Theses and Dissertations - Department of Music (Applied & Theory)

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The Sacred Choral Works for Women's Voices of Francis Poulenc
(University of Alabama Libraries, 1994) Amos, Shaun McClelland; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
This document focuses on Poulenc's three sacred choral works for women's voices--Litanies a la Vierge Noire, the motet Ave Verum Corpus, and Ave Maria from Dialogues des Carmelites. It is essentially a conductor's guide to the history and performance of these pieces.
On the relationship between music analysis and performance
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2000) Voicu, Alina; Penick, Amanda W.; Murray, Bruce; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Although using different methods and sometimes reaching different results, music analysis and performance share many common goals and interests. One of the most obvious is the desire to understand and express the essence of music. As two independent ways of interpretation, both music analysis and performance have proven their viability, but the history of their interaction is only in its incipient stage.
A Sousa band concert reimagined as a solo trombone recital
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2004-05) Houghtling, Jonathan David; Whitaker, Jonathan; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
John Philip Sousa is primarily known around the world for his march compositions. He was even given the nickname “The March King” by a British band journal. Compositions such as The Stars and Stripes Forever, The Washington Post March, and The Liberty Bell are still considered staples of the American wind band repertoire. What is not as well known is that Sousa was one of the most important musical figures in American history. He was responsible for bringing classical music to many Americans who had never been exposed to it before. At the turn of the nineteenth century, live entertainment was immensely popular. There were no television, radio, or movies. Even the phonograph was in its very primitive state, and was not found in the average home. Due to the lack of means to travel greater distances, most Americans stayed close to home. For these reasons, the only way to experience music was through live performances. Through numerous national and international tours, the Sousa Band was able to bring music to the people, and that helped change the international opinion that American music was inferior and not to be taken seriously. Sousa’s own band was without question the most popular and respected American classical music ensemble of its time. My interest in this topic stems from Sousa’s unique programming for his band’s concerts. Since Sousa was one of the first Americans to utilize a civilian concert band, his programming did not need to follow any sort of pre-existing parameters. I plan to study archived programs of the band’s 39-year history and determine a formula that can in turn be utilized for programming a solo trombone recital. John Philip Sousa was primarily concerned with providing music that all types of audience members would enjoy. He was, in other words, “a man of the people.” Through combining classical European masterpieces, popular American songs of the day, Sousa’s own personal compositions, in addition to utilizing a variety of virtuosic soloists, this unique programming combination was the primary factor for the band’s continued global success over 39 years. Appendix I contains the recital program that this manuscript accompanies. Appendix II contains a list of additional pieces that could be utilized for a Sousa Band Concert Reimagined as a Solo Trombone Recital. Not all of these works were necessarily performed by the Sousa Band but all of them were written during the time of the Sousa Band, and each one falls into one of the four programming categories discussed later in more detail.
Multicultural influences in the music of Isang Yun as represented in his Concerto for flute and small orchestra
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2009) Kim, Ju-Hee; Schultz, Diane Boyd; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The Korean-German composer Isang Yun (1917-1995) is among the few musicians to have successfully integrated Eastern traditional music into Western art music in the twentieth century. Indeed, this integration is the essence of his work, and he regarded himself as a mediator of Eastern and Western music. This document focuses on the means by which Yun transferred traditional Korean structures, philosophies, themes, and instrumental techniques to modern Western compositions, with particular emphasis on his Concerto for Flute and Small Orchestra Since Isang Yun is not well known outside of Europe and Asia, I will provide a brief biography of his life and works, followed by an introduction to Korean traditional music and instruments. The Tai-keum, the Korean traditional transverse wooden flute, was an inspiration for Yun’s Concerto for Flute and Small Orchestra and will be described in detail. The third chapter will examine Yun’s compositional techniques: his incorporation of elements of the Asian philosophy of Taoism, his development and use of the Hauppton technique, and his transference of traditional Korean instrumental techniques to Western instruments. The final chapter examines Yun’s Concerto for Flute and Small Orchestra (1977) and the specific ways in which it relates to traditional Korean court music.
Rodolfo Halffter´s Violin concerto: fusion of nationalistic Spanish elements and neoclassical style, analysis and a study of performance issues
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2009) Krengiel, Elwira; McCreery, Carlton H.; Johnson, William Marvin; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Rodolfo Halffter's Violin Concerto is a work conceived within the aesthetic ideals of Spanish neoclassicism which developed in the first half of the twentieth century. The composition epitomizes the essence of the trend which aimed at the cultivation of a national musical heritage, and modernization of musical language. Melodic and rhythmic elements of the work derive primarily from the transformation of Andalusian musical idiom, Spanish dance music and popular music of zarzuela. Those components are reworked within the boundaries of the aesthetic concepts of neoclassical composition and specifically stylistic features of the style depouillé. This document describes and classifies this concerto as a neoclassical composition, identifies the most important elements of Spanish influence, deliberates on the hybrid nature of the piece, and focus on the coexistence of these elements which ultimately affect the interpretation of the work. This study offers introductory information which includes a brief biography of the composer, a description of his compositional style, and a consolidation of Spanish nationalism and Spanish neoclassicism. The discussion of the creative process within a neoclassical work, the classification of Halffter's Violin Concerto within the different possible categories that embrace neoclassical compositions, and the analysis of Spanish elements provide an aesthetic perspective vital for the interpretative purposes. In addition, this research paper intends to propose a critical interpretation of Halffter's Violin Concerto based on the exploration of historical and stylistic context. In this case the coexistence of both neoclassical and Spanish stylistic traits introduces a level of complexity which compels a performer to attend to the stylistic requirements of a number of accepted musical conventions and aim toward the perfect balance of these diverse elements. The argument herein delineates the most essential factors such as style and character which govern the interpretation of this work and suggests appropriate performance decisions based on the available editions. Further review and appraisal of choices concerning tempo, articulation, tone color and others considerations assist the performer in establishing boundaries for a stylistically informed interpretation.
Sections: a quartet for flute and string trio
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2009) Robin, Gregory Jude; First, Craig P.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Sections is a seven movement work for flute and string trio.The instrumentation of the movements helps to delineate form in the composition. All movements, except movement IV, have a paired movement that shares the same instrumentation. These movement pairs share melodic and harmonic content. Movement IV is the only movement that uses all four instruments. The instrumentation of the other movements is symmetrical around movement IV as shown in the diagram below. I cello II cello and flute III flute, viola, violin IV cello, flute, violin, viola, cello V flute, viola, violin VI cello and flute VII cello The design of the composition involves a transition between indefinite, semi-definite, and definite pitch. Percussive and non-percussive articulations also are treated in a transitional manner. These transitions form major motivic elements of the work. For example, the transition from a scratch tone to an ordinary bowed pitch forms a transition of semi-definite to definite pitch. Generally speaking, the use of indefinite pitch and percussive elements decreases as the number of instruments playing increases. For example, the most percussive sounds are found in solo movements and the least in movement IV.
The influence of Socialist Realism on the Yellow River Piano Concerto
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2009) Tham, Gloria; Engebretson, Noel J.; Clark, Anthony E.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Commissioned by Madam Mao, also known as Jiang Qing (1914-1991), the Yellow River Piano Concerto (1968) is scored for Western orchestra and piano. The piano concerto is based on a previous composition — the Yellow River Cantata (1938) by Xian Xinghai (1909-1945). Like its namesake, the Yellow River, the piano concerto has a tumultuous history and background. The piano concerto was arranged by a group of four composers: Yin Chengzong (b. 1941), Chu Wanghua (b. 1941), Sheng Lihong (b. 1926), and Liu Zhuang (b. 1932) during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). Prior to the concerto, all forms of Western music were banned and classical musicians suffered great persecution. The Yellow River Piano Concerto displays aspects of Chinese nationalism and Socialist Realism fused together in virtuosic pianistic display. The People's Republic of China often sought to emulate the Soviet Union, which was considered the elder brother and a suitable model. Ideologies, political practices, cultural reform and the revolutions of the Soviet Union were adapted and sinified by the Communist Party in China by Mao Zedong (1893-1976). This document examines the influences of Mao's Socialist Realism and revolutionary Romanticism on the Yellow River Piano Concerto as contained in his Talks at the Yan'an Forum on Literature and Art (1942) and Jiang Qing's speeches of 1964. The use of the piano and the form of the concerto raises many questions, as these contradicted the revolutionary elements of nationalism and Communism. The piano is not an instrument native to China, and the concerto form elevates a soloist above an orchestra. The document aims to discover the justification for the use of the piano, a Western instrument, which was considered bourgeois during the Cultural Revolution. Virtuosity and folk-like simplicity are both exploited with a political agenda in the concerto. The concerto had to embody the revolutionary slogans, "Make the old serve the new" and "Foreign things to serve China", to legitimize the piece. The Yellow River Piano Concerto displays the practice of the cultural and artistic policies of the Cultural Revolution and their contradictions.
Quintet for piano and strings, op. 16
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Trotman, Christopher A.; First, Craig P.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The Quintet for Piano and Strings, Op. 16 is a quintet for piano, two violins, one viola and one cello. The quintet is written in 4 movements and uses chromaticism and cyclic thematic formal devices. The duration of the work is around 35 minutes.
Violin and yoga: benefits of yoga for violinists
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Leska, Malgorzata Krystyna; Cummins, Linda; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Today, performing musicians face many challenges that require them to push the limits of what is possible both mentally and physically. They are expected to reach ever-higher levels of technical proficiency; what seemed virtuosic or even impossible a few decades before soon becomes standard. One must know an increasingly wide repertory and practice and perform in an expanding world in which travel can be a constant drain on time, energy, and concentration. Under these conditions the pursuit of perfection can become a hindrance for many artists who, in the process, lose the joy of performing and the ability to do their best under such difficult circumstances; they can also become more prone to injury. A growing body of evidence from physicians, physical therapists, and other medical experts, as well as the testimony of musicians, indicates that Yoga has been used successfully in the prevention and treatment of injury, and to remedy psychological problems such as performance anxiety and lack of concentration. This paper identifies specific injuries encountered by performing string musicians, and reports on successes in treatment of these injuries with Yoga as recorded in medical sources, reported by Yoga therapists, and documented by musicians themselves. In each case, this evidence is followed by my own suggestions for beneficial Yoga poses and practices drawn from personal experience and from interviews with Yoga teachers. Following the discussions of physical injuries, I include a chapter documenting the effectiveness of Yoga in treating psychological challenges such as performance anxiety. I close with a summary of my findings, offering Yoga as a valid and successful avenue for musicians dealing with these problems.
A study of Federico Mompou's Variations sur un thème de Chopin
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) York, Sallye Jeffcoat; Penick, Amanda W.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Federico Mompou (1893 - 1987) was a Catalan composer often compared to Satie, Debussy, and Ravel, composing mainly for solo piano and voice. His piano works have become a favorite in the teaching repertoire as well as the performance repertoire. Concert pianists such as Alicia De Laroccha and Stephen Hough have performed and recorded Mompou's compositions. Variations sur un thème de Chopin, one of Mompou's larger piano works, has become a standard piece for performance. It is an extensive work for solo piano based on Chopin's Prelude in A Major, Op. 28 No. 7. This document provides a study of Mompou's Variations sur un thème de Chopin, focusing on his adaptation of Chopin's motives, harmonies, and stylistic characteristics; influences from other composers are also considered where pertinent. Several books and dissertations include analyses of various Mompou compositions; however, none have sufficiently covered the large work Variations sur un thème de Chopin. This study provides an investigation of an important Mompou piece and contributes to the continuing scholarly research of this Catalan composer and his compositions.
Analysis of expressive elements in the Dante Sonata
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Marc, Aida Beatrice; Penick, Amanda W.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The present document is a reflection upon Liszt's most important piece, the Dante Sonata from the cycle Années de Pèlerinage. It represents the pinnacle achievement of the Italian Years and it is considered one of the most difficult pieces to play from the standard repertoire. It ranges from virtuosic, brilliant passages to sincerely moving emotional statements. Liszt's musical maturity can be seen evolving through this masterpiece by observing its innovative harmonic structure and formal conception.
Insight on selected standard audition repertoire for the trombone
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Thurman, Demondrae Ladratus; Snead, Charles; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Because there are virtually no resources that discuss the salient aspects of solo trombone repertoire, this document offers a thorough study of Morceau Symphonique by Alexandre Guilmant and Cavatine by Camille Saint-Saëns. For many trombonists, these pieces represent the beginning of the standard repertoire; therefore, they are a logical place to begin the process of providing such resources for the instrument. For both pieces, the historical components provide information about the climate surrounding the composer at the time the piece was written; an analysis of structural and theoretical constructs with each piece offers a phrase-by-phrase presentation. The interpretation of each piece, the primary focus of this document, was highly influenced by the research. It is my hope that my work will inspire more such studies of the trombone repertoire. Ultimately, students preparing for collegiate auditions will use this document to form their own opinions about these two wonderful pieces.
Highs and lows of the baritenor voice: exploring the other male hybrid
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Martin, William Alex; Fleming, Susan C.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The use of voice types as labels to describe the attributes of voices, both mature and developing, is common among scholars and teachers of singing. Bass, baritone, and tenor are the primary labels used to classify male voices whose production is dominated by chest voice. The bass-baritone is a widely recognized male voice hybrid, borrowing traits from both the bass category and the baritone category. The hybrid counterpart of the bass-baritone is the baritenor, which borrows traits from the baritone category and the tenor category. The first half of this document explains the hybrid baritenor voice from a pedagogical standpoint through the examination of registers in the voice, registration and terminology, registration events, and the role of range, timbre, and tessitura in the classification of voices. The second half features art song repertoire in keys meant to encourage the exploration of the baritenor's dual vocal identity. Selections from the baritone and tenor operatic and oratorio repertoire are also featured. These selections are useful in cultivating the baritenor voice; the roles may be sung in their entirety by the mature baritenor.
An assessment of music programs in the Alabama Community College System
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Powe, Holly Vanessa; Ratledge, John; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The Alabama Community College System (ACCS) consists of 21 comprehensive community colleges, four technical colleges, and Athens State University, the state's only upper level, two- year college. The majority of those 21 colleges incorporate the five objectives of providing transfer, vocational/technical and remedial education, as well as opportunities for lifelong learning and community service in both their goal and mission statements. The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not Alabama community college music programs contribute to the mission of their respective colleges as well as the overall mission of the ACCS by achieving these five objectives. Information about transfer, vocational/technical and remedial education was obtained by comparing the music courses offered in the System's common course guide with those in the 2008 catalogs and 2008-2009 course schedules of each institution. Information about lifelong learning and community service opportunities was obtained by interviewing a full- time member of the music faculty at 19 of the 21 institutions offering music courses. This study explores what music courses are being offered by music departments at Alabama's comprehensive community colleges as they relate to the goals and objectives of each school as well as the goals of the Alabama Community College System.
The solo piano music of Oliver Knussen
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2011) Middaugh, Laurie A.; Penick, Amanda W.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Oliver Knussen is one of Great Britain's most prominent composers of our day. He has been a presence on the contemporary music scene since the age of fifteen when he was thrust upon the stage to conduct his own First Symphony. He has written in just about every genre from large orchestral works to chamber ensembles, operas to art song. His introduction into the contemporary music scene in America was during his first trip to New York City and Boston in the late 1960s to study composition at Tanglewood. He has had a longstanding relationship with Tanglewood both as a student and as the Head of Contemporary Music Activities there from 1986 to 1998. Knussen enjoys as much success as a conductor as he has as a composer. His discography boasts recordings of contemporary music of many historic figures of contemporary music with Knussen at the podium. Painstaking attention to detail is a hallmark of Knussen's scores. Dynamics, phrasing, articulation, rhythmic relationships, and, in his piano music, pedaling is all very scrupulously marked. He wants his music played the way he has conceived it. The instrumentation he uses for his orchestral works is imaginative and colorful. This same attention to individual lines and textures is evident in his compositions for solo piano. There are currently three solo piano pieces published by Faber Music Limited in London: Sonya's Lullaby, Op. 16, (1979), Variations for Piano, Op. 24, (1989) and Prayer Bell Sketch, iii Op. 29, (1998). Each of these pieces was composed in honor, by commission, or in memory of someone in his life. Sonya's Lullaby was written in celebration of the birth of his daughter, Variations for Piano was commissioned by the renowned pianist Peter Serkin and Prayer Bell Sketch is in memory of his friend and mentor Toru Takemitsu. A fourth solo piano piece has been completed, Ophelia's Last Dance, Op. 32, which was commissioned by the Gilmore International Keyboard Festival in 2010, premiered and recorded by Kirill Gerstein on Myrios Classics. Through his prolific activities as both composer and conductor, Oliver Knussen is a major contributor to the ongoing tradition of British contemporary art music and a tireless advocate of new music.
The horn quartets of Michael Kallstrom - a performance guide
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2011) Luchsinger, Brenda Mae; Snead, Charles; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The horn is very versatile and has a home in a variety of chamber ensembles, which makes studying and performing quartets an invaluable component for horn players. Horn quartets not only provide performers with chamber music experience, but are an extension of large ensemble playing and can be an excellent way to enhance a horn section's playing abilities. Today there are a number of active professional quartets who are committed to expanding the library of original compositions for this ensemble. One of the most today's most significant composers of original compositions for horn quartet is Michael Kallstrom, who has composed works for the TransAtlantic Horn Quartet and Quadre. For the past decade, Kallstrom's horn quartets have proven to be valuable additions to the repertoire in many settings, including recitals and competitions. This document will discuss the history of the horn quartet, Michael Kallstrom's creative process, his relationship with the TransAtlantic Horn Quartet and it will examine his two most recognized horn quartets: STARFLAME and HEADBANGER. The document will provide readers with a practical application of these quartets and will discuss their compositional style, forms and motives. It will also include pedagogical instructions in regard to phrasing, fingerings and extended techniques. There will also be a brief discussion regarding Kallstrom's other horn quartets, which include two arrangements of JEEPERS, SOULS MADE OF MUSIC and CRAZY RHYTHM.
Time's inexorability: a performance study of Gerald Finzi's Earth and air and rain
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2011) O'Rear, Christopher Lindsay; Fleming, Susan C.; Cummins, Linda; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Gerald Finzi has at least once been characterized as the English Hugo Wolf. To one familiar with the music of both Wolf and Finzi, such a statement understandably elicits pause and must be qualified by the context in which the characterization was made. Wolf's musical compositions are considerably more complex and broader in scope than those of Gerald Finzi. Finzi's compositional style is one unmistakably British, and shares little in common with the music of Wolf. There is, however, a shared characteristic in their compositional styles. Each of the men was highly detailed in their sensitivity to poetry and used music as a medium to accentuate their respective languages' aesthetic qualities. For Gerald Finzi, the poetry of Thomas Hardy seems to have held a strong attraction as fodder for song composition. This is evidenced in the overwhelming number of his songs with Hardy texts as their subjects. Finzi's Hardy songs constitute a significant period of English song composition in the first half of the 20th century. His careful attention to textual declamation and Hardy's shifting tone of voice result in songs that not only exemplify a style distinctively British, but also a style that bears out the deeper philosophical foundations of Hardy's poetry. His careful grouping of the ten poems of Earth and Air and Rain illustrates not only his gift for setting his native language, but also an intimate understanding of the ideology contained within Hardy's poetry. A successful performance of Earth and Air and Rain is greatly dependent upon the performer's ability to portray the ideology of Hardy as seen through Finzi's musical interpretation of his poetry. Learning to recognize the compositional devices characteristic of Finzi's idiomatic style enables the performer to accomplish this task. To that end, the following performance study seeks to compartmentalize those devices in such a way that not only facilitates a successful performance of these songs, but that also gives insight to the performance of the other Finzi settings of Hardy poetry.
Nature ternua nature
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2011) Mahloch, David Jerome; First, Craig P.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The composition for my D.M.A. document is a song-cycle featuring the poetry of Emily Dickinson, William Carlos Williams, and e.e. cummings. The four poems share the common theme of nature. The selected poems are 'South Winds Jostle Them', 'The Murmuring of Bees' (both by Dickinson), 'Pastoral' (Williams), and 'and what were roses' (cummings). The duration of the song-cycle is 16 minutes.
The choro and the maxixe in the piano works of Maria de Lourdes Gondim
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2011) Gondim, Maria Thereza Pita; Penick, Amanda W.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
This document illustrates the use of choro, and the maxixe--genres of Brazilian music from the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries--in the piano works of Maria de Lourdes Gondim (1901-1987). These genres became representative of music of the Brazilian National School. This is also a brief survey on the history of the discovery of Brazil, the formation of its population, the Portuguese domain, Brazil's independence in 1822, and the proclamation of the Republic of Brazil in 1889. The development of a national musical identity in Brazil was made through the blending of European and African cultural traditions. The Brazilian nationalist school is a result of the combination of European roots with African, and Native Brazilian influences. In an effort to create music with a national identity, Brazilian composers in the late 19th century started to incorporate elements of popular and folk music into their works. Maria de Lourdes Gondim was a pianist and composer, with an output of 63 pieces for piano. Her works show the combination of the European Romantic tradition with genres of the Brazilian popular music of her time. Eleven of her pieces for piano are discussed in this paper-four choros and seven tangos. Lourdes Gondim never used the term maxixe for her works, adopting the term tango instead, although it is possible to identify characteristics of the maxixe among her tangos. The choro and the controversial maxixe pervade the music of almost all Brazilian composers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, among many others Ernesto Nazareth (1863-1934), Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959), and Francisco Mignone (1897-1986).
Enescu's Second cello sonata: a synthesis of Romanian folkloric elements and Western art traditions
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2011) Arcu, Ariana; Cummins, Linda; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
In his mature works, George Enescu accomplished a synthesis between apparently two incompatible styles: the Romanian folk music, mostly the genres in parlando-rubato rhythm, and the European symphonic tradition. The Second Cello Sonata, written in 1935, is representative of this style. This paper is an analysis of Enescu's Second Cello Sonata from the point of view of the synthesis mentioned above. Elements of Western music tradition and folkloric inspiration are isolated and observed how they intertwine in the sonata. The traditional elements discussed are the form of the movements and cyclical principle. The folkloric elements are the parlando- rubato rhythm; the use of chromatic modes found in Romanian folk music; heterophony; the folkloric influence on the form (inspired by one of the most popular Romanian genres, called doina); the cellular-motivic compositional technique adopted from certain genres of Romanian folk music; certain fragments in the sonata that resemble genres of folk music; and sound effects that imitate the traditional instruments of Romanian folk music.

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