Other Music Commons^™

The High School Piccoloist: A Resource Guide, Rebecca Needham

Dissertations, 2020-current

This project aims to curate a piccolo resource guide for high school music educators and their students. Currently, there are limited pedagogical materials available for beginning piccoloists or their music educators, and these materials are primarily scattered across decades of The Instrumentalist and the now-defunct Flute Talk journals. In addition, future band directors are rarely required to study auxiliary instruments like the piccolo in their collegiate coursework. These two factors combine to create a detrimental situation: frequently, neither teacher nor student in a typical high school setting has appropriate resources to understand the instrument and its essential differences from the …

A Description Of Zhao Zhang’S Nature No. 2 And Xiaoxuan Xu’S An Unusual Feast Of East, Sicheng He

Dissertations, 2020-current

This research presents a new path in the development of Chinese music by aiming to incorporate both modern Western and ancient Chinese influences in form, texture, tonality, topic, and other dimensions of style and structure. Two Chinese composers whose recent compositions for the piano share similar characteristics: Zhao Zhang (b. 1964; Nature no. 2, 2013) and Xiaoxuan Xu (b. 1990; An Unusual Feast of East, 2022). The research will discuss how Zhao Zhang and Xiaoxuan Xu accomplish this fusion of old and new in their recent piano works Nature no. 2, (2013) and An Unusual Feast of East, 2022. …

Listen To The Birds: Sound Ecology At The Piano, Anna Showalter

Dissertations, 2020-current

This document explores the intersection between birdsong and piano music using four cases studies from the piano repertoire in the Western classical tradition. Using Jeff Titon’s framework of “sound ecology” as a lens, I ask whether the following pieces of music could in some way function as an “acoustic tissue among human and bird communities that becomes the basis for a healthy economy and a just community.” After exploring the history of birdsong in the piano literature as a microcosm of shifting attitudes toward birdsong in Western art music this study focuses on four pieces as case studies for analysis—Amy …

Effects Of Background Music Characteristics On Working Memory Capacity, Rachel S. Tan

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

The use of background music as a distractor can either enhance or hinder task performance depending on how various characteristics of the music influence participants’ arousal. However, existing studies on this topic lack direct manipulation of the physical characteristics of the music, instead using different musical excerpts. The lack of direct manipulation introduces confounding musical variables present in the musical stimuli. This research project examined how specific attributes of background music influence working memory by playing digitally manipulated musical stimuli while participants completed the Sternberg Digit Span task, a standard measure of working memory and processing speed. The test stimuli …

The ‘Well-Rounded’ Artist: An Intersectionality Of Stage Presence, Artistry, And Entrepreneurship, Megan E. Zuhowski

Dissertations, 2020-current

Undergraduate voice students spend hours over their degree in coursework relevant to bettering their overall musicianship. Coursework in music history and music theory, coupled with applied lessons, allows students to develop the knowledge necessary for their future professions. While universities strive to equip students with advanced music proficiencies, as the landscapes of professional opportunities shift and morph into work in multiple genres of expertise, students may not receive the full scope of skills needed to be independent entrepreneurial designers.

The purpose of this DMA document is to explore the intersectionality of stage presence, artistry, and entrepreneurship through a course offering …

The Art Of Sustaining Orchestras Through Intentional Educational Experiences, Kimberly Souther

Dissertations, 2020-current

The purpose of this study is to identify the most current and successful advances in audience engagement that champion connection and result in sustainability through purposeful educational experiences.

The Symphony Orchestra currently serves an audience which represents a multiplicity of perspectives, background, and understanding. In an era of expanded canon and outreach to local communities, the orchestra must acknowledge that change is necessary if we are to truly create fulfilling experiences for our listeners. Unfortunately, many orchestras fail to connect their outreach to the concert hall, woefully categorizing their patrons into pre-determined subsets. What if all patrons were trusted with …

An Examination Of Maria Schneider’S Big Band Artistry Through The Lens Of Wind Band Arranging, Amy Birdsong

Dissertations, 2020-current

Within the world of instrumental music there tends to be strict adherence to styles and genres that have historically been connected to a standard collection of instruments. Wind ensembles are expected to perform contemporary art music, orchestral transcriptions, or military marches, with little expectation of individual creative interpretation. Jazz ensembles, or “big bands,” are expected to perform styles of music such as “swing,” which cannot be properly notated using western notation, while also being rigidly glued to reduced instrument choices, repetitive chord cycles and standard song forms. While wind ensemble performers are confined to read and perform all aspects of …

An Introduction To Five Selected Modern Korean Art Songs, Gagok, By Composers Guisook Lee And Jiyoun Chung, Ji Hee Kim

Dissertations, 2020-current

Modern Korean art song, Gagok, is the Western-style vocal music genre that developed in the twentieth century in Korea, predominantly through the influence of western music curricula in missionary schools and the presence of Korean military bands. These influences led to the first generation of Western music leaders who contributed to the birth of Gagok. As a result, this new genre rapidly became popular and continued to be developed despite the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945) and up to the present day. Since the birth of Gagok, two divergent compositional styles have emerged.

This DMA document aims to introduce professional …

A Poet's Voice: Music In Service To Poetry: Elements Of Text Painting In Juliana Hall's Song Cycle "How Do I Love Thee?", Hayley Z. Coughin

Dissertations, 2020-current

American composer Juliana Hall has established a reputation as one of the leading composers of contemporary American art songs, having composed over 60 song cycles, totaling over 300 works for the voice. Hall’s song cycle How Do I Love Thee? expresses a narrative arc told through five selections from Victorian-era poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnets from the Portuguese. The poems selected include Sonnet 3: “Unlike,” Sonnet 43: “How Do I Love Thee?,” Sonnet 37: “Pardon,” Sonnet 21: “Say Over,” and Sonnet 41: “Thank You.” Hall’s cycle describes the relationship between the lover and the object of their love, including …

A Poet's Voice: Music In Service To Poetry: Elements Of Text Painting In Juliana Hall's Song Cycle "How Do I Love Thee?", Hayley Z. Coughin

Dissertations, 2020-current

American composer Juliana Hall has established a reputation as one of the leading composers of contemporary American art songs, having composed over 60 song cycles, totaling over 300 works for the voice. Hall’s song cycle How Do I Love Thee? expresses a narrative arc told through five selections from Victorian-era poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnets from the Portuguese. The poems selected include Sonnet 3: “Unlike,” Sonnet 43: “How Do I Love Thee?,” Sonnet 37: “Pardon,” Sonnet 21: “Say Over,” and Sonnet 41: “Thank You.” Hall’s cycle describes the relationship between the lover and the object of their love, including …

Shape-Note Music Traditions Of The Shenandoah Valley, Tyler Brinkerhoff

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Though over the years documents about shape-note music from Joseph Funk and Sons and the Ruebush-Kieffer companies have been spread throughout many archives, they are now being brought back together online in one digital archive. Interpreting the information contained in these documents and the ledger book of subscribers for The Southern Musical Advocate and Singer’s Friend magazine through graphs and maps makes the information contained in them easier to access for researchers. The collaboration between a physical museum site, a website, and a Omeka site allow for multiple ways to learn about the history of shape-note music in the Shenandoah …

What Is A Folk Song? An Exploration Through Collection, Gregory S. Conway

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Over decades of work, scholars have created varying definitions of folk songs. While many have developed clear definitions (Karpeles, 1973; Lornell, 1993; Seeger, 1948; Texas Folklore Society, n.d.), others have concluded that no true definition exists (Brumfield, 1998; Nettl 2011). This lack of clarity in what a folk song is invites an exploration into how we define this genre. The purpose of this multiple case study was two-fold. First, I collected songs sung by families within a rural school community and examined them by using interview data to identify the characteristics of folk music in this context. Second, I shared …

"When I Wore A Younger Man's Clothes": The Nostalgia Topic In The Music Of Billy Joel, Kendall Waters

James Madison Undergraduate Research Journal (JMURJ)

My father and I often listened to Billy Joel together as I grew up, and I eventually formed nostalgic connections to Joel’s music. While music is well known as a conductor of nostalgia, this paper explores the idea that the nostalgia I feel while listening to specific songs in Joel’s catalog is not simply a result of the indexical connections I have built with these tracks. Rather, it is a result of a “nostalgia topic” in Joel’s work. This paper compares the soundtrack and select works from Joel’s catalog to reveal that there is no one gesture, melody, or harmonic …

Detours In Music - Podcast, Laura F. Ruple

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

The podcast, Detours in Music, aims to inspire, spark interest, and educate its audience of all ages and music levels about a life in music. Each episode includes an interview with someone involved in music at the professional level. The interviews focus on the person's story and the paths and detours their lives have taken them on, leading them to where they are today. The project has been well received, with episodes downloaded on four continents, and a consistent following of listeners. The podcast is intended to help its listeners connect with music faculty members at JMU, gain new perspectives …

Recording A Solo Instrumental Album: A Methodology And Representative Album, John Nye

Dissertations, 2020-current

Contests and Collaborations is a trumpet album consisting of solo and collaborative works for trumpet. The album is aimed towards demonstrating diverse performance abilities in a variety of musical styles. The methodology for recording a solo instrumental album is discussed in detail and includes topics such as selecting repertoire, recruiting collaborative artists, hiring a recording engineer, selecting a producer, choosing a recording venue, allocating rehearsal and recording time, and royalties and licensing. Contests and Collaborations, along with the accompanying methodology, serves as a resource for other musicians by detailing various considerations and procedures involved in recording an album.

Documenting Fifth-Grade Band Students’ Experiences In A Kodály-Centered Beginning Band Curriculum, Elisabeth Henderson Dhillon

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

ABSTRACT

Based on the work of Hungarian composer and educator Zoltán Kodály, the Kodály method, a sound-to-symbol approach to music-making and literacy stemming from an aural and auditory entry point, forms an integral aspect of many elementary level general music curricula in the United States. In this process-oriented, experiential approach, students hear and explore music kinesthetically, aurally and through folk and art song before visual concepts in the form of notes in formal notation are introduced.

In contrast, traditional beginning band methodologies tend not to incorporate a sound-to-symbol approach, teaching the intricacies of a complex new instrument in conjunction with …

Selected Folksong Arrangements Of Zoltán Kodály: An Analysis And Performer’S Guide, Sebastian A. Haboczki

Dissertations, 2014-2019

The history of Hungarian music and the Hungarian nation is a long and complicated one. Conquered by many different empires throughout history, Hungary faced challenges in maintaining its unique music and cultural heritage. Despite Hungary’s tumultuous changes of governance, its folksongs have evolved and flourished. Through the efforts of people such as Zoltán Kodály, Béla Bartók, and Lászlo Dobszay, these folksongs have been collected, studied, and categorized. Kodály, an accomplished musician whose research and music education philosophy can sometimes overshadow his compositional prowess, also composed folksong arrangements which embody the true nature of Hungarian music. These arrangements can be used …

Connection Between Visual Arts And Music: The Painting And Music Of I-Uen Wang Hwang, Yining Jenny Jiang

Dissertations, 2014-2019

This document explores the connection between the visual arts and music, particularly focusing on the similarity between visual and aural artistic expression by analyzing two sets of piano pieces composed by I-Uen Wang Hwang, a contemporary Taiwanese-American composer and artist. The piano pieces are Dream Garden, Series I and II (2000-2004) and Preludes for Piano (2016). Series I of Dream Garden contains two piano solo compositions based on a series of Hwang’s own watercolor works. Each composition has an analogous painting: “The Horn of the Plenty” and “Butterfly Orchid”. Series II includes two compositions written for two pianos: “Red and …

The Creation Of A Skills-Based Grading System For Solo Trumpet Repertoire, Charles R. Ahlhorn

Dissertations, 2014-2019

This research organizes a sample of solo trumpet literature, selected from state music educators associations’ repertoire lists, into a bi-level, skills-based grading system. At the first level of classification, each work is assigned an overall difficulty rating of 1, 2, or 3, with the latter being the most demanding category. The second level of classification evaluates the requirements of each work in six particular skill areas: range, rhythm and meter, articulation, flexibility, endurance, and phrasing. The rating scale for these parameters ascends from 1 to 5, where 1 represents beginner-level skills and 5 connotes virtuoso-caliber challenges.

The goal of this …

Rockin’ Around The Clock: An Exploratory Study Of Music Teachers' Personal Listening Choices, Virginia Wayman Davis

Research & Issues in Music Education

This study aimed to explore the personal music listening choices of music teachers. Specifically, in which formats do teachers listen to music for personal pleasure, how do they obtain the music they choose, and how frequently do they choose to listen to certain genres of music. Using an online survey, music teachers answered questions about their listening and purchasing habits. Results were then analyzed using simple statistics and Analyses of Variance (ANOVAs) to discover listening preferences for the group as a whole, as well as what differences may occur with regards to age, teaching situation or other factors. Through this …

The Variety Show: Why Classical String Musicians Are Exploring A Multistyle Approach To Teaching, Kelly C. Wiedemann

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The Variety Show: Why Classical String Musicians are

Exploring a Multistyle Approach to Music

Kelly C. Wiedemann

This case study examines the experiences of five classically trained string teachers who now include alternative styles in their teaching. The research questions are: (1) What factors inspire a classically trained string educator to begin teaching alternative styles to their students? (2) Why is it important to keep classical music in string pedagogy? (3) How have these teachers, their peers, students, and community reacted to multistylism? The interviews revealed four major points of motivation: Opportunities for developing creativity and finding a personal voice …