Tales from the Amusement Park is a collection of songs in the musical theatre style with music and lyrics by Matt Villar. The song cycle illustrates a series of vignettes, with each song featuring a different archetypal character (or group thereof) as they navigate a day in a popular amusement park. The project is written for piano and voices, and is most-suited to twelve or fewer voices. The debut performance occurred on March 26 in the Evelyn Smith Music Theatre, and featured twelve singers and one pianist. The cycle aims to connect the audience through the demonstration of "human moments" which are widely relatable, while also introducing them to unique and interesting characters.

For my thesis I chose to complete a creative project. This project was to start my very own vocal studio as a vocal instructor. I began by researching different business components, such as, policies, contracts, pricing, websites, etc. I then used this research to form my own policies, contracts and social pages. I also took a survey of vocal students at ASU, with IRB approval, that covered what they have liked or disliked bout past and urgent vocal lessons, any advice they had fr me, and different singing techniques that they found to be helpful. After completing this I recruited students and began teaching. Half way through teaching I surveyed my sunsets, with IRB approval to find out what they enjoyed or disliked about lessons and then repeated this survey at the end to see if improvement was made. I followed this up with a survey and a summary of everything learned and discussed.

In this paper, I propose that taking an embodied approach to music performance can allow for better gestural control over the live sound produced and greater connection between the performer and their audience. I examine the many possibilities of live electronic manipulation of the voice such as those employed by past and current vocalists who specialize in live electronic sound manipulation and improvisation. Through extensive research and instrument design, I have sought to produce something that will benefit me in my performances as a vocalist and help me step out from the boundaries of traditional music performance. I will discuss the techniques used for the creation of my gestural instrument through the lens of my experiences as a performer using these tools. I believe that, through use of movement and gesture in the creation and control of sound, it is more than possible to step away from conventional ideas of live vocal performance and create something new and unique, especially through the inclusion of improvisation.