Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes both ASU Theses and Dissertations, submitted by graduate students, and the Barrett, Honors College theses submitted by undergraduate students.
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- Creators: Norton, Kay
Description
From Marathon to Athens was inspired by the legend of Pheidippides, a Greek messenger who ran approximately twenty-six miles between the cities of Marathon and Athens in ancient Greece to deliver an important wartime message. According to the legend, he died shortly after completing the journey. The marathon races of today were inspired by his story, though it may be more myth than reality. There is a great deal of inherent drama in the undertaking of such a feat, whether it be a marathon or any other test of strength and endurance. There is the rush of adrenaline when it begins, followed by the excitement and exhilaration of the first few miles. Then, there is a period of settling in and finding a groove - when the runner realizes that there is a long way to go, but is determined to pace him or herself and stay strong. All too often, there is the "wall" that appears about three-quarters of the way through, when it seems that there is no strength left to finish the race. Finally, there is the final push to the finish line - where the runner decides that they are going to make it, in spite of fatigue, pain, or any other obstacle. In this piece, I used a simple melody that was very loosely modeled after a melody from ancient Greece (the tune inscribed on the Epitaph of Seikilos). I used both Phrygian and Dorian modes, which, according to Plato, were most appropriate for soldiers. Throughout the piece, I used different instruments, mostly percussion, to represent the heartbeat of the runner. In the legend, the runner dies - in the piece, the heartbeat becomes very fast and then rather erratic. It then slows and, finally, stops. Though I find the story of Pheidippides inspiring, I wish all marathon runners and athletes of every kind (myself included) a safer and happier outcome!
ContributorsOsteen-Petreshock, Kimberly (Composer) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Thesis advisor) / Rockmaker, Jody (Committee member) / Levy, Benjamin (Committee member) / Norton, Kay (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010
Description
Anglophone music festivals in the U.S. can be traced back to singing schools of the 1700s, which eventually blossomed into regular, outdoor musical performances, growing in popularity between 1840 and 1875. The first annual music festival in the United States was founded in Massachusetts in 1858. Modern single-destination music festivals grew in popularity in the United Kingdom and the United States during the late twentieth century. Although the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair of 1969 was not executed perfectly, it was an iconic event with a lasting cultural impact. Modern music festivals are modeled on the rural open-air festivals of the 1970s. In the past sixty years, the music industry has had to reconcile with the environmental impact of single-destination music festivals. Capitalistic ventures are inherently at odds with the environment—even music streaming has a significant carbon footprint. Corporate entities have been known to make insincere efforts to address their environmental impact, a tactic known as “greenwashing.” Music festivals hosting thousands of attendees generate a large amount of human waste on top of the already significant carbon emissions associated with travel, transport of equipment, and production. Event organizers must take significant measures to appeal to modern-day environmentally-conscious audiences. Burning Man and Bonnaroo are two events that once stood out among other large, corporate festivals for being developed by independent organizers. The two festivals are hosted on two strikingly different environments for which the organizers have made unique sustainability considerations. Burning Man celebrates radical individualism and self-reliance in a dry Nevada lakebed desert. On the other hand, Bonnaroo, hosted on the humid, rolling grassland of Tennessee is branded as an environmentally responsible event. The organizers of both festivals have promoted sustainability in their respective efforts to mitigate the environmental byproducts of their events, producing varying results. Sustainable festival practices have been utilized at Bonnaroo since its inception, whereas many of the longstanding traditions of Burning Man are antithetical to sustainability. This case study explores the rise of these two festivals, the environmentally conscious values held by both, and how they have changed over time.
ContributorsSheller, Nikhita (Author) / Norton, Kay (Thesis advisor) / Navarro, Fernanda (Committee member) / Little, Bliss (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022