A Congregation, Kaleb Gooden

Senior Honors Theses

God’s mandate for all worship pastors is that they minister to their local body of believers in an effective way. This directive necessitates the use of scripturally and culturally appropriate music that clearly communicates the Gospel to the church congregation. This creative thesis further investigates musical contextualization in the local church.

Five philosophical pillars represent the most basic structure on which the entire process of local church contextualization stands. The minister must be rooted in scripture, led by the Spirit, present-minded, future-driven, and committed to service. After evaluating these philosophical concepts, this thesis will then explore the methodological contextualization process …

An Approach To Undergraduate Research - Developing An Understanding Of The Musical Process Through The Editing Of Early Music, Jared Chance Taylor, Gary W. Cobb

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

This project is an outgrowth of a larger project that involves the eventual compilation of a series of Italian madrigals into a modern performing edition. The purpose of this project was to transcribe and edit a madrigal from Carlo Grossi’s L’Anfione musiche da camera or per tavola (Venice, 1675) in order to better understand and be able to perform an Italian madrigal as it might have been done in the late seventeenth century. Through a process of research, examination and transcription, I was able to not only to transcribe Grossi’s music into modern notation but was also able to also …

Issues Of Rhythm, Symmetry, And Style In Alfred Schnittke's Concerto For Piano And Strings, Ilya Mayzus

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation takes as its subject of study Schnittke’s Concerto for Piano and Strings and seeks to examine several interconnected issues in Schnittke’s music: the problem of unification of disparate and conflicting forces that generally describe his style; the wave-like shape of intensification followed by a pullback that can be seen as acting on different temporal levels; and one of narrative meaning. Particular attention is given to symmetry in various manifestations, which the composer considered a necessary ingredient, comparing rhythmic regularity to periodicity found in nature, while at the same time undermining it through the use of asymmetries in order …

Missa Yielu: Music In The Dagara Mass, Karin Rau

Masters Theses

This paper explores the music of Dagara Masses in Ghana. The Dagara people are defined and described according to the geography of their land and linguistic dialects spoken in the region. A discussion of cultural indicators highlights traditional occupations, family structure, and social practices. Dagara musical practices are outlined by function and include descriptions of instruments and how they are played. Examination of indigenous religious beliefs describe the behaviors, values, and symbols that permeate Dagara life. A summary of the Dagara's encounter with Christianity sets the scene for present-day celebrations of the Mass. Through observation and interview, research was conducted …

The Motivic Economy In Nikolai Medtner's Sonata Romantica, Nellie S. Seng-Quinn

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation focuses on the motivic aspect of Medtner’s Sonata Romantica Op. 53, No. 1. Medtner, in his book, The Muse and the Fashion, has stressed through numerous statements why the initial theme is of utmost importance to him and how the entire work should be derived from the theme. The goal is to trace the journey of Medtner’s themes through the course of the sonata. Using various methods of musical analysis, I will determine whether the theme is indeed the source of latter material found within the sonata.

The Gĩkũyũ Mũtũrĩrũ: Preserving A Piece Of Kenya's Agrarian Past Through Flute Music, Jennifer Larue

Masters Theses

The Agĩkũyũ people of Kenya are one of the largest people groups in Kenya. However, systematic repression of Gĩkũyũ culture led to many traditional elements being forgotten, put aside, if not lost completely. The mũtũrĩrũ, a bark flute used when herding and in certain ritual dances, was one such element. The mũtũrĩrũ was initially a temporary instrument, which evolved into more permanent bamboo versions. These may have between two and six finger holes. Another version, called a "spider web mũtũrĩrũ" has no finger holes but has a paper membrane over one end to create a buzzing timbre effect. Research was …

Graverobber, Individualized Chorus: The Greek Chorus Reinterpreted In Repo! The Genetic Opera, Grace Markulin

The Downtown Review: An Interdisciplinary Journal Written and Peer-Reviewed by Mandel Honors College Students at Cleveland State University

The rock opera film Repo! The Genetic Opera (2008) provides its audience with details regarding the film’s setting and perspectives on the morality of the film’s plot through the character Graverobber, whose sung dialogue expresses this information. Graverobber’s penchant for scene-setting and moralizing within the film classifies the character as a Greek chorus according to the parameters of the Greek chorus in antiquity and modern interpretations of the chorus in twentieth-century musical theater, but the character’s visual distinctiveness, preexisting relationship with an established character, and prominent use of solo vocal lines throughout his sung dialogue demonstrates a degree of individuation …

The Universal Language, Amelia Richards

Conspectus Borealis

No abstract provided.

Promoting Metacognitive Reflection In Music Theory Instruction, Anna Ferenc

Music Faculty Publications

Since 1976 when John Flavell coined the term metacognition, a significant body of literature has emerged in psychology and education research documenting the importance of it to the process of learning and advocating its development through reflection to promote deeper, more thoughtful, and self-regulated learning. In the domain of music, discussions of reflection and/or metacognition appear particularly in literature on teacher training, music teaching at primary and secondary levels, and performance, but these topics are hardly addressed in research on music theory pedagogy. This article begins to redress this situation. It presents a theoretical overview of metacognition and reflection, describes …

Bass Line Movable Do Modulation Paradigms, Jay Smith

Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy

Bass-Line Movable Do Modulation Paradigms are designed to help aural skills students internalize common modulation patterns. The worksheet uses movable-do modulation, meaning students change “do” to reflect the solfège of the new key at an appropriate pivot point. Students should sing the top line in the original key, repeat the pitch on the solfège syllable of the new key where it aligns with the lower line (the pivot point), and continue in the new key to the end. The instructor may wish to accompany students with an appropriate chord progression, providing musical context to the bass lines. The worksheet also …

The Chromatic Singalong Project: Pop/Rock As A Framework For Sight-Singing Fluency, Jena Root

Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy

Successful sight-singing results from the ear, voice, and mind working in synchrony, and at its best translates to real-time musical understanding and facility on the student's primary instrument. Finding a pedagogical model for this level of musical fluency can be elusive: while the metronome is a time-honored practice tool, its relentless click lacks an external musical context that can lead students into a perpetual trap: Start, stumble, count off, start again, etc.

The Chromatic Singalong is a transcription/composition/sight-singing project designed to help students build fluency in singing and understanding music in real time. It is a capstone to the third …

Silence For Orchestra: Incorporating Silence In Musical Language Through Theories Of Expectation, Kari Darby

Masters Theses

The purpose of Silence: for Orchestra is to incorporate silence as a captivating source of musical language. Silence's goal is to encourage the audience to appreciate silence as musch as music. David Huron's research in musical expectations served as a guide to create a piece that develops, contradicts, and conforms to a listener's expectations. Elizabeth Hellmuth Margulis's work describes five functions of silence found in music. These functions can be applied to the silences used in my piece in order to further conform to the listener's expectations.

The Future Of Arabic Music: No Sound Without Silence, Nesma Magdy Khodier Vcuq

Theses and Dissertations

For centuries, Arabic music has been intrinsically linked to Arab culture and by extension bonded to the environmental landscape of the region, reflecting their emotions, moods, and behaviors. Numerous technological advancements in the latter half of the twentieth century, have greatly affected the rich legacy of Arabic music, significantly impacting the natural progression of traditional Arabic musical genres, scales, and instrumentation.

This thesis serves as an introduction to generative methods of music production, specifically music generated through gestures. Through generative music, and its unique ability to map gestures to different musical parameters, music can be produced using computer algorithms.

The …

Meter, Phrase, And Form In The Compositions Of Maria Schneider, Benjamin M. Geyer

Theses and Dissertations--Music

The central claims of this study are that Maria Schneider relies on normative rhythmic structures from the jazz tradition, and that her expressive deviations from those norms are comprehensible to experienced listeners in real time. The study proposes a non-recursive model of hypermeter wherein the measure is formed through entrainment, the four-bar sub-unit is formed through recognizable qualia at the measure level, and the eight-bar level is formed through the expectation for sub-units to group into pairs. I introduce the “structural phrase” as a unit that, while normatively hypermetrical, is distinct from the issue of hypermeter in its formal aspects …

The Do/Ti Handouts, Daniel B. Stevens

Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy

"The Do/Ti Test handouts were developed to enable students to identify harmonic function quickly and accurately. These handouts equip students with a visual representation of a powerful, time-tested strategy for harmonic dictation: the guide-tone method, first described by Rahn and McKay in 1988. Building on and extending the guide-tone method, the Do/Ti Test can be applied to diatonic harmonies, applied chords, chromatic predominants, sequences, and modulation.

This accompanying document contains the following:

The Do/Ti Test Handouts: An Introduction

Explanations for each handout.

Handout 1: The Do/Ti Test: Major-mode Version

Handout 2: The Do/Ti/Te Test: Minor-mode Version

Handout 3: Extending the …

Volume 30, Various Authors

Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy

No abstract provided.

Simple And Compound Time Signatures Re-Examined, Paula Telesco

Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy

This handout was created for music minors and non-music majors, most of whom enter my class with some music background. They typically have some understanding of simple meters like 2/4, 3/4, and 4/4. Compound Time is typically a difficult concept to teach, so this handout treats compound meter a bit more in-depth than some textbooks. This handout would be appropriate for not only music minors and non-music majors, but also remedial music theory classes for music majors or even Music Theory 1 classes. I believe it could also be used in high school AP classes. There are three worksheets that …

Understanding Dotted And Undotted Notes, Paula Telesco

Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy

College and high school music students (whether majors or non-majors) likely know something already about note and rest values, what note gets the beat in some particular meter, and differences between undotted and dotted notes, but they often still have difficulty understanding them, dotted notes in particular. This handout will review this material and introduce an additional way to think about note values, setting the stage for additional approaches to meter, as rhythm and meter can often be difficult concepts to master.

Beyond “Three Blind Mice”: An Exemplar For “Day 1” Of Schenkerian Analysis, Andrew Aziz

Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy

This document provides a lesson plan and examples for Day 1 of a Schenkerian analysis course. Beginning with tonic prolongation paradigms that provide the structure of a hypothetical soprano-bass framework, the lesson unlocks a hidden Beethoven masterpiece lurking within the counterpoint. The plan also highlights how many melodic notes are "higher" than the soprano as well as how the theory incorporates the notion of tonal hierarchy.