In his Southern Harmony collection, William Duckworth extracts existing material from shape-note hymns found in William Walker's 1835 publication A Southern Harmony and Musical Companion. He then applies minimalist and postminimalist processes to this material to create innovation choral compositions. This document provides a comprehensive analysis of the methods used to construct all twenty works in Duckworth's collection by tracing the extracted source material through the fabric of the new compositions. This study provides substantial evidence of Duckworth's place as a pioneer of the postminimalist genre. It also provides a discussion on the vocal implications of utilizing shape-note hymns as source material as traditional performances of the genre are typically associated with a unique vocal style.

Award winning composer Kevin Walczyk's describes himself as a "musical storyteller," using all musical elements of structure, melody, harmony, and counterpoint to convey programmatic content. A variety of subjects are conveyed that include historical events, people, physical objects or locations, and literary texts. Deeper matters, such as spiritual themes, are also often incorporated in his music that enhance the musical program. The technical procedures employed—pertaining particularly to the expression of programmatic content—has produced a unique musical language that stands out in the modern compositional landscape. What are these inherent idiomatic features, and how are they exhibited? The purpose of this dissertation is to provide a detailed examination of Walczyk's distinct musical language. A critical analysis of the technical procedures used to convey his programmatic content, as well as insights into his influences and writing process, illuminate the attributes of this a posteriori musical language. The two works selected for this study to demonstrate this are Symphony No. 2: Epitaphs Unwritten and Talking Winds, both written for wind band.

Since the 1980s, British-style brass bands - community ensembles modeled after the all-brass and percussion bands of Great Britain - have enjoyed a modest regeneration in the United States. During this same period, as many as 23 colleges and universities in the U.S. have founded their own curricular or extra-curricular brass band. The purpose of this research study was: to discover which schools sponsor a brass band currently; to discover which schools formerly sponsored a brass band but have since discontinued it; to describe the operational practices of collegiate brass bands in the U.S.; and to determine what collegiate brass band conductors perceive to be the challenges and benefits of brass band in the curriculum. Data for the study were collected between February, 2015 and February, 2016 using four custom survey instruments distributed to conductors of college and university brass bands. The results showed that 11 American collegiate institutions were sponsoring a brass band during the period of data collection. Additional findings included descriptions of the operations of collegiate brass bands, such as availability of credit, rehearsal time, and instrumentation. Results also included the conductors' reported perceptions that both challenges and benefits are inherent in student brass band participation, and …

The wind band provides an outlet for composers to use their platform to reach performers, enlighten audiences, and heal communities. This document is an analysis of three composers' approach to incorporate social consciousness in their wind band music. Adam Schoenberg, Omar Thomas, and Frank Ticheli work with specific social justice issues to respond to specific events, allowing them to reach and empower performers and audiences, to heal, thrive and build past these events. The chapters contain each composer's biographical information, then provide detailed information of the three works; background and cursory information, the composer's use and understanding of the social justice issue and an extensive analysis of each work. The composers use compositional design techniques to convey their intent to share a specific message. This document provides insight through each composer's techniques and thought processes, providing a better understanding of the works. The knowledge gained will help conductors and performers understand social consciousness in wind band music.

According to the American League of Orchestras' most recent report, Michael Daugherty is one of the ten most performed American composers of concert music in modern times. He has received six GRAMMY awards, including awards for Best Contemporary Classical Composition in 2011 and 2017. Characteristics of Daugherty's music are diverse: colliding tonalities and blocks of sound, driving polyrhythmic counterpoint, and jazz and pop elements. His music can be minimalistic at times and at others, stirringly melodic. Amongst this eclecticism, a fascination with American iconography remains a consistent hallmark of his music, exemplified by titles such as American Gothic, Jackie O, or Lost Vegas. Daugherty has stated that his goal is to create sophisticated, abstract music that is also catchy or memorable, with melodies and cultural allusions that audiences can "hang their hat on." Despite widespread success, relatively little scholarly work has been done on Daugherty's music, providing an opportunity for further research. The primary goal of this study is to add to the literature on Michael Daugherty by providing an analysis and conductor's guide of his first choral-orchestral work, Mount Rushmore. It is a genuine show piece, galvanizing and colorful, modestly demanding of the listener, and appreciated by individuals of …

The wind bands in Japan are considered by many scholars and wind band conductors to be among some of the finest ensembles in today's wind ensemble medium. The literature and repertoire of Japanese ensembles have evolved from orchestral transcriptions, patriotic music, and military marches to original compositions by European, American, and Japanese composers. British conductor Timothy Reynish states that Japanese wind band music has looked traditionally towards the United States and occasionally United Kingdom for inspiration and repertoire. This phenomenon can be attributed to the many collegiate American and the few English wind band conductors who traveled to Japan as guest conductors, and in some cases, became residents of Japan. The focus of this study is to closely examine this significant impact of American collegiate wind band conductors, their influence on Japanese programming and how that programming has affected the collegiate repertoire. This study includes surveys of repertoire, concert programs, discographies of recordings, and interviews with prominent American conductors currently conducting in Japan. This research documents the impact that American wind band conductors have had on the programming of Japanese wind bands and how their influence have altered the collegiate repertoire. Evidence of this impact is documented by Toshio Akiyama, …

The Evening Service settings of great British composers like Charles Stanford, A. Herbert Brewer, Charles Wood and Herbert Howells are well known and performed often throughout the world. However, little is known about the body of settings created by American composers. There are currently approximately 75 American composers dating from 1890 to the present, with Evening Service settings in print. Joel Martinson, based in Dallas, Texas, is an American composer, church musician, concert organist, and presenter. Although Martinson has composed four Evening Service settings (Evening Service for the St. Mark's School 1996, Evening Service for the Incarnation 2000, Evening Service for Church of the Nativity 2002, and Evening Service for the Transfiguration 2015), these works are not widely known outside of Dallas and small Anglican circles, nor is the value of his contributions to Anglican Evensong repertoire recognized. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that Martinson's four settings make a valuable American contribution to Anglican repertoire through his neo-classical style and creative counterpoint. The four settings are modern and challenging but remain approachable for both choir and audience.

In this dissertation, I study four choral works by Dr. Zanaida Stewart Robles through musical, thematic, and theoretical analysis to synthesize her compositional style. In addition to analysis, I created supplemental educational guides for each piece. These guides are intended to facilitate an intentional teaching process that leads to meaningful performances that engage the community. I investigate Robles' intersectional approach to composition as it reflects her identity as a Black, female composer. This project contextualizes Robles' voice and her impact on 21st-century choral music. I selected four works for study—"Umoja," "No Fairy Tale Here," "Can You See?" and "Psalm 61"— to represent three overarching themes in her oeuvre: spirituality, mental health awareness, and social justice. This research provides greater insight into Robles' choral works and serves as a thought-provoking introduction to commissioning works from underrepresented communities.

Eak Tai Ahn is not only the first generation of Korean musicians, composers and conductors to have studied Western music and given successful musical performances in Western countries, but also is among the first to introduce the music of Korea to the West utilizing the Western music system. Korea Fantasy is an important work that helped Ahn win international acclaim. Korea Fantasy is an orchestral piece that evolved along with Ahn's unique life experiences shaped by the state of his native country. The piece is programmatic, depicting the history of Korea, which utilizes musical devices, such as rhythms and quotation that are distinctive musical elements of Korea. This document discusses the political and social history of Korea during Ahn's life time, offers an overview of Ahn's education and musical footsteps, and describes the premiere and reception of Korea Fantasy. Moreover, a discussion of his compositional traits and a musical analysis of Korea Fantasy are presented.

The United States Military Academy Band, also known as the West Point Band is the oldest active band in the United States Army and the oldest unit at the United States Military Academy, and is considered to be one of the finest military musical organizations in the world. The band has also been instrumental in facilitating the creation of new works for wind band.As the commissioning of new music has been essential to the expansion of the wind band's repertoire, several major commissioning projects were undertaken in the mid-twentieth century by various organizations, including the West Point Band, the Goldman Band in conjunction with the League of Composers and later the American Bandmasters Association, Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma, the American Wind Symphony, and the College Band Directors National Association. These commissioning projects and many others have contributed hosts of new quality works to the repertoire of the wind band. The West Point Band's 1952 commissioning project celebrating the Sesquicentennial of the United States Military Academy was among the first of these mid-twentieth century commissioning projects to seek out prominent composers of the day and have them write works for wind band. The project contributed several seminal pieces …

With his thought-provoking and socially relevant music, American composer Jake Runestad has quickly become one of the most performed choral composers of the 21st century. Although music and social justice have been tied together for centuries, there is a new movement bringing social justice to American choral music in a noticeably increased manor, and Jake Runestad is a leading composer in this movement. In this paper, I provide a detailed analysis into the social justice themes employed by Runestad, interviews with him and several well-respected American choral directors programming and commissioning his music, as well as compositional devices employed within his compositions. The purpose of this study is to show Jake Runestad's place as an American choral composer by offering a historical overview of the social justice themes in American music and Western choral music separately. I will then narrow the scope to Jake Runestad, who since 2013 has been using his choral music to bring awareness to human inequalities within the United States today.

Lionel Daunais was an eminent and beloved 20th-century Québécois musician who contributed greatly to the performing arts in Canada. Through his work with the Trio Lyrique, Les Variétés Lyriques, and his numerous compositions, he wielded a potent sphere of influence on the Canadian musical landscape. Lionel Daunais's compositions constitute a significant oeuvre, comprising solo vocal works, song cycles, folksong arrangements, individual choral works, and multi-movement choral works. Marked by irresistible wit, the melodicism of French mélodie, and the absolute eminence of the text, Figures de danse is his most well-known multi-movement choral work. Daunais penned the earliest extant version of Figures de danse in 1947, however, the work emerged into Québec's choral scene in the mid-1970s via the establishment of the Alliance des Chorales du Québec. This set of tragicomic caricatures, which sets beautiful choral and piano writing to clever—and sometimes hilariously nonsensical—texts by Daunais himself, is accessible for performance by youth choirs, community choirs, university choirs, and professional choirs alike. Unfortunately, various factors (e.g. the separation of the choral and piano scores, local references, and score errors) often stymie its performance. The purpose of this dissertation is to ameliorate these challenges via a conductor's guide and to advocate for …

Beyond the Binary explores the intersection of gender with cross-cultural identity in composer Reena Esmail's professional life and choral music. This intersection manifests in her musical style, which accesses the resonant spaces between Western and Indian classical music. I argue that it is through the convergence of Esmail's gender identity with her cross-cultural identity that her compositions challenge gender norms and break down perceived barriers between East and West, inviting her listeners into an intersectional feminist space. This project synthesizes musicological, theoretical, and ethnographic methods, and is meant as a starting point for choral musicians and scholars to consider cultural difference and its impact on choral music. What begins as a consideration of social themes within Esmail's life and work culminates in a practical musical analysis and performance practice guide to aid conductors in preparation of Esmail's music. The compositions discussed are I Rise: Women in Song (2016), Take What You Need (2016), TaReKiTa (2016), Tuttarana (2014), and This Love Between Us: Prayers for Unity (2016).