Musicology Commons^™

Urban Counterpoint (1992–2003): The Piano Music Of Ed Bland, Joseph Vaz

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation analyzes the piano music of Ed Bland, a politically and philosophically vocal composer active in the second half of the twentieth century, whose music draws on both the European and American twentieth-century avant-garde, and on African American vernacular music genres from ragtime to hip-hop. A review of the historical and personal context for these pieces, and a detailed examination of the compositional processes used in this music, work together to demonstrate how Bland thought about the relationship between different musical genres and languages.

Through this combination of theory of musical genre, historical and biographical study, and detailed analysis …

Mocking Birds: Investigation And Performance Of Selected Works Featuring Birdsong By Messiaen And Westerlinck, Sarah Hinchey

Honors Theses

This thesis is a creative project that includes a study of the lives and compositional techniques of Olivier Messiaen and Wilfried Westerlinck. Investigation of the composers’ techniques explains aural similarities between the two pieces. The research informed a live performance of Messiaen’s Le merle noir and a recording project of Westerlinck’s Meeting a Mockingbird in Texas.

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 …

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.

The Effects Of Operatic Voice Type On Singer Identity, Adelaide J. Mcdonald

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Within Western art music, voices are typically classified using the Fach system, which is based upon vocal characteristics and separates singers into the categories of soprano, mezzo soprano, contralto, counter tenor, tenor, bass, and baritone. Over time, these categories have become embedded with social and cultural meaning within the operatic world, leading to the development of stereotypes and expectations surrounding singers, as well as social categories and identities, referred to in this study as “sociocultural vocal categories” and “sociocultural vocal identity,” respectively. Currently, there are limited explorations of the sociocultural vocal categories and their associated stereotypes, with research on singer …

Looping: The Music Of Steve Reich, Ty D. Ellender

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Steve Reich, a New York-based composer and percussionist, was best known for his innovative compositional techniques during the minimalist era. Early in his career, Reich began manipulating recorded tape by splicing it into small repetitive loops and playing the tapes simultaneously. Through this process, Reich discovered a musical phenomenon known as phasing, ultimately creating pieces such as It’s Gonna Rain (1965) and Come Out (1966). Phasing is a process in which two identical melodic and/or rhythmic patterns gradually change their relationship to one another throughout the course of a work. As the piece progresses, new melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic …

All Things New: An Analysis Of Alfred Gaul’S “A New Heaven And A New Earth”, Hope V. Dornfeld

Montview Journal of Research & Scholarship

These program notes originally accompanied the performance of a vocal piece, “A New Heaven and a New Earth” by English composer Alfred Robert Gaul. The notes provide a brief overview of the historical context of Gaul’s work as well as an examination of classification difficulties that arise when dealing with sacred works of the mid-to-late nineteenth century. They further detail the unique challenges that are inherent in presenting an underperformed musical work. As part of a performing arts research project, these program notes also address the methods of expression and creative process that went into preparing the performance of this …

English Folk Song Performance On Tuba: An Annotated Bibliography, University Of Denver

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

English folk song and tuba performance are mostly unrelated topics, the closest they come to intertwining is in the compositions of English folk influenced composers like Ralph Vaughan Williams or Percy Grainger. However, this combination is limited to Western Art Music performance, not the traditional performance of English Folk Song. This paper aims to describe how a tubist may perform English folk song in a more traditional setting not disturbed by the iterations created by composers rooted in Western Art Music.

How Did Ray Brown’S Playing Evolve During His Tenure From 1951 To 1965 In The Oscar Peterson Trio?, Jason Crowe

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

How Ray Brown’s bass playing evolved during his tenure from 1951 to 1965 in the Oscar Peterson Trio. Compare and contrast Ray Brown’s work during the 14 years he performed with the trio.

The Pros And Cons Of Beta Blockers: Doping In Music Performance, University Of Denver

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

When performing in front of an intimidating panel of judges, an audience, or peers, many musicians faces a common problem that’s not talked about often: music performance anxiety. In this current time, every musician at least knows someone that takes a type of drug that enhances their music performance and gets rid of their anxiety. However, there’s been some controversies in using drugs in music competitions and auditions, leading in the continuous practice of drug abuse, questioning ethically what’s right and what’s wrong, and the suspicion in cheating. In this paper will examine the pros and cons of beta blockers, …

Play Makes Perfect: An Exploration Of Game And Play Elements In Composition And Performance, Gabrielle Chou

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation aims to explore the intersection of play and games in Western classical music and define a new category of pieces, “ludic pieces,” which contain play structures and game mechanics within their composition. Starting with surveying perspectives in ludology and ludomusicology, including those by Roger Caillois, Johan Huizinga, Jesper Juul, Katie Salen, and Eric Zimmerman, I will examine various definitions of a “game” and what its qualifying aspects are. I will then turn to music and consider pieces that interact with play and games without containing game structures, including examples of musical humor and pieces which evoke the imagery …

New Paradigms In Band Performance: An Analysis Of Three Prototypes, Scott Walker-Parker

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

This document seeks to propose new paradigms in band performance through inter-, multi-, and transdisciplinarity. Initial inspirations were drawn from performance innovations shaped by the new music theater which became popular in the 20^th century. Key concepts which were used throughout the creative, planning, logistic, rehearsal, and performance processes are analyzed in three recitals through prototypes of new paradigms in band performance. These concepts include accessibility and community, nonverbal/multimodal performance and instruction versus time, and nonverbal/multimodal communication.

The document has been organized in a manner which highlights successes and breakdowns of each process so future refinement can be made. …

A Look Into Spiritual Sketches: A Performance To Damien Sneed’S Arrangements Of Selected Spirituals, Katrina Cox

Doctoral Projects

The African American Spiritual is a long-standing genre of music in the classical arena that drew influence from slave songs or enslaved Africans in America. The Spiritual has always required specific knowledge and understanding of the Black culture and struggle since its conception. As an art form, its genesis came around the end of the 18th century with the abolishment of slavery. The Spiritual (folk melodies) became a popular addition to the concert hall repertoire and were first brought to the forefront by the famed Fisk Jubilee Singers between 1853 and 1943. The Concert Spiritual became more popular in the …

Video Gamers As Performers: Annotated Bibliography, University Of Denver

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

This study is based on the concept and idea of video game players performing music through the games that they play. This serves as a very assessable way for people who do not have the money, time commitment, and or motivation to be able to play and perform music without any background in music literacy.

Healthy Cello Playing: Teaching Cello To Promote Injury Prevention, Isabella Kodama

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

Cellists and other instrumentalists frequently suffer from playing-related injuries, and these can be detrimental to their career and psychological health. There are many ways to treat these injuries, but the most beneficial method is prevention. I want to find ways to help prevent pain and injury by developing good habits in the beginning of their playing. A lack of body awareness is a frequent cause of injury for many musicians. My goal in this research is to find ways of preventing injuries throughout one’s playing career, but more specifically from the very early stages of cello-playing, so that these issues …

Observed Internal Mechanisms Of Clarinet Performance: Annotated Bibliography, Michael Dirnberger

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

Woodwind instrumental pedagogy is a complex and broad field of study, and its traditions and misconceptions of teaching and playing are deeply ingrained in our modern methods of instrumental pedagogy. These lingering misunderstandings within our teaching traditions turn people away from the practice of instrumental music-making and hold others back from reaching their true potential. Comparing the observed physical realities of performing musicians with the physical effect produced by some of the most popular tools in clarinet pedagogy has revealed that the syllabic guide to pedagogy is not always using the most optimal syllables to guide students in the right …

Assuming An Editorial Role To Establish Performance Interpretations: Annotated Bibliography, University Of Denver

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

As more and more sources in musical scores become available nowadays, made possible by the discovery and editing of composers’ manuscripts and the publication of and multiple critical editions, performers often find the need to consult multiple editions of the same piece and the original sources (if available) to come up with one’s own performance edition. This process has become essential in my own music making experience as a performer, because it lays down a foundation for making appropriate interpretive decisions and gaining a more thorough understanding of the music for analytical and performance purposes. I refer to the process …

Data Scraping Youtube For The Study Of Lieder Reception, Rachel E. Scott

Faculty and Staff Publications – Milner Library

A growing body of literature has shifted aesthetic attention from composition to performance, or the performing activity, and asserts that the act of performance creates meaning. Scholars have emphasized differences between the passive consumption and active making of – or even listening to – music. As I sought to understand the impact of performance on Alma Mahler's legacy, I identified the need to gather as much data as possible on who, what, where, when, why, and how her songs were performed. This need led me to evaluate the metadata associated with recordings of Alma Mahler's songs in the WorldCat union …

Early History And Performance Of The Saxophone, Margo Alibeckoff

Honors Projects

This project explores the early history of the saxophone, including its invention and integration, as well as the inventor, Adolphe Sax, and how this information can inform and enhance performances of relevant pieces from this time period.

Travelin' To The Promised Land: Symbolism Of The Jordan River In African Spiritual, English Hymn, And American Folksong Selections, Hope V. Dornfeld

Montview Journal of Research & Scholarship

These program notes originally accompanied a performance of three vocal pieces: Deep River, On Jordan's Stormy Banks, and Poor Wayfaring Stranger. The notes analyze the role of the Jordan river in each piece, focusing on their historical context, first performances, and issues of authorship. As part of a performing arts research project, the program notes also address the method of expression and creative process that went into preparing the performance of these pieces.

The songs included in this presentation all speak to the journey from earth to heaven. In each piece, the Jordan River is found to symbolize a …

Memorizing Music: A Problem That A Pianist Has To Face, University Of Denver

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

As we all know, now the piano is usually an instrument that needs to be played by memory. Except piano ensemble pieces, most solo piano pieces are required to be performed by memory, even including piano concerto works. For a long time, many pianists have had mixed attitudes towards memorizing music.

Characteristics Of The Structure Of Quartet Cycles And Their Interpretation (On The Example Of The Works Of The Vienna Classics), Anvar Raimdjanov

Eurasian music science journal

The string quartet is central among the chamber instrumental ensembles. Despite the limited number of participants, the quartet ensemble is self-assembling, requiring no addition and harmonic support from a multi-voice instrument like the piano. The leading position of the string quartet in the panorama of other types of ensembles is well known. The highly developed quartet art has been widely spread in all countries of the world, including Uzbekistan. High-artistic quartet literature is an integral part of concert programs and educational repertoire of all levels of musical formation of stringers.

It should be noted that there is a stable demand …

Comparing Memorization Strategies: How Do We Approach Teaching To Perform From Memory, University Of Denver

Musicology and Ethnomusicology: Student Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Zhao Xiaosheng And His Original Piano Solo Works, Ke Xue

Student Works (2020-2029)

As an influential composer in contemporary Chinese piano development, Zhao Xiaosheng has made outstanding contributions through his piano compositions, including original piano solos, transcriptions, etudes, concertos, and impromptus. His six original piano solos illustrate the development of his compositional career, which coincided with the development of Chinese new music from the period of the Cultural Revolution to the Reform and Opening-up. Therefore, in the context of Chinese new music, this research attempts to study Zhao Xiaosheng’s contributions by looking into his six original piano solo works, namely Textile Worker (纺织工人) (1974), Fisherman’s Song (渔歌) (1975), Ballade in D♭ Major (D♭大调叙事曲) …

Performing Rhythmic Dissonance In Ligeti’S Études, Book 1: A Perception-Driven Approach And Re-Notation, Imri Talgam

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Interpretive approaches to the Études have been limited by Ligeti’s choice of notation, which creates several layers of difficulty in the presentation of complex rhythms. In order to resolve some of these difficulties, this dissertation includes a complete re-notation of four Etudes, using a methodology based on research in cognition and perception of rhythm.

Based on this new score, the notion of rhythmic dissonance is developed as an analytical tool to investigate in-time perception of rhythmic complexity, drawing on existing work on metric entrainment and metric dissonance. Different compositional strategies for the production of rhythmic dissonance are shown to have …

The Incorporated Hornist: Instruments, Embodiment, And The Performance Of Music, M. Elizabeth Fleming

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Roland Barthes famously described the “grain” as “the body in the voice as it sings, the hand as it writes, the limb as it performs.” Stated simply, this project asks What is the body in the horn as it sounds? Instrumentality is typically understood as extension and expression beyond the boundaries of the body; brass instrument musicking, however, begins not where the sound emerges from the bell, but at the very least at the meeting point of the player’s breath, the surfaces of the body, and the tube of the instrument. This project of instrumental incorporation understands music as a …

Leonora Duarte (1610–1678): Converso Composer In Antwerp, Elizabeth A. Weinfield

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Leonora Duarte (1610–1678), a converso of Jewish descent living in Antwerp, is the author of seven five-part Sinfonias for viol consort — the only known seventeenth-century viol music written by a woman. This music is testament to a formidable talent for composition, yet very little is known about the life and times in which Duarte produced her work. Her family were merchants and art collectors of Jewish descent who immigrated from Portugal in the early sixteenth century to escape the Inquisition; in exile in Antwerp, they achieved enormous success and provided the means with which to educate their children and …

Formation, Development Of Piano Performance And Education Of Uzbekistan, Feruza Mukhamedova

Eurasian music science journal

Piano art, which has been formed in the world music culture for several centuries, is today an important factor in the enhanced development of composers' creativity and the performing sphere. The piano art of Uzbekistan is represented in all spheres of creativity: performing, pedagogical, research and educational. The scientific study of the sphere of performance and education as a single integrated development process is becoming one of the priority areas. This work is devoted to the formation and development of piano performance and education in Uzbekistan, the author defines the main stages of its chronology and examines the processes of …

Brazilian Rhythms On The Drum Set: Stylizations Of Baiao, Frevo And Maracatu By Drummers Airto Moreira, Nene And Marcio Bahia., Lucas Gomes Maia Tome Pimentel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this research is to gather and analyze stylizations of Brazilian folk rhythms baião, frevo and maracatu in contemporary Brazilian jazz. For this end, I examined transcriptions from well-known contemporary drummers Airto Moreira, Nenê and Márcio Bahia. Firstly, I reviewed the path of the drum set in Brazil by examining the important contributions made by drummers Luciano Perrone and Edison Machado. After that, I presented musical characteristics of baião, maracatu and frevo in their original environment, followed by analysis of each rhythm’s stylizations to the drum set made by drummers Airto Moreira, Nenê and Márcio Bahia. I concluded …

Cellist, Catalyst, Collaborator: The Work Of Charlotte Moorman, Saisha Grayson

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

When classically trained cellist Charlotte Moorman (1933-1991) moved to New York City in 1957, she swiftly positioned herself at the intersection of experimental music, performance, video, and the visual arts. She interpreted works by composers like John Cage, collaborated with artists such as Nam June Paik, and founded and organized the New York Avant Garde Festival from 1963 to 1980. This dissertation argues that Moorman’s career sheds new light on what it meant to be an artist in this post-medium-specific moment and proposes that Moorman’s deterritorialization of authorship exerts pressure on traditional art histories. The generative dynamics of her collaborations …