Matching Items (25)
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- All Subjects: Music
- Member of: Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
- Member of: ASU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Description
The aim of this project was to create an original sound design and score for the ASU SOMDT production of HEDDATRON, by Elizabeth Meriwether. Composition and sound design was done primarily with a modular synthesizer. All audio editing was done in Reaper, and the cues were programmed in Qlab.
ContributorsJansen, Troy Sherk (Author) / Max, Bernstein (Thesis director) / Lance, Gharavi (Committee member) / School of Music, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
Description
Jane Austen’s depictions of musical performers and listeners in her novels suggest her belief that musical performances should strengthen intimacy between people, both between listeners and performers as well as among listeners. Austen commends music for its power to increase intimacy through honest expressions of taste, which more often arise in private performances, but she warns against its power to decrease intimacy through pretentious displays of taste, which more often arise in public performances. Austen’s belief that music allows for this healthy intimacy indicates that music has great significance in society. Austen suggests that music has a greater importance to everyday life than many may originally suppose, as it is a universal connection between people. Ultimately, Jane Austen’s perspective of music’s great power both to expose pretentiousness and to cultivate intimacy should lead all of her readers to recognize and respect music’s true power and to consider seriously the importance and role of music in their own lives.
ContributorsColliat, Chelsea Elyse (Author) / Tait, Dana (Thesis director) / Schildkret, David (Committee member) / Historical, Philosophical & Religious Studies (Contributor) / Historical, Philosophical & Religious Studies, Sch (Contributor) / School of Music, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
Description
The original scope of this project was to have several conducting experiences and written records about the conductor’s experiences. Due to COVID-19, the focus of the paper has shifted to documenting the preparation, rehearsal, and performance "Recombobulation" (2016) by Theresa Martin. Using the templates found in the "Teaching Music Through Performance in Band" book series as a model, combined with the author’s personal narrative of their experience, this paper aims to serve as a resource for both people considering programming this piece of music as well as early career conductors who strive to improve their craft.
ContributorsStirm, Taylor Lynne (Author) / Caslor, Jason (Thesis director) / Spring, Robert (Committee member) / Gardner, Joshua (Committee member) / School of Music, Dance and Theatre (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-12
Description
With this thesis, I have set out to answer two fundamental questions within music: does music mean anything, and should music mean anything? In answering those questions, I also set out to create a creative project that would implement these ideas: an original concept album of music that is programmatic in nature and incorporates motivic composition, jazz improvisation, lyrics, extra-musical audio and more all in the service of telling a narrative, a story, through music. I have done research into understanding music as a language, finding that this language is primarily communicative and recreational, rather than representational, of meaning. As well, I discuss the various different ways that music composers from Wagner to Williams have created narrative meaning in their works, using examples of leitmotif and other devices, as well as tracing the contextual associations of meaning that occurs when music is perceived in certain contexts. Furthermore, I discuss the dialogue between absolute and programmatic music, and also talk about the role of jazz improvisation in adding meaning to works.
For the second part of my thesis I talk about how I came to create the creative project aspect. I discuss how and why I designed the narrative that I did, and also analyzed the music I have created to illustrate how I implemented the various methods of musical storytelling that I detail in the first part of the paper. Lastly, I discuss my plans for publication and release of the creative project.
The third part of this thesis is a sample of the creative project. There is a version of the narrative that goes along with the creative project, as well as one of the eight pieces of original music on the creative project, entitled Journey.
Overall, I found that music does have meaning, it is just meaning that society ascribes to it based off of artistic intent and context, and as to whether music should mean anything, I believe that this is a question best left to be answered on an individual basis. Music can be whatever it wants to be.
For the second part of my thesis I talk about how I came to create the creative project aspect. I discuss how and why I designed the narrative that I did, and also analyzed the music I have created to illustrate how I implemented the various methods of musical storytelling that I detail in the first part of the paper. Lastly, I discuss my plans for publication and release of the creative project.
The third part of this thesis is a sample of the creative project. There is a version of the narrative that goes along with the creative project, as well as one of the eight pieces of original music on the creative project, entitled Journey.
Overall, I found that music does have meaning, it is just meaning that society ascribes to it based off of artistic intent and context, and as to whether music should mean anything, I believe that this is a question best left to be answered on an individual basis. Music can be whatever it wants to be.
ContributorsPrice, Alexander (Author) / Gilfillan, Daniel (Thesis director) / Kocour, Michael (Committee member) / Libman, Jeffrey (Committee member) / Department of English (Contributor) / School of Music (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
This project describes the process of creating an arrangement of Gustav Holst's "Second Suite in F for Military Band," to include the oboe d'amore. The oboe d'amore is a member of the oboe family which is not often used in the modern day. Also included are a score, 5 individual parts, and a digital audio file of the arrangement.
ContributorsJones, Katherine (Author) / Schuring, Martin (Thesis director) / Micklich, Albie (Committee member) / School of Music, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-12
Description
The goal of the creative project "Popular Music Songwriting" was to jump into songwriting with strategy and study on popular music, looking at why songs make the charts. The project had one focus on Max Martin's songwriting principles, but looked at anything that hit the charts. The conclusion of the project brings an understanding of several rules and patterns in songwriting that hit makers typically obey. A common purpose for pop songs is to keep its listeners engaged but not overwhelmed. The goal is to do something different, but keep things familiar and to make people want to listen to it again. Songwriting has become very business-minded in that many informal rules to songwriting have become established because they are supported by psychology, showing that we have developed certain expectations in songs. For example, when a song gets very complex, we oftentimes tune out and do not want to hear it. This problem makes a song unfriendly to the radio. Also, repetition is often exercised. Many pop listeners have favorite parts of songs; therefore, when a songwriter has created a hook that listeners will want to look forward to through the song's duration, then that hook should be recycled strategically to keep the listener engaged. Four songs are submitted at the project's completion. The songs' names are "Soon to be an Emergency," "They Will Look at Us," "Black and White," and "Psychedelic Nights." The songs well represent a timeline of the project. As new songwriting rules were learned in the process of this project, they were employed accordingly, making each new song a fair representation of the learning up to that point.
ContributorsDudzinski, Bryce Daniel (Author) / Libman, Jeffrey (Thesis director) / Wells, Christopher (Committee member) / Department of Management and Entrepreneurship (Contributor) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Witching Hours is the debut studio album of Chicago-born, Phoenix-residing trumpet player John Michael Sherman. It is a consummation of his work in the Arizona State University jazz studies program both as a performer and composer. Featured on the album are several other musicians who John Michael played alongside throughout his tenure at ASU, including Chaz Martineau on tenor saxophone, Evan Rees on piano, Reid Riddiough on guitar, Vince Thiefain on bass, Matt McClintock on drums, and Dan Meadows on baritone saxophone. The album features seven pieces, all original compositions or arrangements. The first track, "Workin' My Nerves", is a blues shuffle in the key of F. This is followed by "Scarborough Fair", an arrangement of the classic English folk tune in a rock style. The title track, "Witching Hours", is an cadaverous linear composition in 7/4 which is followed by "Goliath", a pseudo-tone poem about the biblical giant. "I Should Have Known" is a pensive ballad featuring an a capella intro and cadenza, followed by the most recent composition, a minor blues-esque piece entitled "Who Said That?" The final track, "Don't Change A Thing", is an upbeat samba which was written in John Michael's first year of college. These pieces demonstrate an understanding of the jazz tradition and exhibit influences from such musicians as Clifford Brown, Freddie Hubbard, Wayne Shorter, and Snarky Puppy. The album was recorded at Tempest Recording in Tempe and produced by Clarke Rigsby. Clarke is a veteran recording engineer and is the first choice of many of Phoenix's finest jazz musicians, including thesis director and head of the ASU jazz department Michael Kocour. The pieces were composed and recorded under the guidance of Mike Kocour and Jeff Libman. Witching Hours represents a culmination of John Michael's course in the Arizona State University jazz department and his endeavors as a trumpet player and composer.
ContributorsSherman, John Michael (Author) / Kocour, Michael (Thesis director) / Libman, Jeffrey (Committee member) / School of Music (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
This paper highlights a method for jazz transcription, comprehension, and practice to be implemented primarily in applied saxophone instruction with undergraduate students. The purpose is the identify and mend the divide between jazz and classical that appears in academia. This divide is one that came about by necessity in the saxophone’s relative youth in the academic world as it found solid footing in conservatories around the world. A literature review establishes the current state of dialogue between both jazz and classical in the academic saxophone community, including the current state of crossover scholarship that discusses the interaction between multiple genres. This review investigates what serves as pedagogical material in an aural discipline like jazz. A thorough approach to transcription is crucial change to the standard practice of jazz transcription typically employed in applied saxophone studios. This approach takes the focus away from the product and places it on the process. This process is demonstrated through a transcription and deconstruction of Charlie Parker’s “Cheryl.” Though this approach is presented through the perspective of a saxophonist, this process can be applied to any number of instrumental disciplines seeking to understand jazz transcription and improvisation more fully.
ContributorsFeher, Patrick Francis (Author) / Creviston, Christopher (Thesis advisor) / Kocour, Michael (Committee member) / Libman, Jeffrey (Committee member) / Caslor, Jason (Committee member) / Wells, Christi Jay (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
Collaborating with others is a crucial part of growing creatively, and gaining perspective. With different artistic mediums like dance, film, music and design, there is a lot artists can learn from one another. Art is also a way to convey important messages that reflect social, political and cultural issues, and artists have become increasingly responsible for presenting these issues in a way that will provoke thought and create change. “Luna” is a series of compositions with a goal of inviting the audience into a different world. The use of sound design and electronic music production paired with piano arrangements creates a vast, sonic landscape, and the titles of each piece are related to space. The live performance of the album also involves dance, which adds another human element to the experience.
ContributorsAzersky, Sadie (Author) / Yanez, Raul (Thesis director) / Costa Palazuelos, Jorge (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Music, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor)
Created2023-05
Description
This presentation explores the processes of writing and producing the original musical "Subplots," debuted in August 2022. Through composition and music direction lenses, this presentation outlines the creative journey from conception to performance, highlighting the process of collaborating with a librettist, performers, and production team members. This thesis was completed under the direction of Dr. Jody Rockmaker and Dr. Alex Temple; all materials are copyrighted by Anthony Procopio and Sara Matin.
ContributorsProcopio, Anthony (Author) / Rockmaker, Jody (Thesis director) / Temple, Alex (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Music, Dance and Theatre (Contributor)
Created2023-05