Dmitri Shostakovich and the Fugues of Op. 87: A Bach Bicentennial Tribute (open access)

Dmitri Shostakovich and the Fugues of Op. 87: A Bach Bicentennial Tribute

In 1950-51, for the bicentennial of the death of J. S. Bach, Dmitri Shostakovich wrote his collection of Twenty-four Preludes and Fugues, Op. 87. This thesis is a study of the fugal technique of Shostakovich as observed in Op. 87, in light of the fugal style of Bach as observed in The Well-Tempered Clavier, Volume One. Individual analyses of each of the twenty-four Shostakovich pieces yield the conclusion that Op. 87 is an emulation of Bachian fugal methods as observed in The Well-Tempered Clavier, Volume One.
Date: August 1981
Creator: Adams, Robert M. (Robert Michael)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Flute Professors of the Paris Conservatoire from Devienne to Taffanel, 1795-1908 (open access)

The Flute Professors of the Paris Conservatoire from Devienne to Taffanel, 1795-1908

Since its establishment (1795), the Paris Conservatoire has attracted top-ranking flutists who, through their playing, teaching, writings, and attitudes, (toward the Boehm flute, for example), have influenced flutists and composers throughout Europe. Through Paul Taffanel, who founded the Societe d'Instruments a Vent in 1876, standards of woodwind playing reached new heights. When Taffanel's students, Georges Laurent and Georges Barrere, emigrated to the United States, they influenced the style and development of flute-playing in this country. Through Barrere's famous student, William Kincaid, there arose what might be termed the American school. The intent of this paper is to place these flutists in perspective. The professors are discussed chronologically; information on the style, works, students, and influence of each man is included.
Date: August 1980
Creator: Ahmad, Patricia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Drama and Characterization in Opera Settings of "A Midsummer Nightʼs Dream" by Britten and Siegmeister (open access)

Drama and Characterization in Opera Settings of "A Midsummer Nightʼs Dream" by Britten and Siegmeister

Although Shakespeare deliberately downplays characterization in his moonlit dream fantasy, both Britten and Siegmeister exploit this dramatic element as the basis of their opera settings of the play. Through the operas, the shallow characters take on new dimensions, creating musical experiences existing quite independently of Shakespeare, while at the same time retaining the atmosphere of a dream-fantasy. Placing emphases upon varying aspects of the play, the two composers create entirely different revelations from the Bard's dream. This paper presents a study of the way in which drama and characterization are treated in the operas, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Night of the Moonspell.
Date: August 1982
Creator: Allen, Debra K. (Debra Kaye)
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Investigation of Holland's Theory of Vocational Personalities and Work Environments As Applied to Undergraduate Music Majors (open access)

An Investigation of Holland's Theory of Vocational Personalities and Work Environments As Applied to Undergraduate Music Majors

Holland's theory of vocational personalities and work environments incorporates four theoretical constructs (congruence, consistency, differentiation and identity) which attempt to explain sources in variability of achievement and satisfaction among employed adults and college students. This study sought to: (1) investigate the relationship of Holland's constructs to academic achievement and educational satisfaction of undergraduate music majors; (2) investigate differences in all variables according to gender and degree major. Data were collected from undergraduate music majors (N = 100) enrolled at the University of North Texas using the Vocational Preference Inventory. Mv Vocational Situation. and the Music Major Satisfaction Questionnaire. Reliability for the Music Major Satisfaction Questionnaire was estimated at .92 using Cronbach's coefficient alpha. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients indicated that: (1) congruence was significantly related to academic achievement and educational satisfaction; (2) identity was significantly related to academic achievement and educational satisfaction; (3) consistency was significantly related to academic achievement, but not to educational satisfaction; (4) differentiation was significantly related to academic achievement, but not to educational satisfaction. Multiple regression using a stepwise entry method indicated that: (1) the identity construct was the best predictor of educational satisfaction scores; (2) identity was the best predictor of academic achievement scores. The results …
Date: August 1989
Creator: Allen, Michael, 1954-
System: The UNT Digital Library
Carlos Seixas: The Development of the Keyboard Sonata in Eighteenth-Century Portugal. A Lecture Recital Together with Three Recitals of Selected Works of Johann Sebastian Bach, Samuel Barber, Ludwig van Beethoven, Fréderic Chopin, César Franck, Sergei Prokofieff, and Alexander Scriabin (open access)

Carlos Seixas: The Development of the Keyboard Sonata in Eighteenth-Century Portugal. A Lecture Recital Together with Three Recitals of Selected Works of Johann Sebastian Bach, Samuel Barber, Ludwig van Beethoven, Fréderic Chopin, César Franck, Sergei Prokofieff, and Alexander Scriabin

This presentation demonstrates the significance both historically and aesthetically of the obscure Portuguese composer Carlos Seixas, (1704-1742), to the development of the keyboard sonata during the transitional period between the Baroque and Classic eras. The relationship between Seixas and his better-known colleague Domenico Scarlatti is explored and particular musical styles and techniques generally assumed as innovations of the latter composer are shown to exist in keyboard works of Seixas which probably pre-date those of Scarlatti. Thematically-related multi-movement sonatas and structural techniques anticipating the ternary single-movement sonata design are illustrated in several of Seixas1 sonatas. In addition to the recorded performance of selected sonatas by Seixas, this dissertation includes three tape recordings of selected piano works by J. S. Bach, Barber, Beethoven, Chopin, Franck, Prokofieff, and Scriabin.
Date: August 1982
Creator: Allison, Brian J. (Brian Jerome)
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Analysis of Maurice Ravel's Technique of Orchestration (open access)

An Analysis of Maurice Ravel's Technique of Orchestration

It is interesting to note that several of Ravel's compositions for the piano were successful only after he had orchestrated them. Ravel, a pianist, had a natural gift for orchestration, and when writing for the piano he seems to have projected his thoughts to the orchestra; thus some of his works are more successful' for the orchestra than for the piano. Since he orchestrated several of his own piano compositions, these present an excellent opportunity for a study of his orchestrations.
Date: August 1958
Creator: Allman, Murray Augustus
System: The UNT Digital Library
Transcribing Orchestral Accompaniments of Large Choral Works for the Organ (open access)

Transcribing Orchestral Accompaniments of Large Choral Works for the Organ

The art of transcribing orchestral accompaniments for organ is one of the most difficult problems which organists must face. Although a few will become professional recitalists, most organists will at one time or other have a church position and be required to play oratorios and other large choral compositions which were originally scored for orchestra. Several of the most popular of these works (Handel's Messiah, Saint-Saëns's Christmas Oratorio, Fauŕe's Requiem) have already been arranged for organ, but the majority are available only in piano reductions. The main body of the paper deals with this latter group of works, for it is here that the most urgent problems exist. However, some of the organ arrangements now available need considerable revision because they try to imitate the whole orchestra and are virtually impossible to play. Therefore, some preliminary comments on already existing transcriptions seem necessary.
Date: August 1966
Creator: Anderson, David Zane
System: The UNT Digital Library
Contemporary Music Studies for the Concert Band (open access)

Contemporary Music Studies for the Concert Band

The purpose of this thesis is to isolate the techniques presently being used by composers and to define and explain these techniques. The thesis concludes with a series of studies based on these twentieth-century compositional techniques for high school students in the form of warm-up and technique materials. The purpose of this study was to devise a sequence of studies designed to acquaint band members with twentieth-century composition techniques found in contemporary band literature.
Date: August 1970
Creator: Anderson, William R. (William Ralph)
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Investigation of Teacher Initiated Listening Activities in the Elementary General Music Classroom (open access)

An Investigation of Teacher Initiated Listening Activities in the Elementary General Music Classroom

This study investigated how and to what extent music listening was initiated by elementary general music teachers. The specific problems of the study were (1) identification of activities and materials related to music listening and (2) the determination of how and to what extent assigned and assumed music listening was initiated in the selected classrooms. Systematic observation was chosen to investigate these problems. An observation instrument, the Elementary Music Listening Schedule (EMLS), was developed by which eighteen elementary general music teachers were observed during ten lessons.
Date: August 1981
Creator: Baldridge, William Russell
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Trumpet in Chamber Music During the 20th Century (open access)

The Trumpet in Chamber Music During the 20th Century

The purpose of this thesis is to trace the history of the trumpet in chamber music through the first half of the 20th century. It aims to discuss the technical advances in the instrument and demonstrate the importance of the trumpet in this medium. Chamber music is defined, in this thesis, as all serious instrumental music for two or more instruments played with one instrument to a part. The selections have been chosen on the basis of recognized merit of the composer, the variety of instrumentation, and the availability of music.
Date: August 1958
Creator: Bauschka, Conrad Romuald
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Guide for the Performance of Trumpet Mariachi Music in Schools (open access)

A Guide for the Performance of Trumpet Mariachi Music in Schools

The purpose of this study is to provide a guide for the instruction of a trumpet mariachi performance ensemble in a music curriculum. The fulfillment of this purpose is dependent upon the data supplied in answer to the sub problems: (1) What socio-cultural information provides authentic trumpet mariachi music; (2) What trumpet mariachi literature illustrates the repertoire and style; (3) What instructional source materials may be developed such that Mexican American and non-Mexican American instructors build a competency in repertoire and style; (4) How could this guide be evaluated in its functional design for a music curriculum? The data collected for use in this study has been presented in three major categories: (1) the history and milieu in which the trumpet, mariachi crystalized; (2) the repertoire--its history and function in Mexican society and the transcriptions of types demonstrating the musical structure; and (3) the technical information relative to the instruction of the particular mariachi instruments. An evaluative instrument has been supplied in an attempt to establish the validity of the information and examples provided in this practicum. The validity of the research seems to rest on its authenticity and its serviceability. The findings of this study are stated as assertions …
Date: August 1979
Creator: Bennett, James G., fl. 1979-
System: The UNT Digital Library
Centonization and Concordance in the American Southern Uplands Folksong Melody: A Study of the Musical Generative and Transmittive Processes of an Oral Tradition (open access)

Centonization and Concordance in the American Southern Uplands Folksong Melody: A Study of the Musical Generative and Transmittive Processes of an Oral Tradition

This study presents a theory of melodic creation, transmission, memory, and recall within the Anglo- and Celtic-American culture of lower Appalachia, from the time of the earliest European settlers until the present. This theory and its attendant hypotheses draw upon earlier published ideas, current theories of memory and recall, and the results of applying a computer-supported analytical system developed by the author. Sources include previous studies of folksong melody, song collections, and earlier investigations of the psychology of memory. Also important are portions of an anonymous treatise on traditional Celtic musical scales and an authoritative, modern interpretation of this document. A final body of sources is a small group of sound-recordings.
Date: August 1984
Creator: Bevil, J. Marshall (Jack Marshall)
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Transcription into Modern Notation of a Chansonnier (Fonds Francais 2245) of the Duke of Orleans, with Commentary and Concordance (open access)

A Transcription into Modern Notation of a Chansonnier (Fonds Francais 2245) of the Duke of Orleans, with Commentary and Concordance

Fonds Français 2245 is a fifteenth-century chansonnier of the Duke of Orleans which is property of the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris, France. This thesis describes the document and provides commentary and transcriptions.
Date: August 1955
Creator: Birmingham, Hugh Myers, 1929-
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Moravian Church and Its Trombone Choir in America, a Lecture Recital, Together with Three Recitals of Selected Works by W. Presser, R. Monaco, L. Bassett, P. Bonneau, E. Bozza, R. Dillon and Others (open access)

The Moravian Church and Its Trombone Choir in America, a Lecture Recital, Together with Three Recitals of Selected Works by W. Presser, R. Monaco, L. Bassett, P. Bonneau, E. Bozza, R. Dillon and Others

The purpose of the lecture was to investigate the historical and musical heritage of the Moravian Church, with a particular interest in the works and players of the American Moravian Trombone Choir. The historical overview of people, customs, and practices is traced from its beginnings with the Unitas Fratrum in Bohemia through the Northern Germany settlement of Herrenhut and the establishment of the American Moravian colony at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The musical life of the church is represented by a discussion of the early hymns of the founding fathers in Bohemia and the subsequent instrumental music of the Moravian trombone choir in America. The trombone choir played chorales that were used to call the congregation to order, announce important visitors to the town, and provide music at special occasions. Anthems were played by trombones (when players were available) in regular church services, or outside when it was necessary to double voice parts. Concerted music was played in the Bethlehem Collegium Musicum. Biographies of the players of the 18th and 19th century trombone choirs provide information attesting to the proficiency and dedication of these musicians. A list of players who contributed to the trombone choir movement since the 19th century is included, …
Date: August 1984
Creator: Branstine, Wesley R.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Chevalier de Saint-Georges: An Exponent of the Parisian Symphonie Concertant (open access)

The Chevalier de Saint-Georges: An Exponent of the Parisian Symphonie Concertant

The symphonie concertante, a product of the late eighteenth-century Parisian concert societies, provided a vehicle for display of the virtuoso style sought by contemporary audiences. The works of the Chevalier Joseph Boulogne de Saint-Georges, one of its chief exponents, served as strong influences on the development of the form and its diffusion throughout Europe. The symphonies concertantes of Opus VI, No. 1 and Opus X, No. 2 (according to thematic numbering of Barry S. Brook) date from ca. 1775 and 1779 respectively. A complete set of parts for each is to be found in the private collection of M. Andre Meyer in Paris (Opus VI) and in the Universitetsbiblioteket at Lund (Opus X). The thesis contains background material on contemporary Parisian musical society and the life of Saint- Georges, and a modern scoring of the above symphonies concertantes with analysis and conclusions.
Date: August 1982
Creator: Braun, Melanie
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Stylistic Analysis of the Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra by Harl McDonald (open access)

A Stylistic Analysis of the Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra by Harl McDonald

The purpose of the following study is to make to stylistic analysis, on the basis of form, harmony, melody, and rhythm, of the Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra by Harl McDonald, a twentieth-century American composer. When a composer begins the composition of a concerto he is faced with a series of specific problems, e.g., the degree of prominence to be given the soloist in relation to the orchestra, the technique of the solo instrument, the traditional first movement sonata form, and the balance between solo and orchestra in regard to tone color and sound mass. By determining the elements of style typical of this particular work, the investigator aims to set forth in a general way to how the composer treated each of the problems stated above.The concerto for Two Pianos was selected for study because of its modernity and because of the writer's active interest in works for this medium.
Date: August 1945
Creator: Bridenthal, Deloris
System: The UNT Digital Library
Programmed Learning for Primary Choirs in Southern Baptist Churches (open access)

Programmed Learning for Primary Choirs in Southern Baptist Churches

The purpose of this research is to program cycles or units of study which may be used with the Cyclo-Teacher Learning Aid, a commercial teaching machine produced by the Field Enterprises Educational Corporation of Chicago. The program will consist of the mechanics of music and will be designed for use with the seven- and eight-year-old child in primary choirs of the graded choir program of Southern Baptist churches.
Date: August 1968
Creator: Bridges, Fred M. (Fred Marvin)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Influence of Motion Picture Techniques on the Status and Character of Music Designed to Accompany Dramatic Forms (open access)

The Influence of Motion Picture Techniques on the Status and Character of Music Designed to Accompany Dramatic Forms

Our modern motion picture composers are limited by the necessity of fitting musical impulses to action. The timing is a matter of split-second synchronization. The writers have no classical form to follow as each script requires highly individualistic treatment, highly restricted time elements, and highly technical instrumentation. Therefore, every composition is a challenge. The challenge includes not only the time element but a demand for a greater amount of originality in musical line and mood setting.
Date: August 1950
Creator: Brown, Caroline, 1925-
System: The UNT Digital Library
Symphonic Portrait: The Patriarch (open access)

Symphonic Portrait: The Patriarch

This is an analysis for Symphonic Portrait: The Patriarch, which is the first in a trilogy of works each depicting one of the Deities in the Holy Trinity. It is scored for symphonic band consisting of piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, E^b clarinet, three B^b clarinets, alto clarinet, bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet, two alto saxes, tenor sax, baritone sax, two bassoons, three B^b cornets, two B^b trumpets, four F horns, three trombones, euphoniums (div.), tubas (div.), string bass, timpani, eight percussionists playing bells, chimes, vibraphone, xylophone, marimba, snare drum, bass drum, three tom-toms (high, medium, low), suspended cymbal, crash cymbals, two tam-tams (large and medium), triangle, tambourine, vibra slap, steel plate, finger cymbals, bell tree, piano, harp, and organ. The music consists of two major parts; the scenario and the main body. Each part lasts six minutes, giving the work a total duration time of about twelve minutes.
Date: August 1984
Creator: Brusick, William R. (William Robert)
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Analytical Study of Solos for Beginning College Voice Students (open access)

An Analytical Study of Solos for Beginning College Voice Students

The object of this study was to compile a list of solo literature for beginning college voice students and analyze these solos for pedagogical and performance purposes. There is no lack of printed material on the subjects of singing and voice culture. But it is not readily accessible to teachers since it is extremely diversified and rather diffusely distributed throughout a variety of sources, such as books, periodicals, and scientific papers. Several lists and books containing songs for beginners have been compiled.
Date: August 1968
Creator: Bryant, Karen Sue
System: The UNT Digital Library
Aaron Copland's Concerto for Clarinet: A Lecture Recital, Together with Three Recitals of Music by Mozart, Rossini, Schumann, Brahms, and Contemporary European and American Composers (open access)

Aaron Copland's Concerto for Clarinet: A Lecture Recital, Together with Three Recitals of Music by Mozart, Rossini, Schumann, Brahms, and Contemporary European and American Composers

The dissertation consists of four recitals: one chamber music recital, two solo recitals, and one lecture recital. The repertoire of these programs was chosen with the intention of demonstrating the capability of the performer to deal with problems arising in works of varying types and of different historical periods. The lecture recital, Aaron Copland's Concerto for Clarinet, begins with biographical information, followed by a discussion of various other works of the composer and of important stylistic traits that are contained therein. After thus setting the Concerto in perspective to other major works, an investigation is made into various aspects of form and style which make the Concerto atypical in some respects to the composer t total body of works. Particular emphasis is given to rhythmic and melodic characteristics of the piece which are related to jazz and Latin-American popular music. The formal and stylistic analysis is followed by a discussion of problems involved in performing the Concerto with a piano reduction of the orchestral part, and the lecture concludes with a survey of interpretative problems posed by the work. At the conclusion of the lecture portion of the presentation, the Concerto was performed.
Date: August 1971
Creator: Bullock, Bruce Lloyd
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Stylistic Analysis of Schumann's Concerto in A Minor (open access)

A Stylistic Analysis of Schumann's Concerto in A Minor

The purpose if this study is to make an analysis of the structural elements and stylistic characteristics in the Concerto in A Minor for Piano by the nineteenth century German composer, Robert Schumann. These elements include the composer's treatment of melody, rhythm, form, and piano idiom. This problem has been limited to a stylistic analysis of Schumann's only concerto in A minor for piano and orchestra, Op. 54. Its purpose is to make an analysis of the structural and stylistic elements in the Concerto. These include the composer's treatment of melody, rhythm, form and the piano idiom. Since the matter of harmony is not of primary importance in this work, it is not discussed here. The present study does not include a consideration of the orchestral score and its relationship to the piano; however mention of it is made in the chapter on piano idiom.
Date: August 1944
Creator: Caldwell, James Amos
System: The UNT Digital Library
Stylistic Analysis of the Chopin E Minor Concerto (open access)

Stylistic Analysis of the Chopin E Minor Concerto

Both of the Chopin concertos are the earliest of his works to be found in the ordinary piano repertoire, and they possess the direct influences and inherited traits of the composer. Since he did no more orchestral work after completing these two works, it is evident that he thought only in terms of pianistic expression. Probably one of the reasons for Chopin's ineffectiveness as an orchestral writer is due to his inability to conform to the classical form: sonata allegro. The e minor concerto is representative of his treatment of the larger forms. Analyzing the elements of an early work of the composer reveals the degree of maturity in individual traits. Elements of basic chord structure and use of harmony, melodic characteristics, and pianistic expression mark the style of a composer. This concerto demonstrates the beginning of chromatic harmony in his time and in his own writing; it contains melodic beauty and pianistic features which make it acceptable in standard concerto repertoire in spite of its many defects.
Date: August 1947
Creator: Carmignani, Anna Marie
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Famous Mr. Keach: Benjamin Keach and His Influence on Congregational Singing in Seventeenth Century England (open access)

The Famous Mr. Keach: Benjamin Keach and His Influence on Congregational Singing in Seventeenth Century England

Benjamin Keach (1640-1704) was a seventeenth-century preacher and hymn writer. He is considered responsible for the introduction and continued use of hymns, as distinct from psalms and paraphrases, in the English Nonconformist churches in the late seventeenth century, and is remembered as the provider of a well-rounded body of hymns for congregational worship. This thesis reviews the historical climate of seventeenth-century England, and discusses Keach's life in terms of that background. Keach's influence on congregational hymn singing, hymn writers, preaching, and education is also examined. Keach's writings and contributions to hymn singing are little known today. This thesis points out the significance of these writings and hymns to seventeenth-century religious life.
Date: August 1984
Creator: Carnes, James Patrick
System: The UNT Digital Library