Anton Rubinstein was primarily recognized as one of the greatest pianists of his time. However, Rubinstein yearned for recognition as a composer and worked prodigiously to realize that goal. Unfortunately, Rubinstein's works were virtually unknown today. One of Rubinstein's finest compositions, the Piano Concerto in D Minor, op. 70 has been the most frequently performed. It is one of the first "Russian" concertos that was written by a Russian composer, and was performed in Russian concert halls instead of the homes of Russian aristocracy. It is also considered the most successful and harmonious convergent of various musical styles which influenced Rubinstein. However, there is no formal, detailed analysis of the Concerto in the entire music literature. Therefore, the main purpose of this dissertation is to provide a thorough study of the Concerto from an analytical and historical standpoint. Rubinstein was also one of the most eminent educators in Russia. The St. Petersburg Conservatory of Music, which Rubinstein helped found in 1862, has to this day produced some of the most influential musicians in Russia. The other purpose of this dissertation is to evaluate Rubinstein's role as music educator. An overview of Rubinstein's works for piano and orchestra offers a general …

Award-winning composer John Musto stands at the forefront of modern American art-song composition. Many of his songs, such as "Litany" from Shadow of the Blues, have already achieved a place in the standard contemporary repertory for singers. His compositional technique weaves influences of jazz, blues, ragtime, and popular music with classical technique to make music that is decidedly modern but accessible and well liked both by critics and audiences. Unfortunately, though he is still actively composing, very little has been written about Musto and there is a lack of information available about his more recent compositions. This performance guide addresses one of Musto's acclaimed song cycles, Penelope, (a cycle of seven songs for soprano and piano) commissioned and premiered in 2000. The story of the cycle is an updated version of the character Penelope from Homer's The Odyssey and was a collaboration between Musto and poet Denise Lanctot. Including interviews with Musto, and his wife, soprano Amy Burton, who premiered the cycle and for whom it was written, the document provides background information on how the cycle was conceived and gives in-depth performance information on each of the seven songs of Penelope. In addition to musical examples and poetry from …

This document includes a brief biography of Johan Helmich Roman, a discussion about the two most important manuscripts of Then Svenska Messan, or The Swedish Mass, and a discussion concerning the circumstances of the first performance of this work. Roman was a prolific composer of instrumental works for various ensembles and solo instruments. He wrote a smaller amount of vocal music and even less choral music; however, most of his music for choirs, vocal ensembles, and vocal soloists featured the Swedish language. The composer advocated the establishment of uniform rules of Swedish spelling and grammar. He also sought to develop and expand the genre of Church music in the Swedish vernacular. This document focuses on the composer's attention to the nature of the Swedish language when setting the text.