Matching Items (8)
Description
Arnold Schoenberg's 1908-09 song cycle, Das Buch der hängenden Gärten [The Book of the Hanging Gardens], opus 15, represents one of his most decisive early steps into the realm of musical modernism. In the midst of personal and artistic crises, Schoenberg set texts by Stefan George in a style he called "pantonality," and described his composition as radically new. Though stylistically progressive, however, Schoenberg's musical achievement had certain ideologically conservative roots: the composer numbered among turn-of-the-century Viennese artists and thinkers whose opposition to the conventional and the popular--in favor of artistic autonomy and creativity--concealed a reactionary misogyny. A critical reading of Hanging Gardens through the lens of gender reveals that Schoenberg, like many of his contemporaries, incorporated strong frauenfeindlich [anti-women] elements into his work, through his modernist account of artistic creativity, his choice of texts, and his musical settings. Although elements of Hanging Gardens' atonal music suggest that Schoenberg valued gendered-feminine principles in his compositional style, a closer analysis of the work's musical language shows an intact masculinist hegemony. Through his deployment of uncanny tonal reminiscences, underlying tonal gestures, and closed forms in Hanging Gardens, Schoenberg ensures that the feminine-associated "excesses" of atonality remain under masculine control. This study draws upon the critical musicology of Susan McClary while arguing that Schoenberg's music is socially contingent, affected by the gender biases of his social and literary milieux. It addresses likely influences on Schoenberg's worldview including the philosophy of Otto Weininger, Freudian psychoanalysis, and a complex web of personal relationships. Finally, this analysis highlights the relevance of Schoenberg's world and its constructions of gender to modern performance practice, and argues that performers must consider interrelated historical, textual, and musical factors when interpreting Hanging Gardens in new contexts.
ContributorsGinger, Kerry Anne (Author) / FitzPatrick, Carole (Thesis advisor) / Dreyfoos, Dale (Committee member) / Mook, Richard (Committee member) / Norton, Kay (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Despite a quickly growing repertoire list for the brass quintet, the music of the early Argentine tango has remained relatively neglected by brass quintet arrangers and performers. With the goal of bringing a neglected art form to the brass quintet repertoire, three arrangements based on early twentieth century Argentine tango songs are presented here: "Elegante Papirusa" by Tito Roccatagliata, "A La Gran Muñeca" by Jesús Ventura, and "La Cotorrita" by Samuel Castriota. The arrangements follow the style of three early recordings produced by The Victor Talking Machine in 1920 and 1922, as performed by two authentic Argentine orquesta típicas: Orquesta Típica Select and Orquesta Típica Fresedo. A brief history of the style and instrumental evolution of tango music from its influences and origins up until 1920 is discussed, followed by a detailed account of the musicians and circumstances involved in the three early recordings. An explanation of the issues encountered by the author in adapting the early tango style to the brass quintet setting is discussed, along with the solutions realized in order to make the project successful and practical for a moderately advanced brass quintet. The full brass quintet scores are provided as part of the Appendix.
ContributorsCamacho, Gustavo (Musician) (Author) / Ericson, John Q (Thesis advisor) / Pilafian, Samuel (Committee member) / Schuring, Martin (Committee member) / Campbell, Andrew (Committee member) / Rockmaker, Jody (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
The name of Geechie Wiley has surfaced only rarely since 1931, when she recorded her second session with the Paramount Company in Grafton, WI. A few scholars including Paul Oliver and Greil Marcus unearthed and promoted her music and called for further research on this enigmatic figure. In other publications, Wiley is frequently given only passing mention in long lists of talented female blues singer-guitarists, or briefly discussed in descriptions of songsters. Her music is lauded in the liner notes of the myriad compilation albums that have re-released her recordings. However, prior to this study, Marcus's three-page profile is the longest work written about Wiley; other contributions range between one sentence and two paragraphs in length. None really answers the question: who was Geechie Wiley? This thesis begins by documenting my attempt to piece together all information presently available on Geechie Wiley. A biographical chapter, supplemented with a discussion of the blues songster, follows. I then discuss my methodology and philosophy for transcription. This is followed by a critical and comparative analysis of the recordings, using the transcriptions as supplements. Finally, my fifth chapter presents conclusions about Wiley's life, career, and disappearance. My transcriptions of Wiley's six songs are found in the first appendix. Reproductions of Paramount Records advertisements are located in the final appendix. In these ways, this thesis argues that Wiley's work traces the transformation of African-American music from the general secular music of the songsters to the iconic blues genre.
ContributorsCordeiro, AnneMarie Youell (Author) / Norton, Kay (Thesis advisor) / Mook, Richard (Committee member) / Sunkett, Mark (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
The purpose of this project was to: (1) describe a brief history of Salvation Army works for euphonium and piano that are relevant to the larger euphonium repertoire, and (2) produce a professional-quality compact disc recording of these works for study and reference. Part I of this project is an annotated bibliography discussing selected works for euphonium and piano written exclusively by Salvation Army composers. Each bibliographic entry is accompanied by a brief annotation, including information on each composer, hymn tunes used in each work, and difficulties encountered in performance. Part II of this project consists of a professional-level recording of these works. The recording and bibliography is intended to serve as a reference guide for students and teachers of Salvation Army euphonium literature, and is also intended to serve as a pedagogical tool utilized in the development of high school and university-level euphonium students. Five solos and one duet with piano accompaniment were selected for this project, works that represent a wide variety of Salvation Army compositional styles. The works also cover a wide range of technical and musical challenges, and are appropriate for study by both undergraduate and graduate students of music. All of the works are currently in publication as of this writing. The following works are included in this project: "The Song of the Brother" by Erik Leidzén, "Ransomed" by George Marshall, "Ochills" by Ernest Rance, "The Better World" by Norman Bearcroft, "Symphonic Rhapsody for Euphonium" by Edward Gregson, and "Timepiece" by Norman Bearcroft.
ContributorsDraper, Andrew (Author) / Pilafian, Samuel (Thesis advisor) / Hickman, David (Committee member) / Mook, Richard (Committee member) / Humphreys, Jere (Committee member) / Hill, Gary (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
DescriptionThe project analyzes the history of indie music and culture, and how the aesthetic has been undermined by the modern music industry. The project discusses rhetorical theory on the nature of publics, including group identification through rhetorical discourse as expressed through indie culture.
ContributorsBisbee, Evan Owens (Author) / Lamp, Kathleen (Thesis director) / Mook, Richard (Committee member) / Berry, Shavawn (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
The combination of soprano, trumpet, strings and continuo was used with much frequency by Baroque composers in their cantatas, oratorios and operas of the time, giving the trumpet a very important place as a solo instrument from 1600 to 1750. The discovery of two pieces by Neapolitan Baroque composers Domenico Sarro (1679-1744) and Gennaro Manna (1715-1779) enlarges the already important body of known works for this instrumentation. Presenting them in performance editions is a valuable contribution to this repertory. Making performance editions available to performers is always an important and exciting task, especially if they exhibit features that have rarely been seen in this combination of instruments and voices. This is specifically the case with Manna's Tuba Sonora Exclama, which shows many interesting features of the Early Classical style. Both works were discovered by the author in a digital archive sponsored by the Ministry of Heritage and Culture for the Italian Government. The original copies of these works are held at two Neapolitan libraries: Biblioteca Statale Oratoriana del Monumento Nazionale del Girolamini (Manna's piece), and Biblioteca del Conservatorio di musica San Pietro a Majella (Sarro's Per abbattere il mio core, from his opera Partenope.) The manuscripts, obtained in digital format, are well preserved and easy to understand. Along with the scores prepared for this document, some historical background about each composer, a discussion of the use of the trumpet as a solo instrument in arias with voice, and descriptions of the pieces are presented. Other important information, such as editorial procedures and critical notes, is also given.
ContributorsAraya, Luis Miguel (Author) / Hickman, David R (Thesis advisor) / Pilafian, Samuel (Committee member) / Hill, Gary W. (Committee member) / Rogers, Rodney (Committee member) / Bailey, Wayne A (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
De Oriendo is a project devoted to a better understanding of the word "original" as it pertains to musical composition. It began as a way for me to try to tackle a twofold fascination that has been with me for the duration of my time at ASU, though I have not always been aware of it. The first half of this fascination is an enduring interest in tracing borrowed material used by composers and other artists throughout history. It seems that almost every research project I have undertaken in the last four years has had something to do with this concept. Scholars like Winton Dean, J. Peter Burkholder, and Sigmund Spaeth have spent parts of their careers charting out the genealogy of historical compositions, uncovering reused melodies and harmonic progressions in the process; the cases of it are countless, even among the most identifiable composers and songwriters. Since there is scholarship clearly demonstrating secondhand ideas in music, it becomes problematic to assume that the word "original" simply describes something completely new, that is, something that does not use material heard or seen before. The second half is more of a personal ambition: I thought that if I truly knew what composers and critics meant when they labeled a piece or an artist as original, then I could somehow find a way to achieve this distinction in my own attempts at composition and avoid that uninteresting, derivative sound I have always feared.
ContributorsLang, Jonathan (Author) / Levy, Benjamin (Thesis director) / Mook, Richard (Committee member) / Rockmaker, Jody (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts (Contributor)
Created2012-12
Description
The purpose of this project was to provide a pedagogical resource for students and teachers to utilize when preparing six standard formative pieces from the euphonium repertoire. The guided practice sections are written in plain English with several instances of first person writing to explain certain concepts in a less formal way. This was done so that any teacher, regardless of level could help a younger, more inexperienced student. In addition, the sections of guided practice were written to help those teachers who may or may not be intimately familiar with the works chosen. The recording was designed to present the music in current published format, with no improvisation by the soloist. The solos that were chosen are either college preparatory pieces, or formative works for the younger collegiate musician. All of the pieces included are published, and as of September 2010, available for purchase. The works included are: Six Studies in English Folk Song, by Ralph Vaughan Williams, ed. Paul Droste, Introduction and Dance, by J. Edouard Barat, ed. Glenn Smith, Andante et Allegro, by Joseph- Guy Ropartz, ed. Shapiro, Sonata for Unaccompanied Euphonium (or Trombone), by Fred L. Clinard, Jr., Suite for Baritone, by Don Haddad, and Andante and Rondo, by Antonio Capuzzi, ed. Philip Catelinet.
ContributorsStuckemeyer, Pat (Author) / Pilafian, Samuel (Thesis advisor) / Ericson, John Q. (Committee member) / Rogers, Rodney (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010