Matching Items (85)
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Music
- All Subjects: Music History
- Creators: Ryan, Russell
- Status: Published
Description
ABSTRACT
As a composer, Chou Wen-Chung (1923-2019) was a learner and inheritor of Chinese traditional music culture and was committed to carrying it forward. As a native of China who had his primary musical training in the West, Chou Wen-Chung was one of the first Chinese composers to make his mark on Western music. He successfully combined Western elements and Chinese tradition in his music. Chou Wen-Chung was one of the few prominent East Asian composers known in the Western musical world, and his music therefore has had a strong influence on other Chinese composers.
In order to understand more clearly his music, I analyzed his chamber work: Yü Ko. This piece was composed in 1965 for 9 instruments: Violin, Alto Flute, English Horn, Bass Clarinet, 2 Trombones, 2 Percussion and Piano. Inspired by the ancient Chinese musical instrument the Qin (also called guqin, or “ancient qin”), which is a plucked seven-string instrument, Chou Wen-Chung composed Yü Ko. Literally meaning “fisherman’s song,” this work was composed originally for the Qin, based on a melody composed by Mao Min-Zhong who was a very noted scholar and Qin player of the late Southern Song dynasty (C.E.1127-1276).
This paper provides Chou Wen-Chung’s biography, compositional styles and developments. It lists and explains the most common Chinese traditional cultural elements which he used in his compositions. In particular, it introduces the Qin in detail from the external structure, performance techniques, sound characteristics, the tablature notation, and compositional methods.
This document also includes a detailed analysis of Yü Ko in terms of the orchestration, pitch, tonal material, structure and tempo, dynamic and musical materials, and explains Chou Wen-Chung’s imitation of the Qin as well as the influence of Western music shown in this piece.
As a composer, Chou Wen-Chung (1923-2019) was a learner and inheritor of Chinese traditional music culture and was committed to carrying it forward. As a native of China who had his primary musical training in the West, Chou Wen-Chung was one of the first Chinese composers to make his mark on Western music. He successfully combined Western elements and Chinese tradition in his music. Chou Wen-Chung was one of the few prominent East Asian composers known in the Western musical world, and his music therefore has had a strong influence on other Chinese composers.
In order to understand more clearly his music, I analyzed his chamber work: Yü Ko. This piece was composed in 1965 for 9 instruments: Violin, Alto Flute, English Horn, Bass Clarinet, 2 Trombones, 2 Percussion and Piano. Inspired by the ancient Chinese musical instrument the Qin (also called guqin, or “ancient qin”), which is a plucked seven-string instrument, Chou Wen-Chung composed Yü Ko. Literally meaning “fisherman’s song,” this work was composed originally for the Qin, based on a melody composed by Mao Min-Zhong who was a very noted scholar and Qin player of the late Southern Song dynasty (C.E.1127-1276).
This paper provides Chou Wen-Chung’s biography, compositional styles and developments. It lists and explains the most common Chinese traditional cultural elements which he used in his compositions. In particular, it introduces the Qin in detail from the external structure, performance techniques, sound characteristics, the tablature notation, and compositional methods.
This document also includes a detailed analysis of Yü Ko in terms of the orchestration, pitch, tonal material, structure and tempo, dynamic and musical materials, and explains Chou Wen-Chung’s imitation of the Qin as well as the influence of Western music shown in this piece.
ContributorsSong, Yiqian (Author) / Ryan, Russell (Thesis advisor) / Campbell, Andrew (Committee member) / Solís, Ted (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Michael Colgrass wrote Tales of power: A Musical Drama for Solo Piano on the Writings of Carlos Castaneda in 1980. However, since the work’s premiere it has been overlooked, receiving little attention from pianists. This neglect is perhaps due, in part, to the absence of circulated recordings and writings. The present study includes the author’s recorded performance, found online at https://youtu.be/GqzMjgaSIDc. Because Tales of Power is a programmatic work about Carlos Castaneda’s study with Don Juan, an Indian sorcerer from Mexico, the author has inserted the score’s written program indications in the recording so that listeners may follow the narrative. This performance guide includes a concise biography of Colgrass, a review of the composer’s major works and general compositional styles, observations on the program and structure, insights regarding thematic transformation and recurring motives, and performance recommendations for accommodating troublesome sections. The author hopes that Tales of Power can be revived in concert performance and become part of the programmatic piano repertoire in the near future.
ContributorsLi, Aoshuang (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Rockmaker, Jody Rockmaker (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
The introduction of a new instrumental piece—specifically Taiwanese—into the cello repertoire is as exciting as it is important. Currently, the majority of works for cello and piano include predominantly Western compositions that is repeatedly taught and performed. Reflections, by Taiwanese composer Ming-Hsiu Yen (Ms. Yen) is a response to this saturation. It is a piece that is both demanding for the performers and entertaining for the audience. Brilliantly written by a composer who has intimate familiarity with both the cello and piano, it is highly suitable for scholarly study and performance.
This document details ensemble issues, interpretative suggestions for both cellist and pianist, and general concepts about the music. The composer further adds to these concepts and suggestions.
Reflections is a programmatic work comprised of four movements, each with a descriptive title: “Gear,” “Tears of the Angel,” “Spintop,” and “Transformation.” Because the composer’s intentions were driven by pictorial ideas and not by a formal harmonic structure, this paper concentrates on ensemble issues and interpretation less than harmonic analysis.
Secondly, the project includes the premiere recording of Reflections, as performer by Yu-Ting Tseng, cellist, and Dr. Jeremy Peterman, pianist. This audio documentation provides other cellists and pianists the opportunity of hearing the piece as originally conceived by the composer, as an aid to their own future preparation of this work. This recording, combined with the interpretative analysis, will assist in bringing Reflections into the cello repertoire and public eye.
This document details ensemble issues, interpretative suggestions for both cellist and pianist, and general concepts about the music. The composer further adds to these concepts and suggestions.
Reflections is a programmatic work comprised of four movements, each with a descriptive title: “Gear,” “Tears of the Angel,” “Spintop,” and “Transformation.” Because the composer’s intentions were driven by pictorial ideas and not by a formal harmonic structure, this paper concentrates on ensemble issues and interpretation less than harmonic analysis.
Secondly, the project includes the premiere recording of Reflections, as performer by Yu-Ting Tseng, cellist, and Dr. Jeremy Peterman, pianist. This audio documentation provides other cellists and pianists the opportunity of hearing the piece as originally conceived by the composer, as an aid to their own future preparation of this work. This recording, combined with the interpretative analysis, will assist in bringing Reflections into the cello repertoire and public eye.
ContributorsTseng, Yu-Ting (Author) / Landschoot, Thomas (Committee member) / Rogers, Rodney (Committee member) / Rotaru, Catalin (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
The concert vocalise, a dazzling wordless vocal etude intended for performance, is largely a phenomenon of the twentieth century. Made famous by composers such as Sergei Rachmaninoff and Maurice Ravel, the concert vocalise is generally a short, non-programmatic work with a relatively simple form. In contrast, Nikolai Medtner’s two monumental Op. 41 vocalises, the Sonata-Vocalise mit einem Motto “Geweihter Platz and the Suite Vocalise, are staggering in their length and formal complexity. They are also programmatically conceived, sharing the Goethe poem “Geweihter Platz” as their inspiration.
The innovation of adding a textual element to a traditionally textless genre introduces a tantalizing new layer of complexity that demands further research and exploration. However, as with any innovation, it also offers new challenges to performers wishing to program either or both works. Current scholarship has yet to offer any kind of in-depth analysis of either work, leaving questions as to the structural and motivic elements which bind these large works together, not to mention questions related to exactly how Medtner addresses the challenge of linking specific parts of Goethe’s text to the textless portions of music. Furthermore, neither work is considered standard repertoire, and recordings and performances are limited, leaving aspiring performers in something of an informational desert.
In this paper, I endeavor to fill this informational gap for performers and scholars alike by providing them with a brief biography of Medtner, an outline of the development of the concert vocalise genre, and the background of the Goethe poem that inspired Medtner. Then my in-depth analyses reveal underlying structural, motivic, and programmatic links both within and between the works. Finally, my performer’s guide, based on the analyses and my experience performing both works, offers suggestions regarding the interpretational, ensemble, and technical challenges presented by these great works.
The innovation of adding a textual element to a traditionally textless genre introduces a tantalizing new layer of complexity that demands further research and exploration. However, as with any innovation, it also offers new challenges to performers wishing to program either or both works. Current scholarship has yet to offer any kind of in-depth analysis of either work, leaving questions as to the structural and motivic elements which bind these large works together, not to mention questions related to exactly how Medtner addresses the challenge of linking specific parts of Goethe’s text to the textless portions of music. Furthermore, neither work is considered standard repertoire, and recordings and performances are limited, leaving aspiring performers in something of an informational desert.
In this paper, I endeavor to fill this informational gap for performers and scholars alike by providing them with a brief biography of Medtner, an outline of the development of the concert vocalise genre, and the background of the Goethe poem that inspired Medtner. Then my in-depth analyses reveal underlying structural, motivic, and programmatic links both within and between the works. Finally, my performer’s guide, based on the analyses and my experience performing both works, offers suggestions regarding the interpretational, ensemble, and technical challenges presented by these great works.
ContributorsUhl, Nathan Leonard (Author) / Campbell, Andrew (Thesis advisor) / Carpenter, Ellon (Thesis advisor) / FitzPatrick, Carole (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
The Sonata for Cello and Piano (1915) was one of the last three sonatas written by Claude Debussy (1862–1918). When Debussy composed the sonata, France was involved in World War I and Debussy was influenced by political dogmas that sought to advance nationalism as well as the use of French traditions in musical compositions. By discussing the political impact of World War I on French music, this paper will place the Sonata in a context that strengthens the understanding of the work.
Debussy, who participated in the political project of seeking out tradition as the protector of French culture, also presents his understanding of what French tradition is in this sonata. An analytical description of the structure, thematic materials, harmonies and intervallic relationships of the Sonata reveals Debussy’s approach of combining the elements that he observed from his French predecessors, as well as his own innovations in the work as he negotiated musical world that was controlled by political dogma
Debussy, who participated in the political project of seeking out tradition as the protector of French culture, also presents his understanding of what French tradition is in this sonata. An analytical description of the structure, thematic materials, harmonies and intervallic relationships of the Sonata reveals Debussy’s approach of combining the elements that he observed from his French predecessors, as well as his own innovations in the work as he negotiated musical world that was controlled by political dogma
ContributorsSong, Peipei (Author) / Ryan, Russell (Thesis advisor) / Campbell, Andrew (Committee member) / Feisst, Sabine (Committee member) / Landschoot, Thomas (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016