These four sonatas of William Flackton (1709-1798) are probably the earliest collection of sonata literature written for the viola. They exist with a few other string sonatas from the Baroque period in England. It is essential to establish their place in English baroque music and to develop a performance milieu or stylistic preference that leads up to and lasts through the time span of Flackton's sonatas. The final tool to establish an interpretive plan will be to present a general analysis of the four sonatas with special emphasis on the D major sonata (opus 2, no. 4).

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This paper investigates Ronald Stevenson's unique treatment of large-scaled structure in his Passacaglia on D S C H. This piece's unusual eighty-minute length, use of traditional forms and unusual piano techniques, musical references to other cultures and a massive triple-fugue over a ground bass will be examined as they relate to its overall form. The elements of rhythm, melody/mode, harmony, counterpoint, piano techniques, and tonality are also used as means of highlighting many unifying elements of the piece which contribute to its overall cohesiveness. Tributes to other composers, among them Dimitry Shostakovich to whom the piece is dedicated, are discussed in addition to many references to world cultures and events which support Stevenson's views on what he terms world music. Rarely is a piece written that encompasses such a wide range of musical elements that possess the ability to engage an audience for an uninterrupted length of eighty-minutes. As of yet, an in-depth scholarly investigation of Stevenson's treatment of formal unity in this landmark piano work has not been done. This analysis reveals Stevenson's approach to composing in such a large form, as well as illustrating his mastery of variation, counterpoint and unending ingenuity for innovative piano techniques. The composer's …

Because of the lack of information concerning the success or failure of Schubert's bilingual edition and concerning the relationship between the English texts and Schubert's settings, most performers take the conservative route of performing both the songs from Lady of the Lake and the rest of Schubert's English song repertoire only with the German translations. Because of the desirability of performing this repertoire in English for English-speaking audiences, this study examines all of the English songs of Schubert to determine whether the original poems can be successfully substituted for the German translations. Editions of the settings that can be effectively performed with the English texts are included in the appendix, in order to make available editions which reflect Schubert's ambition to make his songs easily accessible to non-German-speaking audiences.

El Polifemo de Oro was written in 1956 and revised by the composer in 1981. This two-fold investigation clarifies the structure of El Polifemo through careful analysis of the work and its revision, and by Smith Brindle's approach to composition based on his interviews and books. The second aspect is aimed toward the pragmatic performance issues of tempo, articulation, timbre, voice leading, and the other details of execution. Although the work was written according to serial techniques, the presence, in the twelve-note row, of triadic formations (minor triad, dominant seventh, fully-diminished seventh) juxtaposed with many tritone intervals suggests the use of tonal devices, which Smith Brindle does employ to effect tension and relaxation. It is assumed that tonal devices such as leading tones, stepwise movement in the bass, fourth and fifth relationships, and triadic constructions are heard against a traditional contextual basis and are therefore ways of implying resolution. Where tonal devices are not present, other structural components, i.e., rhythm, dynamics, timbre, etc., are examined with regard to their functions in creating or dissipating tension. Following the analysis of each of the four fragments is a discussion of performance implications based on the analysis. Both the analysis and performance aspects …

The Czechoslovakian composer Jindrich Feld (b.1925) composed Introduzione, Toccata e Fuga per Flauto Solo, for the Italian flutist Roberto Frabbriciani. Feld's Introduzione is from his third style period. This work may be labeled as a synthesis of the experiments and experiences that have enabled him to create his own mature style of expression.

In Nomine Domini is an eighteen-minute composition for two chamber orchestras with two soloists using real-time interactive signal processing techniques. The first chamber orchestra is scored for flute (piccolo), English horn, trumpet in C, trombone, two percussionists (cowbells, wood blocks, tenor drum, suspended cymbal, gongs, tam-tam, temple blocks, tambourine, snare drum, timbales, and bass drum), horn in F (soloist), viola, and string bass. The second chamber orchestra is scored for oboe, clarinet in Bb (bass clarinet in Bb), bassoon, tuba, two percussionists (crotales, two marimbas, vibraphone, chimes, and tom-toms), piano (soloist), violin, and cello. Real-time interactive signal processing techniques are achieved through the use of a stereo multiple-effects signal processor and a personal computer running MIDI interactive software. The work is based upon the four-hundred and seventy-five year old in nomine composition tradition begun by John Taverner in the Benedictus of his Mass Gloria tibi Trinitas (1520) and continued in over one-hundred and fifty Renaissance settings. In Nomine Domini consists of three movements: "Taverner* derived from the Benedictus of the Mass Gloria tibi Trinitas (1520), "Byrd" derived from the Benedictus of William Byrd's Five-voice Mass (1592), and "Tye" derived from Christopher lye's In Nomine XIII "Trust" (1578). In Nomine Domini …

The harpsichord concertos of Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (1710-1784) have suffered undeserved neglect. The four authenticated solo concertos remain in manuscript, with the result that his contribution to the history of the keyboard concerto has been largely overlooked. This study begins to correct this situation by examining these four concertos--F41 in D Major, F43 in E Minor, F44 in F Major, and F45 in A Minor--as well as the published two-harpsichord Concerto in E-Flat Major, F46, and the incomplete Concerto in E-Flat Major, F42 in order to assess W. F. Bach's contribution to the keyboard concerto following its origins in the early 1700s. The results of this investigation show that W. F. Bach took the early keyboard concerto of his father's generation and added many of the characteristics which became associated with the mid-eighteenth century concerto. Friedemann retained the polyphonic interplay between tutti and solo, harmonic language, and tonal plan of his father's compositions and added a wealth of rhythmic ideas and a more modern melodic style. He worked within an established four ritornello/three solo plan for the outer movements, but employed a variety of formal plans for the middle movements. Friedemann heightened the contrast between the solo and the orchestra …

The evolution of twentieth century American music involves much more than the continuation of European tradition. The music of black Americans before and after the turn of the century had a profound impact on the musical sensibility of American culture in general. Additionally, the fledgling popular music publishing industry had a dramatic effect on the course of "classical" tradition. Nowhere was this more apparent than in the music of George Gershwin. Gershwin's importance in the history of American art music is undisputed. Why his music sounds the way it does is less understood. This paper considers the popular and folk genres that most influenced the young caiposer, and traces specific stylistic elements through their various popular and folk incarnations of the previous thirty years into Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue of 1924.

This study traces the significant developments in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries which led to the development of electronic music and increased writing for percussion. Whether by coincidence or premeditation, the field of percussion in Western culture and electronic music share many parallel aspects in their history. Carlos Chavez, Edgard Varese and John Cage foresaw a time when electronic music would allow composers to realize compositions with ease, provide new sounds to the spectrum of possible material for pieces and aid in the conception of works. Significantly, these same composers were important figures in the development of percussion composition. In many ways, Lejaren Hiller's Machine Music can be seen as a culmination of the developments which had been taking place in the history of electronic music and percussion music. A product of the innovations in both fields, it poses some formidable problems for the performers. This study will give some background into its composition, examine its structure and deal with its performance problems.

This dissertation discusses two flute works by Joan Tower (born 1938). The performance medium consists of flute alone, Hexachords for Solo Flute (1972), and flute and orchestra, the Flute Concerto (1989). The discussion on Hexachords consists of a theoretical analysis; discussion on the Flute Concerto pertains to Tower's flute writing through an investigation into her musical language and specific performance techniques. Numerous examples are included to illustrate various aspects of Tower's style. Conclusions follow. The purpose of the paper is, first, to illustrate that basic knowledge of the twelve-tone method can bring a composition out of uncertainty for the performer and allow him to present what is unique within it. Secondly, it is to investigate the stylistic maturation of Joan Tower's flute works. In order to facilitate a better understanding of Tower's music and to provide commentary about the performance of each work, the writer has quoted from personal interviews with the composer and with flutists Carol Wincenc and Patricia Spencer, to whom the works are dedicated.

This study examines the five late keyboard works of Cesar Franck: the Prelude, Chorale, and Fugue and the Prelude. Aria, and Finale for piano, and the three organ chorales. The study focuses on harmonic and contrapuntal techniques and their interrelationships, placing the discussion in the context of an analysis of the whole piece. The primary goal is to identify the salient characteristics of each piece; a secondary goal is to identify common harmonic and contrapuntal aspects of Franck's style.

American composer Roy Harris began writing a symphony for the Tommy Dorsey band in 1938, but the piece was never completed. This dissertation project chronicles the events surrounding the interesting collaboration between the composer and the bandleader, including problems incurred during the rehearsal process, the eventual abandonment of the project, and the discovery of the little-known band work. The paper includes information on the composer's life and works, an in-depth discussion of the compositional technique that Harris called “autogenesis,” and a detailed analysis of the two surviving movements of the band piece. The piece is also discussed comparatively with other significant works in Harris' symphonic genre, most notably his Folksong Symphony, also known as his Fourth Symphony. A significant portion of the research and preparation for the project was spent reconstructing a modern wind ensemble edition of the two surviving movements. A complete score of the reconstructed edition is included as part of this project.

In mid-eighteenth-century France, a type of ensemble music was introduced for harpsichord and another instrument(s) in which the harpsichord part is completely written out, instead of a bass line with figures to be realized. Composers of this genre used the word "accompanied" in the tides or in the prefaces of their collections to describe the genre. This study examines the earliest examples of this genre, the works of seven composers, published in the 1740's, (Mondonville, Rameau, Boismoitier, Clement, Dupuits, Guillemain, and Luc Marchand), and compares the various styles of the written out parts, both harpsichord and additional instrument, to determine the nature of the word, "accompaniment."

Government investigations into the motion picture industry are well-documented, as is the widespread blacklisting that was concurrent. Not nearly so well documented are the many investigations of musicians and musical organizations which occurred during this same period. The degree to which various musicians and musical organizations were investigated varied considerably. Some warranted only passing mention, while others were rigorously questioned in formal Congressional hearings. Hanns Eisler was deported as a result of the House Committee on Un-American Activities' (HUAC) investigation into his background and activities in the United States. Leonard Bernstein, Marc Blitzstein, and Aaron Copland are but a few of the prominent composers investigated by the government for their involvement in leftist organizations. The Symphony of the Air was denied visas for a Near East tour after several orchestra members were implicated as Communists. Members of musicians' unions in New York and Los Angeles were called before HUAC hearings because of alleged infiltration by Communists into their ranks. The Metropolitan Music School of New York, led by its president-emeritus, the composer Wallingford Riegger, was the subject of a two day congressional hearing in New York City. There is no way to measure either quantitatively or qualitatively the effect of …

This dissertation focuses on the first Parable of Vincent Ludwig Persichetti, written for alto flute in 1965. Persichetti spent from 1965 to 1986 (almost the last twenty years of his life) composing twenty-four additional Parables for various solo instruments, instrumental combinations, and even one in the form of an opera.

Two of the leading methodologies for spatializing audio over multiple channels include non-real-time multi-track tape and variations of real-time systems that often involve complex configurations of hardware. Of the latter, composers relying on MIDI as a control source have used pairs of sound modules, effects units and automation capable mixers to achieve spatialization over four loudspeakers. These systems typically employ intensity panning, Doppler shifts and reverberation. The present research details the development of a compact spatialization system using a MAX patch controlling a Kurzweil K2500 sampler. This system supports real-time diffusion of up to six simultaneous sound files over eight loudspeakers while incorporating intensity panning, Doppler shifts, delays and filtering. The MAX patch allows composers to choose from several automatic sound spatialization trajectories or to use the mouse to draw and store their own trajectories for later playback. The piece, Circumfusion, is an eighteen-minute composition of electroacoustic music utilizing this spatialization system.

This dissertation primarily concerns selected structural elements in Bagatelles and Konstellationen. These are pitch/interval, rhythm/meter in Bagatelles, the formal design and its relations with dynamics and texture in Konstellationen, as well as the usage of indeterminacy. There are also selected aspects of performance in regard to extended technique, pedaling, and certain dynamic control problems related to two works in question. Chapter one introduces the historical background of Polish music and the emergence of Poland as one of the leading forces in contemporary music. It also provides the musical background of Moszumanska-Nazar, as well as the stylistic features and representative works in her three compositional periods. Personal interviews and correspondence with the composer provide additional biographical and stylistic insight for this chapter. Chapter two focuses on the aspects of structural procedure. In Bagatelles, the structural elements are: organized pitch sets, the dominance of linear interval, scale pattern, dissonant intervals, as well as the rhythmic pattern and the various metric designs. Konstellationen present most interesting and unusual formal design in that the elements that delineate the form are dynamics, texture and certain pianistic devices, such as the ostinato, trills, abrupt high notes, irregular fast notes, and clusters. Chapter three addresses particularly the …

The objective of the dissertation is to examine Cyril Scott's musical language as exhibited in his Piano Sonata, Op. 66. Subjects of discussion include Scott's use of form, rhythm, melody, tonality, and harmony. Also included are a biographical sketch of the composer and his philosophical view of modernism. A comparison of the original version and the revised edition of this sonata, as well as references to Cyril Scott's two other piano sonatas are also included during the examination of his harmonic and rhythmic style.

The transcription is an addition to the repertoire for brass ensemble and bass trombone. Consideration is given to the nineteenth-century orchestration treatises of Berlioz and Strauss as well as the twentieth-century texts of Erik Leidzén, Walter Piston, and Samuel Adler. The transcription process is shaped by the principles of these writers. The score is contained in the appendix.

Jules Massenet's mélodies feature a distinct vocal treatment regarding musical prosody through his eight song cycles, including Poëme d'Avril, Poëme Pastoral, Poëme du Souvenir, Poëme d'Amour, Poëme d'Hiver, Poëme d'un Soir, and Quelques Chansons Mauves, and a collection, Expressions Lyriques. These mélodies show the influence of the trend of salon music and the high-level poetry from the poetic movements of romanticism, Parnassianism, and symbolism. This study deals with Massenet's mélodies relating to the prosody idea, which is conspicuous in his vocal treatment. His melodic styles feature four distinct aspects of vocal treatment including lyrical, recitative or parlando, melodramatic, and déclamation rhythmée, and represent the idea of musical prosody of phonetic, syntactic, and semantic aspects. Massenet's other musical idioms such as harmony, form, and piano treatment, are also closely related to the prosody matter as a semantic aspect, reinforcing the poetic mood and content. In this study, each melodic style related to French versification is examined in detail. The musical analysis regarding the other musical idioms on selected examples presents the semantic feature of prosody idea. The brief review of French versification and opinions regarding the performance are included. Massenet's contribution to the genre of mélodie, with the prose melody and …

To look at the effect of free play on the musical improvisations of first, second and third grade children, 108 children were randomly assigned to either a control or treatment group. Subjects were tested using a researcher-designed instrument to elicit an improvisatory response. The control group then received regular music instruction (120 minutes every 2 weeks) and the treatment group received regular music instruction in conjunction with musical free play (100 minutes of instruction and 20 minutes of free play every 2 weeks). The treatment lasted 14 weeks. At the end of the treatment, all students were tested with the same testing instrument used for the pre test. Videotapes of the improvisations were submitted to three independent judges to rate for quality on a 5-point Likert scale. The change in ratings between pre and post tests were analyzed with an analysis of variance to determine if there were significant differences between the control and treatment groups. The analysis of the data revealed no significant difference in the change of ratings between control and treatment groups for the group as a whole, or for any particular grade level within the total group.

Nikolai Medtner's works evidence an intense interest in symmetrical designs. This concern is manifest at all levels, from the large scale proportions of his numerous ingenious sonata forms to the symmetrically constructed themes and motives. Medtner's works include several instances of palindromic themes and periods. Some palindromic contours are achieved through immediate inversion, creating expansive, symmetrical waves. One of Medtner's thumbprints, symmetrical contrary voice-leading, consists of two or more voices which systematically expand or contract in exact mirror fashion. The contrary movement is usually stepwise, and may be either chromatic or diatonic. Occasionally even larger intervals, such as thirds and fourths, are subjected to this favourite mirroring technique. Such symmetrical expansion and contraction often controls the harmonic progression of several consecutive bars. One of the most striking aspects of Medtner's music is his sophisticated harmonic language. He was fascinated with symmetrical harmonic designs, such as the tritone, the French sixth chord, and the octatonic scale, and made endless and increasingly intricate explorations into these stuctures and the ways in which these apparently nontonal, non-hierarchical forms could be coordinated with the fundamental hierarchy of asymmetrical tonal forms, including triads, major and minor scales, and tonic-dominant relations. Medtner's late work, the Grozovaya …

Hungarian pianist, composer, conductor, teacher and administrator, Ernst von Dohnányi (Ernö Dohnányi in Hungarian), was considered one of the most versatile musicians and the first architect of Hungary's musical culture in the late nineteenth and early twentieth-century. Dohnányi composed the Four Rhapsodies, op. 11, between 1902 and 1903, and among his many piano compositions, op. 11 are regarded as some of his most substantial works. Without directly imitating the earlier works of Liszt and Brahms, Dohnányi contributed to the rhapsody tradition with op. 11 by using his own unique stylistic compositional elements in the textural and formal structure. Texture and form are the most indicative characteristics of his rhapsodic language because of the improvisational nature that permeates his compositional style in the rhapsodies. In this dissertation the works are examined from within its textural and formal structure. Within texture, rhythm and accompanimental figurations are examined. Each rhapsody's structural organization, including references to eighteenth-century forms, and the cyclical elements in the work is analyzed. Background information on Dohnányi and a brief history of the rhapsody in the 19th century is also included.