Matching Items (6)
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Fine Arts
- All Subjects: Clarinet
- All Subjects: Songs (High voice) with piano
Description
Libby Larsen is one of the most performed and acclaimed composers today. She is a spirited, compelling, and sensitive composer whose music enhances the poetry of America's most prominent authors. Notable among her works are song cycles for soprano based on the poetry of female writers, among them novelist and poet Willa Cather (1873-1947). Larsen has produced two song cycles on works from Cather's substantial output of fiction: one based on Cather's short story, "Eric Hermannson's Soul," titled Margaret Songs: Three Songs from Willa Cather (1996); and later, My Antonia (2000), based on Cather's novel of the same title. In Margaret Songs, Cather's poetry and short stories--specifically the character of Margaret Elliot--combine with Larsen's unique compositional style to create a surprising collaboration. This study explores how Larsen in these songs delves into the emotional and psychological depths of Margaret's character, not fully formed by Cather. It is only through Larsen's music and Cather's poetry that Margaret's journey through self-discovery and love become fully realized. This song cycle is a glimpse through the eyes of two prominent female artists on the societal pressures placed upon Margaret's character, many of which still resonate with women in today's culture. This study examines the work Margaret Songs by discussing Willa Cather, her musical influences, and the conditions surrounding the writing of "Eric Hermannson's Soul." It looks also into Cather's influence on Libby Larsen and the commission leading to Margaret Songs. Finally, a description of the musical, dramatic, and textual content of the songs completes this interpretation of the interactions of Willa Cather, Libby Larsen, and the character of Margaret Elliot.
ContributorsMcLain, Christi Marie (Author) / FitzPatrick, Carole (Thesis advisor) / Dreyfoos, Dale (Committee member) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Discovering Puerto Rican art song: a research project on four art song works by Héctor Campos Parsi
Description
Puerto Rico has produced many important composers who have contributed to the musical culture of the nation during the last 200 years. However, a considerable amount of their music has proven to be difficult to access and may contain numerous errors. This research project intends to contribute to the accessibility of such music and to encourage similar studies of Puerto Rican music. This study focuses on the music of Héctor Campos Parsi (1922-1998), one of the most prominent composers of the 20th century in Puerto Rico. After an overview of the historical background of music on the island and the biography of the composer, four works from his art song repertoire are given for detailed examination. A product of this study is the first corrected edition of his cycles Canciones de Cielo y Agua, Tres Poemas de Corretjer, Los Paréntesis, and the song Majestad Negra. These compositions date from 1947 to 1959, and reflect both the European and nationalistic writing styles of the composer during this time. Data for these corrections have been obtained from the composer's manuscripts, published and unpublished editions, and published recordings. The corrected scores are ready for publication and a compact disc of this repertoire, performed by soprano Melliangee Pérez and the author, has been recorded to bring to life these revisions. Despite the best intentions of the author, the various copyright issues have yet to be resolved. It is hoped that this document will provide the foundation for a resolution and that these important works will be available for public performance and study in the near future.
ContributorsRodríguez Morales, Luis F., 1980- (Author) / Campbell, Andrew (Thesis advisor) / Buck, Elizabeth (Committee member) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Kopta, Anne (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Pre-collegiate clarinet instructors are often challenged to teach students both fundamental skills and repertoire with limited instructional time. Insufficient time may cause fundamental skills to be addressed at the expense of repertoire or repertoire study may limit time spent on fundamental development. This document provides a suggested repertoire list that categorizes pre-collegiate clarinet literature based on the fundamental skill addressed in each included piece. Teachers can select repertoire that allows students to concurrently refine a fundamental skill while preparing a piece for performance. Addressed fundamental topics include embouchure, expanding the range into the clarion and altissimo registers, articulation, breathing, intonation, finger technique, and musicality.
Clarinet method books and treatises were studied to determine which fundamental concepts to include and to find established teaching techniques recommended by pedagogues. Pre-collegiate clarinet instructors were surveyed to determine which pieces of clarinet repertoire were frequently studied in their private lesson curriculum and why, and if they used specific pieces in order to isolate a fundamental skill. Literature found in repertoire lists, repertoire books, on-line catalogs, and from the survey results was examined. Repertoire was selected for inclusion if it contained passages that were analogous to the established teaching strategies.
Clarinet method books and treatises were studied to determine which fundamental concepts to include and to find established teaching techniques recommended by pedagogues. Pre-collegiate clarinet instructors were surveyed to determine which pieces of clarinet repertoire were frequently studied in their private lesson curriculum and why, and if they used specific pieces in order to isolate a fundamental skill. Literature found in repertoire lists, repertoire books, on-line catalogs, and from the survey results was examined. Repertoire was selected for inclusion if it contained passages that were analogous to the established teaching strategies.
ContributorsAustermann, Kelly R (Author) / Spring, Robert (Committee member) / Gardner, Joshua (Committee member) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Russell, Timothy (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
This project explores the cultivation of artistic methodologies centered in embodied movement practices. I worked in collaboration with dancers to inform the development of a movement vocabulary that is authentic to the individual as well as to the content of the work. Through the interplay between movement and subconscious response to elements such as writing, imagery, and physical environments I created authentic kinesthetic experiences for both dancer and audience. I submerged dancers into a constructed environment by creating authentic mental and physical experiences that supported the development of embodied movement. This was the impetus to develop the evening length work, Flesh Narratives, which consisted of five vignettes, each containing its own distinctive creative process driven by the content of each section. This project was presented January 29- 31, 2016 in the Fine Arts Center room 122, an informal theatre space, that supplemented an immersive experience in an intimate environment for forty viewers. This project explored themes of transformation including cycles, concepts of life, death and reincarnation, and enlightenment. Through the art of storytelling, the crafting of embodied movers, and the theory of Hauntology, the viewer was taken on a journey of struggle, loss, and rebirth.
ContributorsGerena, Jenny (Author) / Standley, Eileen (Thesis advisor) / Rosenkrans, Angela (Committee member) / Britt, Melissa (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
This study focuses on three songs from stage works of Kurt Weill (1900-1950): “September Song” from Knickerbocker Holiday (1938), “Speak Low” from One Touch of Venus (1943), and “Lost in the Stars” from Lost in the Stars (1949). All from Weill’s time in the United States, these songs are adaptable as solos and have become American standards performed in various arrangements and styles of popular music by many different artists.
The first part of this study is a biographical sketch of Weill’s life and music. It is intended to provide context for the three songs by tracing his beginnings as a German composer of stage works with volatile political messages, to his flight to the United States and his emergence as a composer of Broadway successes.
The second part is a commentary on the composition of the three selected songs. The lyrics and musical content are examined to show how Weill’s settings convey the dramatic mood and meaning as well as the specific nuances of the words. Description of the context of these songs explains how they were textually and musically intended to advance the plot and the emotional arc of the dramatic characters. The popularity of these songs endures beyond their original shows, and so there is discussion of how other artists have adapted and performed them, and available recordings are cited.
Weill’s songs, his little masterpieces, have proven to be truly evocative and so attractive to American audiences that they have undergone myriad adaptations. This study seeks to provide the personal and historical background of Kurt Weill’s music and to demonstrate why these three songs in particular have proven to have such lasting appeal.
The first part of this study is a biographical sketch of Weill’s life and music. It is intended to provide context for the three songs by tracing his beginnings as a German composer of stage works with volatile political messages, to his flight to the United States and his emergence as a composer of Broadway successes.
The second part is a commentary on the composition of the three selected songs. The lyrics and musical content are examined to show how Weill’s settings convey the dramatic mood and meaning as well as the specific nuances of the words. Description of the context of these songs explains how they were textually and musically intended to advance the plot and the emotional arc of the dramatic characters. The popularity of these songs endures beyond their original shows, and so there is discussion of how other artists have adapted and performed them, and available recordings are cited.
Weill’s songs, his little masterpieces, have proven to be truly evocative and so attractive to American audiences that they have undergone myriad adaptations. This study seeks to provide the personal and historical background of Kurt Weill’s music and to demonstrate why these three songs in particular have proven to have such lasting appeal.
ContributorsKimball, Abigail S (Author) / May, Judy (Thesis advisor) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Kopta, Anne (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
ABSTRACT
This project features five new pieces for clarinet commissioned from three different composers including:
1. Rasa by Jeffrey Ouper
2. Faerie Tale Dances by Jeffrey Ouper
3. Amalgamated Widget by Tavia Sullens
4. Faerie Suite by Theresa Martin
5. Time Lapse by Theresa Martin
Faerie Suite and Amalgamated Widget are for unaccompanied clarinet; Time Lapse is a trio for clarinet, bass clarinet, and piano; Faerie Tale Dances is a trio for E-flat clarinet, sopranino recorder, and toy piano; and Rasa is a quartet for E-flat clarinet, two A clarinets, and bass clarinet. These pieces challenge the performer in various ways, including complex rhythm, use of extended techniques such as glissando, flutter tongue, and circular breathing, and synthetic and non-traditional scales. The composers were given guidelines prior to the compositional process to create works with a thematic connection to mythology, folklore, or fairy tales, and inspired by dance and non-western or traditional harmonies and idioms. This document offers background information about the composers and the works, and a performance guide is included for each. This guide provides recommendations and suggestions for each piece. Also included are interviews with each of the composers. Accompanying this document are recordings of each of the five pieces, performed by the author.
This project features five new pieces for clarinet commissioned from three different composers including:
1. Rasa by Jeffrey Ouper
2. Faerie Tale Dances by Jeffrey Ouper
3. Amalgamated Widget by Tavia Sullens
4. Faerie Suite by Theresa Martin
5. Time Lapse by Theresa Martin
Faerie Suite and Amalgamated Widget are for unaccompanied clarinet; Time Lapse is a trio for clarinet, bass clarinet, and piano; Faerie Tale Dances is a trio for E-flat clarinet, sopranino recorder, and toy piano; and Rasa is a quartet for E-flat clarinet, two A clarinets, and bass clarinet. These pieces challenge the performer in various ways, including complex rhythm, use of extended techniques such as glissando, flutter tongue, and circular breathing, and synthetic and non-traditional scales. The composers were given guidelines prior to the compositional process to create works with a thematic connection to mythology, folklore, or fairy tales, and inspired by dance and non-western or traditional harmonies and idioms. This document offers background information about the composers and the works, and a performance guide is included for each. This guide provides recommendations and suggestions for each piece. Also included are interviews with each of the composers. Accompanying this document are recordings of each of the five pieces, performed by the author.
ContributorsApplegate, James Patrick (Author) / Spring, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Gardner, Joshua (Thesis advisor) / Holbrook, Amy (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018