In 1619, Johannes Kepler published his magnum opus Harmonices mundi in which the astronomer derived distinct pitches and scales for each known planet in the solar system from calculations of various aspects of their orbital motions. This was the first theoretical realization of the ancient tradition of musica universalis (also called musica mundana), or music of the celestial bodies. It was not until the Estonian composer Urmas Sisask (b. 1960) began his compositional career by deriving his own “planetary scale,” however, that the theoretical musica universalis came into audible existence. Sisask’s work represents a distinctive musical voice among today’s choral composers, and although he is steadily gaining attention for his unique compositional style, only limited information exists about the specifics of his background, his interest in astronomy and shamanism, and the subsequent influence these interests have had on his choral music. At once traditional and modern, he bridges the gap between ancient Estonian folk song and the present. Through an application of exotic techniques including extreme repetition, ritualistically driving rhythms and sudden changes in timbre and texture; coupled with his own peculiarly crafted “planetary scale,” Urmas Sisask has created a completely unique body of work which is examined in this …

In 1861, Jerôme Savari (1819-1870) composed Duo for Soprano Saxophone and Alto Saxophone. Since then, more than 400 duets were written, yet many musicians are not aware of this repertoire. The lack of recommended repertoire and insufficient information regarding this genre reduces the use of the saxophone duet in both pedagogical and concert settings. The purpose of this study is to examine the importance of the saxophone duet genre by identifying the standard repertoire and creating an annotated bibliography. Twenty-three composers with twenty-six selected works have been identified and will be annotated. All selected works in this document are (1) composed for any two members of the saxophone family; (2) originally composed for saxophone duet (i.e., no transcriptions will be included); (3) published either by companies or by the composers themselves; and, (4) composed between the nineteenth-century through present day. This annotated bibliography of selected repertoire contains two sections: (1) repertoire for performance; and, (2) repertoire for pedagogy. It is the intent of this project that the annotation for each piece could assist performers, teachers and students with their search of currently published works for this genre. The descriptive information in each annotation regarding the composition and its performance considerations …

Texas has a rich tradition of Early Music ensembles that dates back to 1969. However, there is little reliable information based on statistical data collection and analysis concerning Texas Early Music consumers. Little is known about why they attend Early Music performances or other important factors that affect the Early Music industry. Through the use of an extensive survey and accompanying statistical analysis, this study answers many questions regarding Early Music consumers in the State of Texas. This study collected demographic and psychographic data in January 2020 about the Early Music concert-going public in three major Texas cities - Dallas, Austin, and Houston. Other factors were identified in two primary areas: audience characteristics and ticket pricing practices.

This thesis surveys a variety of songs and arias for high soprano which feature the nightingale; examines the musical elements that symbolize, refer to, or imitate the nightingale; and compares these musical elements with transcriptions of the nightingale's song. The first chapter reviews the symbolic development of the nightingale and its role in poetry and literature. The interior chapters address a selection of musical compositions that feature the nightingale and its song. The final chapter establishes a relationship between the sound of the actual sound of the nightingale and the musical gestures created by composers to imitate the nightingale.

As a film composer, Bruce Broughton uses themes, motives, gestures, tropes, and other film composition devices; however, he is also able to develop them into compelling formal structures through the use of film composition techniques in his concert music. Traditional musical form is not necessarily applicable to film music. The film dictates the pacing and structure, whereas concert music allows for the creation of form and more complex musical development. Through his extensive experience composing in the film industry, Broughton instinctively uses his film composition techniques as a means to reach his audience with his concert music. He establishes a common ground through film score vernacular to draw the listener into a more sophisticated musical conversation. This is particularly evident in his extensive wind band catalogue. In this dissertation, I identify Bruce Broughton's film composition techniques and examine how he employs them to create a stand-alone form using those techniques in his wind band music. The film composition techniques that are examined include character association, character interaction, motivic snippets, programmatic associations, and musical tropes. These aspects are demonstrated as they influence form in three of his most frequently performed and highly acclaimed pieces for wind band: In the World of …

The concept of choral music as defined by the Western world was foreign to Arab cultures until the colonization of the Arab world began in the seventeenth century when we began to see the Western choral style emerging in the churches of the Arab world. Group singing of traditional music was done in unison or heterophonic textures. Notated part-singing is a product of colonization, Westernization, Christianization, and now globalization. In recent years, singing music in mixed or multiple voicings not of a heterophonic nature has spread beyond the churches to the secular Arab world. As choral singing has increased in the Arab world, a new genre of Arabic choral music has emerged. In order for Western conductors to effectively teach, conduct, or perform these new works, it is important for them to develop a basic understanding of traditional Arabic musical styles and pronunciation of the language, thereby making Arabic choral music more accessible and enabling it to become a part of the larger world’s musical vocabulary. This study serves as an introductory resource for non-Arab choral conductors concerning key elements related to performing Arabic choral music and provides a context for how these elements relate to this evolving choral genre. …

Born in 1927 in Bombay, Vanraj Bhatia is an Indian composer of music for concerts, film, television, opera, meditation, and commercial jingles. His musical style is unique, stemming from his training in both Western and North Indian classical, or Hindustani, music. Little is known about Vanraj Bhatia in the Western classical world, and in India he is recognized primarily as a composer of film music. This dissertation aims to bring awareness of Vanraj Bhatia's significance as a Western classical composer, focusing on uncovering the cross-cultural influences of his only solo flute piece, Night Music, composed in 1964. This research offers Western flutists a better understanding of Indian music, specifically Hindustani and Indian folk music traditions, often not fully understood since Indian music is an aural tradition, rarely transcribed and notated, and relies on a guru/shishya (teacher/student) relationship. Such an understanding will elucidate the compositional choices made in Night Music, allowing flutists to be more informed in their performance of it. Although the focus of this study is on Night Music, other repertoire from Bhatia's concert music and film music will also be examined to illuminate Bhatia's compositional style, which includes elements of Hindustani music, Indian folk music, and Western musical …

The keyboard works of the English virginalist Peter Philips have been little studied in comparison with his more famous contemporaries, William Byrd, John Bull and Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. While Philips left comparatively fewer keyboard works than these composers, his music contains very unique attributes. This study compiles the latest research of Philips' life as well as an analysis of representative works showing many of the individual and uncommon features to be found in Philips' works for keyboard. Pieces from all genres of Philips' keyboard output are represented and discussed, including Pavanes and Galliards, Fantasias and Intabulations of madrigals. Musical examples of each of these works are provided. A description of the instruments needed for the performance of the music and an illustration of the rare type of keyboard instrument required in the Pavana and Galliarda Dolorosa is included. A discussion of Philips' style, particularly regarding ornamentation, is included with a comparison to the works of his contemporaries.

Chen Yi's music is well accepted and recognized nationally and internationally through an increasing number of commissions and performances. Major symphony orchestras, choruses, institutions and companies request her compositions on many occasions in order to increase understanding and exploration of Chinese influences on western classical idioms. This study provides the first detailed discussion of her compositional mastery and her fusion of Chinese music with the language of western choral traditions. Chen Yi's reputation as a prominent orchestral composer does not restrain her passion to apply instrumental techniques and materials to her quality choral compositions. This study focuses on (1) how hardship and various life experiences during the ten-year Cultural Revolution shaped Chen Yi's musical inspirations; (2) how the influences of major musical genres, such as traditional Chinese folksong, jingju, model play, 19th-20th century nationalism, impressionism, and serialism are consolidated in her kaleidoscopic compositional techniques; and (3) the application of Chinese languages, pedagogical concepts, and extra-musical elements, such as Chinese poems, paintings, and calligraphies, revealed in her original, intelligent and resourceful choral creations.

In recent years, a large part of the erhu's repertoire has been arranged for performance on the violin and vice versa. Given the difficulties involved in transcribing the music of plucked or woodwind instruments for the violin, the erhu has been the most popular choice for transcribing Chinese music for the violin. However, the erhu and violin are radically dissimilar instruments based on different principles. Pipa music is an essential part of traditional Chinese music from as early as 202 BCE, and the instrument's repertoire represents a large portion of East Asian music aesthetics, and this context should be considered to successfully transcribe pipa music for violin. This dissertation talks briefly about Chinese music history and its categories and also focuses on the history and development of the pipa as well as its repertoire categories to provide context for the following musical examples. I use existing transcription examples from different categories of pipa music as an avenue to discuss how to transcribe pipa music for the violin. Even though the violin has some limitations for use as a plucked instrument, the instrument can still make use of several different kinds of techniques in order to play the music in a …

This dissertation focuses on the clarinet music of Luigi Bassi (1833-1871), an Italian clarinetist and composer. Biographical information and performance history for Luigi Bassi are included. Bassi wrote 27 works for clarinet, including 15 opera fantasies or transcriptions. Most of his works are housed in the Milan Conservatory library. This document provides analysis of all but two of Bassi's 27 works. For Bassi's pieces with ties to opera, I identified his source material and discussed the ways in which he manipulated the material. A brief synopsis of each opera is included. This study serves as a performance guide for those seeking to perform Bassi's clarinet works.

Music travels across the past in the form of composers borrowing from each other. Such musical borrowings and quotations involve not only the use of melodic materials but also musical structures, texts, symbolism and other types of inspiration. The pre-existing musical idea being used is linked to a specific memory of a particular composer and time. The artistic allusions of composers connect the present and the past. Music also travels across the present and into the future. The outcome of contemporary composers borrowing from each other influences the present period and affects later composers' musical inspiration, i.e., it affects future composers, and therefore, the future. Composers frequently refer to melodies or musical idea from contemporaries and reinterpret them in their own compositions. This is largely because composers do not write in isolation and have been inspired and influenced by contemporary musicians and cultural contexts. However, these musical borrowings sometimes raise questions about the composers' creativity and authenticity. This is largely due to the nature of inspiration and imagination, which determines who or what is original. With this in mind, why do composers still borrow musical ideas despite the risks involved? In what ways do they overcome criticism and demonstrate the …

It is the goal of this document to bring to the attention of the public the compositions of Brian Israel, an American Jewish composer who died of leukemia in 1986 at the age of 35. This document contains a biography of the composer, information on where to obtain the scores, texts to the poems of Kenneth Patchen, as well as a study of three, selected clarinet works, which trace his compositional development. The Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, a neo-classical work, is representative of his early style, using classical forms with non-traditional harmonies. It is comprised of three movements, Allegro assai, Andante, and Vivace. The chamber work Lovesongs, Lions, and Lullabyes, for soprano, clarinet, and piano, is a progressive work that experiments with text painting, chord splitting, mode mixture, and an increasing harmonic language, and is inspired by the poetry of Kenneth Patchen, a World War II poet. There are four movements to this work: "O, sleeping falls the maiden snow," "O when I take my love out walking," "The lions of fire," and "I have lighted the candles Mary." The Concerto for Clarinet and Wind Ensemble is a textless, programmatic work that uses chromatic fragments and displaced octaves to …

American composer Andrew Rindfleisch (b. 1963) has contributed twenty-one pieces to the repertoire of contemporary choral literature to date. His works have been commissioned, premiered, and recorded by notable choral ensembles and performed in significant venues around the country. Influenced by his own early choral singing experience in his native Wisconsin, much of Rindfleisch’s choral music is infused with influences of the music of earlier composers and choral idioms. With these works, Rindfleisch participates in a long-standing trend in choral composition of looking to the musical past for inspiration and procedure while writing in a contemporary harmonic vocabulary, and his efforts can be evaluated through the lens of a study of musical borrowing. Through a case study of five of Rindfleisch’s choral works – “In manus tuas,” “Mille regretz,” “Psalm,” “Anthem,” and “Graue Liebesschlangen” – this document identifies common characteristics of Rindfleisch’s choral music and demonstrates his uses of musical borrowing and allusion. The influence of Renaissance polyphony, Debussy, Brahms, and German expressionism is revealed.

As the bassoon has evolved over time, the music written for the instrument has evolved around it, and was many times the catalyst for its evolution. Bassoon music of the seventeenth through early twentieth centuries has defined much of the curricula for bassoon studies, and has established how we consider and experience the bassoon. We experience, write, and consume music in vastly different ways than just a generation ago. Humans use technology for the most basic of tasks. Composers are using the technology of our generation to compose music that is a reflection of our time. This is a significant aspect of art music today, and bassoonists are barely participating in the creation of this new repertoire. Performance practice often considers only the musical score; interactive electronic music regularly goes beyond that. The combination of technological challenges and inexperience can make approaching electroacoustic music a daunting and inaccessible type of music for bassoonists. These issues require a different language to the performance practice: one that addresses music, amplification, computer software, hardware, the collaboration between performer and technology, and often the performer and composer. The author discusses problems that performers face when rehearsing and performing interactive electroacoustic works for bassoon, and …

Composed exclusively in the last decade, Joshua Rist's works have received significant performances by numerous high-profile ensembles including prominent high school, collegiate, and community choirs. Although conductors continue to program his works with increased frequency, minimal scholarly work is published about this music and its composer. The quality of Rist's body of work coupled with a scarcity of scholarly research provides opportunity for further study. Closer examination of Rist's works could provide a framework for conductors who perform his music. This study provides background and bibliographic information on the composer. It contains a review of choral works by Rist highlighting critical elements within each work that provide a framework for future performances of his works. This dissertation identifies stylistic characteristics that define Rist's compositional style. Additionally, it highlights the evolution of Rist's artistic growth and development.

The euphonium has been an integral part of wind bands and brass bands for more than a century. During this time the instrument has grown in stature in both types of band, as an ensemble member and a solo instrument. Until recently, however, the instrument has been underrepresented in orchestral literature, although a growing number of composers are beginning to appreciate the characteristics of the instrument. The purpose of this research is to explore the perceived rise of the euphonium in an orchestral environment through analyzing the significance of the role it plays within Lorin Maazel's Music for Flute with Tenor Tuba Obbligato (1995) and Karl Jenkins' Cantata Memoria (2005); specifically, how the euphonium contributes to the orchestral scores in relation to its capabilities as an instrumental voice.

Ida Gotkovsky, a student of Olivier Messiaen and Nadia Boulanger, composed for nearly every instrument, voice, and ensemble. Although Gotkovsky's Concerto for Trombone is a monumental work for the trombone it is rarely performed and recordings are scarce. There is a general lack of scholarly attention to the music of Ida Gotkovsky, however, the technical and aesthetic quality of her music merits further examination. Previous studies of Gotkovsky's music focused on the analysis of individual compositions. However, much more can be learned by examining a work within the context of her general compositional output. Gotkovsky's compositional style includes extensive musical self-borrowing. The goal of this project is to demonstrate melodic and textural similarities and differences within her music to inform performance practice and to establish interest in her music. The context in which Gotkovsky reuses her music is significant and can provide additional musical insight. An informed awareness of her extensive use of self-quotation familiarizes the performer with her compositional language in a variety of musical settings. Such familiarity with her musical style leads to an improved and artistically educated performance.

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.

This research is an investigation of how the lullaby, which is often viewed as purely a simple and pretty song, is a multifaceted vocal tradition that carries historical and cultural significance. As an exploration of how sociocultural factors impact the emotions expressed and the stories told in lullabies, this research encourages deeper examinations of lullaby texts in relation to the historical, cultural, and social aspects reflected in their textual themes. Through the close analysis of text and music of folk and art song lullabies, I propose that the lullaby's function extends beyond putting a baby to sleep; the further roles of the lullaby encompass cultural connections and therapeutic functions for both the parent and child. As a result of these sociocultural considerations, dialogue exists between the lullaby text and its music that do not always match the song's primary intent to provide peace and comfort.

The discussion dealt with stylistic influences, compositional techniques, and performance considerations of chamber music involving clarinet composed by Bohuslav Martinu and included a performance of three of his works: Quartet. for clarinet, horn, cello, and side drum, Madrigals for oboe, clarinet, and bassoon, and Sextet for flute, oboe, clarinet, two bassoons, and piano. The selections performed and discussed in the lecture show compositional growth of the composer through the three periods of his life in which he composed chamber music which included winds. These three time periods are 1923-40 during his residency in Paris, 1941-56 during his residency in the United States, and 1957 until his death in 1959 when he returned permanently to Europe.

In 1937, Gustav Bumcke (1876-1963) composed the Scherzo, op. 67 for alto saxophone and double-action pedal harp. Since then, over 50 duos were written for various members of the saxophone family and the pedal harp, yet most of this repertoire is rarely performed and many artists are not yet aware of it. This document investigates works that are (1) composed for two musicians: a harpist and a saxophonist; (2) intended for the double-action pedal harp; and (3) originally composed for this instrumentation (no transcriptions). In Part I, An Investigation of the Development of the Genre, pieces are introduced in chronological order, and placed in historical context. Composers such as Gustave Bumcke and Jean Absil wrote short tonal pieces for alto saxophone and harp. In 1969, Günther Tautenhahn composed the Elegy for tenor saxophone and harp, featuring disjunct melodies with wide intervals. In France, Yvonne Desportes and Ida Gotkovsky composed pieces for alto saxophone and harp. Their pieces are substantially longer in duration and have much higher technical demands for both instruments. During the 1980s composers such as Jacqueline Fontyn, Marc Tallet, and Griffith Rose used a variety of extended techniques and avant-garde notation. Mauricio Kagel's Zwei Akte from 1989 is …

In discussing the music of Karl Weigl (1881-1949), it is essential to estimate the state of research regarding the composer and his professional life. Although a copious account and collection of Weigl's papers exists at Yale University, much contribution in the form of editions, recordings, and scholarly texts is needed. Schooled by Adler, Schoenberg, and Zemlinsky, Weigl graduated from the Musikacademie of Vienna in 1899 with high honors, with later employment in the Vienna Opera as a vocal coach (where he worked with such figures as Bruno Walter, Friedrich Weidemann, and Lotte Lehmann.). A theory and composition appointment to the New Vienna Conservatory after 1918 dramatically opened Weigl's professional horizons. With the rise of anti-semitism in Nazi Germany, Weigl and his family escaped to New York in autumn 1938. Eventually, Weigl obtained positions in the Hartt School of Music, Brooklyn College, Boston Conservatory, and finally, the Philadelphia Academy of Music in 1948. Although Weigl's music has been commented upon by Stephen Davison, Wendell Davis, and Michael Kater, much literature in the form of published analysis, commentary, and biography has yet to come forward. This paper principally covers Weigl's Night Fantasies, Op. 13 as well as the 28 Variations for Piano, …

Geonyong Lee, the composer of Mass for AILM, is a well-known composer in Asia whose main interest lies in choral music. He has composed numerous choral works which are highly diverse in their nature. This study introduces the choral composer Geonyong Lee to the West. The significance of Geonyong Lee's Mass for AILM is the display of Asian inflection in a traditional setting of the mass ordinary. Lee's Mass for AILM employs melodic and rhythmic aspects of traditional Philippine folk songs, a Japanese mode, traditional Korean music, and various Asian percussion instruments. This study explicates these Asian influences and how Lee utilized them in his Mass for AILM.