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Bright Summer, a one-movement piece for orchestra, was composed in Arizona, and completed in February 2013. The piece is approximately twelve minutes long. The motivation for writing this piece was the death of my mother the year before, in 2012. The prevailing mood of this work is bright and pleasant,

Bright Summer, a one-movement piece for orchestra, was composed in Arizona, and completed in February 2013. The piece is approximately twelve minutes long. The motivation for writing this piece was the death of my mother the year before, in 2012. The prevailing mood of this work is bright and pleasant, expressing my mother's cheerful personality when she was alive. It also portrays bright summer days which resemble my mother's spirit. Thus, soundscape plays an important role in this work. It depicts summer breeze, rustling sounds of leaves, and, to translate a Korean saying, "high blue skies." This soundscape opens the piece as well as closes it. In the middle section, the fast upbeat themes represent my mother's witty and optimistic personality. The piece also contains the presence of a hymn tune, The Love of God is Greater Far, which informs the motivic content and also functions as the climax of the piece. It was my mother's favorite hymn and we used to sing it together following her conversion to Christianity. The piece contains three main sections, which are held together by transitional material based on the soundscape and metric modulations. Unlike my earlier works, Bright Summer is tonal, with upper tertian harmonies prevailing throughout the piece. However, the opening and closing soundscapes do not have functional harmonies. For example, tertian chords appear and vanish silently, leaving behind some resonant sounds without any harmonic progression. Overall, the whole piece is reminiscent of my mother who lived a beautiful life.
ContributorsKim, JeeYeon (Composer) / DeMars, James (Thesis advisor) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Committee member) / Rogers, Rodney (Committee member) / Levy, Benjamin (Committee member) / Rockmaker, Jody (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
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Description
Three Meditations on the Philosophy of Boethius is a musical piece for guitar, piano interior, and computer. Each of the three movements, or meditations, reflects one level of music according to the medieval philosopher Boethius: Musica Mundana, Musica Humana, and Musica Instrumentalis. From spatial aspects, through the human element, to

Three Meditations on the Philosophy of Boethius is a musical piece for guitar, piano interior, and computer. Each of the three movements, or meditations, reflects one level of music according to the medieval philosopher Boethius: Musica Mundana, Musica Humana, and Musica Instrumentalis. From spatial aspects, through the human element, to letting sound evolve freely, different movements revolve around different sounds and sound producing techniques.
ContributorsDori, Gil (Contributor) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Thesis advisor) / DeMars, James (Committee member) / Feisst, Sabine (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
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Description
Numerous orchestral reductions for piano are plagued by cumbersome passages that impede pianists from delivering phrases with flow and elegance. The vocal works of George Frideric Handel (1685–1759) and Richard Wagner (1813–1883) are among the more unwieldy of these. While arrangers of the piano vocal scores by these two composers

Numerous orchestral reductions for piano are plagued by cumbersome passages that impede pianists from delivering phrases with flow and elegance. The vocal works of George Frideric Handel (1685–1759) and Richard Wagner (1813–1883) are among the more unwieldy of these. While arrangers of the piano vocal scores by these two composers admirably include as much orchestration as possible, their efforts often result in writing that is not idiomatic for the piano. The frustrating difficulties in the orchestral reductions of Handel’s “Empio, dirò, tu sei” (Giulio Cesare), his Messiah chorus “For unto us a child is born” as well as Wagner’s aria “Du bist der Lenz” (Die Walküre) all plead for a new, fresh arrangement for the working pianist. Concerning itself with the formation of one’s hands, stamina preservation, and the need to give proper support to the singers, this paper makes examples of these three pieces to document and justify the steps and techniques one may take to customize both these and any variety of orchestral reductions. With great emphasis on the methodology of rewriting operatic and choral orchestral reductions, this document presents newly arranged note–for–note piano vocal scores of the above arias and chorus. By customizing and rewriting complex scores, our partners benefit by singing above the identical accompaniment every time. It is the intent that the collaborative pianist can apply these methods to future rewrites, with the result of producing scores that are conducive to proper technique and flow.
ContributorsPeterman, Jeremy Patrick (Author) / Campbell, Andrew (Thesis advisor) / FitzPatrick, Carole (Committee member) / Oldani, Robert (Committee member) / Reber, William (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
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Description
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born July 18, 1918 into the Madiba clan in Mvezo, Transkei, South Africa. Mandela was a lawyer by trade and a freedom fighter who envisioned freedom and equality for all South Africans regardless of race. In 1965, Mandela was imprisoned at Robben Island for twenty-seven years

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born July 18, 1918 into the Madiba clan in Mvezo, Transkei, South Africa. Mandela was a lawyer by trade and a freedom fighter who envisioned freedom and equality for all South Africans regardless of race. In 1965, Mandela was imprisoned at Robben Island for twenty-seven years for treason and terrorist activities against the South African apartheid regime: he was assigned prison numbers 46664. In 1992, Mandela was released from prison and two years later not only became the first democratically elected president of South Africa, but also its first black president. "Madiba 46664" is an eight-minute chamber work scored for flute, oboe, clarinet in B-flat, and bassoon; vibraphone, and two percussionists; piano; violins, violas, and celli. The work blends traditional South African rhythms of the drumming culture with elements of Western harmony and form in contrasting textures of homophony, polyphony and antiphony. "Madiba 46664" utilizes Mandela's prison number, birthdate and age (at the time the composition process began in 2013) for the initial generation of meter, rhythm, harmony, melody, and form. The work also shares intercultural concepts that can be seen in the works of three contemporary African composers, South Africans Jeanne Zaidel-Rudolph and Andile Khumalo, and Nigerian Ayo Oluranti. Each section represents a period of Mandela's life as a freedom fighter, a prisoner, and a president. The inspiration stems from the composer's discussions with Mandela soon after his release from prison and prior to his presidency. These lively discussions pertained to the state of traditional music in then apartheid South Africa and led to this creation. The conversations also played a role in the creative process.
ContributorsMabingnai, Collette Sipho (Composer) / DeMars, James (Thesis advisor) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Committee member) / Humphreys, Jere (Committee member) / Rockmaker, Jody (Committee member) / Rogers, Rodney (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
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Description
Piano Quintet> is a three movement piece, inspired by music of Eastern Europe. Sunrise in Hungary starts with a legato song in the first violin unfolding over slow moving sustained harmonics in the rest of the strings. This is contrasted with a lively Hungarian dance which starts in the piano

Piano Quintet> is a three movement piece, inspired by music of Eastern Europe. Sunrise in Hungary starts with a legato song in the first violin unfolding over slow moving sustained harmonics in the rest of the strings. This is contrasted with a lively Hungarian dance which starts in the piano and jumps throughout all of the voices. Armenian Lament introduces a mournful melody performed over a subtly shifting pedal tone in the cello. The rest of the voices are slowly introduced until the movement builds into a canonic threnody. Evening in Bulgaria borrows from the vast repertoire of Bulgarian dances, including rhythms from the horo and rachenitsa. Each time that the movement returns to the primary theme, it incorporates aspects of the dance that directly preceded it. The final return is the crux of the piece, with the first violin playing a virtuosic ornaments run on the melody.
ContributorsGiese, Adam (Composer) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Thesis advisor) / DeMars, James (Committee member) / Feisst, Sabine (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
I am interested in performance that includes multiple artistic media. I am looking for a way to communicate with other artists that can clearly express the meaning of an artistic gesture that they can interpret for their medium. I wish to make transmedia performance art with a meaning that is

I am interested in performance that includes multiple artistic media. I am looking for a way to communicate with other artists that can clearly express the meaning of an artistic gesture that they can interpret for their medium. I wish to make transmedia performance art with a meaning that is clear to an audience. That meaning can be abstract. Sometimes we call art "abstract" to imply that it has no perceivable meaning. However, everything has meaning. Even if a piece of art does not have narrative meaning, we can still perceive a structure. That is thanks to our imagination. Imagination is our way of making sense of our experience. I believe that if I can identify some of the imaginative structures through which I perceive and understand my own work, I can use those structures to annotate or organize scores for improvised performance pieces. I am interested in how we understand art. One theory of understanding, which comes from Mark Johnson, involves "image schemata." Image schemata (sing. schema) are basic, abstract structures that we develop based on what we perceive from our physical interactions with the environment. We project these structures that come from a physical domain onto the mental domain. Johnson calls this process "metaphorical projection," and he calls our ability to do this "imagination." By metaphorically projecting image schemata from one domain to another, we form meaning of our experiences, and thus contribute to our understanding of the world. I believe that I can use image schemata to explain the meanings inherent in the art I make and to explain the connections in meaning between one artistic medium to another. I wish to apply this in a transmedia performance setting. First, I will analyze previous transmedia works in terms of image schemata. Second, I will make a score using image schemata for an improvised performance. Third, I will reflect on the results of attempting to rehearse that score.
ContributorsLevy, Luis Alejandro (Author) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Committee member) / Ingalls, Todd (Committee member) / Ziegler, Christian (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
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Description
THE PEACOCK FLIES SOUTHEAST is a work for Qudi and orchestra inspired by an ancient Chinese love story of the same title. The Qudi is also known as the "Chinese bamboo flute." It is similar to the Western piccolo. However, it has open tone holes with greater ability to bend

THE PEACOCK FLIES SOUTHEAST is a work for Qudi and orchestra inspired by an ancient Chinese love story of the same title. The Qudi is also known as the "Chinese bamboo flute." It is similar to the Western piccolo. However, it has open tone holes with greater ability to bend pitches. The Qudi sounds one octave above the written music with arrange from A4 to G7.
ContributorsLi, Wanchen (Composer) (Composer) / DeMars, James (Thesis advisor) / Feisst, Sabine (Committee member) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
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Description
Since 1999, a small group of groundbreaking orchestral works for turntables and orchestra has surfaced on the concert stage. These compositions explore the possibilities of the turntables and invite an intriguing fusion of musical cultures of the classically trained musician and the hip-hop DJ. Since DJ turntablists typically follow an

Since 1999, a small group of groundbreaking orchestral works for turntables and orchestra has surfaced on the concert stage. These compositions explore the possibilities of the turntables and invite an intriguing fusion of musical cultures of the classically trained musician and the hip-hop DJ. Since DJ turntablists typically follow an improvised tradition and do not read music, the composer must find an effective means of notating the turntables and collaborate with the turntablist in the execution of the work. As interest in turntables composition grows, there is a need for discussion and a compositional guide with advice based on present day works. In effort to contribute a guide for turntablism composition, my research includes a historical and composer perspective that discusses turntables techniques, operation of the equipment, digital technology, hip-hop background, history of the instrument, and works of the past and present with musical excerpts pertaining to the notation and use of the turntables. Specific sources include: RPM by Nicole Lizée, Concerto for Trumpet, Turntables, and Orchestra by Paul Leary, Concerto for Turntables and Orchestra by Gabriel Prokofiev, and Stephen Webber's turntable method book The Art of the DJ Turntable Technique. Interviews with composers Prokofiev, Lizée, and Leary have provided important primary source information regarding their experience with turntablism composition and performance. Unrelated to the above research and attached as an appendix, my composition Andrew's Ritual for Bedtime for chamber orchestra is a single movement for choreographed dance that depicts a mother preparing her energetic young son for bed. The title references the nightly rituals parents undertake in order to prepare their children for bedtime.
ContributorsOuper, Jeffrey Thomas (Author) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Thesis advisor) / Standley, Eileen (Committee member) / Feisst, Sabine (Committee member) / DeMars, James (Committee member) / Rockmaker, Jody (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
Venezuelan maraca playing is largely unknown to musicians with Western Art Music backgrounds. While some composers utilize the instrument and its associated performance practices, the resources available to learn about the subject are limited and scattered. Through research, observations, and studying with correspondences, this document will explore the vastness of

Venezuelan maraca playing is largely unknown to musicians with Western Art Music backgrounds. While some composers utilize the instrument and its associated performance practices, the resources available to learn about the subject are limited and scattered. Through research, observations, and studying with correspondences, this document will explore the vastness of Venezuelan musical concepts and maraca techniques to seek out common goals and generate a resource that is accessible to musicians and musicologists. A large part of this research will focus on the Contemporary Music in the Western tradition that has been inspired by Venezuelan maraca playing. I will explain the context in which this music is commonly found and how to apply it to a contemporary setting. The individuals I interviewed span a variety of backgrounds and expertise. All have extensive experience in Venezuelan maraca traditions. Their individual points of view will give unique perspectives to help affix the music of the past to the creation of music in the future. The limited resources on this subject inhibit education, performance quality, new music, and further research. Ultimately, my document and recordings will provide imperative examples to help develop a greater understanding of an understudied Venezuelan art form.
ContributorsMuller, Jeremy (Author) / Smith, Jeffrey (Thesis advisor) / Kocour, Michael (Committee member) / Bush, Jeffrey (Committee member) / Sunkett, Mark (Committee member) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
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Description
The music of Johann Sebastian Bach has long been used for keyboard percussion pedagogy and performance. The cello suites (BWV 1007-1012), in particular, are popular choices for marimbists. As with many transcriptions for marimba, performers are challenged to transfer Bach's musical genius onto an instrument whose timbre, range, mode of

The music of Johann Sebastian Bach has long been used for keyboard percussion pedagogy and performance. The cello suites (BWV 1007-1012), in particular, are popular choices for marimbists. As with many transcriptions for marimba, performers are challenged to transfer Bach's musical genius onto an instrument whose timbre, range, mode of execution and acoustic properties are distinctly different from the original. To date, there is no concise and relevant edition of the suites for study and performance at the marimba. The edition contained herein solves most, if not all, of the problems normally confronted by marimbists. In addition to synthesizing the most salient information from early manuscript sources and modern performances, this edition corrects the harmonic and voiceleading problems that are caused by the polyphonic limitations of the cello. This edition also eliminates performance notations found in most cello editions which are of little use to a marimbist.
ContributorsSallak, William Leslie (Author) / Smith, J. B. (Thesis advisor) / Sunkett, Mark (Committee member) / Hackbarth, Glenn (Committee member) / Bush, Jeffrey (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010