ASU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes most of the ASU Theses and Dissertations from 2011 to present. ASU Theses and Dissertations are available in downloadable PDF format; however, a small percentage of items are under embargo. Information about the dissertations/theses includes degree information, committee members, an abstract, supporting data or media.
In addition to the electronic theses found in the ASU Digital Repository, ASU Theses and Dissertations can be found in the ASU Library Catalog.
Dissertations and Theses granted by Arizona State University are archived and made available through a joint effort of the ASU Graduate College and the ASU Libraries. For more information or questions about this collection contact or visit the Digital Repository ETD Library Guide or contact the ASU Graduate College at gradformat@asu.edu.
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Description
Yannis Constantinidis was the last of the handful of composers referred to collectively as the Greek National School. The members of this group strove to create a distinctive national style for Greece, founded upon a synthesis of Western compositional idioms with melodic, rhyhmic, and modal features of their local folk traditions. Constantinidis particularly looked to the folk melodies of his native Asia Minor and the nearby Dodecanese Islands. His musical output includes operettas, musical comedies, orchestral works, chamber and vocal music, and much piano music, all of which draws upon folk repertories for thematic material. The present essay examines how he incorporates this thematic material in his piano compositions, written between 1943 and 1971, with a special focus on the 22 Songs and Dances from the Dodecanese. In general, Constantinidis's pianistic style is expressed through miniature pieces in which the folk tunes are presented mostly intact, but embedded in accompaniment based in early twentieth-century modal harmony. Following the dictates of the founding members of the Greek National School, Manolis Kalomiris and Georgios Lambelet, the modal basis of his harmonic vocabulary is firmly rooted in the characteristics of the most common modes of Greek folk music. A close study of his 22 Songs and Dances from the Dodecanese not only offers a valuable insight into his harmonic imagination, but also demonstrates how he subtly adapts his source melodies. This work also reveals his care in creating a musical expression of the words of the original folk songs, even in purely instrumental compositon.
ContributorsSavvidou, Dina (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Little, Bliss (Committee member) / Meir, Baruch (Committee member) / Thompson, Janice M (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
As one of the composers living in an era filled with innovations, Anatol Konstantinovich Lyadov (1855-1914) has been relatively ignored by scholars and pianists to date. He is an unusual composer with multiple characteristics: solitary but expressive, talented but indolent. His compositional style never lacked critics—especially with respect to his persistent preference of miniatures. Nonetheless, his piano works embody the breathtaking beauty of the composer’s independent musical ideas and colorful musical language. Compared with the flourishing, dazzling, and nationalized music from other composers living in the same era, these light, flowing musical pieces from Lyadov have irreplaceable value.
Through the study of these small-scale piano works, one finds important connections with the music of other renowned composers (e.g. Chopin and Scriabin), and the employment of traditional aspects such as Russian folk tones and fairy tales. Stylistically, Lyadov was a representative of 19th-century Romanticism; however, his compositional style changed during his late period (after 1900), presenting a unique use of dissonance.
The scholarly research on Lyadov’s piano works remains limited. Most of the related resources can be found only in the Russian music literature. No in-depth study or dissertation on the complete piano works of Lyadov could be located, and therefore my research paper is intended to provide useful information to piano performers and teachers, hopefully encouraging more study and performance of Lyadov’s piano works. Despite their lyrical melodies and deep emotion, these works are thus far relatively unpopular and unknown, with only a few played occasionally as encore pieces.
Through the study of these small-scale piano works, one finds important connections with the music of other renowned composers (e.g. Chopin and Scriabin), and the employment of traditional aspects such as Russian folk tones and fairy tales. Stylistically, Lyadov was a representative of 19th-century Romanticism; however, his compositional style changed during his late period (after 1900), presenting a unique use of dissonance.
The scholarly research on Lyadov’s piano works remains limited. Most of the related resources can be found only in the Russian music literature. No in-depth study or dissertation on the complete piano works of Lyadov could be located, and therefore my research paper is intended to provide useful information to piano performers and teachers, hopefully encouraging more study and performance of Lyadov’s piano works. Despite their lyrical melodies and deep emotion, these works are thus far relatively unpopular and unknown, with only a few played occasionally as encore pieces.
ContributorsZhang, Xiaoyu (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Creviston, Hannah (Committee member) / DeMars, James (Committee member) / Meir, Baruch (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
This research project investigates the way in which Paul Hindemith expresses musical and extramusical ideas during his early compositional period through an analysis of the fourteen movements of his work for solo piano, In einer Nacht... Träume und Erlebnisse, op. 15 (In One Night… Dreams and Experiences). Op. 15 is a set of character movements composed in 1917-1919 and unified into a cohesive, singular work through extramusical connections and a common harmonic language. Hindemith depicted the night as a mystery unfolding in a series of descriptive and untitled miniatures displaying a thrilling journey into the unknown. The set reflects Hindemith’s unique chromatic compositional language in the late 1910s, and his interests in Expressionism, early forms, and popular elements such as jazz. However, due to its delayed publication, op. 15 remains an underestimated work and deserves closer attention.This paper describes the work’s creation, problems it faced in its reception and dissemination, and offers a brief literature review related to the set. The second chapter places op. 15 in the context of Hindemith’s early development as a composer (up to 1920) and his hallmark compositional styles. The most substantial portion of the research is an analytical description of the fourteen movements. Each chapter offers an overview of a movement’s general character followed by detailed depictions of musical or extramusical elements. It is hoped that this text will ultimately aid performers in creating a more accurate and musically cohesive performance. In a brief conclusion, the common elements between movements are reemphasized, again drawing the performer’s attention to each movement as a part of the longer narrative. Scholarship on this set provides opportunities for a better understanding of Hindemith’s early music.
ContributorsLu, Yi (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Meir, Baruch (Committee member) / Rockmaker, Jody (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
This research paper explores the works of two contemporary Chinese composers: Shuai Zhang's "Three Preludes" and "The Joys and Sorrows of Love and Life," and Wanghua Chu's "Jasmine Flower Fantasia" and "Man Jiang Hong – Prelude for Left Hand." It introduces the composers with their personal and academic background, as well as the sources of influence to their compositions. A descriptive analysis of the composers’ selected works is provided and discussed in detail, examining formal structure, harmonic language, rhythmic and melodic characteristics, and other compositional elements of highlighted sections of the pieces. Finally, a performance guide for pianists is offered on noteworthy segments of each piece and provides detailed interpretations and suggestions of techniques and challenges.
ContributorsGong, Yuerong (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Meir, Baruch (Committee member) / Rockmaker, Jody (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
Description
Alexina Louie (b. 1949) is a highly respected Canadian composer who has received numerous prestigious awards. The present study focuses on her pedagogical works for young pianists: Music for Piano (1982), Star Light, Star Bright (1995), and Small Beautiful Things (2016). All three sets, written in different periods of her compositional career, reveal Louie's highly artistic musical style adapted to her strong interest in piano pedagogy.
Music for Piano, intended for intermediate-level pianists, has four individual pieces, taking two to three minutes each, representing Louie’s early compositional style. Star Light, Star Bright, for intermediate-level pianists at a slightly lower level than intended for Music for Piano, consists of nine short character pieces inspired by the stars and planets and other phenomena of the solar system. Small Beautiful Things is technically less challenging than the other works. It consists of eleven-character pieces with titles from everyday life that are designed to appeal to young musicians.
The first chapter is an account of Louie's educational background and how mentors influenced her development as a pianist, composer, and teacher. The chapter also documents Louie's strong interest in teaching, which led her to compose piano music with pedagogical intent. The second chapter describes the compositional elements of Music for Piano, examining Louie's uses of various Asian elements, minimalism, notational innovations resulting in rhythmic freedom, and Impressionistic timbres and sonorities. The third chapter assesses Star Light, Star Bright, showing the overall palindromic structure of the set while discussing the content and pedagogical value of the individual pieces. The fourth chapter focuses on how the pieces of Small Beautiful Things help young pianists to develop basic techniques and musicianship.
Overall, the discussion reveals not only the musical and expressive qualities of Louie's works for young pianists, but also their value for cultivating both technique and musicality.
ContributorsNam, Michelle Yelin (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Holbrook, Amy (Thesis advisor) / Meir, Baruch (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
The core element of this research paper is an analysis of the B-flat minor prelude and fugue BWV 867. The author’s analysis is then compared with the main contributors to Bach’s analytical studies. An understanding of the work’s structure, together with its motivic and harmonic details, help the performer develop an interpretive approach to the work.
Significant Bach scholars, including David Ledbetter and Peter Williams, are used as the source for the additional works to be studied. These scholars also mention close associates of Bach who offer additional insight into his music: Kirnberger and Weiss. The paper includes a brief discussion of the opening chorus fugue BWV 64, instrumental prelude to the cantata BWV 106, chorale prelude BWV 721, and Tombeau sur la Mort de Mr Comte de Logy by Weiss, as they relate to the B-flat minor prelude and fugue. In addition, the analysis provides materials on how the elements of the work relate to the Doctrine of Affections. From the B-flat minor prelude and fugue, the harmonic progressions and figuration are examined from the point of view of the Doctrine. The research also examines the fugue subject, with its unusual leap of a minor 9th, to its structural connection to the opening chorus fugue of BWV 64, and its ties to the Doctrine.
Through the analysis of the B-flat minor prelude and fugue and a comparison to works by Bach that are stylistically connected to this work, the author offers insights into the music and its relationship to works that have a sacred text association.
Significant Bach scholars, including David Ledbetter and Peter Williams, are used as the source for the additional works to be studied. These scholars also mention close associates of Bach who offer additional insight into his music: Kirnberger and Weiss. The paper includes a brief discussion of the opening chorus fugue BWV 64, instrumental prelude to the cantata BWV 106, chorale prelude BWV 721, and Tombeau sur la Mort de Mr Comte de Logy by Weiss, as they relate to the B-flat minor prelude and fugue. In addition, the analysis provides materials on how the elements of the work relate to the Doctrine of Affections. From the B-flat minor prelude and fugue, the harmonic progressions and figuration are examined from the point of view of the Doctrine. The research also examines the fugue subject, with its unusual leap of a minor 9th, to its structural connection to the opening chorus fugue of BWV 64, and its ties to the Doctrine.
Through the analysis of the B-flat minor prelude and fugue and a comparison to works by Bach that are stylistically connected to this work, the author offers insights into the music and its relationship to works that have a sacred text association.
ContributorsYoo, Hye Eun (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Little, Bliss (Committee member) / Meir, Baruch (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
This paper closely examines the performance practice regarding articulation of the preludes from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier Book I. Recordings by five pianists are studied: Vladimir Feltsman, Glenn Gould, Angela Hewitt, Andras Schiff, and Rosalyn Tureck. The recordings reveal certain recurring articulation patterns which are categorized into six articulation techniques: short slurs, long slurs, detached upbeat, accented downbeats, changing articulation, and rolled chords. The author has divided the preludes into four groups: preludes with continuous running figuration, lyrical preludes, lyrical preludes with distinct melody and accompaniment, and preludes with non-lyrical themes. Analysis reveals that for each group of preludes, there are a set of principles that these pianists follow. Overall, for non-lyrical preludes, the running sixteenth notes are played legato, staccato, or a short slur followed by staccato. The slower moving quarter and eighth notes stay mostly detached or staccato. For lyrical preludes, the melody remains largely legato. Articulation techniques are used more extensively in non-lyrical preludes than lyrical ones, and more often in the slower moving eighth notes than running figuration. Articulation techniques are often used as means of embellishment. They enhance the individual character of each piece and generate Baroque attributes. Despite the principles observed in the recordings, many isolated performances are found which do not conform to any of them, suggesting that there is no authoritative rule when articulating Bach’s works on piano.
ContributorsGan, Nan (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Meir, Baruch (Committee member) / Little, Bliss (Committee member) / Marshall, Kimberly (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020