Opera and the Galant Homme: Quinault and Lully's Tragedie en musique, Atys, in the Context of Seventeenth-Century Modernism (open access)

Opera and the Galant Homme: Quinault and Lully's Tragedie en musique, Atys, in the Context of Seventeenth-Century Modernism

The tragedie en musique of Quinault and Lully was a highly successful new genre, representative of contemporary Parisian life. However, it is still largely viewed in the negative terms of its detractors, the proponents of classical tragedy. The purpose of this study is to redefine the tragedie en musique in terms of seventeenth-century modernism. An examination of the society and poetry of the contemporary gallant world provides the historical framework for an analysis of both the libretto and music of Quinault and Lully's Atys (1676). This study attempts to bridge the historical and cultural distances that until now have hindered accessibility to this major new genre in seventeenth-century literature and music.
Date: May 1994
Creator: Browne, Marilyn K. (Marilyn Kay)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Concerto Grosso for Oboe, Clarinet, Piano, and String Quartet (open access)

Concerto Grosso for Oboe, Clarinet, Piano, and String Quartet

The first movement of the present work is a French overture patterned in form after the overtures of Jean Baptiste Lully. The second movement (Lento) is a simple ABA song-form and presents a rather rhapsodic development of its theme. The third movement consists of a set of six continuous variations on the polyphonic chanson Revecy venu du printans by Claude le Jeune (1528-1600). The last movement is a rondo (ABACADA).
Date: August 1956
Creator: Taliaferro, Lloyd Carr
System: The UNT Digital Library
Remarks and Reflections on French Recitative: Ban Inquiry into Performance Practice Based on the Observations of Bénigne de Bacilly, Jean-Léonor de Grimarest, and Jean-Baptiste Dubos (open access)

Remarks and Reflections on French Recitative: Ban Inquiry into Performance Practice Based on the Observations of Bénigne de Bacilly, Jean-Léonor de Grimarest, and Jean-Baptiste Dubos

This study concerns the declaimed performance of recitative in early French opera. Because the dramatic use of the voice was crucial to the opera genre, this investigation begins with a survey of historical definitions of declamation. Once the topic has been described, the thesis proceeds to thoroughly study three treatises dealing with sung recitation: Bacilly's Remarques curieuses, Grimarest's Traité de recitatif, and Dubos' Reflexions critiques. Principles from these sources are then applied to representative scenes from the literature. The paper closes with a commentary on the relationship between spoken and sung delivery and on the development of different declamatory styles.
Date: August 1985
Creator: Reid, Michael A. (Michael Alan)
System: The UNT Digital Library
François Couperin's Neuvième Concert, "Ritratto Dell' Amore": A Performance Guide and Edition for Flute and Keyboard (open access)

François Couperin's Neuvième Concert, "Ritratto Dell' Amore": A Performance Guide and Edition for Flute and Keyboard

François Couperin (1668-1733) was one of the earliest French Baroque composers to merge the Italian style into the French tradition. He had great influence on the development of French Baroque music from the end of the seventeenth century until his death. Couperin's four Concerts Royaux and the ten Concerts Nouveaux (published in 1722 and 1724) were written for the enjoyment of Louis XIV. Those suites were popular in the court before they were published, as they were requested to be performed every Sunday during the years 1714 and 1715 to give pleasure to the king. Rittrato dell'amore is the ninth suite out of the fourteen suites. The purpose of this study is to provide a performance guide and a practical edition of François Couperin's Neuvième Concert Ritratto dell' amore. It also contrasts Italian style and French tradition in the Baroque period, and how Couperin blended both styles together in his Neuvième Concert. In addition, this dissertation summarizes the general principles of Baroque performance practice that one may encounter in Neuviéme Concert, including notes inégales (unequal notes), ornamentation, over-dotting, and other issues. It is especially important for one to understand the performance style of French Baroque music in order to perform …
Date: May 2021
Creator: Wong, Ieng Wai
System: The UNT Digital Library
The French Ballet De Cour and Its Predecessors, 1400-1650 (open access)

The French Ballet De Cour and Its Predecessors, 1400-1650

A study of the historical development of the origins of ballet in Italy and France during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Specifically focuses on the ballet-comique de la reine and the ballet de cour.
Date: January 1952
Creator: Bice, John Arch
System: The UNT Digital Library
Evolution of the Scherzo Through Beethoven (open access)

Evolution of the Scherzo Through Beethoven

It would be impossible to trace the evolution of the form of the scherzo without treating also to some extent the history of the minuet, as the scherzo would hardly have come into being in the way it did had there not been the minuet, even though as the scherzo grew to maturity it resembled less and less its parent-form. This thesis examines the early use and origin of the scherzo, and its use and evolution in the works of Beethoven.
Date: July 1957
Creator: Dower, Tamara
System: The UNT Digital Library
Le Devin Du Village: a Product of the "Guerre Des Bouffons" (open access)

Le Devin Du Village: a Product of the "Guerre Des Bouffons"

The significance of this opera, Le Devin du Village, lies not in the fact that it is great music, but in the fact of its historical importance. Its appearance in 1752, with its revolutionary ideas, heralds the coming of what we consider today as native French comic opera; i. e., native in the sense that it is composed by Frenchmen, although adapted from the Italian style in many respects. Another claim of uniqueness that might be made for this work is that its composer was no recognized musician, but one of the greatest pre-Revolution philosophers. His open-minded ness and eagerness to break loose the bonds of the traditional French "Chauvinism" and musical isolationism, brought forth this musical effort on his part, clothed in native atmosphere, yet embodying the spirit of Italian music. From the private library of Isaac Lloyd Hibberd, the writer was fortunate in having access to a first edition of Le Devin du Village, which has added greatly to an appreciable understanding of the music of this work.
Date: August 1946
Creator: Reynolds, William Jensen
System: The UNT Digital Library
Rameau's "Le Berger Fidèle": An Analysis for Performance (open access)

Rameau's "Le Berger Fidèle": An Analysis for Performance

It is assumed that the performer of Le Berger Fidele will be capable of a more accurate performance and a more historically authoritative interpretation if he thoroughly understands all musical aspects of the cantata. Due to the lack of written directions from earlier composers, it is important that the performer research the period, composer, and composition to insure a more accurate, interpretive performance. The first chapter delves into the life and works of Rameau. The second chapter follows the development of the French solo cantata from the beginning of the art song to its culmination. Ornaments peculiar to French cantata are discussed in the third chapter. In Chapter IV each pair of recitative and aria is examined and analyzed according to form, harmony, rhythm, melody (including phrasing), dynamics and ornaments, and instrumentation. The cantata is built up in a succession of three arias. Each aria is da capo in form and is preceded by a recitative and an instrumental introduction. Each air is concluded with an instrumental postlude.
Date: December 1972
Creator: Loe, Lillian Lucille
System: The UNT Digital Library
A History and Survey of the Baroque Motet for One Solo Voice Outside of Italy (open access)

A History and Survey of the Baroque Motet for One Solo Voice Outside of Italy

During the Baroque Era (1600-1750) many motets were written for one solo voice, representing a major departure from the polyphonic motet settings which had been produced since before 1250. The study traces the development of the solo motet from it s first appearance in the Centro concerti ecclesiastici of Lodovico Grossi do Viadana in 1602 up to 1750, when the style began to deteriorate along with the Neapolitan opera style.
Date: May 1980
Creator: Bolton, Thomas W. (Thomas Wayne)
System: The UNT Digital Library
A French music aesthetic of the eighteenth century: a translation and commentary on Michel Paul Gui de Chabanon's Musique considérée en elle-même et dans ses rapports avec la parole, les langues, la poésie, et le théâtre (open access)

A French music aesthetic of the eighteenth century: a translation and commentary on Michel Paul Gui de Chabanon's Musique considérée en elle-même et dans ses rapports avec la parole, les langues, la poésie, et le théâtre

This annotated translation of Chabanon's Musique considérée with accompanying analysis seeks to establish the aesthetic principles expressed in his book as a significant and independentdeparture from the musical doctrines which prevailed in eighteenth-century France.
Date: December 1975
Creator: Lyall, Harry Robert
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Historical Survey of Woodwind Doubling and A Form/Style Analysis of Four Works for Doubler and Wind Ensemble, a Lecture Recital together with Three Recitals of Selected Works by W.A. Mozart. A. Glazounov. P. Tate. A. Szalowski. A. Copland and Others (open access)

A Historical Survey of Woodwind Doubling and A Form/Style Analysis of Four Works for Doubler and Wind Ensemble, a Lecture Recital together with Three Recitals of Selected Works by W.A. Mozart. A. Glazounov. P. Tate. A. Szalowski. A. Copland and Others

Four works are selected to demonstrate the stature and demands of this craft and to represent a pinnacle in the art of contemporary woodwind doubling. Concerto for Doubles, by Thomas Filas, Concerto Tri-Chroma. by Michael Kibbe, Rhapsody Nova, by Clare Fischer and Suite for Solo Flute. Clarinet and Alto Saxophone by Claude Smith all represent rare, major solo works written specifically for three individual woodwind doublers. The paper will begin with a history of the practice of woodwind doubling from the fifteenth century to the present. The four works will then be examined by considering form, style and related performance practices.
Date: May 1993
Creator: Thompson, Phil A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
John Playford's The Division Violin: Improvisation and Variation Practice in English Violin Music of the Seventeenth Century (open access)

John Playford's The Division Violin: Improvisation and Variation Practice in English Violin Music of the Seventeenth Century

English publisher John Playford (1623-1686/1687) first published his "The Division Violin: Containing a Collection of Divisions Upon Several Grounds for the Treble-Violin" in 1684. The first edition of this violin collection contains 26 written-out examples of improvisation, serving as a living snapshot of the performance practice of the time. This research is based on the second edition, which Playford had expanded into 30 pieces for the violin, published in 1685. The purpose of this study is to investigate the art of improvisation in England during the late 17th century, focusing on Playford's "The Division Violin." The dissertation first surveys the development of English violin music in the 17th century. Then, the dissertation traces eight selected 16th-century Italian diminution manuals. This will help readers understand the progression of the Italian diminution and improvisation practice in the 16th century and how it relates to the English division of the 17th century. Finally, based on a thorough research of the 17th-century improvisatory style and rhetorical approach, the author of this study provides performance suggestions on "Mr. Farinell's Ground," No. 5 from "The Division Violin."
Date: August 2017
Creator: Chan, Tzu-Ying
System: The UNT Digital Library
A History of the Concert Band and its Music (open access)

A History of the Concert Band and its Music

The purpose of this study is to trace the development of the concert band from its earliest stages to the present time and to compile a list of original compositions for band that are worthy of serious concert performance, including compositions from 1750 until the present.
Date: August 1955
Creator: Cook, Raymond Lloyd
System: The UNT Digital Library
Patronage, Connoisseurship and Antiquarianism in Georgian England: The Fitzwilliam Music Collection (1763-1815) (open access)

Patronage, Connoisseurship and Antiquarianism in Georgian England: The Fitzwilliam Music Collection (1763-1815)

In eighteenth-century Britain, many aristocrats studied music, participated as amateurs in musical clubs, and patronized London’s burgeoning concert life. Richard Fitzwilliam, Seventh Viscount Fitzwilliam of Merrion and Thorncastle (1745-1816), was one such patron and amateur. Fitzwilliam shaped his activities – participation, patronage, and collecting – in a unique way that illustrates his specialized tastes and interests. While as an amateur musician he sang in the Noblemen’s and Gentlemen’s Catch Club (the premiere social club dedicated to musical performance), he rose to the highest level of patronage by spearheading the Handel Commemoration Festival of 1784 and serving for many years as a Director of the Concert of Antient Music, the most prestigious concert series in Georgian Britain. His lasting legacy, however, was his bequest to Cambridge University of his extensive collection of art, books and music, as well as sufficient funds to establish the Fitzwilliam Museum. At the time of his death, Fitzwilliam’s collection of music was the best in the land, save that in the Royal Library. Thus, his collection is ideally suited for examination as proof of his activities, taste and connoisseurship. Moreover, the music in Fitzwilliam’s collection shows his participation in the contemporary musicological debate, evidenced by his …
Date: December 2011
Creator: Heiden, Mary Gifford
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Trumpet in Baroque Opera: its Use as a Solo, Obbligato, and Ensemble Instrument (open access)

The Trumpet in Baroque Opera: its Use as a Solo, Obbligato, and Ensemble Instrument

The process of the organization of the orchestra began with the rise of opera; considered on a broad scale this process divides itself into two periods, the first terminated by the deaths of Bach and Handel (1600-1759) and the second beginning with the complete change of orchestral sound evident in the symphonies of Haydn and Mozart during the second half of the eighteenth century. It is the first of these two periods that witnessed the composers of art music exploiting the natural trumpet, an instrument long associated with court, camp, and field, to the extent that they developed a vast repertoire of trumpet music characterized by its virtuosic technical requirements.
Date: December 1974
Creator: Ciurczak, Peter L. (Peter Louis)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Programmatic Clavecin Pieces of François Couperin (open access)

The Programmatic Clavecin Pieces of François Couperin

There are two major purposes in selecting Couperin's programmatic clavecin pieces for study; to prove their importance in the evolution of programmatic music and to prove the value of their study by the modern pianist. Due to the enormous number of Couperin's programmatic pieces, a detailed analysis of each piece will not be attempted in this paper. Instead, a general survey will be made.
Date: May 1964
Creator: Griffith, Ruth Jane
System: The UNT Digital Library
A History of the Oboe from Antiquity to 1750 (open access)

A History of the Oboe from Antiquity to 1750

The purpose of this study is to trace the development of the oboe and its use from the primitive double reed instruments to the oboes of the Baroque Period. Toward the end of this period the oboe became thoroughly established as an important section in the symphony orchestra and has remained so to the present time.
Date: August 1955
Creator: Stephens, Perry O.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Reimagining “The Art of Phrasing” by Jean Baptiste Arban: Teaching Musical Style to Modern Day Trumpet Players (open access)

Reimagining “The Art of Phrasing” by Jean Baptiste Arban: Teaching Musical Style to Modern Day Trumpet Players

“The Art of Phrasing” is a chapter from Arban’s Complete Celebrated Method for the Cornet (published in 1864) that contains a selection of 150 melodies from Classical and early Romantic works. This section of Arban’s method was necessary for a new generation of cornet and trumpet players to learn melodic phrasing and style. A larger part of the trumpet solo repertoire was written for the clarino register or composed in fanfares due to the limitation of the valveless trumpet. The newly chromatic cornet grew to be a prominent solo instrument in symphonies and wind bands by the mid 19th century, and Arban's “Art of Phrasing” instructed players in musical style. Due to today’s vast number of musical genres, it is unlikely that present day students will be exposed to the melodies of “The Art of Phrasing.” With advancements in music streaming technology and with increased accessibility to countless recordings via the internet, trumpet players are able to access recordings of the melodies. However, there are errors and omissions in the chapter that prevents students from finding recordings with ease. This dissertation presents a new compilation of melodies organized by musical period from medieval to modern day, complete with proper title, …
Date: December 2015
Creator: George, Miranda
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Suite for Double Bass Transcribed From Pièces à une et à deux Violes, by Marin Marais: A Lecture Recital, Together with Three Recitals of Selected Works of J.S. Bach, Karl Ditters von Dittersdorf, W.A. Mozart, and Others (open access)

A Suite for Double Bass Transcribed From Pièces à une et à deux Violes, by Marin Marais: A Lecture Recital, Together with Three Recitals of Selected Works of J.S. Bach, Karl Ditters von Dittersdorf, W.A. Mozart, and Others

The music of Marin Marais, a major figure among the French Baroque bass viol composer-performers, is seldom played today. His compositions which are artistically and historically significant, should be available to instrumentalists of this century. Marais published five volumes of bass viol compositions. Seven movements were transcribed from the Second Suite of Marais' first volume. The first chapter is an introduction to Marais; the second chapter pertains to the bass viol and its styles of performance, and the final chapter illustrates the editing required for the transcription. The problems encountered were those of adapting the melodic, harmonic, and contrapuntal styles of the seven-stringed bass viol to the double bass which is normally monophonous. Melodic elements were unchanged, chords were simplified, and contrapuntal lines were retained by giving the second voice to the continuo bass.
Date: December 1982
Creator: Swaim, Daniel
System: The UNT Digital Library
Evocative Foreshadowing: The Motivic Construction in "The Legend of Two Rings" (open access)

Evocative Foreshadowing: The Motivic Construction in "The Legend of Two Rings"

In this thesis, I demonstrate how I use leitmotif in a programmatic context in my original orchestral suite, The Legend of Two Rings.
Date: August 2017
Creator: Xin, Hua (Composer)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Soloistic Writing for the Oboe in the Arias of Handel's Operas, with Three Recitals of Selected Works by Marcello, Strauss, Ravel, Bach, Handel, Saint-Saens and Others (open access)

Soloistic Writing for the Oboe in the Arias of Handel's Operas, with Three Recitals of Selected Works by Marcello, Strauss, Ravel, Bach, Handel, Saint-Saens and Others

Although long-neglected, the topic of Handel's operatic oeuvre has in recent years gained new currency. Of interest to oboists is the great amount of soloistic writing for the oboe in the arias of his operas which takes the form of obbligato solos. From this body of works approximately twenty operas contain soloistic writing for the oboe in conjunction with the voice. The rationale for the investigation of this topic is two-fold: first, to make oboists aware of the availability of this body of literature, and second, to explore the manner and extent to which Handel used the oboe as an obbligato instrument. Topics covered include the instrumental make-up of Handel's orchestra and a brief history of the obbligato aria beginning with the early trumpet arias. An examination of Handel's compositional technique precedes a detailed analysis of six examples of varying style. The conclusion considers the aesthetics of performing these pieces out of context in light of historical practice and perception.
Date: August 1996
Creator: Hiramoto, Stephen Anthony
System: The UNT Digital Library
Stylistic Analysis of "Banalités" by Francis Poulenc (open access)

Stylistic Analysis of "Banalités" by Francis Poulenc

Because of the nature of the poetry, the interpretation of Banalites in this study has involved certain subjective decisions. These deductions were, nevertheless, colored by statements of the poet, the composer, and authorities on each. This is not to imply, however, that this is the only interpretation. Both poet and composer have given evidence that their creation requires a subjective response on the part of the interpreter. This is perhaps the greatest challenge offered by the work.
Date: January 1968
Creator: Allen, Joy Ann
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Historical and Pedagogical Significance of Excerpts by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (1741-1813) (open access)

The Historical and Pedagogical Significance of Excerpts by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (1741-1813)

This collection of 9 vocal works, taken from the oœuvre of André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (1741-1813), was chosen for their utility in teaching undergrad voice majors. This collection offers a group of songs that are attractive in their simplicity allowing the time in their lessons to be devoted to the instruction of French pronunciation. Grétry's attention to detail in the setting of French prosody provides undergraduate singers with a collection of songs that offer an immediate understanding as to the nuances of the French language. With funding from an I-GRO grant through the University of North Texas, research was conducted in the archives of the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and work continued in the Grétry Museum in Liège, Belgium. The primary sources found within these locations formulated valuable insights into to the life and influence of Grétry, and provided first-hand experience with research techniques within foreign libraries. This research has solidified the relationship between Grétry's compositional style and its usefulness within the undergraduate voice studio.
Date: May 2019
Creator: Youngs, Jennifer (Soprano)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Clavecin Pieces of Louis Couperin (open access)

Clavecin Pieces of Louis Couperin

Louis Couperin (c. 1626-1661) was an outstanding member of the seventeenth-century clavecin school and an important link in the Couperin dynasty. His works for the harpsichord, or clavecin, have been neglected. This is due primarily to the fact that there are relatively few of his works, in comparison with those of his nephew, Franois Couperin Le Grand, who greatly overshadows him. Louis wrote no treatise on how his works are to be played, and there are few accounts of him, or his works, that are written in English. There is no biography of Louis Couperin. A more detailed study should be made of his music and its place in the French clavecin literature. Before examiinig the music itself, however, it is necessary to trace the origins and development of the clavecin school and its style.
Date: January 1968
Creator: Hudgens, Cecilia K. Knox
System: The UNT Digital Library