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- All Subjects: Music History
- Creators: Solís, Ted
Description
The Space Race (1957–1975), a period of rapid technological advancements prompted by the uncertainty and fear of the Cold War, captured the curiosity and attention of many artists, filmmakers and composers. Their responses, recorded in a multitude of works from various genres, reflect the overall tone and mirror societal views in the midst of uncertain, politically-charged times.
My thesis explores two seminal American artists who explored outer space in numerous works. John Cage (1912–1992), an avant-garde classical composer, wrote such works as Atlas Eclipticalis (1961), Etudes Australes (1974–75), and the Freeman Etudes (1977–1980), all composed using star-maps. Sun Ra (1914–1993), an American Afrofuturist jazz composer, created hundreds of iconic experimental jazz works on the theme of outer space, with albums such as We Travel the Space Ways (1967), Space Is the Place (1973), and Cosmos (1976).
The works of these two composers span across several decades, encompassing the Space Race and Cold War. In this thesis, I will specifically discuss the details of two works: Cage’s Atlas Eclipticalis, and Ra’s composition Space Is the Place (later included in the soundtrack of a film by the same name). Discussion will elaborate on the cultural, political, philosophical, and societal influences that played a part in the creation of these two compositions.
My research materials for this thesis includes a collection of primary sources in the form of recordings, early musical sketches, and in the case of Ra, film footage from Space Is the Place (1974), as well as multitude of secondary sources. By choosing works from two different genres I hope to present a wider, more nuanced snapshot of artist responses to space exploration during the Cold War.
My thesis explores two seminal American artists who explored outer space in numerous works. John Cage (1912–1992), an avant-garde classical composer, wrote such works as Atlas Eclipticalis (1961), Etudes Australes (1974–75), and the Freeman Etudes (1977–1980), all composed using star-maps. Sun Ra (1914–1993), an American Afrofuturist jazz composer, created hundreds of iconic experimental jazz works on the theme of outer space, with albums such as We Travel the Space Ways (1967), Space Is the Place (1973), and Cosmos (1976).
The works of these two composers span across several decades, encompassing the Space Race and Cold War. In this thesis, I will specifically discuss the details of two works: Cage’s Atlas Eclipticalis, and Ra’s composition Space Is the Place (later included in the soundtrack of a film by the same name). Discussion will elaborate on the cultural, political, philosophical, and societal influences that played a part in the creation of these two compositions.
My research materials for this thesis includes a collection of primary sources in the form of recordings, early musical sketches, and in the case of Ra, film footage from Space Is the Place (1974), as well as multitude of secondary sources. By choosing works from two different genres I hope to present a wider, more nuanced snapshot of artist responses to space exploration during the Cold War.
ContributorsIvis, Andrea (Author) / Feisst, Sabine (Thesis advisor) / Wells, Christopher (Committee member) / Solís, Ted (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
The purpose of this thesis is to examine the events surrounding the creation of the oboe and its rapid spread throughout Europe during the mid to late seventeenth century. The first section describes similar instruments that existed for thousands of years before the invention of the oboe. The following sections examine reasons and methods for the oboe's invention, as well as possible causes of its migration from its starting place in France to other European countries, as well as many other places around the world. I conclude that the oboe was invented to suit the needs of composers in the court of Louis XIV, and that it was brought to other countries by French performers who left France for many reasons, including to escape from the authority of composer Jean-Baptiste Lully and in some cases to promote French culture in other countries.
ContributorsCook, Mary Katherine (Author) / Schuring, Martin (Thesis director) / Micklich, Albie (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences (Contributor) / School of Music (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
The American sublime aesthetic, discussed frequently in literature and art of the United States, is equally manifest in the nation’s symphonic music as a concurrent and complementary aesthetic. The musical application of the American sublime supports and enriches current scholarship on American musical identity, nationality, and the American symphonic enterprise. I suggest that the American sublime forms an integral part of nineteenth-century American music and is key to understanding the symphony as a genre in the United States. I discuss American symphonic works by Anthony Philip Heinrich, George Frederick Bristow, William Henry Fry, Dennison Wheelock, and Florence Beatrice Price, aided by an analytical tool which I developed, to illuminate my appraisal of the nineteenth-century American symphonic enterprise. Their compositions contribute meaningfully to the complex history of identity formation for both American composers and the nation. In focusing on these incorporations of the sublime by white composers and composers of color from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, my research demonstrates how the American sublime expanded and transformed to better accommodate the country’s diverse citizenry, despite the marginalization of some.
The nineteenth-century trans-Atlantic dialogue between Americans and their European contemporaries sustained a “distinctly cosmopolitan cultural ethos,” a phenomenon also described by Douglas Shadle as “one of the most vibrant intercultural exchanges in all of Western music history.” This dialogue shaped the cultural formation of identity for many American composers throughout the century and provided the foundation for a symphonic repertoire, which became internationally recognized for the first time as “American.” In this cosmopolitan environment, the Americanization of the sublime aided in the rebranding of long-established European artistic expressions like the symphony, while perpetuating the idealization of the nation’s geography, its people, and its beliefs. Perhaps most importantly, the American sublime supported the widely held belief in American exceptionalism and manifest destiny. The applicability of the American sublime to various genres made it a useful tool to assert autonomy and individuality in forms such as the symphony. For this reason, a revaluation of American symphonic music and its relation to the American sublime amplifies the significance of this repertoire.
The nineteenth-century trans-Atlantic dialogue between Americans and their European contemporaries sustained a “distinctly cosmopolitan cultural ethos,” a phenomenon also described by Douglas Shadle as “one of the most vibrant intercultural exchanges in all of Western music history.” This dialogue shaped the cultural formation of identity for many American composers throughout the century and provided the foundation for a symphonic repertoire, which became internationally recognized for the first time as “American.” In this cosmopolitan environment, the Americanization of the sublime aided in the rebranding of long-established European artistic expressions like the symphony, while perpetuating the idealization of the nation’s geography, its people, and its beliefs. Perhaps most importantly, the American sublime supported the widely held belief in American exceptionalism and manifest destiny. The applicability of the American sublime to various genres made it a useful tool to assert autonomy and individuality in forms such as the symphony. For this reason, a revaluation of American symphonic music and its relation to the American sublime amplifies the significance of this repertoire.
ContributorsHicks, Glen Wayne (Author) / Norton, Kay (Thesis advisor) / Feisst, Sabine (Committee member) / Solís, Ted (Committee member) / Shadle, Douglas W. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
This dissertation presents a multifaceted examination of the complex sociopolitical contexts of contemporary popular and classical music in Russia. By attending to the competing expectations of Russian creators, government officials, impresarios, critics, and listeners, it examines how contemporary musical artists have navigated the shifting nationalistic and popular moods of the past two decades.
I argue that popular music artists Olga Kormukhina and Polina Gagarina, composer Rodion Shchedrin, and the Mariinsky Theater have transformed the works of past artists, including Viktor Tsoi and Nikolai Leskov, updating them according to a popular demand for patriotic works that the Russian state has cultivated through its media outlets and official pronouncements on cultural policy. Other rock musicians (Konstantin Kinchev and the band Bi-2) have also transformed their political identities to match the present-day demands and expectations of either Russian officialdom or their particular Russian audiences. With the exception of Bi-2 (an ambiguous counterexample), all of these transformations have led to greater associations with nationalistic sentiments or fervent support for state agendas in the contemporary geopolitical arena.
Exploring the wide variety of styles and genres in this dissertation required a methodological versatility involving archival research, reception history, the analysis of musical scores and sound recordings, an examination of prose and poetic texts, and close study of visual imagery in music videos and onstage. The approach to reception history is the most groundbreaking, for it considers a wide range of digital sources, including blogs and social media comment threads, and makes use of language partner apps to augment the pool of informants, allowing conversation with Russians living outside the limited geographical range (St. Petersburg and Moscow) considered by previous studies. This holistic approach to contemporary reception history helps us to better understand how Russian audiences from diverse regions perceive these ongoing transformations.
I argue that popular music artists Olga Kormukhina and Polina Gagarina, composer Rodion Shchedrin, and the Mariinsky Theater have transformed the works of past artists, including Viktor Tsoi and Nikolai Leskov, updating them according to a popular demand for patriotic works that the Russian state has cultivated through its media outlets and official pronouncements on cultural policy. Other rock musicians (Konstantin Kinchev and the band Bi-2) have also transformed their political identities to match the present-day demands and expectations of either Russian officialdom or their particular Russian audiences. With the exception of Bi-2 (an ambiguous counterexample), all of these transformations have led to greater associations with nationalistic sentiments or fervent support for state agendas in the contemporary geopolitical arena.
Exploring the wide variety of styles and genres in this dissertation required a methodological versatility involving archival research, reception history, the analysis of musical scores and sound recordings, an examination of prose and poetic texts, and close study of visual imagery in music videos and onstage. The approach to reception history is the most groundbreaking, for it considers a wide range of digital sources, including blogs and social media comment threads, and makes use of language partner apps to augment the pool of informants, allowing conversation with Russians living outside the limited geographical range (St. Petersburg and Moscow) considered by previous studies. This holistic approach to contemporary reception history helps us to better understand how Russian audiences from diverse regions perceive these ongoing transformations.
ContributorsHillen, Shaun Patrick (Author) / Schmelz, Peter J. (Thesis advisor) / Manchester, Laurie (Committee member) / Saucier, Catherine (Committee member) / Solís, Ted (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
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
Traditional jazz refers specifically to iterations of New Orleans style jazz since its beginnings in the early 20th century. It has been labelled "Dixieland," "Classic Jazz," "New Orleans jazz," "Trad," or "Our Kind of Music (OKOM)" among other names. As a scholar-performer, I learned this style of music in my undergraduate studies in Provo, Utah and later taught it as a graduate student in Phoenix, Arizona. This research grows out of the challenges I encountered mediating between the academic institution, the non-academic tradition, and student needs. Combining musicological methods such as historiography and artifact analysis with reflexive ethnography and performance pedagogy more typical of other disciplines, I consider how educators might represent traditional jazz in a more culturally responsible way. To begin, I reference historical newspapers and oral histories to show how the labels of “Dixieland” and “traditional jazz” have evolved over time and taken on a variety of associations. Specifically, I note how the word “Dixieland” is problematic for the ways it reinforces nostalgic fantasies of the “old south” and prevents African Americans from participating without the oppressive and offensive stereotypes created by white minstrel entertainers. I then consider how prominent figures have established their authority to speak for traditional jazz by looking at several pedagogical artifacts for the style of traditional jazz drumming. I highlight how each of these artifacts’ authors present the subject and color their audience’s view of traditional jazz. Having analyzed these methods of genre definition, I discuss the tenuous place of traditional jazz within university jazz programs and its potential futures through interviews I conducted with jazz educators. These interviews focus on teaching traditional jazz within the academy and the potential for the jazz ensemble as a site of scholar-performer interdisciplinary collaboration. Finally, following models of reflexive ethnography established by ethnomusicologists leading world music ensembles, I analyze my own experience teaching traditional jazz ensembles. My synthesis of methods from musicology, ethnomusicology, music education, and jazz performance departments serves as an important bridge between these disciplines, and in turn, improves jazz instruction, offers insight into genre definition, and illuminates how institutional structures shape the subject.
ContributorsWiggins, Zachary Thomas (Author) / Wells, Christi Jay (Thesis advisor) / Norton, Kay (Committee member) / Solís, Ted (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
Dr. SoonAe Kim was one of the first Korean female composers to contribute substantial works for kagok, or the Korean art song. In 1920, the year she was born, Korean society was undergoing critical changes throughout the nation as a result of wars, colonization, and political upheaval. Due to these circumstances, Dr. Kim had to deal with multiple unexpected events like most Korean people had during the period. The experiences she faced tremendously influenced her musical identity and composition. This paper will examine three significant factors, such as Christianity, the Korean War, and kagok (Korean Art Song), that affected Dr. Kim’s professional musical identity and composition. Christianity helped her to affirm her independent and brave identity as a female composer and Christian hymn gave numerous inspiration to her music. The Korean War gave her the strength and ability to overcome extreme hardship. It also gave her deep empathy for Korean people and their experiences, which affected the atmosphere in her music. Lastly, kagok, the art form for which she received her greatest enthusiasm, became her main power for encouraging Korean people’s spirits to recover a peaceful and stable life. SoonAe Kim dealt with her despairs bravely throughout her entire life and successfully overcame them with her music and became an irreplaceable figure in Korean Western-music history. I heartily believe it is essential to study her musical identity and unique compositional style, especially in kagok, to appreciate SoonAe Kim’s importance as a significant female musician.
This document will also serve as a performance guide for non-Korean singers and musicians who want to perform Korean art songs yet are hindered by the language and cultural barrier. This performance guide includes the International Phonetic Alphabet for the Korean language, companion pronunciation recordings, and a brief musical analysis. The performance guide will encourage better access and performances of Korean art songs by foreign artists and singers who are not familiar with the Korean language and bring kagok and SoonAe Kim into the universal art song canon.
ContributorsYun, Yijeong Isabel (Author) / Weiss, Stephanie (Thesis advisor) / Mills, Robert (Committee member) / Solís, Ted (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021