Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Orchestral music 20th century History and criticism'
To see the other types of publications on this topic, follow the link: Orchestral music 20th century History and criticism.
Create a spot-on reference in APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and other styles
Consult the top 50 dissertations / theses for your research on the topic 'Orchestral music 20th century History and criticism.'
Next to every source in the list of references, there is an 'Add to bibliography' button. Press on it, and we will generate automatically the bibliographic reference to the chosen work in the citation style you need: APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, Vancouver, etc.
You can also download the full text of the academic publication as pdf and read online its abstract whenever available in the metadata.
Browse dissertations / theses on a wide variety of disciplines and organise your bibliography correctly.
1
O'Connor, Jennifer. "Black snow by Michael Smetanin : an analysis : and original compositions." University of Western Australia. School of Music, 2004. http://theses.library.uwa.edu.au/adt-WU2004.0054.
Full textAbstract:
Black Snow, an orchestral work composed by Michael Smetanin in 1987, was named after the book Black Snow by Mikhael Bulgakov. Newspaper articles, reviews and the literature researched, all comment on Smetanin’s style and on the influences that shaped that style. The aggressive and confrontational style of much of Smetanin’s music can be attributed partly to his love of rock music and jazz and partly to his mentor in the Netherlands, Louis Andriessen. The same sources quote other composers who also influenced Smetanin’s style. Three works in particular are named, that is, Trans by Stockhausen, Keqrops by Xenakis and De Tijd by Andriessen. It was decided, in the light of previous investigations into Smetanin’s music, to take one of these composers, namely Stockhausen and his work Trans, and discover how much Smetanin was influenced by this composer and this particular work. Trans was chosen because the similarities with Black Snow are less obvious. All aspects of Black Snow were examined - namely the harmony, rhythms, the important textures, serial/mathematical techniques, orchestration, the dramatic program, how the instruments are played - and then compared with Trans for similarities and differences. The results of the analytical investigation show that, while the internal organisation of the two works is very different, there are significant similarities between the two works in most of these areas. Serial/mathematical techniques could only be demonstrated in one area, and this is only conjecture.
2
Takahama, Alexandre Machado. "Lambe-lambe de Luiz Cosme : uma edição critica." [s.n.], 2004. http://repositorio.unicamp.br/jspui/handle/REPOSIP/285056.
Full textAbstract:
Orientador: Eduardo Augusto OstergrenDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Artes
Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-04T10:39:03Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Takahama_AlexandreMachado_M.pdf: 5208386 bytes, checksum: bccc3b2d27787e3b9d0ea8fcb5fab1c8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005
Resumo: O presente trabalho constitui-se de um resgate do bailado Lambe-lambe de Luiz Cosme através de uma edição crítica de seu manuscrito. A pesquisa se desenvolveu através de uma abordagem teórica que conduziu à compreensão dos aspectos histórico-musicais do compositor e de sua obra. Após esta etapa inicial, foi realizado o estudo que direcionou a escolha do tipo de edição a ser adotada. Como complemento deste trabalho foram confeccionada stodas as partes instrumentais com base na edição apresentada
Abstract: The present work is a revision of Luiz Cosme's "ballet scene" Lambe-lambe through a critical edition of the original manuscript score. The research process was developed on the basis ot a theoretical study that led to an understanding ot the historical and musical aspects ot the composer's lite and works. This initial study was essencial in order to guide in the type ot edition to be adopted. As a complement to this work the various instrumental parts have been extracted from this edition and are included herewith
Mestrado
Musica
Mestre em Música
3
Hilliard, Howard (Howard Louis). "The History of Horn Playing in Los Angeles from 1920 to 1970 : a Lecture Recital, Together With Three Recitals of Selected Works for Horn by M. Haydn, Franz, Britten, Mozart, Koetsier, Hindemith, Herzogenberg, Rossini, Stevens and others." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1999. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1038828/.
Full textAbstract:
The History of Horn Playing in Los Angeles from 1920 to 1970 begins with the horn players who played in the silent film orchestras and the Alfred Brain's tenure with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. This study details the introduction of soundtracks, the early studio orchestras, the contract studio orchestras, the musician union's role in structuring the work environment, the horn players who played in both the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the studios, major figures from the subsequent freelance period such as Vincent de Rosa, and the local and international influence of the Los Angeles Horn Club.
4
Papanikolaou, Dimitris. "Singing poets : literature and popular music in France and Greece /." London : Legenda, 2007. http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/F?func=service&doc_library=BVB01&doc_number=016510046&line_number=0002&func_code=DB_RECORDS&service_type=MEDIA.
Full text
5
Leung, Tai-wai David, and 梁大偉. "Memory, aesthetics and musical quotation: four case studies in 20th century music." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2008. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B39733919.
Full text
6
Trochimczyk, Maja. "Space and spatialization in contemporary music : history and analysis, ideas and implementations." Thesis, McGill University, 1994. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=116333.
Full textAbstract:
Note: Pages have been removed from this digital copy due to copyright restrictions. A print copy is available in the McGill Library.This dissertation presents the history of space in the musical thought of the 2Othcentury (from Kurth to Clifton, from Varèse to Xenakis) and outlines the development of spatialization in the theory and practice of contenlporary music (after 1950). The text emphasizes perceptual and temporal aspects of musical spatiality, thus reflecting the close connection of space and time in human experience. A new definition of spatialization draws from Ingarden’s notion of the musical work; a new typology of spatial designs embraces music for different acoustic environments, movements of performers and audiences, various positions of musicians in space, etc. The study of spatialization includes a survey of the writings of many composers (e.g. Ives, Boulez, Stockhausen, Cage) and an examination of their compositions. The final part of the dissertation presents three approaches to spatialization: Brant’ s simultaneity of sound layers, Xenakis’s movement of sound, and Schafer’s music of ritual and soundscape.
Cette thèse présente l’histoire de l’espace dans la pensée musicale du vingtième siècle (de Kurth à Clifton, de Varèse à Xenakis) et retrace le développement de la spatialisation dans la théorie et la pratique de la musique contemporaine (après 1950). Le texte souligne les aspects perceptuels et temporels de la spatialisation musicale, reflétant ainsi le lien étroit entre temps et espace t!ans l’expérience humaine. Une nouvelle définition de la spatialisation tire son origine de la notion de l’oeuvre musicale d’Ingarden; une nouvelle typologie des plans spatiaux prend en considération des musiques pour différents environnements acoustiques, diverses positions des musiciens dans l’espace de même que le mouvement de ceux-ci et des auditeurs, etc. L’étude de la spatialisation inclut un survol des écrits de plusieurs compositeurs (Ives, Stockhausen, Boulez et Cage, par exemple) de même qu’un examen de leurs oeuvres. La dernière partie de la thèse présente trois approches compositionnelles de la spatialisation: la simultanéité de strates sonores ,:hez Brant, le mouvement du son chez Xenakis et la musique du rituel et l’écologie sonore chez Schafer.
7
Bhimani, Nazlin. "Kaikhosru Sorabji’s critical writings on British music in The New Age (1924-1934)." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1985. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/25348.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis examines the music criticism of Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji (1892- ), a well known composer and music critic active in England from the early 1920s to the late 1940s. Although many authors have referred to Sorabji's music and criticism, neither has been treated in a substantive manner. The present study focuses on Sorabji's contributions to The New Age, a weekly journal, and particularly on his articles therein dealing with contemporary British composers. It is of interest that Sorabji's criticism deals with a vibrant period of music history, known as the English Renaissance.
An examination of Sorabji's writings, published articles and private correspondence reveals him to be a highly complex personality. His marginal position in English society, based partly on his racial background and his negative views of the British, led him to view the musical scene from a perspective differing from that of other critics. Not fully admitted into the inner circles of the musical establishment, Sorabji surrounded himself with a small, elite group of friends and admirers, which included well known composers and literary figures such as Bernard van Dieren, Peter Warlock, William Walton, John Ireland, Sacheverall Sitwell, Hugh McDiarmid and Cecil Gray. It is within this context that Sorabji redefined the role of the music critic and criticism to suit his personal values and style which were much influenced by his involvement in the mystical tradition of Tantric Hinduism. A detailed discussion of Sorabji's writings on the British composers Delius, Elgar, Bax, Vaughan Williams, Hoist, Ireland, van Dieren, Walton, Lambert, Smyth, Berners, Bush, Warlock, Howells, Bliss, Boughton, Scott, Goossens and Britten reveals that the critic's musical affinities were conservative throughout his career as music critic for The New Age. An analysis of these writings shows a clear-cut pattern of likes and dislikes. Sorabji praised highly the musical styles that appealed to him and wrote in a harsh and negative manner about music that he found distasteful. While this emotionalism tainted many of his reviews, it also encouraged the support of those who shared his opinions. Nonetheless, Sorabji's use of harsh and blunt language often turned the tide of public opinion against him. Yet, it is this particular style, which can sometimes be humourous and racy and other times harsh to the point of cruelty, that distinguishes Sorabji writings from the mainstream of music criticism.
An appendix lists Sorabji's writings in The New Age during the period 1915 to 1934.Arts, Faculty of
Music, School of
Graduate
8
Lang, Xiaoming. "He Zhanhao and Chen Gang: "The Butterfly Lovers" violin concerto." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/185865.
Full textAbstract:
Musical study of The Butterfly Lovers violin concerto by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang. Tracing its cultural background in China, analyzing in terms of the concerto's form, melody, scale, mode, harmony, and orchestration and discussing the more unusual technical demands of violin playing made by this concerto.
9
Tucker, Benjamin Scott. "Atonality, modality, and incantation in two works for trumpet by André Jolivet, with a discussion of his technical and aesthetic principles." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1994. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/186692.
Full textAbstract:
This document presents the most salient features of Jolivet's mature musical style as exemplified in two of his major solo works for trumpet. The two works which serve as the musical focus of the document are one of his latest works, Arioso Barocco (1968) for trumpet and organ, and a work situated near the center of his compositional output, the Second Concerto (1954) for trumpet and a thirteen-member chamber ensemble. Following an exposition of Jolivet's life and musical development, we begin by examining five technical principles of harmony, texture, melody, and rhythm, which Jolivet set forth in a 1946 article. His aesthetic principles as stated in this and other articles by the composer are also examined. The most important of these aesthetic principles holds that music is by nature incantatory or has an incantatory mission--that is, it has the power to connect man with the cosmos, eternity, or that which is greater than man himself. At the heart of this incantatory aesthetic ideal is Jolivet's belief in the primacy of expressive melody, free of the harmonic restraints of traditional tonality. The musical analysis proceeds by identifying in Arioso Barocco the specific application of Jolivet's technical and aesthetic principles to the music, as well as considering formal structure and thematic process. The Second Concerto is then examined in the same way, and a stylistic and technical comparison is drawn between the two works. The study concludes that while both works serve the same underlying atonal and incantatory musical aesthetic, they are markedly different in many significant technical characteristics and stylistic traits. In view of the fact that both works come from what is considered Jolivet's third and final creative period, these findings give cause for further research into Jolivet's compositions from this period to determine whether they do in fact constitute one creative period or two separate and distinct periods.
10
Lu, Shu-Ling. "The influence of scholarly research on the orchestral performance practice of Raymond Leppard." Virtual Press, 2002. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1233200.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this study is to determine the influence of scholarly research on the orchestral performance practice of conductor Raymond Leppard.This study presents, with supporting evidence, what an international conductor does today to incorporate the results of research into the interpretation of music. From this study, the writer has presented the influence scholarly research has had on orchestral performance practice, how one of today's conductor and orchestras deal with the issues raised and how they are carried into current performances, and to what degree do musicologists influence his performance. Orchestra conductors continue to learn from performance practice research and young conductors must be encouraged to gain knowledge from this field.Three scholarly musicians, Arnold Dolmetsch (1858-1940), Edmund H. Fellowes (1870-1951), and Thurston Dart (1921-1971), among many others, did much to revive authentic performances of earlier music. Their critical and historical writings are based on original sources and the concept of interpretation by studying composers' original manuscripts and editions in order to better present their musical style and heritage. This developed a strong movement towards the study of incorporating authentic music research into music performance.Maestro Leppard is known particularly for his interpretations of seventeenth and eighteenth century music. He prepared the revivals of Monteverdi and Cavalli's Italian operas. Maestro Leppard has had many experiences with European and American orchestras and has made many recordings. The contents of the interview focused on (1) orchestra size and seating, (2) the authenticity of music, (3) some basic performance practice elements such as tempo, rhythm, dynamics, articulation and phrasing, ornamentation, vibrato, and portamento, (4) string bowing, (5) editions, and (6) interpretation and personal observations.School of Music
11
Powell, Steven. "Dread rites : an account of Rastafarian music and ritual process in popular culture." Thesis, McGill University, 1989. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=55647.
Full text
12
Ong, Siew Yuan. "The piano prelude in the early twentieth century : genre and form." University of Western Australia. School of Music, 2006. http://theses.library.uwa.edu.au/adt-WU2006.0052.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis focuses on a group of keyboard pieces composed in the first half of the twentieth century entitled ‘prelude’, and explores the issue of genre, investigating the significance in the application of this generic title, and the development of the piano prelude in this period. The application of a generic title often invokes the expectation of its generic features its conventional and formal characteristics. Though the prelude is one of the oldest genres in the history of keyboard music, it has relatively few conventions, and hence, with the abandonment of its primary function the prefatory role in the nineteenth century, it has been considered an indeterminate genre. Rachmaninoff, however, asserted that a generic title should carry with it appropriate generic manifestations, which parallelled similar generic concepts in literature. This expectation of generic traits is like setting up a ‘generic contract’, offering an invitation to either conform or reform, and thus affecting its course of development. A survey of the prelude’s historical development points to six rather consistent generic conventional and formal characteristics: (i) tonality, (ii) pianistic/technical figuration, (iii) thematic treatment and formal structure, (iv) improvisatory style, (v) mood content, and (vi) brevity. Though these general characteristics may overlap with other genres, it is their collective characteristics that have contributed to the genre’s unique identity. These features form the basis for an exploration of the conformity to, or further evolution of, these characteristics in the preludes of the early twentieth century. From the substantial number of piano preludes composed in this period, selected sets, representative of the various stylistic manifestations of the period, are analysed in relation to the identified generic characteristics. The examination reveals that these preludes, though apparently diversified in style and outlook, exhibit affinity in one form or another to the generic characteristics. Each example exhibits different treatments of the generic characteristics reflective of twentieth-century developments, whilst retaining its generic identity. The prelude is thus an amalgamation of a tonal, technical and affective piece, which may be considered a combination of a tonal essay, a study/toccata, and a character piece; and collectively, a sequence of tonalities, a collection of pianistic technical studies, and a compendium of musical styles/genres in miniature.
13
Forward, David William. "The keyboard repertory as a reflector of art nouveau in music /." Title page, contents and introduction only, 1993. http://web4.library.adelaide.edu.au/theses/09PH/09phf745.pdf.
Full text
14
Stein, Eric 1973. ""Living right and being free" : country music and modern American conservatism." Thesis, McGill University, 1998. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=21267.
Full textAbstract:
The rising popularity of country music in the United States since WWII is a cultural phenomenon intimately related to the ascendance of conservative values, leaders, and movements over the same period. By routinely celebrating themes like heterosexual love, the patriarchal nuclear family, hard work, individualism, freedom, patriotism, religion, and small-town life, country music provided the soundtrack for the insurgent conservatism of politicians like George Wallace, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan. In the sixties and seventies, while other forms of popular music (rock, folk, soul) articulated the values of liberals, socialists, hippies, war protestors, feminists, and civil rights activists, country music alone stood for the "traditional" values cherished by the so-called "silent majority" that powered the rise of the Right. The spread of both country music and conservatism is also a reflection of the "southernization" of America---the diffusion across the nation of cultural and political traits long associated with the South.
15
Guillaumier, Christina. "From piano to stage : a genealogy of musical ideas in the piano works of Sergei Prokofiev (1900-c.1920)." Thesis, University of St Andrews, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10023/6451.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis is a study of Prokofiev's musical ideas as they emerge in his early writing for piano. It is concerned with elucidating the connections between Prokofiev's pianistic technique and his compositional technique. In doing so, the study explores the genealogy of composer's musical gestures and thematic ideas. Both his playing and his compositional styles have been labelled as distinctive: the thesis attempts to deconstruct that distinctiveness by pinpointing the origins of the composer's playing and compositional styles, tracing their gradual evolution into a mature idiom. The first chapter is concerned with Prokofiev's juvenilia (1898 to c. 1906). Drawing upon a large amount of previously unpublished archival resources, this chapter uncovers the original gestures and thematic ideas which characterize Prokofiev's early style. The next chapter focuses on Prokofiev's period at the St Petersburg Conservatory, tracing his development into a virtuoso pianist, examining the nature of that virtuosity and chronicling the creation of Prokofiev's performing persona. The gestures and idea- types identified in the first chapter are then examined within the context of Prokofiev's works for solo piano, his early works with orchestra and his first two major operas. Conclusions are then drawn about the nature of Prokofiev's distinctiveness, his compositional legacy and about his current position as a major twentieth-century composer.
16
Whitney, Kathryn. "Determining indeterminacy : vision and revision in the writings of Pierre Boulez." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2000. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:1ff0a118-6df6-4352-a567-303b2235ce31.
Full textAbstract:
This study is framed by questions about the wider implications of a belief in Boulez's independent indeterminate aesthetic for divergent trends such as Europeanism vs. Americanism, modernism vs. postmodernism and serial structure vs. non-serial structure. In conclusion it suggests that an ongoing tendency toward historical revisionism in Boulez's texts may be a function of the difficulty in articulating an intentional indeterminate aesthetic in light of the serial inheritance.
17
Carrell, Scott Allen. "The French Sonatina of the Twentieth Century for Piano Solo: With Three Recitals of Works by Mussorgsky, Brahms, Bartok, Durilleux, and others." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1999. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc935608/.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this study is to define the French sonatina of the twentieth century, to expose those works which are most suitable for concert performances, and to provide a resource for teachers and performers. Of the seventy-five scores available to the writer, five advanced-level piano sonatinas of the twentieth century were chosen as the best of those by French composers, in attractiveness and compositional craftsmanship: Maurice Ravel's Sonatine (1905), Maurice Emmanuel's Sonatine VI VI(1926), Noel Gallon's Sonatine (1931), Alexandre Tansman's Troisieme Sonatine (1933), and Jean-Michel Damase's Sonatine (1991). The five works were analyzed, with a focus on compositional techniques used to create unity in the work. In comparison to the classical model of the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries, the French sonatina of the twentieth century exhibits four new features. First, it is more expansive in length and has greater philosophical depth. Second, there is an emphasis on unity at the motivic and thematic levels in which the development of material, based on the techniques discussed, occurs throughout a movement instead of being limited to a "development" section. Third, the formal structures are more flexible, allowing for cyclic quotations and the accommodation of varying styles. Fourth, the advanced technical skills indicate that these compositions are intended not as pedagogical pieces but as concert works. Chapter I introduces the topic, stating the purpose and need of the study. Chapter II presents a brief history of the sonatina, with particular attention given to the sonatina line France, and background information on each of the five composers. Chapters III through VII are each devoted to an analytical discussion of one of the five sonatinas. Conclusions based on the analyses are given in Chapter VIII. Appendices included an annotated listing, by composer, of all French sonatinas which were involved in the research and a selected discography.
18
Bach, Edward Stanley. "A performance project on selected works of five contemporary composers : Malcolm Arnold, Robert Henderson, Stan Friedman, John Elmsley, Lucia Dlugoszweski." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1991. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/32135.
Full textAbstract:
The principal objective of this dissertation is to discuss music for unaccompanied trumpet and trumpet and tape composed after 1965. The discussion of these works will emphasize a method of preparation for each work. New techniques and effects that modern-day trumpet players will need to master will be pursued with relationship to each composition under consideration.
Each chapter is dedicated to one composition. The introductory chapter discusses the execution of difficult leaps which is one of the most common challenges in the majority of modern trumpet music. Technique books and general suggestions in the improvement of this technique are emphasized.
Chapter II features comments on Malcolm Arnold's Fantasy for Flat Trumpet which is the most "traditional" composition of the five works being surveyed.
In Chapter III, Robert Henderson's Variation Movements, 1967 is discussed. The work has components of serialism which give way to tonally motivic material. The piece lends itself to a detailed analysis, although, for this purpose, a rather general discussion with some detail will make the musical decisions clearer.
The fourth chapter discusses Stan Friedman's Solus. This composition features the use of pedal tones, aleatoric events, the open-tubing technique, tremolos, and slide glissandi. Some analysis as
well as practice and performance suggestions are included in this chapter.
Chapter V focuses on a work by John Elmsly entitled Triptych for trumpet and tape. In addition to some analysis of the work there are performance suggestions to enable synchronization between trumpet and tape.
Chapter VI features Lucia Dlugoszewski's Space is a Diamond, the most experimental composition of the five being discussed. Innovative techniques utilized in the work include percussive bubble, glissando, flutter-tonguing, ricochet glissando, flap-tonguing, and whistle tone. New notational indications are also discussed.
The examination of these compositions demonstrates increased technical demands and analytical skills that will be required by trumpet playersArts, Faculty of
Music, School of
Graduate
19
Curran, Terence William. "Recording classical music in Britain : the long 1950s." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2015. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:2340cf56-c2be-4c0b-b5a6-2cfe06c22fe4.
Full textAbstract:
During the 1950s the experience of recording was transformed by a series of technical innovations including tape recording, editing, the LP record, and stereo sound. Within a decade recording had evolved into an art form in which multiple takes and editing were essential components in the creation of an illusory ideal performance. The British recording industry was at the forefront of development, and the rapid growth in recording activity throughout the 1950s as companies built catalogues of LP records, at first in mono but later in stereo, had a profound impact on the music profession in Britain. Despite this, there are few documented accounts of working practices, or of the experiences of those involved in recording at this time, and the subject has received sparse coverage in academic publications. This thesis studies the development of the recording of classical music in Britain in the long 1950s, the core period under discussion being 1948 to 1964. It begins by considering the current literature on recording, the cultural history of the period in relation to classical music, and the development of recording in the 1950s. Oral history informs the central part of the thesis, based on the analysis of 89 interviews with musicians, producers, engineers and others involved in recording during the 1950s and 1960s. The thesis concludes with five case studies, four of significant recordings - Tristan und Isolde (1952), Peter Grimes (1958), Elektra (1966-67), and Scheherazade (1964) - and one of a television programme, The Anatomy of a Record (1975), examining aspects of the recording process. The thesis reveals the ways in which musicians, producers, and engineers responded to the challenges and opportunities created by advances in technology, changing attitudes towards the aesthetics of performance on record, and the evolving nature of practices and relationships in the studio. It also highlights the wider impact of recording on musical practice and its central role in helping to raise standards of musical performance, develop audiences for classical music, and expand the repertoire in concert and on record.
20
Stanek, Mark C. "Guitar in the opera literature : a study of the instrument's use in opera during the 19th and 20th centuries." Virtual Press, 2004. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1285408.
Full textAbstract:
This dissertation is a study of the use of guitar in opera. Ten operas were chosen from the early nineteenth century to the middle of the twentieth century as a representative cross section of operas that use the guitar. The operas studied are: The Barber of Seville by Gioachino Rossini, Oberon by Carl Maria von Weber, Don Pasquale by Gaetano Donizetti, Beatrice and Benedict by Hector Berlioz, Otello and Falstaff by Giuseppe Verdi, La vida breve by Manuel de Falla, The Nightingale by Igor Stravinsky, Wozzeck by Alban Berg, and Paul Bunyan by Benjamin Britten. The study examines the technical aspects of each guitar part and how the guitar relates to the libretto and to the other instruments of the orchestra.The study finds that, with some exceptions, the guitar parts are idiomatic and not difficult to execute. There is some need on the part of the guitarist to edit the parts for technical and historical reasons and editorial suggestions are made by the author. The guitar is often related to the libretto and often appears onstage, yet it is almost always used as a prop and the performing guitarist is placed offstage or in the orchestra pit. There are significant problems found concerning the guitar's lack of volume. Composers tend to limit the number of instruments in use with the guitar. They do not, however, tend to give the guitar louder dynamics when other instruments are used at the same time. The guitar is generally used in outdoor scenes, to evoke a folk idiom, or when specifically referred to in the libretto. The use of the guitar is found to be mostly limited to simple accompaniments which do not utilize the full resources of the instrument.School of Music
21
Yang, Shu-mei. "Piano Music of Native Chinese Composers, with Particular Focus on the Piano Works Since 1950: a Lecture Recital, Together with Three Recitals of Selected Works of J.S. Bach, L.v. Beethoven, S. Prokofiev, F. Chopin, R. Schumann, J. Brahms, M. Ravel, and A. Skryabin." Thesis, North Texas State University, 1988. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc331819/.
Full textAbstract:
This documents aims at the identification of the sources of influence upon the styles of selected 20th century Chinese composers. Personal influences are reflected as well as those general influences specific to the different stylistic periods discussed. Most important, however, is the description of the methods by which these composers employ contemporary compositional devices to project musical gestures that are uniquely Chinese: elements of culture which are fundamentally programmatic and intimately related to the lives of the Chinese people. The introduction of Western music and musical instruments to China in the early 17th century and cultural exchanges with Japan served to gradually westernize the musical environment and training. The establishment of decidedly Western schools was accomplished at the beginning of this century, with the founding of Peking University and Shanghai National Conservatory. Music theory was taught, as well as history and composition, but with an emphasis on the practices of the 18th and 19th centuries. Compositions from this period reflect Western techniques from these eras, with some use of the pentatonic scale. In the 1930's, nationalism arose, a mirroring of the 19th-century European nationalistic trends. This philosophical conception has remained essentially unchanged to the present, as composers have aimed to utilize Western techniques to create artistic works and compositional styles which are uniquely Chinese. The musical works examined are limited to works for piano solo, as it is believed these are often more immediately revealing of compositional techniques and stylistic idioms.
22
Perry, Shirley Mercedes. "Selected Psalms, Old Verses and Spiritual Songs of the Canadian Doukhobors: Transcription and musical analysis." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/185897.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this research was to select songs specific to the Doukhobor song repertoire which were not previously notated and to record, notate and analyze the melodies for use in music education. The first limitation of the study was to focus on the sacred repertoire which is comprised of three genre of song, namely the Psalms, the Old Verses and the Spiritual Songs. A comparison of the song titles of Old Verses and Spiritual Songs which are found in the two major Canadian Doukhobor song text collections was made with other Russian song text collections to determine a subset of songs unique to the Doukhobor tradition. The second limitation of the study was then applied, which was to select those Old Verses and Spiritual Songs believed to exist prior to the beginning of the twentieth century. Forty-five melodies, comprised of 11 Psalms, 18 Old Verses and 16 Spiritual Songs were included in the study. The notation of each example is accompanied by one verse of Russian text and transliteration and by documentary information stating the genre, the Doukhobor song text collection reference number, the singers' names, and a tape source in the researcher's private collection. Full and/or partial translations of the texts are provided.
23
Beckman, Seth. "The traditional and the avant-garde in late twentieth-century music : a study of three piano compositions by Frederic Rzewski (1938- )." Virtual Press, 1996. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1026705.
Full textAbstract:
Frederic Rzewski (1938- ) is a composer and pianist fluent in the styles of traditional pianism as well as the contemporary avant-garde. His musical breadth is most clearly demonstrated through his piano compositions, which are often large-scale, virtuosic, and tonal. For these reasons, they are frequently compared to works of the Romantic era. Furthermore, his pieces also display experimental, avant-gardistic leanings and thereby demonstrate complexity and eclecticism. The thread of continuity in Rzewski's works may be found through his incorporation of programmatic associations, which embrace controversial and universal socio-political themes.This study examines three of Rzewski's compositions for piano that typify the composer's diverse yet communal approach to composition: 36 Variations on "the People United Will Never Be Defeated!, the North American Ballads, and De Profundis. Through the integration of a predominantly tonal musical language with bold, contemporary techniques, all three pieces represent a melding of the past with the present. Thus, they celebrate the complex nature of the human experience through the realm of musical expression.Frederic Rzewski was interviewed by this author, as was pianist Ursula Oppens (a strong advocate of contemporary works generally and Rzewski's pieces specifically). Their insights appear throughout the document, on topics ranging from the generally relevant to specific items connected to the above-mentioned compositions. Related issues of prominent educational influences, the contemporary avant-garde movement, critical review, extant dissertations, improvisation, neo-tonality, and the trend of political music were researched for their invaluable associations with the above-mentioned pieces.This study contends that, through these works, Frederic Rzewski demonstrates a commanding ability to weave varied musical and programmatic components into compelling, cohesive compositions. Furthermore, these pieces offer keen insights into compositional style and practice for piano in the latter half of the twentieth century and thereby present pianists and pedagogues with the opportunity for the introduction to (and immersion in) essential, idiomatic writing as related to late twentieth-century piano composition.School of Music
24
White, Bob Whitman. "Modernity's spiral : popular culture, mastery, and the politics of dance music in Congo-Kinshasa." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 1998. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk1/tape10/PQDD_0020/NQ44627.pdf.
Full text
25
Schmid, William A. (William Albert). "An Analysis of Elements of Jazz Style in Contemporary French Trumpet Literature." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1991. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc332815/.
Full textAbstract:
French trumpet works comprise a large portion of the contemporary standard repertoire for the instrument, and they frequently present unique stylistic and interpretive challenges to performers. The study establishes the influence of jazz upon Henri Tomasi, André Jolivet, Eugène Bozza and Jacques Ibert in their works for solo trumpet. Idiomatic elements of jazz style are identified and discussed in terms of performance practice considerations for modern-day trumpeters.
26
Lan, Ping-Ting. "New Resources in Twentieth-Century Piano Music and Richard Wilson's Eclogue (1974)." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2000. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc2632/.
Full textAbstract:
This dissertation draws some of the innovative composers from the early 1900's to the 1960's into the spotlight to highlight their new musical and pianistic ideas. These composers, including Debussy, Schoenberg, Webern, Bartók, Cowell and others, brought new creative forces into piano music, generating many distinctive features of modern music. The discussion of new resources in harmonic language, timbre, texture, form and concept of time has a direct bearing on aspects of Richard Wilson's Eclogue itself as well as aspects of performance problems. American Composer, Richard Wilson, has written three substantial piano solo works, Eclogue, Fixations, and Intercalations. Eclogue, from 1974, is a one-movement work. The detailed analysis of Eclogue covers aspects of form, harmonic language, timbre and texture, and rhythm and time. In addition, essential issues of performance problems such as notation, rhythmic control, extended techniques, hands distribution, and pedaling are also discussed.
27
Clayden, Mark John. "Music, timbre, colour in fin-de-Siècle Vienna : Zemlinsky, Schreker, Schoenberg." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2016. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:73c4d92f-5754-43d0-b07d-31975ad0539c.
Full textAbstract:
Timbre and orchestration are neglected parameters in analytical writing, partly because analysis traditionally privileges pitch organisation as the primary structural parameter in music, but also because timbre appears more resistant than pitch to theoretical abstraction and systematisation. Yet, in the music of early twentieth-century Viennese composers such as Schreker, Zemlinsky and Schoenberg, timbre often assumes a pre-eminent place in musical design and formal architecture. In such works, timbre often moves from what Robert Hopkins (1990) describes as a 'secondary parameter' to the forefront of a listener's consciousness. Conventional analytical approaches - including Schenkerian, Neo-Riemannian or pitch-class set theories - arguably have little to offer at such moments. This thesis begins by examining the 'crisis of response' to timbre in fin-de-siècle Austro-Germanic circles and, in particular, to the increasingly complex timbral constructions of many Viennese composers, such as Franz Schreker and Arnold Schoenberg. The crisis of response appeared to stem from an inherited nineteenth-century view of orchestration as ornamental in function, as well as the lack of an appropriate analytical framework and meta-language with which to critique the growing importance of timbre as a musical parameter. This thesis contributes to the discussion as to the how the area of timbral analysis might develop: firstly, by treating timbre as an 'emergent' property rather than an absolute analytical category (i.e., that timbre often results from a complex interaction of multiple musical parameters); secondly, by considering the effect of timbre's spatial properties within the auditory scene on subject-position through examination of contemporary and more recent theories on the convergence of the visual and auditory arts; and thirdly, through timbre's ability to function as an agent of immanent musical critique through disjunctive juxtapositions, or by historically-contextualized responses to codified orchestral tropes as found in Alexander Zemlinsky's 'Der Zwerg'. Timbre certainly was not always the secondary parameter some fin-de-siècle critics suggested it was, or wanted it to be. The joint purpose of this thesis is to offer historically-engaged analytical readings of neglected works from twentieth-century Vienna (alongside a few better-known works whose timbral construction had been left unanalyzed), and to reflect on the benefits of applying recent research to contemporary theories of timbre. These two aims are set in productive counterpoint rather than a straightforward synthesis, with the adoption of recent cognitive research and theories of subject-position feeding into analyses of historical work in order to try to mediate the gap between theory, text, and musical practice.
28
Bray, Michael Robert. "The liturgical canticle settings for chorus and organ of Ralph Vaughan Williams." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1993. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/186253.
Full textAbstract:
Within the sacred choral music of composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, little is known regarding his subset of works intended for liturgical use. This study focuses on the canticle settings for choir and organ, written by Ralph Vaughan Williams for use in Anglican Worship. The compositions in this study include: Magnificat and Nunc dimittis (Village Service), Te Deum in G, Service in D Minor and Te Deum and Benedictus. This study provides a discussion of the structure and history of the Anglican service and a description of how canticle settings traditionally function in liturgical worship. Each work in this study is analyzed with particular attention given to form and structure, harmonic language, text derivation and declamation, melodic tendencies and the role of the organ accompaniment. Evidence gathered from this study demonstrates that, although the liturgical canticle settings for choir and organ are diverse in function and style, they contain many common characteristics in such compositional areas as: structural form, voicings, consistent use of thematic material, and the effective application of text to music. Suggestions for performance options of the settings are also included in the results of this study. It is hoped that, through differentiating between these works with regard to function and style, this study will help close the lacuna in the choral literature concerning Vaughan Williams' smaller liturgical works and serve as an introduction to modern choral conductors.
29
Card, Patricia Pierce. "The influence of klezmer on twentieth-century solo and chamber concert music for clarinet with three recitals of selected works of Manevich, Debussy, Horovitz, Milhaud, Martino, Mozart and others /." Thesis, connect to online resource, 2002. http://www.library.unt.edu/theses/open/20023/card%5Fpatricia/index.htm.
Full text
30
Witen, Michelle Lynn. "Perceiving in registers : the condition of absolute music in James Joyce's Ulysses and Finnegans Wake." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2013. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.669882.
Full text
31
Soderberg, Karen Amelia Phillips. "A survey of selected contemporary Swedish choral composers and literature." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1991. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/185410.
Full textAbstract:
This study presents a survey of selected Contemporary Swedish Choral Composers and Literature representative of the trends in contemporary Swedish choral music. The varied compositional styles and techniques of composers Sven-David Sandstrom, Thomas Jennefelt, Karin Rehnqvist and Andres Hillborg exemplify these trends. Little information is readily available about the current generation of choral composers outside of Sweden. Most of the available materials concentrate on the music of composers of the 1940s Monday Group such as Sven-Erik Back and Ingvar Lidholm and Karl-Birger Blomdahl, the works of Gunnar Bucht of the 1950s who reacted against modernism, the 1960s avant-garde styles of Bengt Hambraeus, Sigfriend Naumann, Arne Mellnas and Folke Rabe. This survey discusses the life, career and musical styles of each of the composers and analysis of an a cappella work illustrative of their musical styles. Fundamental to the growth and musical development of the representative composers is an examination of the historical background, foundation and tradition of choral singing in Sweden. The select bibliography, list of works by the composers, catalogs of choral music, list of institutions and organizations, and publishers, is intended to serve as a reference guide.
32
Smith, Jeffrey B. 1957. "Parallels in the Development of Electronic and Percussion Music and an Examination of Performance Problems in Lejaren Hiller's Machine Music for Piano, Percussion and Two-Channel Tape Recorder with Three Recitals of Selected Works of Rolnick, Kessner, Xenakis, Winsor, Niimi, and Others." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1992. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc279115/.
Full textAbstract:
This study traces the significant developments in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries which led to the development of electronic music and increased writing for percussion. Whether by coincidence or premeditation, the field of percussion in Western culture and electronic music share many parallel aspects in their history. Carlos Chavez, Edgard Varese and John Cage foresaw a time when electronic
music would allow composers to realize compositions with ease, provide new sounds to the spectrum of possible material for pieces and aid in the conception of works. Significantly, these same composers were important figures in the development of percussion composition. In many ways, Lejaren Hiller's Machine Music can be seen as a culmination of the developments which had been taking place in the history of electronic music and percussion music. A product of the innovations in both fields, it poses some formidable problems for the performers. This study will give some background into its composition, examine its structure and deal with its performance problems.
33
Hebda, Paul Thomas. "Spółka Nakładowa Młodych Kompozytorów Polskich (1905-1912) and the Myth of Young Poland in Music." Thesis, North Texas State University, 1987. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc331366/.
Full textAbstract:
This study deals with the four-composer Polish musical association, Young Polish Composers' Publishing Company, which became commonly known as the group Poland in Music. Young Poland in Music is considered by Polish and non-Polish music historians to be the signal inaugurator of modernism in Polish music. However, despite this most important attribution, the past eighty-odd years have witnessed considerable confusion over the perceptions of: 1) exactly who constituted the publishing company, 2) why it was founded, 3) what the intentions of its members were, and 4) the general reception its members' music received. This paper addresses and resolves this multiple confusion. Chapter I presents an introductory survey of the political, socio/cultural, and musical developments of Poland between 1772 and c1900, the period of the Polish Partitions through the beginnings of the "Young Poland" era. Chapter II presents a discussion of the facts surrounding the founding of the publishing company, as well as a discussion of the eighty-odd years of historical misinterpretations that have developed about the composers' company and its relationship to "Young Poland in Music." Chapter III discusses the interpersonal relationships of the composers and other persons directly involved with them and their company, and the impact that these relationships had on the publishing company. Additionally, the chapter brings into focus the specific relationships between the musicologist, Adolf Chybiński, the company, and its individual members. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the actual publishing activities of the company. Chapter IV examines the three concerts sponsored by the company and their critical receptions in Warsaw and Berlin through the surviving reviews and comments of leading contemporary music critics, the concert participants, the composers' close colleagues, and the composers themselves. Finally, Chapter V contains a brief discussion of the music presented on the three concerts, characterizing the works within the context of their initial critical reception.
34
Bozelka, Kevin John. ""Getting beyond" : SPIN magazine in the late 1980s." Thesis, McGill University, 2004. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=82688.
Full textAbstract:
The Eighties were a time in Western popular music that seemed to exist only by virtue of it coming after something else---namely, the 1960s counterculture and the punk rock of the 1970s. Inheriting both the failure of permanent cultural revolution and the intense cynicism that is punk's strongest legacy, youth cultures in the 1980s found it increasingly difficult to live in the present. This thesis labels this historical dilemma postmodern. It will show how SPIN magazine attempted to move past this dilemma in order to assert a unique identity for 1980s popular music and youth cultures. In particular, John Leland, a columnist for SPIN, appropriated a pop aesthetic as an identity marker and, in the process, questioned the supposed ineffectiveness of pop music for a political postmodernism. An analysis of Leland's writing uncovers what accounts of this era tend to ignore: the social function of postmodernism.
35
West, Aaron J. "Caught Between Jazz and Pop: The Contested Origins, Criticism, Performance Practice, and Reception of Smooth Jazz." Thesis, connect to online resource, 2008. http://digital.library.unt.edu/permalink/meta-dc-9722.
Full text
36
Samball, Michael L. (Michael Loran). "The Influence of Jazz on French Solo Trombone Repertory." Thesis, North Texas State University, 1987. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc331843/.
Full textAbstract:
This lecture-recital investigated the lineage of French composers who were influenced by jazz during the first half of the twentieth century, with a focus on compositions from the solo trombone repertory.
Historically, French composers, more than those of other European countries, showed an early affinity for the artistic merits of America's jazz. This predilection for the elements of jazz could be seen in the selected orchestral works of Les Six and the solo compositions of the Paris Conservatory composers. An examination of the skills of major jazz trombonists early in the twentieth century showed that idioms resulting from their unique abilities were gradually assimilated into orchestral and solo repertory. Orchestral works by Satie, Milhaud, and Ravel works showing jazz traits were investigated. Further, an expose of the solo trombone works emanating from the Paris Conservatory was presented. Although written documentation is limited, comparisons between early recorded jazz trombone solos and compositions for orchestral and solo trombone was established. These comparisons were made on the basis of idiomatic jazz elements such as high-tessitura ballad melodies, blue tonalities and harmonies, syncopated rhythms, and many of the aspects of style associated with improvisation. All major French solo trombone repertory to mid-century was surveyed and examined.
37
Kelly, Kenneth Todd. "Chet Baker : a study of his improvisational style, 1952-1959." Virtual Press, 1999. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1167797.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this study was to identify characteristics of jazz trumpeter Chet Baker's improvisational style, both instrumental and vocal, during the early period of his career (1952-1959). Baker's early years were divided into six periods, based on major milestones: The Charlie Parker Groups (1952-1953), The Gerry Mulligan Quartet and Tentette (1952-1953), The Chet Baker Quartets (1953-1956), The European Groups (1955-1956), Quartets, Quintets, and Sextets (1956-1957), and The Riverside Recordings (1958-1959). Improvised lines and chord changes from fifteen solos were transcribed and analyzed by the researcher; melodies of standard songs were transcribed and compared with the original version. The number of solos selected from each period was based on the length of time Baker spent with each particular group and the number of albums recorded. The solos were analyzed in terms of rhythmic interpretation of melodies, intervals utilized, use of nonharmonic tones, use of jazz cliches, embellishment of the melodic line, use of melodic and rhythmic patterns, range, tone quality, articulation, vibrato, and vocal scat syllables. As a result of this analysis, the researcher was able to draw conclusions concerning Baker's improvisational style during the period of the study.School of Music
38
Ward, Robert (Robert Clark). "Passion Settings of the 20th- and 21st- Centuries Focusing on Craig Hella Johnson's Considering Matthew Shepard." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2016. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc862740/.
Full textAbstract:
Craig Hella Johnson (b. 1963) has emerged as a leader in choral music over the last 20 years. As the conductor of the Austin, TX based chorus Conspirare Johnson implemented the European model of bringing singers together from all over the country to assemble for concerts and recordings over a short period of time. He is known for his collage programs which bring together many styles of music bound by a central theme. Through these programs he has written and arranged many pieces which are now published and being performed by choirs across the globe. Johnson's most significant work to date is a 90 minute passion oratorio which details the story of Matthew Shepard, a college student murdered in a hate crime in 1998. Considering Matthew Shepard (2016) is a wonderful example of Johnson's composition and programming style. Though not a traditional passion story, it is part of the evolution of the genre in the 20th and 21st centuries. The passion oratorio has seen a resurgence in the past 50 years and has undergone a transformation in that time. These new works pay homage to the history of the genre but have begun to stretch it in terms of form and content. This study will highlight the evolution of the passion oratorio focusing on Johnson's Considering Matthew Shepard and offer some insight into the composers style and how this work represents a modern treatment of the passion oratorio.
39
Locke, Scott A. "The accompanied clarinet works of Eugene Bozza : descriptive analysis and performance guide with emphasis on the clarinet concerto." Virtual Press, 1996. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1026699.
Full textAbstract:
French composer Eugene Bozza (1905-1991) has made significant contributions to the repertoire of wind instruments in the twentieth century. Not least among his compositions are the clarinet concerto, the eleven works for clarinet and piano, chamber works involving the clarinet, and numerous etudes for clarinet. Information gathered throughout the course of the study demonstrates why the concerto is a significant work for clarinetists, demanding from the performer technical prowess, tonal control, and mature musicianship. The additional works for clarinet and piano are mostly sectional pieces written in a morceau de contours vein challenging the performer's lyrical and technical playing.This study reveals through analysis a number of compositional devices used by the composer that are stylistic threads running through virtually all the works for clarinet. Harmonically, these devices include extended tertian chords used in succession, parallel chord movement, and quartal and quintal harmonies. Melodic resources include diatonic scales, chromatic scales, some transposed modes, and a limited use of whole tones. The composer prefers homophonic textures, but uses countermelodies and the occasional use of the unaccompanied soloist for contrast. Bozza uses the element of rhythm dynamically, featuring rhythmically-charged motives throughout much of his composition. Numerous expressive modifiers are included in the works, but leave the performer enough latitude for supplementary dynamics and rubato.In addition to analyses of the concerto and the works for clarinet and piano, the study addresses the orchestration of the concerto. This discussion shows the ways in which Bozza uses orchestral colors and alerts the performer to discrepancies between the orchestral score and the piano reduction. Few of the changes from the score to the reduction are significant. Many changes are cosmetic involving the deletion of color effects and short countermelodies in the reduction to allow for idiomatic piano writing.The study offers the performer recommendations for the successful performance of the concerto and the works for clarinet and piano. The recommendations include supplemental expressive modifiers, fingering choices, additional phrasing choices, and practice techniques. As an introduction to the study, biographical information was gathered to provide the reader with a concise sketch of the life and style of Eugene Bozza. Correspondence received from Alphonse Leduc gives additional information on Bozza's works for clarinet.School of Music
40
DiGiallonardo, Richard L. (Richard Lee). "Musical Borrowing: Referential Treatment in American Popular Music." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1998. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc277911/.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis examines the relationships between popular contemporary musical styles and classic-era art music. Analysis of pop-rock songs, and their referential treatment in art rock, classical music, and society will be examined. Pop-rock musicians borrow from the masters of the past and from each other. Rock guitarists such as Eddie Van Halen employ a virtuosic technique suggestive of Liszt and Paganini. The group Rush borrowed freely from opera seria. Frank Zappa referenced contemporary musicians as well as classical techniques. Referential treatment in popular music and the recent advancements in technology, have challenged copyright law. How these treatments and technologies affect copyright legislators and musicians will be discussed.
41
Berman, Nancy. "Primitivism and the Parisian avant-garde, 1910-1925." Thesis, McGill University, 2001. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=38149.
Full textAbstract:
At the beginning of the twentieth century, the primitive played a crucial role in the emerging European modernist aesthetic. While art historians have been exploring the role of primitivism in modern art for decades, this area of research has received little attention in musicology. In this dissertation I examine how primitivism is constructed in modern French culture as manifest in three of the most important avant-garde stage works of the first part of the century: the Ballets Russes's Le Sacre du printemps (1913) and Les Noces (1923), and the Ballets Suedois's La Creation du monde (1923). Relying on primary sources such as reviews, other historically relevant documents, as well as the art historical literature, I trace the evolution of the cultural role of primitivism in pre- and post-World War 1 French culture.French critics of Le Sacre viewed the work as a portrayal of Russian "Otherness" against which they could assert or question their own identity. Whereas the primitivism of Le Sacre was understood to be radical, excessive, even prophetic and apocalyptic, the primitivism of Les Noces was perceived as a manifestation of the classicist "call to order" and as an emblem of American-style mechanization. That it was also understood in terms of the post-war avant-garde's emphasis on classical ideals of austerity, dryness, and sobriety reflects the Purists' belief that machines heralded the new classicism.
Jazz was the ultimate symbol of both primitivism and modernity, and was initially hailed by the avant-garde as a revivifying source for the French tradition. In their attempt to neutralize the racial and political threats perceived to be inherent in jazz, the avant-garde emphasized its rationality, precision, and economy. La Creation du monde represents the avant-garde's complete assimilation of jazz and l'art negre into the French classical tradition.
42
Fan-Long, Grace (Chun Grace). "A Study of Idiomatic Piano Compositions During the Cultural Revolution in the People's Republic of China." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1991. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc278304/.
Full textAbstract:
This study demonstrated that the piano, a typical Western instrument, became the Chinese composer's tool for expressing the sound ideals and tone qualities that are intrinsic to Chinese music. A new musical idiom was created in these piano compositions, an idiom that combined Western compositional techniques and traditionally-based Chinese ideals.
43
Sorensen, Randall J. "Original repertoire for the American Brass Quintet, 1962-1987 : a guide for performers and composers." Virtual Press, 1998. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1118241.
Full textAbstract:
This dissertation examines the following works from the original repertoire of the American Brass Quintet (ABQ): Charles Whittenberg, Triptych for Brass Quintet; Ralph Shapey, Brass Quintet; Gilbert Amy, Relais; William Lovelock, Suite for Brass; Leonardo Balada, Mosaico; Virgil Thomson, Family Portrait; Elliott Carter, Brass Quintet; Jacob Druckman, Other Voices; Robert Starer, Evanescence; Dan Welcher, Brass Quintet; Vladimir Ussachevsky, Dialogues and Contrasts; David Sampson, Morning Music; Maurice Wright, Quintet; and Eric Ewazen, Colchester Fantasy. These works represent a small part of the ABQ's repertoire and attest tothe significance of the ensemble's contribution to brass quintet literature. The purpose of this study is to bring these works to the attention of performers and to provide a guide for those wishing to perform them. Composers will be interested in the discussion of compositional techniques. The fourteen works are studied in chronological order and in the following manner: composer biography, historical background of composition, descriptive analysis (form, harmony, melody, rhythm, texture), and performance considerations (range, special techniques, use of basstrombone or tuba, and equipment needs). Program notes from the ABQ's performances of the works, many written by the composers, are included.Through the study of these works the following conclusions are reached: (1) the ABQ has influenced the development of university brass programs and has helped to make brass quintet experience an integral part of brass education, (2) it has encouraged composers to write for brass quintet, and (3) the ABQ has played a significant role in developing an original brass quintet repertoire. Through its residencies at the Aspen Music Festival and the Juilliard School of Music and touring, the ABQ has reached a large number of students, performers, and composers throughout the world. The quintet's performances of new music has inspired composers to write for brass quintet; the group receives many unsolicited scores each year. Since its founding in 1960, the ABQ has been a leader in the commissioning of original works for brass quintet and has played a significant role in the development of the brass quintet repertoire.School of Music
44
Roos, Hilde. "Hendrik Hofmeyr : lewe en werk, 1957-1999." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/51787.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MMus) -- University of Stellenbosch, 2000.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The topic of this thesis is the life and music of Hendrik Hofmeyr, from his birth in 1957 until July 1999. The discussion on his life focusses on the events that influenced the establishment of his works and also those that had an effect on the style in which Hofmeyr composes. Although he experienced a steady development and growth as a composer, Hofmeyr's ten year stay in Italy and the event of the 1997 Queen Elisabeth of Belgium Composition Competition can be mentioned as major influences on his life and thus on his work. Hofmeyr's ideas on music are discussed in Chapter 2. To understand the intention of his music, it is important to know something of Hofmeyr's approach to music. The chapter concludes that Hofmeyr can be described as a 'romantic' composer which provides the reason why he has always been outspoken against the avant-garde which characterises much of the artmusic of the zo" century. The style analysis of the following chapter looks at three important parameters of any composer's style: harmony, melody and form. It further also discusses Hofmeyr's use of counterpoint and the specific playing techniques he requires of instruments. These two aspects stand out as particular to the composer's style. Due to the scope of the thesis, these aspects are dealt with in a limited way. A more detailed discussion of two compositions follow, the song cycle Alleenstryd and the String Quartet. Besides an analysis of both works, attention is also given to how the composer's ideas on music are manifested in these works. The thesis concludes with a detailed list of works including all works composed up to July 1999. 50 compositions are listed. To allow for maximum exposure of each work, the duration as well as a description of each work are added to the otherwise standard information.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis behandel Hendrik Hofmeyr se lewe en werk as komponis vanaf sy geboorte (1957) tot en met Julie 1999. Die beskrywing van sy lewe is daarop gerig om aan te dui hoe die gebeure in sy lewe die totstandkoming van sy komposisies en die styl van sy musiek beïnvloed het. Hoewel daar 'n geleidelike ontwikkeling in sy groei as komponis bestaan, kan sy tienjarige verblyf in Italië en die Koningin Elisabeth van België Komposisiekompetisie in 1997 as belangrike invloede uitgelig word. In hoofstuk 2 word Hofmeyr se idees oor musiek bespreek. Om die intensie en gedaante van Hofmeyr se musiek te verstaan, is dit belangrik om hierdie uitgangspunte van die komponis te begryp. In die hoofstuk word die gevolgtrekking gemaak dat Hofmeyr in wese 'n 'romantikus' is en dat hy daarom reeds sedert sy studentejare sterk uitgesproke is teen die avant-garde wat 20ste eeuse kunsmusiek kenmerk. Die stylanalise wat daarna gemaak word, behandel drie belangrike parameters van enige komponis se styl: harmonie, melodie en vorm. Verder sluit dit ook Hofmeyr se gebruik van kontrapunt in en die spesifieke speeltegnieke wat hy van instrumente verlang. Hierdie twee aspekte staan uit as besondere eienskappe van die komponis se musiek. Vanweë die omvang van die tesis, is die bespreking van hierdie aspekte redelik beperk. In Meer gedetaileerde bespreking van twee werke volg, naamlik die sangsiklus Alleenstryd en die Strykkwartet. Buiten 'n analise word ook na ander aspekte van hierdie werke gekyk, soos byvoorbeeld die wyse waarop die komponis se uitgangspunte oor musiek in hierdie werke tot uiting kom. Die tesis sluit af met 'n volledige werklys wat alle werke tot en met Julie 1999 insluit. Daar is altesaam 50 werke. Om soveel as moontlik inligting te verskaf, word buiten die standaard-inligting, ook die tydsduur en 'n beskrywende paragraaf oor elke komposisie ingesluit.
45
Fouse, Kathryn. "Surrealism in the Piano Music of Representative Twentieth-Century American Composers: With Three Recitals of Selected Works of Ives, Cowell, Crumb, Cage, Antheil, and Others." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1992. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc332492/.
Full textAbstract:
This study is an examination of the Surrealist movement and its influence on the piano music of twentieth century American composers. The first chapter explores the philosophies of the Surrealists as well as the characteristics found in Surrealist art and literature. The characteristics discussed include: 1) the practice of automatism; 2) the juxtaposition of unrelated themes or images; and 3) the creation of dream-like atmospheres.
46
Dearden, Jennifer Lorien. "The American Trumpet Sonata in the 1950s: An Analytical and Sociohistorical Discussion of Trumpet Sonatas by George Antheil, Kent Kennan, Halsey Stevens, and Burnet Tuthill." Thesis, connect to online resource, 2007. http://digital.library.unt.edu/permalink/meta-dc-3982.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (D.M.A.)--University of North Texas, 2007.System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Accompanied by 4 recitals, recorded May 31, 2004, Apr. 18, 2005, Oct. 24, 2005, and June 11, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (p. 73-74).
47
Cheng, Chi-Suen. "Yves Daniel-Lesur and le canique des cantiques: nonconformism and humanism in a mid-twentieth-century choral work." HKBU Institutional Repository, 2016. https://repository.hkbu.edu.hk/etd_oa/310.
Full textAbstract:
In 1936, André Jolivet (1905-1974), Yves Baudrier (1906-1988), Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992), Jean-Yves Daniel-Lesur (1908-2002), and Pierre Schaeffer (1910-1995) founded the group Jeune France. They initiated this group under the influence of politically nonconformist movements in France which had started in the 1920s. The ideology of Jeune France was to revive in music 'true human qualities', free from 'extreme political domination'. At a time when some composers, associated with a revolutionary Left wing, were exploring avant-garde ideas in music that included atonalism, serialism, and other advanced techniques out of the common practice, other composers fell into a nationalistic Right wing, recalling the French Catholic traditions, and promoting an exclusive and true 'French' music. In contrast to these polarizing trends, Jeune France tried to trace back its art to its origins, and the goal of Jeune France was to re-establish music composition as something less 'abstract' than the Left, and more 'human' than the Right. The most powerful sound that can reflect the tenets of humanism in music is probably the human voice, especially multiple voices in a choral setting. Thus unaccompanied choral works, in particular, came to be a hallmark of many major composers of the 20th Century. The prevailing social and political environment of the pre-World War Two era also played an important role in contributing to the revival of unaccompanied choral music as a major genre. To demonstrate how these general social and political forces operated in the particular in France at this time, I have used Daniel-Lesur's Le Cantique des Cantiques (1952) to show how these affected a composer at this time. The goal of this research has been to look in depth at both Daniel-Lesur and his most famous work, about which little has been written in English; and to add to a growing body of literature which explores the rise of unaccompanied choral compositions as an important genre in the early 20th Century, a shift that is tied to political, cultural, and social conditions as well as musical ones. Taking Le Cantique des Cantiques as a token of a type, I show how this work reflects these issues as well as the aesthetics behind Jeune France. Finally, I have tried to show just how the experience of Jeune France influenced Daniel-Lesur as a composer as it did his more famous contemporary, Messiaen.
48
Chen, Szu-Wei. "The music industry and popular song in 1930s and 1940s Shanghai : a historical and stylistic analysis." Thesis, University of Stirling, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/1893/202.
Full textAbstract:
In 1930s and 1940s Shanghai, musicians and artists from different cultures and varied backgrounds joined and made the golden age of Shanghai popular song which suggests the beginnings of Chinese popular music in modern times. However, Shanghai popular song has long been neglected in most works about the modern history of Chinese music and remains an unexplored area in Shanghai studies. This study aims to reconstruct a historical view of the Shanghai popular music industry and make a stylistic analysis of its musical products. The research is undertaken at two levels: first, understanding the operating mechanism of the ‘platform’ and second, investigating the components of the ‘products’. By contrasting the hypothetical flowchart of the Shanghai popular music industry, details of the producing, selling and consuming processes are retrieved from various historical sources to reconstruct the industry platform. Through the first level of research, it is found that the rising new media and the flourishing entertainment industry profoundly influenced the development of Shanghai popular song. In addition, social and political changes and changes in business practices and the organisational structure of foreign record companies also contributed to the vast production, popularity and commercial success of Shanghai popular song. From the composition-performance view of song creation, the second level of research reveals that Chinese and Western musical elements both existed in the musical products. The Chinese vocal technique, Western bel canto and instruments from both musical traditions were all found in historical recordings. When ignoring the distinctive nature of pentatonicism but treating Chinese melodies as those on Western scales, Chinese-style tunes could be easily accompanied by chordal harmony. However, the Chinese heterophonic feature was lost in the Western accompaniment texture. Moreover, it is also found that the traditional rules governing the relationship between words and the melody was dismissed in Shanghai popular songwriting. The findings of this study fill in the neglected part in modern history of Chinese music and add to the literature on the under-explored musical area in Shanghai studies. Moreover, this study also demonstrates that against a map illustrating how musical products moved from record companies to consumers along with all other involved participants, the history of popular music can be rediscovered systematically by using songs as evidence, treating media material carefully and tracking down archives and surviving participants.
49
Soucy, Jean-Philippe. "Six French composers’ homage to Haydn : an analytical comparison enlightening their conception of tombeau." Thesis, McGill University, 2009. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=104366.
Full textAbstract:
In 1909, the Revue musicale mensuelle de la Societe lnternationale de Musique (RSIM) asked six French composers (Debussy, Dukas, Hahn, d’Indy, Ravel and Wid or) to commemorate Haydn’s centennial anniversary of death by each creating a piano piece that incorporated a theme built with a letter-note correspondence on the word “Haydn”. In the context of the French fin-de-siecle search for musical identity, this collective tombeau represents a unique opportunity to discover what characteristics were important to them. My analysis of the pieces reveals five common elements: enharmonic reinterpretation as a means of exploration of foreign keys, large scale registral connections, dissonant chords for colour, ingenious means of creating unity, and use of past genres and form. The influence of Italian and German culture, as well as French music history and politics are also evaluated. The tom beaux reveal how central the concept of the music of the past was to French composers at the tum of the century and how it pointed the way to post-war neoclassicism.En 1909, la Revue musicale mensuelle de la Société Internationale de Musique (RSIM) demanda à six compositeurs français (Debussy, Dukas, Hahn, d’Indy, Ravel et Widor) d’écrire chacun une pièce pour piano dans le but de commémorer le centième anniversaire de la mort d’Haydn. Leurs pièces devaient incorporer un thème imposé bâti via une correspondance entre des notes et les lettres du mot “Haydn”. Dans le contexte de la quête d’identité des Français de la fin du 1ge siècle, ce tombeau collectif représente une occasion unique de découvrir quelles caractéristiques musicales leur étaient importantes. L’analyse de ces pièces a permis d’isoler cinq éléments communs: réinterprétation enharmonique comme moyen d’exploration de tons éloignés, liaison de registres à grande échelle, utilisation d’accords dissonants dans le but d’obtenir une certaine couleur, moyens ingénieux de créer l’unité et usage de formes et de genres issus du passé. L’influence des cultures allemande et italienne ainsi que celle de l’histoire musicale de la France et de sa politique sont également évaluées. Les tombeaux révèlent l’importance qu’occupe la musique du passé pour les compositeurs français au tournant du 20e siècle et comment cette musique prépare l’avènement du néoclassicisme d’après-guerre.
50
Click, Sarah D. "Art Song by Turn-of-the-Century Female Composers." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1993. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc278468/.
Full textAbstract:
Whereas conditions have existed for many centuries which served to exclude or marginalize female participation in music, many women have written compositions of musical worth sufficient to justify their contemporary performance. Although most women composers wrote works more fitting for the "salon" than for the concert hall at the turn of the century, Boulanger and Mahler are representative of the few women composers whose complex approach to art song fell within the mainstream of the genre. Many of their accompaniments attain a level of technical difficulty not previously found in women composers' writing. They offer an interesting comparison between nationalities and styles in that they both favored Symbolist texts. However, each represents a different side of the coin in her musical interpretation of Symbolism: Boulanger, Impressionism, and Mahler, Expressionism. In addition, even though their styles involve opposite musical expressions, they both show a strong influence of Wagner in their writing. This study includes background on turn-of-the-century music and musicians encompassing the role of art song among women composers. Symbolism is addressed as it applies to the poets selected by the composers, followed by information regarding the specific musical representation of Symbolist texts in the composers' art songs. The chapter of analysis serves as a means to guide musical decisions in the actual performance of the works. The conclusion briefly discusses performance practice issues and the possibility of a turn-of-the-century feminine aesthetic.