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- All Subjects: Music
- Creators: Micklich, Albie
- Creators: Hamilton, Robert
Description
A new arrangement of the Concerto for Two Horns in E-flat Major, Hob. VIId/6, attributed by some to Franz Joseph Haydn, is presented here. The arrangement reduces the orchestral portion to ten wind instruments, specifically a double wind quintet, to facilitate performance of the work. A full score and a complete set of parts are included. In support of this new arrangement, a discussion of the early treatment of horns in pairs and the subsequent development of the double horn concerto in the eighteenth century provides historical context for the Concerto for Two Horns in E-flat major. A summary of the controversy concerning the identity of the composer of this concerto is followed by a description of the content and structure of each of its three movements. Some comments on the procedures of the arrangement complete the background information.
ContributorsYeh, Guan-Lin (Author) / Ericson, John (Thesis advisor) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Micklich, Albie (Committee member) / Pilafian, J. Samuel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
The purpose of this project was to commission, perform, and discuss a new work for an instrument pairing not often utilized, oboe and percussion. The composer, Alyssa Morris, was selected in June 2009. Her work, titled Forecast, was completed in October of 2009 and premiered in February of 2010, as part of a program showcasing music for oboe and percussion. Included in this document is a detailed biography of the composer, a description of the four movements of Forecast, performance notes for each movement, a diagram for stage set-up, the full score, the program from the premiere performance with biographies of all the performers involved, and both a live recording and MIDI sound file. The performance notes discuss issues that arose during preparation for the premiere and should help avoid potential pitfalls. TrevCo Music, publisher of the work, graciously allowed inclusion of the full score. This score is solely for use in this document; please visit the publisher's website for purchasing information. The commission and documentation of this composition are intended to add to the repertoire for oboe in an unusual instrument pairing and to encourage further exploration of such combinations.
ContributorsCreamer, Caryn (Author) / Schuring, Martin (Thesis advisor) / Hill, Gary (Committee member) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Micklich, Albie (Committee member) / Spring, Robert (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
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
Women's contributions to the history of Canadian music can be traced back to the late nineteenth century. However, women's achievements then, and still somewhat now, are often overlooked and as a result, piano solo works by Canadian women composers are largely unknown. The purpose of this study is to promote the wealth of solo piano repertoire composed by Canadian women, and to report the results in an accessible and comprehensible format for students, teachers, and performers at all levels. The research focuses on the most recent piano music by female composers born in or after 1950 whose compositions are available through the Canadian Music Centre (CMC) library. Brief biographies of included composers note their accomplishments, compositional output, and style characteristics. Annotations for the 103 works studied, written by twenty-six composers, include information about harmonic schemes, meters, tempos, durations, dates of the composition, CMC call number, level of difficulty, commissions, musical excerpts, premieres, and style characteristics. The style characteristics section includes composer's notes, technical challenges, musical characteristics, pedagogical values, and other pertinent information about a given piece. Since the goal of this project is to stimulate the awareness of music composed by Canadian women in a truly global sense, the research paper is supplemented by a website--www.canadianwomencomposers.com--that contains all the information found in the written portion of the annotations. This website also offers short audio samples of the compositions. The writer wishes to encourage all students, performers, and teachers to explore this resource, which reveals the richness of solo piano repertoire written by Canadian women composers.
ContributorsKim, Joo Yeon Tarina (Author) / Meyer Thompson, Janice (Thesis advisor) / Cosand, Walter (Committee member) / Hamilton, Robert (Committee member) / Humphreys, Jere T (Committee member) / Rogers, Rodney (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Owen Middleton (b. 1941) enjoys an established and growing reputation as a composer of classical guitar music, but his works for piano are comparatively little known. The close investigation offered here of Middleton's works for piano reveals the same impressive craftsmanship, compelling character, and innovative spirit found in his works for guitar. Indeed, the only significant thing Middleton's piano music currently lacks is the well-deserved attention of professional players and a wider audience. Middleton's piano music needs to be heard, not just discussed, so one of this document's purposes is to provide a recorded sample of his piano works. While the overall repertoire for solo piano is vast, and new works become established in that repertoire with increasing difficulty, Middleton's piano works have a significant potential to find their way into the concert hall as well as the private teaching studio. His solo piano music is highly effective, well suited to the instrument, and, perhaps most importantly, fresh sounding and truly original. His pedagogical works are of equal value. Middleton's piano music offers something for everyone: there one finds daring virtuosity, effusions of passion, intellectual force, colorful imagery, poetry, humor, and even a degree of idiomatic innovation. This study aims to reveal key aspects of the composer's musical style, especially his style of piano writing, and to provide pianists with helpful analytical, technical, and interpretive insights. These descriptions of the music are supported with recorded examples, selected from the works for solo piano written between 1962 and 1993: Sonata for Piano, Childhood Scenes, Katie's Collection, and Toccata for Piano. The complete scores of the recorded works are included in the appendix. A chapter briefly describing the piano pieces since 1993 concludes the study and invites the reader to further investigations of this unique and important body of work.
ContributorsMoreau, Barton Andrew (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Campbell, Andrew (Committee member) / Spring, Robert (Committee member) / Gardner, Joshua (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Bohuslav Martinù (1890-1959) was a prolific composer who wrote nearly 100 works for piano. His highly imaginative and eclectic style blends elements of the Baroque, Impressionism, Twentieth-century idioms and Czech folk music. His music is fresh and appealing to the listener, yet it remains intriguing as to how all the elements are combined in a cohesive manner. Martinù himself provides clues to his compositional process. He believed in pure musical expression and the intensity of the musical idea, without the need for extra-musical or programmatic connotations. He espoused holistic and organic views toward musical perception and composition, at times referring to a work as an "organism." This study examines Martinù's piano style in light of his many diverse influences and personal philosophy. The first portion of this paper discusses Martinù's overall style through several piano miniatures written throughout his career. It takes into consideration the composer's personal background, musical influences and aesthetic convictions. The second portion focuses specifically on Martinù's first large-scale work for piano, the Fantasie et Toccata, H. 281. Written during a time in which Martinù was black-listed by the Nazis and forced to flee Europe, this piece bears witness to the chaotic events of WWII through its complexity and intensity of character. The discussion and analysis of the Fantasie et Toccata intends to serve as a guide to interpretation for the performer or listener and also seeks to promote the piano music of Bohuslav Martinù to a wider audience.
ContributorsCrane-Waleczek, Jennifer (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Committee member) / Meyer Thompson, Janice (Committee member) / Norton, Kay (Committee member) / Campbell, Andrew (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
The repertoire of the saxophone has advanced significantly since its invention circa 1840. Performers are required to adapt to the demands of composers - many of whom are exploring new and unconventional sounds and techniques. Numerous texts exist to identify and explain these so-called "extended" techniques, but there are very few resources for the initial stages of performance. In order to offer performers a resource, the author of this text composed forty original etudes (or studies) that incorporate extended techniques in a variety of ways. After identifying common extended techniques that a performer might face, the author focused on four different ways each individual technique might appear in actual repertoire. The resulting work is entitled Pushing Boundaries: Forty Etudes on Extended Techniques. Each etude offers a practical approach to what is generally a single extended technique. Although this text is not pedagogical in the sense of identifying the mechanics and anatomical requirements of each technique, it does contain a performance analysis of each etude. This analysis identifies areas where performers might struggle and offers helpful suggestions. To this end, the etudes accompanied by performance analysis provide a paced, systematic approach to the mastery of each technique.
ContributorsMurphy, Patrick Joseph (Author) / Hill, Gary (Thesis advisor) / Spring, Robert (Committee member) / McAllister, Timothy (Committee member) / Micklich, Albie (Committee member) / DeMars, James (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
This project features three new pieces for clarinet commissioned from three different composers. Two are for unaccompanied clarinet and one is for clarinet, bass clarinet, and laptop. These pieces are Storm's a Comin' by Chris Burton, Light and Shadows by Theresa Martin, and My Own Agenda by Robbie McCarthy. These three solos challenge the performer in various ways including complex rhythm, use of extended techniques such as growling, glissando, and multiphonics, and the incorporation of technology into a live performance. In addition to background information, a performance practice guide has also been included for each of the pieces. This guide provides recommendations and suggestions for future performers wishing to study and perform these works. Also included are transcripts of interviews done with each of the composers as well as full scores for each of the pieces. Accompanying this document are recordings of each of the three pieces, performed by the author.
ContributorsVaughan, Melissa Lynn (Author) / Spring, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Micklich, Albie (Committee member) / Gardner, Joshua (Committee member) / Hill, Gary (Committee member) / Feisst, Sabine (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
This study compares the Hummel Concertos in A Minor, Op. 85 and B Minor, Op. 89 and the Chopin Concertos in E Minor, Op. 11 and F Minor, Op. 21. On initial hearing of Hummel's rarely played concertos, one immediately detects similarities with Chopin's concerto style. Upon closer examination, one discovers a substantial number of interesting and significant parallels with Chopin's concertos, many of which are highlighted in this research project. Hummel belongs to a generation of composers who made a shift away from the Classical style, and Chopin, as an early Romantic, absorbed much from his immediate predecessors in establishing his highly unique style. I have chosen to focus on Chopin's concertos to demonstrate this association. The essay begins with a discussion of the historical background of Chopin's formative years as it pertains to the formation of his compositional style, Hummel's role and influence in the contemporary musical arena, as well as interactions between the two composers. It then provides the historical background of the aforementioned concertos leading to a comparative analysis, which includes structural, melodic, harmonic, and motivic parallels. With a better understanding of his stylistic influences, and of how Chopin assimilated them in the creation of his masterful works, the performer can adopt a more informed approach to the interpretation of these two concertos, which are among the most beloved masterpieces in piano literature.
ContributorsYam, Jessica (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Levy, Benjamin (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
The end of the nineteenth century was an exhilarating and revolutionary era for the flute. This period is the Second Golden Age of the flute, when players and teachers associated with the Paris Conservatory developed what would be considered the birth of the modern flute school. In addition, the founding in 1871 of the Société Nationale de Musique by Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) and Romain Bussine (1830-1899) made possible the promotion of contemporary French composers. The founding of the Société des Instruments à Vent by Paul Taffanel (1844-1908) in 1879 also invigorated a new era of chamber music for wind instruments. Within this groundbreaking environment, Mélanie Hélène Bonis (pen name Mel Bonis) entered the Paris Conservatory in 1876, under the tutelage of César Franck (1822-1890). Many flutists are dismayed by the scarcity of repertoire for the instrument in the Romantic and post-Romantic traditions; they make up for this absence by borrowing the violin sonatas of Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924) and Franck. The flute and piano works of Mel Bonis help to fill this void with music composed originally for flute. Bonis was a prolific composer with over 300 works to her credit, but her works for flute and piano have not been researched or professionally recorded in the United States before the present study. Although virtually unknown today in the American flute community, Bonis's music received much acclaim from her contemporaries and deserves a prominent place in the flutist's repertoire. After a brief biographical introduction, this document examines Mel Bonis's musical style and describes in detail her six works for flute and piano while also offering performance suggestions.
ContributorsDaum, Jenna Elyse (Author) / Buck, Elizabeth (Thesis advisor) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Micklich, Albie (Committee member) / Schuring, Martin (Committee member) / Norton, Kay (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013