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Title: "Chant and Be Happy": Music, Beauty, and Celebration in a Utah Hare Krishna Community.
Creator: Black, Sara, Koen, Benjamin, Gunderson, Frank, Uzendoski, Michael, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: One of the primary aspects of Hare Krishna worship is the practice of kirtan, or the musical chanting of sacred texts with particular emphasis on the Maha Mantra, a mantra composed of names for Krishna. Devotees teach that chanting Krishna's name constitutes a literal communion with him. Adding music to the chanting of these sacred words adds a dimension of beauty and celebration reflective of the personality of Krishna, who is known as "the All-Attractive." This thesis explores three aspects...
Show moreOne of the primary aspects of Hare Krishna worship is the practice of kirtan, or the musical chanting of sacred texts with particular emphasis on the Maha Mantra, a mantra composed of names for Krishna. Devotees teach that chanting Krishna's name constitutes a literal communion with him. Adding music to the chanting of these sacred words adds a dimension of beauty and celebration reflective of the personality of Krishna, who is known as "the All-Attractive." This thesis explores three aspects of Hare Krishna kirtan. First is the theological aspect of kirtan, the system of beliefs which give purpose to the practice of chant. Next is the personal, experiential aspect of kirtan, including the emotional intensity of the music, its ability to develop a sense of relationship between devotee and deity, and its potential as a transformative experience, lifting the devotee from the mundane physical world to the realm of spiritual experience. Last is the social aspect of kirtan, as chanting is used to spread the message of Krishna Consciousness and to provide opportunities for members of different social and religious groups to celebrate together. I will focus on the musical activities at the Sri Sri Radha Krishna temple in Spanish Fork, Utah, in order to demonstrate the power of music as a catalyst for religious experience and an agent of transformation for individuals and communities.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3710
Format: Thesis

Title: "Classicality" in Gustav Mahler's Symphonies.
Creator: Matic, Dragana, Seaton, Douglass, Kite-Powell, Jeffery, Brewer, Charles, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This study explores Mahler's incorporation of general or specific references to musical Classicism and early Romanticism in his symphonic works. It also establishes proper terminology for such references, which emerges as a problem in the research of this topic. The thesis articulates all types of conventions recognized in Mahler's symphonies: the conventional symphonic cycle, traditional forms, periodic phrase structures, dance character with an intermezzo function in inner movements,...
Show moreThis study explores Mahler's incorporation of general or specific references to musical Classicism and early Romanticism in his symphonic works. It also establishes proper terminology for such references, which emerges as a problem in the research of this topic. The thesis articulates all types of conventions recognized in Mahler's symphonies: the conventional symphonic cycle, traditional forms, periodic phrase structures, dance character with an intermezzo function in inner movements, diatonic harmony, simple homophonic texture, and reduction of the orchestral forces. It identifies the nature of Mahler's references to the past as subtle or profound deformations of the conventions. It shows different combinations of tradition and modernity in several examples and reveals their possible functions. The conclusions are based not only on analytical observation, but also on the programmatic inspiration, biographical facts, ideas that the composer communicated with friends and colleagues, and on the comparison of Mahler's symphonies to the related song cycles. The thesis also shows a possible influence of Vienna's cultural and political life on Mahler's classicality. The most influential elements are the paradoxical conservatism of the Liberals' cultural practices and nostalgia reflected in the architectural style of the Ringstrasse, a complex of buildings built around the city. The archaic nature of its style was a reflection of the cultural values that could influence Mahler's development.
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2674
Format: Thesis

Title: "Every Word Is a Song, Every Step Is a Dance": Participation, Agency, and the Expression of Communal Bliss in Hare Krishna Festival Kirtan.
Creator: Brown, Sara, Bakan, Michael, Erndl, Kathleen, Gunderson, Frank, Van Glahn, Denise, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The International Society for Krishna Consciousness, commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement, offers a highly accessible approach to Indian spirituality in contemporary American culture. Among the most intriguing facets of Hare Krishna practice are the prevalence of celebration and the use of activities such as singing, dancing, and feasting as expressions of faith. The dominant musical practice of the Hare Krishna movement is kirtan, the call-and-response performance of sacred devotional...
Show moreThe International Society for Krishna Consciousness, commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement, offers a highly accessible approach to Indian spirituality in contemporary American culture. Among the most intriguing facets of Hare Krishna practice are the prevalence of celebration and the use of activities such as singing, dancing, and feasting as expressions of faith. The dominant musical practice of the Hare Krishna movement is kirtan, the call-and-response performance of sacred devotional chants. According to Hare Krishna belief, kirtan can be a vehicle to spiritual realization and communion with the divine. In the context of public celebration, kirtan may also serve as a performance of the bliss promised by Krishna philosophy and an invitation to listeners to take part. This dissertation examines kirtan as a tool in the mediation of social encounters by considering elements of devotion, participation, and agency in musical performances at four festivals: two Rath Yatra parades in New York City and Los Angeles that take the practices of Krishna worship into public spaces; the Festival of the Holy Name in Alachua, Florida, which involves deep immersion in the process of singing kirtan; and the Festival of Colors in Spanish Fork, Utah, during which a large crowd consisting almost entirely of those not affiliated with the Krishna movement nevertheless gathers to participate in a weekend of Krishna-oriented musicking. I posit that the participatory nature of kirtan as performed in a celebratory context serves to negotiate issues of personal and social identity both within the Krishna movement and in encounters with those outside of it. I further argue that kirtan has the potential to create experiences that are perceived as being personally and spiritually meaningful not only to adherents to Krishna consciousness, but to those who ascribe to differing belief systems but nevertheless find elements of common spiritual experience within the kirtan process.
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Date Issued: 2012
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-5323
Format: Thesis

Title: "He Knew That a Valley Was a Culture": W.S. Mason and the Formation of a Musical Community in Charleston, West Virginia, 1906-1956.
Creator: Kahre, Sarah E., Van Glahn, Denise, Brewer, Charles E., Bakan, Michael B., College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: There are many examples of small communities where members of the population took action to fill a cultural void; one is Charleston, West Virginia. A critical figure in the development of Charleston's active performing community was William Sandheger Mason (1873-1941), founder of the Mason College of Music and Fine Arts. Both through the influence of his school and his own performing and conducting in the 1910s and 1920s, Mason established a taste for European art music in the rapidly growing...
Show moreThere are many examples of small communities where members of the population took action to fill a cultural void; one is Charleston, West Virginia. A critical figure in the development of Charleston's active performing community was William Sandheger Mason (1873-1941), founder of the Mason College of Music and Fine Arts. Both through the influence of his school and his own performing and conducting in the 1910s and 1920s, Mason established a taste for European art music in the rapidly growing city. Although most of the organizations he founded failed during the Great Depression, Mason's school continued to influence the area well after his death. Additionally, Mason facilitated the successes of the organizations that serve the area today by establishing a base of both performers and concertgoers.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3372
Format: Thesis

Title: "It's Not My Imagination, I've Got a Gun on My Back!": Style and Sound in Early American Hardcore Punk, 1978-1983.
Creator: Easley, David B., Clendinning, Jane Piper, Gunderson, Frank, Kraus, Joseph, Shaftel, Matthew, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Despite being the focus of studies in fields such as ethnomusicology, cultural studies, philosophy, and history, punk rock—and American hardcore punk rock in particular—has yet to fall under the analytical gaze of music theorists. In this dissertation I aim to fill this gap by examining some typical stylistic practices in hardcore punk, a repertoire described as aggressive, reflecting energy and intensity, and driven by an impulse toward brevity of song forms. In order to capture these...
Show moreDespite being the focus of studies in fields such as ethnomusicology, cultural studies, philosophy, and history, punk rock—and American hardcore punk rock in particular—has yet to fall under the analytical gaze of music theorists. In this dissertation I aim to fill this gap by examining some typical stylistic practices in hardcore punk, a repertoire described as aggressive, reflecting energy and intensity, and driven by an impulse toward brevity of song forms. In order to capture these elements, I examine instrument-specific items, such as drum patterns and guitar/bass riffs, as well as how repetitions of these play into creating form. Further, as the primary texts of hardcore are recordings, I also delve into matters of recording attributes. I argue that each of these items is integral in defining hardcore as a musical genre. While the first incarnation of hardcore took place from the late-1970s to the mid-1980s and included a number of bands, I focus on early hardcore (roughly 1978–1983) and on four main bands: Black Flag, Bad Brains, Minor Threat, and the Dead Kennedys. I begin the dissertation by examining previous studies of hardcore music, of which there are very few. Following this, I briefly outline some of the main characteristics of the genre before presenting a history of each main band, via their discography. Chapter Two turns to the construction of drum patterns and what I call "riff schemes": patterns of physical motion on the guitar that form the basis of several types of riffs. Further, this type of kinesthetic focus also informs my examination of common melodic and harmonic features of hardcore riffs, as I engage these patterns on a guitar's fretboard. Chapter Three moves to larger aspects of form and addresses the components of individual formal sections, such as verses and choruses. Previous literature devoted to form in popular music supplies definitions, but many are too restrictive for application to hardcore; thus, I frame my own understandings by seeking out the main elements of each section—as identified by others—and shape them to reflect hardcore practice. Chapter Four examines recording attributes; in particular, I discuss the spatial aspects of recordings, with a brief foray into timbre. Recordings reflect several dimensions, including width (the placement and total spread of instruments on a horizontal plane); depth (the placement and total spread of instruments on a receding plane, as well as their placement in a performance environment); and height (the placement of instruments on a vertical plane, which measures high to low and is based upon frequency spectra). I address each attribute as it is reflected in hardcore before ending the chapter with a discussion of texture, specifically relating the creation of texture to these three dimensions. Chapter Five provides four in-depth analyses that address all of the previous musical elements examined in the dissertation, but also seeks to identify how certain metaphors of hardcore are signified in the music. While aggression is found in rhythmic and textural practices, energy and intensity are reflected in the construction of riffs, their deployment throughout a song, and the tempo at which they are performed. Brevity is present in all musical parameters, from formal constructions to recording attributes. The dissertation ends with a series of conclusions and prospects for future research.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0606
Format: Thesis

Title: "Kiss Me I'm Not Irish, but I Wish I Was": The Cultural Adoption of Irish Music in America.
Creator: Nyers, Kristen, Gunderson, Frank, Koen, Benjamin, Brewer, Charles E., College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Ethnomusicological works often examine music as an expression of identity. In these studies, music is seen as the product of culture and ethnicity. This thesis reverses this approach and instead explores how musical experiences, rather than only reflecting identity, can produce identity. Within the context of the United States of America, a multicultural society, the Irish music tradition is generally understood to belong to the community of the Irish diaspora. This music is closely...
Show moreEthnomusicological works often examine music as an expression of identity. In these studies, music is seen as the product of culture and ethnicity. This thesis reverses this approach and instead explores how musical experiences, rather than only reflecting identity, can produce identity. Within the context of the United States of America, a multicultural society, the Irish music tradition is generally understood to belong to the community of the Irish diaspora. This music is closely associated with a specific population that is delineated by both a common ethnicity and culture. However, this work considers the resulting impact upon identity construction when individuals from outside of this community participate in its music. This thesis examines how and why individuals in the United States, regardless of their ethnic background, incorporate an Irish-American cultural identity into their personal identity through participation in the Irish-American music-culture. This work demonstrates that membership in the Irish-American music community is determined more by musical participation, personal interactions between individual members, and a respect for the tradition than by an Irish ethnic connection. It also shows how Irish music in an American context is uniquely suited for the construction and reconstruction of identity by its participants.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2473
Format: Thesis

Title: "Lyrical Movements of the Soul": Poetry and Persona in the Cinq Poèmes De Baudelaire and Ariettes Oubliées of Claude Debussy.
Creator: Rider, Lori Seitz, Seaton, Douglass, Spacagna, Antoine, Brewer, Charles E., Van Glahn, Denise, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Claude Debussy participated in the world of literature, especially that of French symbolist poetry, throughout his life. His associations with important literary figures, his correspondence, and his music all make clear the significance that literature held for this composer. This study examines two sets of Debussy's songs, the Cinq poèmes de Baudelaire and the Ariettes oubliées, and their intersections between music and poetry. An understanding of the evolution of the symbolist movement...
Show moreClaude Debussy participated in the world of literature, especially that of French symbolist poetry, throughout his life. His associations with important literary figures, his correspondence, and his music all make clear the significance that literature held for this composer. This study examines two sets of Debussy's songs, the Cinq poèmes de Baudelaire and the Ariettes oubliées, and their intersections between music and poetry. An understanding of the evolution of the symbolist movement explains the roles of the two poets concerned, Charles Baudelaire and Paul Verlaine, in the development of this new approach to literature. In addition, a consideration of the poems in their own right examines both the stylistic features and meaning of these texts. The study then turns to the music in order to assess the influence of the poetry on the songs themselves. The analysis takes into account not only musical aspects, such as form, motives, and harmony, but also the songs' personae. These figures, who stand behind the music and expand on the songs' texts, also establish the aesthetic positions of the songs, whether romantic, symbolist, realist, or a hybrid aesthetic. In turn, understanding these aesthetic positions allows for a comparison of the musical and textual styles, as well as a consideration of how Debussy's aesthetic compares to that of Baudelaire and Verlaine.
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Date Issued: 2002
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1962
Format: Thesis

Title: "Making It All Click": Reawakening Memory and African Identity Through the African Caribbean Dance Theatre.
Creator: Beckley, Lisa M., Gunderson, Frank, Olsen, Dale, Bakan, Michael B., College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: One of the most important roles of the online instructor is to insure successful teaching by keeping students' interactions and discussions focused on topic, adding knowledge and expertise, and maintaining group harmony. Therefore, the success of online learning depends on the instructors' ability to acquire new competencies, rather than mastering the technology. Despite the growth in online instructor competency related studies, there is a lack of research regarding the instructors' roles...
Show moreOne of the most important roles of the online instructor is to insure successful teaching by keeping students' interactions and discussions focused on topic, adding knowledge and expertise, and maintaining group harmony. Therefore, the success of online learning depends on the instructors' ability to acquire new competencies, rather than mastering the technology. Despite the growth in online instructor competency related studies, there is a lack of research regarding the instructors' roles and competencies from the distance learning students' perspective. This study was an attempt to explore distance learning students' perceptions of the roles and competencies defined by experts in the field. A comprehensive list of roles, outputs, and competencies of online instructors were provided to the students in order to rate the importance of each role and competency. It was the purpose of this study to compare the findings of this study with the findings of pervious studies. The population of this study included all distance learning graduate students (n = 328) currently enrolled in the School of Information Studies at Florida State University. Forty-two percent (n = 140) of the original student population of 328, completed and submitted the online survey. Roles and competencies were ranked by their importance; ranking was also achieved by taking the average of competency means across roles and competencies. Results for the top ten competencies in overall importance, based on highest mean rating are: Content Knowledge, Facilitation (discussion) Skills, Organizational Skills, Planning Skills, English Proficiency, Presentation Skills, Interpersonal Communication Skills, Learning Styles and Theory, Teaching Strategies/models, Skills with Internet Tools for Instruction. xiii The findings also determined that when compared to previous competency studies, there was a significant difference between students' perceptions and experts' perceptions regarding the most important online instructor competencies. Experts rated social competencies (interpersonal communication skills) number one in the list of top ten most important online instructor competencies; on the other hand, students rated intellectual competencies (content knowledge) number one in their list of top ten. However, both experts and students concurred regarding managerial competencies, because both rated at least four managerial skills in the list of top ten competencies. Distance learning students' responses indicated that instructors should give careful attention to the development and improvement of their intellectual, social, managerial, and technical roles and competencies. The importance of paying attention to the technical and managerial roles, in addition to intellectual and social competencies of the online instructor, were emphasized as critical factors for the success of discussion and interaction in the online environment. This dissertation has helped bridge the gap between the perceptions of distance education experts and distance learning students by providing a comprehensive list of important online instructors' roles and competencies. Due to the rate of change in technologies used to deliver instruction and related changes in higher education, it is recommended to do another study to identify more roles and competencies. This study should be expanded to include the perceptions of students in different disciplines and other countries.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1184
Format: Thesis

Title: "Music's Most Powerful Ally": The National Federation of Music Clubs as an Institutional Leader in the Development of American Music Culture, 1898-1919.
Creator: Hedrick, Ashley Geer, Bearor, Karen A. (Karen Anne), Broyles, Michael, Eyerly, Sarah, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: This dissertation explores the founding of the National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) in 1898 and focuses upon the organization's activities from its beginning to 1920. It highlights how the original members were able to build a strong and influential institution that continues to support American music and musicians today. The creation of the NFMC is a result of two developments that occurred simultaneously during the nineteenth-century in the United States: 1) the proliferation of...
Show moreThis dissertation explores the founding of the National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) in 1898 and focuses upon the organization's activities from its beginning to 1920. It highlights how the original members were able to build a strong and influential institution that continues to support American music and musicians today. The creation of the NFMC is a result of two developments that occurred simultaneously during the nineteenth-century in the United States: 1) the proliferation of voluntary associations and organized reform movements and 2) the emergence of high art music culture across the nation. This project applies gender theory to examine the development of the notion of the domestic sphere as the appropriate domain for the female sex in the nineteenth century, and how women reacted to dominant ideologies through voluntary organizations that broadened their world. It also utilizes recent scholarship in women's history, social history, early American history, and institutional studies to present a survey of the types of organizations that formed and how they changed in response to the social and historical context. Even though the NFMC was originally a women's institution run by and for women, its larger goal was to disseminate art music culture through local club activities across the nation to all citizens. The growth of women's music clubs was part of the post-civil war boom of women's culture clubs. The concept of music as art developed and spread steadily during the nineteenth century, and at first the music clubs specifically cultivated art music based on western European traditions, which was associated with high class refinement. European ideals were perpetuated by an influx of European touring virtuosos and groups during the first half of the nineteenth century. In her article titled "Art Music from 1800 to 1860," Katherine K. Preston explains that the polished concerts performed by touring musicians not only circulated art music among Americans, but they also introduced higher performance standards, which resulted in increasingly higher expectations for refined performances from American audiences starting in the 1820s and 1830s and surging after 1840. These performances were supported and promoted by patrons and institutions, which ultimately led to the growth of art music appreciation as a movement throughout the nation. Michael Broyles clarifies that even though European style was dominant during the nineteenth century, American musical culture was uniquely formed by "historical events that have no European counterpart." He states that institutions controlled the character of the music in the United States. The support and dissemination of American art music happened through a combination of civic, philanthropic, private, and entrepreneurial activities, which included: the spread of art music through touring virtuosos and ensembles on a much larger scale than the first half of the nineteenth century, women's music clubs, orchestras, monster concerts and festivals, an increase in the number of American-born composers during the late nineteenth century, and a growing sense of patriotism at the turn of the century. During the late nineteenth and into the early twentieth centuries, women's music clubs became one of the most effective cultivators of classical music in the United States through their strong infrastructure and collaboration with prominent musicians, critics, and pedagogues. This project highlights the integral role of the NFMC's activities in many of the significant developments in the history of American music at this time. No other institution has been as ubiquitous or influential as the NFMC in the musical growth of the United States. This dissertation is the first detailed exploration of the history of this powerful institution.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: FSU_2017SP_Hedrick_fsu_0071E_13773
Format: Thesis

Title: "New Growth from New Soil": Henry Cowell's Application and Advocacy of Modern Musical Values.
Creator: Stallings, Stephanie N., Van Glahn, Denise, Brewer, Charles, Buchler, Michael, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: An examination of Cowell's musical aesthetic found in his critical articles and essays is necessary in approaching his compositions, many of which push against mainstream compositional currents of their day. According to Henry Cowell, experimentation and innovation were the special province of American modernist composers who needed a way to distance themselves from European values. The purpose of this thesis is twofold. First, it is an examination of the relationship between Henry Cowell's...
Show moreAn examination of Cowell's musical aesthetic found in his critical articles and essays is necessary in approaching his compositions, many of which push against mainstream compositional currents of their day. According to Henry Cowell, experimentation and innovation were the special province of American modernist composers who needed a way to distance themselves from European values. The purpose of this thesis is twofold. First, it is an examination of the relationship between Henry Cowell's critical writing and his many disparate compositional styles, with the aim of untangling his complex musical aesthetic within its proper historical context. Consequently, the paper will also illuminate certain key issues with which Cowell remained engaged throughout his life, and to show how his thinking surrounding these issues changes over the course of his career. A contemporaneous critical analysis of Cowell's written advocacy and musical compositions is broken into chronological periods that span his entire career, showing his changing philosophies surrounding key issues.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1585
Format: Thesis

Title: “Seeking a New Path”: Pasacalle Activists Practicing Culture in Villa El Salvador, Peru.
Creator: Odria, Carlos, Bakan, Michael B., Uzendoski, Michael, Gunderson, Frank D., Von Glahn, Denise, Florida State University, College of Music, College of Music
Abstract/Description: This dissertation investigates the origins and development of a novel communal art form called pasacalle that is associated with the district of Villa El Salvador on the outskirts of Peru's coastal capital city, Lima. The main performers of pasacalle in Villa El Salvador (VES) are youth of rural Andean descent. Most are second generation Limeños whose parents immigrated to the city from the Andean highlands. They belong to a community that has always existed on the lower rungs of Limeño...
Show moreThis dissertation investigates the origins and development of a novel communal art form called pasacalle that is associated with the district of Villa El Salvador on the outskirts of Peru's coastal capital city, Lima. The main performers of pasacalle in Villa El Salvador (VES) are youth of rural Andean descent. Most are second generation Limeños whose parents immigrated to the city from the Andean highlands. They belong to a community that has always existed on the lower rungs of Limeño society in terms of socioeconomic status and political agency. The genre of pasacalle, driven by a novel Afro-Brazilian-derived drum music, batucada, has become central to their expressive culture. Pasacalle drumming is not just a form of performance art and entertainment, but also a vehicle for solidifying communal bonds, resisting hegemony and marginalization, asserting rights and power, fighting racism, and mediating the complex sociocultural admixture of localized identity, pride in Andean heritage, aspirations for upward mobility within Limeño society, and expressions of a particular brand of cosmopolitan internationalism that defines contemporary life in Villa El Salvador. It is to the exploration of such issues that this dissertation is addressed.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-9223
Format: Thesis

Title: "Sound of Praise": Reflexive Ethnopedagogy and Two Gospel Choirs in Tallahassee, Florida.
Creator: Arthur, Sarah Kathleen, Gunderson, Frank, Olsen, Dale A., Koen, Benjamin, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This thesis is an ethnomusicological study of gospel music as performed and experienced by the Florida State University Gospel Choir and the Youth, Collegiate, and Young Adult Choir at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Tallahassee, Florida. Gospel music has become an increasingly important form of artistic expression for understanding the roots of American music. Unfortunately, it has been marginalized as an area of study in universities and colleges for decades. This thesis...
Show moreThis thesis is an ethnomusicological study of gospel music as performed and experienced by the Florida State University Gospel Choir and the Youth, Collegiate, and Young Adult Choir at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Tallahassee, Florida. Gospel music has become an increasingly important form of artistic expression for understanding the roots of American music. Unfortunately, it has been marginalized as an area of study in universities and colleges for decades. This thesis emphasizes gospel music as a musical genre worthy of study in educational institutions. Its rich history, cultural significance, and pedagogical value make it an important part of American music. This thesis also explores how the ethnomusicological study of pedagogy in culture, or what I call ethnopedagogy, provides a deeper understanding of the gospel music tradition and culture. This thesis provides educators, choral directors, and ethnomusicologists with a resource for teaching African American gospel music traditions, and it will serve as a model for ethnopedagogy and its applicability to the social sciences.
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0034
Format: Thesis

Title: "Substituting a New Order": Dissonant Counterpoint, Henry Cowell, and the Network of Ultra-Modern Composers.
Creator: Spilker, John D., Van Glahn, Denise, Jumonville, Neil, Seaton, Douglass, Buchler, Michael, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Documents in the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Library of Congress, and Fogelman Library at the New School for Social Research demonstrate Henry Cowell's tireless efforts on behalf of dissonant counterpoint, a systematic approach to using dissonance based on subverting the conventional rules of counterpoint that has heretofore been exclusively attributed to Charles Seeger. From the mid 1910s to the mid 1960s Cowell – who is better known for developing extended techniques...
Show moreDocuments in the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Library of Congress, and Fogelman Library at the New School for Social Research demonstrate Henry Cowell's tireless efforts on behalf of dissonant counterpoint, a systematic approach to using dissonance based on subverting the conventional rules of counterpoint that has heretofore been exclusively attributed to Charles Seeger. From the mid 1910s to the mid 1960s Cowell – who is better known for developing extended techniques for the piano, promoting and publishing ultra-modern music, and teaching world music courses – was actively involved in the development and dissemination of dissonant counterpoint through his composing, writing, and teaching. During his studies at the University of California, Berkeley from 1914 to 1917, Cowell participated in the early development of the technique as evidenced by exercises written in his personal notebook. From the late 1910s to the mid 1950s he discussed the method in his book New Musical Resources, several published articles, and program notes for three 1926 concerts in the United States and Europe. Cowell also shared dissonant counterpoint with his colleagues, many of whom used the technique in their compositions and also advocated on its behalf, including John J. Becker, Johanna Beyer, John Cage, Ruth Crawford, Vivian Fine, Lou Harrison, Wallingford Riegger, and Carl Ruggles, to name only a few. Cowell's teaching not only included private lessons but also extended to his college classes, which reflects a much wider dissemination of the compositional method than scholars have previously thought. Jeanette B. Holland's class notes from Cowell's 1951 "Advanced Music Theory" course at the New School provide further insight into dissonant counterpoint and Cowell's classroom teaching. Finally, Cowell used the technique in compositions that span nearly fifty years of his career and encompass a variety of genres. In contrast to characterizations of the composer as an undisciplined bohemian, the picture of Cowell that emerges from these newly discovered archival documents reveals a systematic and tenacious theorist and composer, who valued tradition and advocated the practical application of new theoretical ideas. Additionally, dissonant counterpoint, which is often eclipsed in historical surveys of twentieth-century music by better-known compositional techniques such as Arnold Schoenberg's twelve-tone method, was in fact an essential tool for American composers during the first half of the twentieth century and used in a variety of musical works.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1605
Format: Thesis

Title: "To the Girl Who Wants to Compose": Amy Beach as a Music Educator.
Creator: Robinson, Nicole Marie, Seaton, Douglass, Brewer, Charles E., McArthur, Vicki, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Amy Marcy Beach (1867-1944) is best known as having been a child prodigy who became a successful pianist and America's most prominent female composer of her time. Her compositional education was based on a program of self-study, which emphasized memorization, listening, and a thorough study of masterworks as models. With this auto-didactic education Beach became one of the first American women to be regarded for composing musical works in large forms, when her Mass in E-flat, op. 5, was...
Show moreAmy Marcy Beach (1867-1944) is best known as having been a child prodigy who became a successful pianist and America's most prominent female composer of her time. Her compositional education was based on a program of self-study, which emphasized memorization, listening, and a thorough study of masterworks as models. With this auto-didactic education Beach became one of the first American women to be regarded for composing musical works in large forms, when her Mass in E-flat, op. 5, was published in 1890. Beach was also an educator, although not in a traditional manner. At the request of her husband, she never took on students in composition or piano, and she only infrequently coached the students of other teachers. Yet through journal articles, music conference presentations, and contact with regional musical clubs, Amy Beach was able to give advice on piano performance and composition to students throughout the United States, independent of any educational institution or even a private studio. Within Amy Beach's writings, certain recurring ideas surface that represent some of her most strongly held musical values. These concepts may be traced both in the advice Beach gave to readers of her articles and audiences for her speeches, as well as in the subject matter and style of her compositions. Beach repeatedly emphasized that command of technical facility, balanced by musicality and sensitivity to the subject matter, was essential for both performers and composers. She also believed that an American-based musical education could be just as complete as one received in Europe, with the added benefit of nurturing the American identity of the student musician. Additionally, she encouraged American composers to find musical inspiration in American folk tales, historical events, and literature. Beach demonstrated her musical values in the products of her own compositional career, and she set an example for young musicians and composers in her piano pieces for students.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-7583
Format: Thesis

Title: "Untamed Music": Early Jazz in Vaudeville.
Creator: Lewis, Steven, College of Music
Abstract/Description: Vaudeville, which was one of the most influential entertainment genres in America at the turn of the century, was also important to the early development of jazz. Vaudeville's role in jazz history has not often figured into discussions of early jazz because the earliest jazz historians were record collectors who relied heavily on sound recordings to establish the history of the music, leading them to marginalize the contributions of musicians or bands that did not make records. Touring...
Show moreVaudeville, which was one of the most influential entertainment genres in America at the turn of the century, was also important to the early development of jazz. Vaudeville's role in jazz history has not often figured into discussions of early jazz because the earliest jazz historians were record collectors who relied heavily on sound recordings to establish the history of the music, leading them to marginalize the contributions of musicians or bands that did not make records. Touring vaudeville, minstrel shows, and circuses played a crucial role in jazz's development and dissemination. Many of the influential jazz artists of the teens and twenties, such as Alvin "Zoo" Robertson, Wilbur Sweatman, Freddie Keppard, and Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton began their careers playing in tents and theaters around the country as vaudeville entertainers. Traveling vaudeville shows were the most significant factor in the spread of jazz before the advent of recording, and brought early jazz to appreciative audiences even before 1917, when the first jazz recordings became available. After these initial recordings, the shows carried jazz to remote areas of the country where jazz records were less likely to be available. These shows continued to be important for the careers of jazz musicians until the mid thirties, when the ascendance of film and radio led to vaudeville's terminal decline. In this paper I explore in detail the role that touring vaudeville shows played in the development and popularization of jazz in the first decades of the twentieth century.
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Date Issued: 2012
Identifier: FSU_migr_uhm-0143
Format: Thesis

Title: The 1893 Chicago World's Columbian Exposition and the Emergence of the Women's Music Club Movement.
Creator: Geer, Ashley, Van Glahn, Denise, Broyles, Michael, Bearor, Karen, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Recent scholarship highlights the great impact women's music clubs and patrons had upon United States art music culture from the middle of the nineteenth through the twentieth centuries. Women's music clubs were present in almost every decent sized city by the beginning of the twentieth century, which made outreach practical and effective. These clubs actively promoted art music culture by organizing amateur concerts, semi-professional chamber concerts, and artist solo concerts. Michael...
Show moreRecent scholarship highlights the great impact women's music clubs and patrons had upon United States art music culture from the middle of the nineteenth through the twentieth centuries. Women's music clubs were present in almost every decent sized city by the beginning of the twentieth century, which made outreach practical and effective. These clubs actively promoted art music culture by organizing amateur concerts, semi-professional chamber concerts, and artist solo concerts. Michael Broyles explains that the clubs "later helped form musical institutions, including in some cases symphony orchestras" and "by the early twentieth century had become a powerful economic force, handling an estimated three-fourths of concert engagements outside the large cities." Up to this point, scholarship has mainly focused on the influence of the women's music clubs on United States culture and only briefly, if at all, mentions their actual emergence. At first glance, it seems impossible to pinpoint a solid establishment date for women's music clubs, as many developed separately from one another over the span of decades. One trend that is noticeable, however, is a surge of new women's club formations and the number of members in the handful of already established clubs in the first decade of the twentieth century. This increase is not entirely coincidence, for it happened shortly after the highly successful 1893 Chicago World's Columbian Exposition. In many ways, the World's Columbian Exposition propelled the United States, and its people, into the world-wide cultural, industrial, and agricultural scenes. Many primary sources also credit the World's Columbian Exposition as the event that truly gave many women a voice through the congressionally recognized Board of Lady Managers, who met at their own Women's Building. Following the paradigm of the national formation of the General Federation of Women's Clubs in 1889, Rose Fay Thomas saw the similar opportunity for women in music to connect and form an analogous organization for music clubs at the World's Columbian Exposition. As a result, Thomas organized a four-day conference to be held at World's Columbian Exposition and invited forty-two active women's music clubs to participate: thirty-four attended. As is reflected in the policies of clubs formed after the World's Columbian Exposition and in archival documents of the conference and National Federation of Music Clubs, Rose Fay Thomas's four-day convention essentially set the core objectives by which many future music clubs would operate. Rose Fay Thomas's idea materialized as the National Federation of Music Clubs in 1898, which Karen J. Blair described as "the largest and most influential organization uniting women's musical societies" of all time. Twentieth century women's music clubs would not have grown in number or power without two crucial factors: Rose Fay Thomas's potent initiative and influence moving towards a national women's music club organization, and the new and invaluable opportunities presented by the monumental 1893 Chicago World's Columbian Exposition.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0333
Format: Thesis

Title: 30 Years of New Music: An Annotated Bibliography of the Commissioned "Set Pieces" for the Guitar Foundation of America’s International Concert Artist Competition.
Creator: Garcia, Jesus Luis (Jesse), Holzman, Bruce, Clendinning, Jane Piper, Ryan, Pamela, Sung, Benjamin, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: This document is an annotated bibliography of commissioned "set pieces" by the Guitar Foundation of America organization for its International Concert Artist Competition. The primary goal of this document will be to act as a resource for guitarists seeking music outside of the standard repertoire for either performance and/or analysis. The bibliography is arranged chronologically, with each entry (29 in total) including composer name, composer biography, title and year of composition, style...
Show moreThis document is an annotated bibliography of commissioned "set pieces" by the Guitar Foundation of America organization for its International Concert Artist Competition. The primary goal of this document will be to act as a resource for guitarists seeking music outside of the standard repertoire for either performance and/or analysis. The bibliography is arranged chronologically, with each entry (29 in total) including composer name, composer biography, title and year of composition, style characteristics (i.e., tempo, form, movement structure, etc.), publication information, and recording information. The document is arranged in two chapters. Chapter 1 will provide an overview of the study, with a brief history of the Guitar Foundation of America organization, and suggestions for further research. Chapter 2 will consist of the works in their annotated format. The Appendix will contain a weblink for each score that will facilitate online purchases.
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Date Issued: 2016
Identifier: FSU_FA2016_Garcia_fsu_0071E_13536
Format: Thesis

Title: Aché, Music, and Spiritual Experience: The Concept of Aché and the Function of Music in Orisha Spirit Possession.
Creator: Navarro, Vanessa M., Gunderson, Frank, Bakan, Michael B., Hellweg, Joseph, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This thesis explores the ways that practitioners in orisha worshipping traditions conceptualize aché in relation to the function of music and performance in spirit possession ceremonies. Aché is a concept generally defined as divine force, power, or energy. I investigate the ways that practitioners experience, conceptualize, and perform the physical and spiritual functions of ceremonial music in order to understand the dynamics, interactions, and communicative exchanges between performers and...
Show moreThis thesis explores the ways that practitioners in orisha worshipping traditions conceptualize aché in relation to the function of music and performance in spirit possession ceremonies. Aché is a concept generally defined as divine force, power, or energy. I investigate the ways that practitioners experience, conceptualize, and perform the physical and spiritual functions of ceremonial music in order to understand the dynamics, interactions, and communicative exchanges between performers and participants. This discussion explores the multiple manifestations of aché throughout the ritual and the ways that the roles of drummers, dancers, singers, and other musicians interact to harness and manipulate physical and spiritual energies (aché) during the process of facilitating spirit possession. I argue that music and performance are used as complex, highly specialized technologies for harnessing and manipulating the energy of aché throughout a process of interactions between musicians and participants, leading to the ultimate goal of the ceremony- orisha spirit possession. I conclude that this process is as much methodical as it is spiritual, and I deliberate over the significance of faith and experience in religious and scientific matters in order to discuss my understanding of the concept of aché as a phenomenon. Based on practitioners' conceptualizations of aché, I argue that this force functions along the principles of physics, is an expression of religious philosophies and cosmologies, and is a variable, unpredictable energy that exists within and through human activity.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-7526
Format: Thesis

Title: Actualizing the (Im)Possible in Community Musical Theater: An Ethnography of a Tallahassee, Florida Production of Titanic.
Creator: Bracken, Jillian L., Gunderson, Frank, Bakan, Michael B., Broyles, Michael, Buchler, Michael, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Community musical theater actively engages individuals in music-making and dramatic performances across the United States. Musical experiences in the realm of community musical theater afford individuals opportunities for meaningful musical and social interactions. This intensive study of music as a social activity chronicles the experiences of a community group in the southeastern United States as they present a production of Maury Yeston's blockbuster musical Titanic. Participants'...
Show moreCommunity musical theater actively engages individuals in music-making and dramatic performances across the United States. Musical experiences in the realm of community musical theater afford individuals opportunities for meaningful musical and social interactions. This intensive study of music as a social activity chronicles the experiences of a community group in the southeastern United States as they present a production of Maury Yeston's blockbuster musical Titanic. Participants' approaches to music-making on the community level, their reasons for involvement, and their view of the relationship between community and professional musical theater are discussed. This examination of community musical theater, which examines its ability to shape and influence the most fundamental aspects of its participants' lives, reveals the power of this compelling variety of musical and dramatic performance and its vital function in the larger community. My research focuses on influences that define or confine musical experience and interactions that come to shape these musical activities. Community musical theater is explored as an important activity that affords individuals opportunities to fulfill a need to be musical through self-exploration and collaboration in a social environment. Community musical theater participants are positioned at the crossroads of what Thomas Turino refers to as "the Possible" and "the Actual." The relationship between the Possible and the Actual is explored as it unfolds in three contexts: between community musical theater and Broadway, within the musical Titanic itself, and for the individual participant in community musical theater. This thesis reveals the power of actualizing possibilities in community musical theater and how the music at the heart of this experience is so meaningful to its participants.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3422
Format: Thesis

Title: Adapt and Prevail: New Applications of Rhythmic and Metric Analysis in Contemporary Metal Music.
Creator: Garza, Jose Manuel, Clendinning, Jane Piper, Parks, John Will, Kraus, Joseph Charles, Richards, Mark C., Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: Much recent scholarship on metal music has treated the repertoire through historical and ethnomusicological lenses. While the theoretical literature has engaged certain significant artists– particularly Meshuggah and Dream Theater—several important bands and aspects of the music have been overlooked. Especially significant is the relative lack of writing focusing on rhythmic and metric elements of this music which shape a large part of these genres’ distinctive sounds. My goals for this...
Show moreMuch recent scholarship on metal music has treated the repertoire through historical and ethnomusicological lenses. While the theoretical literature has engaged certain significant artists– particularly Meshuggah and Dream Theater—several important bands and aspects of the music have been overlooked. Especially significant is the relative lack of writing focusing on rhythmic and metric elements of this music which shape a large part of these genres’ distinctive sounds. My goals for this dissertation are twofold. First, this document serves as a style study with regard to rhythm, meter, hypermeter, and phrase rhythm as heard in contemporary metal music (i.e., metal music from around the mid-1990s to the present). Second, I demonstrate how the ways in which contemporary metal artists manipulate rhythm, meter, hypermeter, and phrase rhythm introduce new concepts or extensions of existing modes of analyses. I problematize two metric devices, namely asymmetric meter and metric modulation, as they apply to popular music, demonstrating applications of my conceptual framework to the contemporary metal repertoire. In my analyses, I adapt existing methodologies by Lerdahl and Jackendoff (1983), Temperley (2001), Pearsall (1997), Rothstein (1989), and Krebs (1999), specifically Lerdahl and Jackendoff’s and Temperley’s preference-rule systems, Pearsall’s durational set notation, Rothstein’s descriptions of manipulations of hypermeter and phrase rhythm, and Krebs’s two types of metrical dissonance. Although the sources on which I base aspects of this study deal largely with a different repertoire than mine, the similarities between common-practice Western art music and popular music (including contemporary metal) warrant a similar approach. Where the repertoires diverge—particularly with regard to harmonic syntax and the nuances of metrical dissonance—I suggest alternative methods that address the idiosyncrasies of contemporary metal music. Despite the limited body of works I use for this dissertation, I maintain that the analytical models I propose here are applicable to a wider range of popular music. Therefore, with this document, I contribute to the broader cause of rhythm and meter studies in popular music scholarship.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: FSU_FALL2017_Garza_fsu_0071E_14184
Format: Thesis

Title: Addressing Parent Needs in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Survey of Music Therapists.
Creator: Trainor, Bethany L. (Bethany Lamar), Standley, Jayne M., Madsen, Clifford K., Darrow, Alice-Ann, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: Limited research exists exploring how music therapists address parent-related needs and concerns in the NICU. The purpose of the study was to expand existing knowledge and literature regarding how music therapists work with parents and their infants in the NICU, to address parent-related needs, and to provide suggestions for future directions for music therapy with parents of infants in the NICU. The principal investigator sent out an invitational email to music therapists who currently or...
Show moreLimited research exists exploring how music therapists address parent-related needs and concerns in the NICU. The purpose of the study was to expand existing knowledge and literature regarding how music therapists work with parents and their infants in the NICU, to address parent-related needs, and to provide suggestions for future directions for music therapy with parents of infants in the NICU. The principal investigator sent out an invitational email to music therapists who currently or have previously worked in the NICU. A total of 54 responses (n=54) were received-- respondents (n=50) completed the survey entirely and 4 partially (n=4) via Surveymonkey.com®. Data were collected over a four-week period and were analyzed using descriptive statistical measures. Results support the use of music therapy to address both parent and infant goals and the expansion of ways in which music therapy/music therapists can serve as an extension of family-based NICU care. Results indicated that music therapists spend a relatively equal amount of time with parents and their infants (jointly and separately) and receive both medical and non-medical referrals for parent-related needs. Grief counseling, general counseling techniques, music therapy techniques specific to parent needs, and cultural sensitivity training were areas in which music therapists desired more training. Future implications for research include expansion of knowledge regarding how to work with parents of infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome and other complex medical issues.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-9472
Format: Thesis

Title: Affective Responses to Music: A Flutist's Perspective.
Creator: Large, Karen Mclaughlin, Ohlsson, Eric, Amsler, Eva, Shaftel, Matthew, Meighan, Patrick, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: In music, the field of affective (or emotional) response research is significant not only in the number of studies published, but in its study of the motivation behind music-making. Most composers, performers, and listeners participate in music to communicate—to convey or receive some meaning. Much of that communication is emotional in nature; yet as with human emotions, musical emotions are difficult to study and describe due to their complex nature. There is a large amount of research on...
Show moreIn music, the field of affective (or emotional) response research is significant not only in the number of studies published, but in its study of the motivation behind music-making. Most composers, performers, and listeners participate in music to communicate—to convey or receive some meaning. Much of that communication is emotional in nature; yet as with human emotions, musical emotions are difficult to study and describe due to their complex nature. There is a large amount of research on affective responses within a number of different musical sub-fields. The first chapter of this treatise looks at the subject of emotion in music from three perspectives: performance, theoretical, and experimental. Scholars in each of these fields approach emotion in music very differently, yet many conclusions are the same between groups. One of the purposes of this treatise is to present some of the main ideas from each of these groups in order to elicit communication between the groups and provide a broad background for research on this topic. The second chapter presents an experiment performed specifically for this treatise. Knowing that so much research exists on emotion in music, it is surprising that many teaching techniques are limited to imagery, metaphors, and aural modeling. The goal of the experiment was to evaluate the emotional content of fifteen flute themes from the standard solo literature to determine if the emotions traditionally assigned to this music could be empirically, or numerically, validated or rejected. Most traditional emotions assigned to these themes were empirically validated. Those themes that did not match the traditional emotion in the experiment showed at least a high degree of representation of the traditional emotion, in addition to other emotions. The results of the experiment show that listeners, regardless of the instrument they play, agree on emotional content within music. Additionally, valence and arousal, or sentiment and activity, play a large part in this process especially in determining the intensity of the emotions portrayed. The third chapter is a proposed plan for teaching emotional expression in music lessons. It fuses the information from the first chapter and results of the experiment in the second chapter to provide a well-rounded approach to performing with emotion. The benefit of this approach versus traditional imagery-, metaphor-, and aural-based techniques is that it provides articulated physical goals toward which students can strive and is deeply rooted in the scholarly research previously conducted in this field.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3279
Format: Thesis

Title: An Agential Exploration of Tragedy and Irony in Post-1945 Orchestral Works.
Creator: Lee, Richard C., Kraus, Joseph Charles, Gontarski, S. E., Buchler, Michael Howard, Jones, Evan Allan, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: This analytic dissertation explores tragic and ironic narratives in post-1945 orchestral works through the lens of musical agency and critical theory. For the purposes of this study, I define musical narrative as any sequencing of musical events mediated by agency in which a musical story emerges that underscores the sequence of musical events. My definition and overall methodology for musical narrative follows the work of Lawrence Kramer, Michael Klein, and Byron Almén as I explore tragedy...
Show moreThis analytic dissertation explores tragic and ironic narratives in post-1945 orchestral works through the lens of musical agency and critical theory. For the purposes of this study, I define musical narrative as any sequencing of musical events mediated by agency in which a musical story emerges that underscores the sequence of musical events. My definition and overall methodology for musical narrative follows the work of Lawrence Kramer, Michael Klein, and Byron Almén as I explore tragedy and irony in three large-scale compositions composed after World War II. From Kramer, I break down the narrative process into three components: (1) narrativity, what generates a narrative account; (2) narratography, the discoursing of a narrative; and (3) narrative, the musical story that accompanies the discourse. From Klein (and others), I borrow concepts from intertextuality, critical theory, literary theory, and philosophy to inform these musical stories. Finally, from Almén, I take the tragic narrative archetype as an organizational analytical tool in my analyses. The primary narrativity in each analysis is a form of musical agency, and each analysis questions the role of agency in the interpretation of tragic musical stories in these post-1945 works. For the purposes of this study, musical agency is defined as a perceived entity's ability to interact with its environment, often emerging as personification of musical events. Scholars differ on how agencies interact: whether they have volition and intention, whether they arise as a singular subjectivity, what kind of space they inhabit, etc. While some depict musical agency as a messy endeavor, others aim to provide a structure for its interpretation. As an organizing principle, I use Seth Monahan's four agential classes to focus my discussion. Each chapter generally addresses one of the following: (1) the individuated element (notes, harmonies, themes), (2) the work-persona (the personification of the whole piece), (3) the fictional composer (the being postulated by the analyst as the controlling author of a work), and (4) the analyst. Hence, after an introduction, each of the succeeding chapters of this dissertation focuses on one agential class as a guiding narrativity. I bring narrative and agency together by borrowing ideas from literary theory, psychoanalysis, and philosophy. In chapter two I explore the agential class of the work-persona in Krzysztof Penderecki's Third Symphony, in which the work-persona laments and dies twice, yielding a scenario described by Slavoj Žižek as the "two deaths." In that reading one death is real and the other is symbolic, and the ordering of the deaths in Penderecki's symphony leads the analyst to read the scenario tragically. The two deaths generate the interpretation of death as a master signifier, borrowing from the work of Jacques Lacan. The master signifier then guides the analytical decisions that are made. In my analysis of Thomas Adès's Asyla in chapter three, fictional composer agencies are locked in a power struggle, leading to a reading that evokes Michel Foucault's conceptualizations of power and panopticism. Investigating the individuated element agency in chapter four, I posit that George Rochberg's conservative employment of serial technique in his Symphony No. 2 leads to a reading of belatedness that supplements its commentary on the tragedy of the Second World War. My final chapter serves as an analysis of the analyst, the highest ranking of Monahan's agential classes. Here I describe the three analyses of the preceding chapters as three component parts that contribute to an analyst's machine, following the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze. The analyst's machine serves as a departure point for an exploration of analytical subjectivity. I begin that inquiry by positioning the analyst in a virtual space (as opposed to an actual space). I next parallel Lacan's formulation of the identity with the analytical process, tracing how analysts build their identity through a combination of received components, resulting in a fractured subjectivity. Finally, I bring back the idea of fiction (from the fictional composer agency) to establish a fictional analyst who is a Deleuzian assemblage of refrains and avatars that carries out an analysis. The goal of this dissertation is to uncover narrative approaches to post-1945 music by combining familiar analytical tools with interdisciplinary methodologies. Focusing on a certain agential class as a narrativity, the individual analyses of tragic works by Penderecki, Adès, and Rochberg lead to a reconsideration of the analyst in the concluding chapter—and that chapter serves as a starting point for future analytical and theoretical endeavors.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: FSU_2017SP_Lee_fsu_0071E_13774
Format: Thesis

Title: Alfred L. Watkins: An Historical Narrative of His Musical Life and Work with the Lassiter High School Band.
Creator: Thomas, Matthew J., Clary, Richard S., Mathes, James, Dunnigan, Patrick, Madsen, Clifford, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Alfred L. Watkins came to Lassiter High School in 1982 from which point the band grew from its original membership of 78 participants to over 300 individuals in the total program. The marching band won the Bands of America Grand National Championships twice and appeared three times in both the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Tournament of Roses Parade. The premier Symphonic Band at Lassiter performed twice at The Midwest Clinic and both of the top two Symphonic Bands performed three...
Show moreAlfred L. Watkins came to Lassiter High School in 1982 from which point the band grew from its original membership of 78 participants to over 300 individuals in the total program. The marching band won the Bands of America Grand National Championships twice and appeared three times in both the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Tournament of Roses Parade. The premier Symphonic Band at Lassiter performed twice at The Midwest Clinic and both of the top two Symphonic Bands performed three times each at the Bands of America National Concert Band Festival. Numerous chamber ensembles at Lassiter performed at both regional and national level events, and the community band, the Cobb Wind Symphony, also performed at several prestigious conferences including The Midwest Clinic and twice at the College Band Directors National Association. While the diverse, comprehensive, well-balanced constitution of the Lassiter band program is intriguing, perhaps just as compelling is the story of how Watkins arrived at Lassiter. Born and raised in the small town of Jackson, Georgia, Watkins attended an all-black school in a segregated school system and began playing trumpet in the band in seventh grade. He attended Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, an Historically Black College and University, where he studied music education, and then taught for six years at Murphy High School in the Atlanta Public School System. When the band director position at the newly constructed Lassiter High School came available in 1981, he declined an offer for the job due to concerns related to the predominately white area where the school was located. However, when he was approached again the following year, he hesitantly accepted the position. The struggles and accomplishments Watkins experienced throughout his career, both personally and professionally, are of value to both current and future music educators as they strive to emulate successful models and form their own ideologies and effective practices. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to document the life, influences, and experiences of Alfred L. Watkins and his work with the Lassiter High School Band through 2010 and is presented in a chronological, narrative form.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-7239
Format: Thesis

Title: Alfred Uhl's (1909-1992) Viola Etudes: An Analytic Approach; and a Discussion of Three Chamber Works That Feature the Viola.
Creator: Keasler, Daniel, Ryan, Pamela, Jones, Evan Allan, Stillwell, Corinne, Sauer, Greg, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This treatise presents selected viola works by Alfred Uhl (1909-1992). Three chamber works that feature the viola are discussed. Trio für Violine, Viola, and Gitarre, Kleine Konzert für Viola, Klarinette & Klavier, Vier Lieder aus der Heiteren Kantate "Wer Einsam ist, der hat es gut" für Sopran, Viola, & Klavier are examined in terms of their history, general form, and salient stylistic elements. Dreiβig Etüden and Zwanzig Etüden für Viola are approached from a pedagogical viewpoint. Each...
Show moreThis treatise presents selected viola works by Alfred Uhl (1909-1992). Three chamber works that feature the viola are discussed. Trio für Violine, Viola, and Gitarre, Kleine Konzert für Viola, Klarinette & Klavier, Vier Lieder aus der Heiteren Kantate "Wer Einsam ist, der hat es gut" für Sopran, Viola, & Klavier are examined in terms of their history, general form, and salient stylistic elements. Dreiβig Etüden and Zwanzig Etüden für Viola are approached from a pedagogical viewpoint. Each etude is analyzed for musical and technical challenges that a viola student may experience while preparing it. Musical elements, like tempo, character, and rhythm, are explored. Technical elements, like intonation and bow control, are discussed. Quantification and analysis of musical data provide an alternate pedagogical view of the etudes. The purpose of the treatise is to inspire others to perform and record the viola works of Alfred Uhl, and to use the etudes in teaching studios.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3262
Format: Thesis

Title: All I Need Is the Air I Breathe: Music, Media, and the Practice of Collegiate A Cappella.
Creator: Griffin, Drew Blake, Jackson, Margaret R., Gunderson, Frank D., Brewer, Charles E. (Charles Everett), Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: Collegiate a cappella is a communal singing tradition historically localized to universities in the United States. It is a genre whose practitioners explore vocal harmonies and the imitation of instruments solely through use of the human voice and without instrumental accompaniment. In its contemporary manifestation, collegiate a cappella has become a powerful cultural force and is the primary way thousands of students and their diverse audiences engage with music daily. With the ever...
Show moreCollegiate a cappella is a communal singing tradition historically localized to universities in the United States. It is a genre whose practitioners explore vocal harmonies and the imitation of instruments solely through use of the human voice and without instrumental accompaniment. In its contemporary manifestation, collegiate a cappella has become a powerful cultural force and is the primary way thousands of students and their diverse audiences engage with music daily. With the ever-increasing number of dramatized or semi-dramatized depictions of the genre, its presence in American popular media extends far beyond the university sphere. In this thesis I explore the contemporary practice of collegiate a cappella, the simultaneously negotiated and contested spaces of the genre's practice and performance, and its transformation through mass-mediatization. My primary collaborators in this process are the members of All-Night Yahtzee, a co-ed collegiate a cappella from Florida State University. Drawing on a combination of historical investigation, performance observation, media and textual analysis, and ethnography, I investigate style and space in collegiate a cappella practice, situating the genre within Manuel Castells's network society model. I then draw on the work of Michel Foucault to explore popular dramatized portrayals of collegiate a cappella, arguing that despite their popularity, most televised and filmic depictions create problematic representations of the genre by presenting a utopian vision of a fundamentally heterotopian practice. These distorted renderings of collegiate a cappella influence the genre's global network, shaping the experience of both participants and audiences alike.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: FSU_2017SP_Griffin_fsu_0071N_13894
Format: Thesis

Title: Alma Mahler and Vienna: The City That Loved Her.
Creator: Dilkey, Angela, Fisher, Douglas, Bridger, Carolyn Ann, Gerber, Larry, Pope, Jerrold, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: From the peak of the Habsburg dynasty, fin-de-siècle Vienna offered the Viennese bourgeoisie a unique place to broaden their intellectual and artistic creativity. Artists of such caliber as Gustav Mahler and Arnold Schoenberg flocked to this enticing city at the turn of the twentieth century. Alma Mahler was a strong woman and a product of her time. Other women wanted her in their circle of friends and men desired her. The list of her acquaintances, friends, and lovers includes some of the...
Show moreFrom the peak of the Habsburg dynasty, fin-de-siècle Vienna offered the Viennese bourgeoisie a unique place to broaden their intellectual and artistic creativity. Artists of such caliber as Gustav Mahler and Arnold Schoenberg flocked to this enticing city at the turn of the twentieth century. Alma Mahler was a strong woman and a product of her time. Other women wanted her in their circle of friends and men desired her. The list of her acquaintances, friends, and lovers includes some of the most brilliant artists of the twentieth century. Through her marriages to Gustav Mahler, Walter Gropius, and Franz Werfel, she influenced the creative output of three primary artistic figures in music, architecture, and literature. Her presence in the art world is documented in the work of Oskar Kokoschka. She used her influence throughout her life to further music, art, and literature. Although her biography reveals character flaws, such as egotism and anti-Semitism, Alma Mahler is illuminated as an important historical figure due to her consistently close proximity to genius.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0079
Format: Thesis

Title: Alternatives in Guitar Notation: Towards a Practical Implementation of Clef and Score Reading on the Guitar.
Creator: Gallardo, Gonzalo, Van Glahn, Denise, Shaftel, Matthew, Holzman, Bruce, Welch, Leo, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: There is still debate regarding the origins and implementation of treble guitar notation: pedagogical treatises indicate that such notation was normative already by the early nineteenth century. Guitarists' development throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, especially at the level of writing and playing contrapuntal music, was not accompanied by a substantial notational advancement that would emphasize counterpoint. With few exceptions, the appropriateness of single-stave treble...
Show moreThere is still debate regarding the origins and implementation of treble guitar notation: pedagogical treatises indicate that such notation was normative already by the early nineteenth century. Guitarists' development throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, especially at the level of writing and playing contrapuntal music, was not accompanied by a substantial notational advancement that would emphasize counterpoint. With few exceptions, the appropriateness of single-stave treble guitar notation has remained unchallenged since the nineteenth century; no pedagogies have previously been written that would systematically instruct students how to read multiple staves, or clefs other than treble. As a result, a majority of Western-trained musicians up to the present day consider single-stave treble notation an inherent, immutable component of reading guitar music. Such a conception seems like a radical change from that of the nineteenth century: Fernando Sor and Ferdinando Carulli (notable nineteenth-century pedagogues) advocated guitarists' familiarization with both the double stave and orchestral scores. The purpose of this treatise is two-fold: first, to revalorize counterpoint (one of the main features present in the "classical guitar" musical corpus), and to assert the guitar's viability as a contrapuntal, score-reading instrument. And second, to supply a clef and score reading pedagogy for guitarists, which could in turn promote and facilitate the recognition of counterpoint in both solo and ensemble playing. This treatise is divided into three parts: in the first part I affirm the necessity and feasibility of guitaristic-notational exploration beyond the single treble stave. I discuss nineteenth and twentieth-century pedagogies and their treatment of counterpoint and music reading, as well as possible ramifications of implementing score reading with the guitar. In this first part I also outline a pedagogical methodology, considering the music I edited for the present work; I include sample lessons, which an instructor could use to begin teaching students how to read clefs and scores of up to four parts. The second part of this treatise consists of two sections: first, a clef-reading pedagogy for the treble, bass, soprano, alto and tenor clefs. This pedagogy is based on Georges Dandelot's clef-reading model, and is applied to positions I, III, V, VII and X on the fingerboard. Second, a collection of 138 score reading studies in different clef and stave combinations. I edited these pieces from solo works by Fernando Sor, Mauro Giuliani, Matteo Carcassi and Dionisio Aguado, and provide critical commentary for my editorial work as part of this section. I chose the pieces that comprise these studies considering works that are relatively simple to play on the guitar: the pedagogy thus emphasizes reading rather than technique. The treatise's third and final part consists of twenty-one beginning-level trios, which I arranged from solo guitar works by the aforementioned composers. This last section is designed to promote an appreciation and understanding of contrapuntal music at the early stages of learning, and is a contribution to the still-growing corpus of guitar ensemble music.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-4851
Format: Thesis

Title: American and Asian Participants' Descriptions of and Preferences for Multicultural Music.
Creator: Komiyama, Aiko, Darrow, Alice-Ann, Standley, Jayne M., Madsen, Clifford, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This study was designed to examine: (1) American and Asian students' ability to identify music of their own and other cultures; (2) students' preferences for and their descriptions of multicultural music; and (3) the relationship between students' musical descriptions and their preferences. Participants were 100 undergraduate and graduate nonmusic major students from a large Southeastern university. Of these 100 students, 50 were American, and 50 were Asian, 10 each from China, Korea, Japan,...
Show moreThis study was designed to examine: (1) American and Asian students' ability to identify music of their own and other cultures; (2) students' preferences for and their descriptions of multicultural music; and (3) the relationship between students' musical descriptions and their preferences. Participants were 100 undergraduate and graduate nonmusic major students from a large Southeastern university. Of these 100 students, 50 were American, and 50 were Asian, 10 each from China, Korea, Japan, India, and Indonesia. These participants completed questions regarding descriptions and preferences for musical excerpts from Western and six Asian cultures. Results revealed that: (1) Asian participants identified music of their specific culture and Western culture significantly more often than American participants; (2) both American and Asian participants preferred Western music significantly more than music of Asian cultures in general, though Asian subgroups preferred music of their own specific subculture more than American participants. (3) American and Asian participants used similar adjectives to describe both Western and Asian musical excerpts; and no relationship was found between participants' descriptions of musical excerpts and their musical preferences. Previous researchers have suggested the use of multicultural music with music therapy clients from other countries. Data from the present study indicate that clients from Asian cultures may, in fact, prefer traditional Western music.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2844
Format: Thesis

Title: American Clarinet Concerti of the 21st Century: An Annotated Bibliography.
Creator: Guffey, Amy M., Bish, Deborah, Brewer, Charles E. (Charles Everett), Amsler, Eva, Ohlsson, Eric Paul, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: This annotated bibliography is a practical resource for clarinetists, pedagogues, and scholars wishing to familiarize themselves with 21st century 'American' clarinet concerti composed between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2013. While a number of authors have written on the various aspects of clarinet repertoire and the clarinet, little research has focused specifically on 21st century clarinet concerti. Information gathered from scores, liner notes, reviews, and correspondence provide an...
Show moreThis annotated bibliography is a practical resource for clarinetists, pedagogues, and scholars wishing to familiarize themselves with 21st century 'American' clarinet concerti composed between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2013. While a number of authors have written on the various aspects of clarinet repertoire and the clarinet, little research has focused specifically on 21st century clarinet concerti. Information gathered from scores, liner notes, reviews, and correspondence provide an overview of each composition. In addition, the meter, range, structure, instrumentation, duration, difficulty level, publisher, and recording label are listed at the beginning of each entry. The intent of this treatise is to provide a greater awareness of these concerti and emerging composers that will ultimately result in the study and performance of works.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-9343
Format: Thesis

Title: American Presbyterian Worship and the Organ.
Creator: Hehn, Jonathan Jakob, Brewer, Charles, Corzine, Michael, Mathes, James, Shaftel, Matthew, Beckman, Seth, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The use of the organ in worship was a late development for Presbyterians when compared with many other denominations in the United States. With a some notable exceptions, most churches did not introduce organs into their sanctuaries until the latter part of the nineteenth century or later, and even then often after much debate. The Puritan and Calvinist theologies that undergirded early American Presbyterianism produced a climate which was often hostile toward the instrument. There have been...
Show moreThe use of the organ in worship was a late development for Presbyterians when compared with many other denominations in the United States. With a some notable exceptions, most churches did not introduce organs into their sanctuaries until the latter part of the nineteenth century or later, and even then often after much debate. The Puritan and Calvinist theologies that undergirded early American Presbyterianism produced a climate which was often hostile toward the instrument. There have been many studies documenting the history and theologies of American Presbyterian parishes and denominations, and some general studies on the worship of those traditions. There have also been studies documenting the organ building industry in America and studies surveying the organ literature of the colonial and post-colonial eras. However, until now there has been no attempt to document how the organ was actually used within the context of American Presbyterian worship. The references addressing this question in the existing literature are anecdotal at best. The purpose of this document is to examine the use of the organ in American Presbyterian worship from the colonial period to the beginning of the twentieth century through a series of case studies. For background knowledge it draws upon sources discussing the nature of worship, music, and the church, especially from colonial Puritan, Enlightenment, and evangelical Presbyterian thinkers. The bulk of each chapter is devoted to outlining the documentable worship history of a particular parish, but each chapter has also been fitted (to the extent possible), with reconstructed orders of worship and either documented or fabricated "thick" descriptions of that parish as well as pictorial evidence. By examining the history of the organ in Presbyterian worship, this document will also shed light on the historical controversy over the organ in America in general and the nature of current controversies in over instruments in worship.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-7417
Format: Thesis

Title: An American Song Book?: An Analysis of the Flower Drum and Other Chinese Songs by Chin-Hsin Chen and Shih-Hsiang Chen.
Creator: Talley, Jennifer, Seaton, Douglass, Gunderson, Frank, Brewer, Charles E., College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The Flower Drum and Other Chinese Songs is a book of Chinese folk songs and culture that was created by Chih-Hsiang Chen, Chin-Hsin Yao Chen and published in 1943. This thesis is comprised of three major chapters, each dealing with a different aspect of the Chens' book and their lives and an introduction and conclusion. Chapter 2 presents information regarding American's treatment of Chinese immigrants and stereotypes of the Chinese. The Chens immigrated to America during a time of political...
Show moreThe Flower Drum and Other Chinese Songs is a book of Chinese folk songs and culture that was created by Chih-Hsiang Chen, Chin-Hsin Yao Chen and published in 1943. This thesis is comprised of three major chapters, each dealing with a different aspect of the Chens' book and their lives and an introduction and conclusion. Chapter 2 presents information regarding American's treatment of Chinese immigrants and stereotypes of the Chinese. The Chens immigrated to America during a time of political turmoil in China and strong anti-Chinese sentiments in America. Between 1850 and 1940, Americans were known for treating the Chinese poorly and had passed a variety of anti-Chinese laws that culminated with the Chinese Exclusion act in 1881, which was renewed until its repeal in 1943. In addition to anti-Chinese legislation there were also a variety of Chinese characterizations present in the American media, of which Pearl S. Buck's The Good Earth, the Fu Manchu novels by Sax Rohmer and the Charlie Chan novels by Earl Biggers are examples. Of these three examples, the latter two mostly contain negative stereotypes of the Chinese. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the United States entering into World War II, American attitudes and sentiments towards the Chinese began to change since China was now an American ally. The Chens book was published soon after America entered into World War II, and during the war-time years Americans became interested in learning about the cultures of their allies and their foes. The John Day Company, the publishers of the Chens' book, during this time became one of the foremost publishers of books on the Far East, and a brief history of The John Day Company is part of the next chapter in this thesis. Chapter 3 also contains information regarding the events surrounding the publishing of the Chens' book, ideas for marketing the book, biographical information about the authors, and an examination of the collaborative efforts were part of the creation of this book. The Chens, who were both well-educated, were able to make many connections with prominent literary figures like John Hall Wheelock and Padraic Collum and important musicians and composers like Charles and Ruth Seeger, Nadia Boulanger, Henry Cowell, Harrison Kerr, and Hanns Eisler. Chapter four contains an analysis of the music, art, and cultural and historical sections present in the Chens' book. The Chens' book is split into five major sections, and each section contains a piece of art and cultural and historical information about the pieces contained within. Each of the folk songs presented in The Flower Drum and Other Chinese Songs has been arranged for voice and piano with both English and Romanized Chinese texts below. Mrs. Chen states in her preface that she has tried to imitate the various Chinese instruments that would usually accompany these songs in her accompaniments. A variety of musical examples are presented and compared to both Mrs. Chen's descriptions of the original accompaniments and modern performances of these folk songs. The conclusion also discusses these modern performances as well as the importance of this book in American musical history.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1721
Format: Thesis

Title: Americans at the Leipzig Conservatory (1843–1918) and Their Impact on American Musical Culture.
Creator: Pepple, Joanna, Seaton, Douglass, Williamson, George S., Eyerly, Sarah, Quinn, Iain, Von Glahn, Denise, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: In 1842 Felix Mendelssohn gained approval from the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV to apply the late Supreme Court Justice’s Heinrich Blümner’s 20,000-Thaler gift to the founding of Germany’s first music education institution dedicated to the higher-level training of musicians. The establishment of the Leipzig Conservatory in 1843 was a milestone in Germany’s history, as this was Germany’s first national conservatory of music, with the goal to train and educate “complete” musicians in both...
Show moreIn 1842 Felix Mendelssohn gained approval from the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV to apply the late Supreme Court Justice’s Heinrich Blümner’s 20,000-Thaler gift to the founding of Germany’s first music education institution dedicated to the higher-level training of musicians. The establishment of the Leipzig Conservatory in 1843 was a milestone in Germany’s history, as this was Germany’s first national conservatory of music, with the goal to train and educate “complete” musicians in both applied and theoretical studies. Due to its highly-esteemed faculty, the Leipzig Conservatory immediately drew attention from music students not only nationally but also internationally. The Leipzig Conservatory was known for its “conservative” leanings as well as the strong foundation students received in harmony, counterpoint, and voice-leading. The pedagogy of the Leipzig Conservatory not only had a great impact in Germany and the surrounding European countries, but its influence reached across the Atlantic to American musical life. Nineteenth-century Americans held German musical training in high regard. Between 1846 and 1918 over 1,500 Americans traveled across the Atlantic to study with the renowned faculty at the Leipzig Conservatory. Receiving a comprehensive music education and being exposed to world-class visiting soloists such as Clara Schumann and Franz Liszt, these American students returned to the United States as music teachers, administrators, music writers and publishers, and performers, prepared to influence their music culture in numerous ways. These American individuals had a great impact in numerous cities throughout the United States, and several of them had a role in founding America’s first music conservatories: Oberlin Conservatory of Music (1865) and New England Conservatory of Music (1867). By studying the original documents and concert programs at these institutions, one can trace direct pedagogical approaches and institutional policies transferred from Leipzig to Oberlin and Boston. Furthermore, many early faculty members at Oberlin and NEC themselves had studied at the Leipzig Conservatory, bringing Leipziger tastes and pedagogy to American students. While the Leipzig influence impacted Oberlin and NEC greatly, its pedagogy and principles shaped many other aspects of American music life and education throughout multiple cities and regions in the United States, leaving lasting imprints on American music culture, including music education, concert life, music criticism, and composition. The supplementary Excel spreadsheet shows Leipzig Conservatory faculty members and the duration of their tenure at the Conservatory.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: 2019_Spring_Pepple_fsu_0071E_14966_comp
Format: Set of related objects

Title: Amid the Shades.
Creator: Stemke, John Ash, Callender, Clifton, Thomas, André J. (André Jerome), Wingate, Mark, Rogers, Nancy, Jones, Evan Allan, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: Since the 19th century, numerous poets, lyricists, and hymnists have penned texts to be sung to the Welsh folk tune “Llwyn Onn,” also known as “The Ash Grove” (12.11.12.11 D). The texts explore many different themes, including the beauty of nature, courtship, limerence, the loss of loved ones, spirituality, and various Christian principles. Metaphorically, the melody shared by these diverse texts can be considered the root or seed that links each text-tree together, establishing a grove of...
Show moreSince the 19th century, numerous poets, lyricists, and hymnists have penned texts to be sung to the Welsh folk tune “Llwyn Onn,” also known as “The Ash Grove” (12.11.12.11 D). The texts explore many different themes, including the beauty of nature, courtship, limerence, the loss of loved ones, spirituality, and various Christian principles. Metaphorically, the melody shared by these diverse texts can be considered the root or seed that links each text-tree together, establishing a grove of perspectives from which the melody itself can be understood. These relationships—where each text-tree is a unique elaboration of an underlying structure— eloquently describe numerous music-compositional practices, such as (and perhaps most noticeably) the theme and variations. Given this resonant symbolism, it is surprising that a vast majority of “Ash Grove” arrangements are not variation sets. The small pool of existing sets primarily contains solos and small chamber works, is stylistically dominated by 18th- and 19th-century idioms, and does not overtly engage with symbolism or extramusical references. In order to develop this dialogue, “Amid the Shades” offers an interpretive cultivation of “The Ash Grove” that demonstrates the broader possibilities of writing variations inspired by specific words found in a musical theme’s associated texts.
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Date Issued: 2019
Identifier: 2019_Spring_Stemke_fsu_0071E_15133
Format: Thesis

Title: Amy Beach's Cabildo: An American Opera.
Creator: Powlison, Nicole M. (Nicole Marie), Seaton, Douglass, Fisher, Douglas L., Eyerly, Sarah, Pelkey, Stanley C., Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: In June 1932 Amy Beach (1867–1944) arrived at her studio at the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire, to begin working in one of the few major musical genres that she had yet to attempt in her career: an opera, called Cabildo. The libretto for the chamber opera, given to her by Atlanta author, playwright, and fellow Colonist Nan Bagby Stephens (1883–1946), was based on Stephens's own play with the same title. Cabildo's creators had to negotiate the multifaceted artistic expression...
Show moreIn June 1932 Amy Beach (1867–1944) arrived at her studio at the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire, to begin working in one of the few major musical genres that she had yet to attempt in her career: an opera, called Cabildo. The libretto for the chamber opera, given to her by Atlanta author, playwright, and fellow Colonist Nan Bagby Stephens (1883–1946), was based on Stephens's own play with the same title. Cabildo's creators had to negotiate the multifaceted artistic expression of American identity through the work's music and plot. The English libretto, rich with local color in sections of dialect, was blended with the sounds of Creole folk tunes and Beach's own art songs to spin a romantic tale of dashing pirates and ghostly lovers, set during the height of the Battle of New Orleans, the final conflict of the War of 1812. Well received at its modest premiere at the University of Georgia in 1945, Beach's only opera remains unpublished and rarely studied or performed. A primary component of this project is the critical edition of Amy Beach's only opera, Cabildo, op. 149, completed in 1932. This edition is prepared to professional publication standards and provides a resource for both scholarly study and performance. The original draft and performance manuscripts of the score from archives at the University of New Hampshire and the University of Missouri-Kansas City provide the source material for the edition. In addition to the critical edition, the dissertation provides a "thick description" of Cabildo that locates the opera in its historical context. Relying on primary source materials such as Beach's diaries and newspaper or magazine articles, this description places the work in the composer's life as a new type of project that comes at the very end of her career, and an opportunity to collaborate with another woman. The description also identifies musical works with contemporary themes or methods to draw comparisons between Cabildo and its contemporaries, placing it in the context of the varied styles of American English-language opera in the 1930s. Cabildo represents one way in which a particular American opera expresses national identity through music and plot. Composers such as Beach attempted to negotiate the aesthetic conundrum that demanded that American art music be of the highest cosmopolitan standards while still having something distinctly "American" about it. This was complicated by the desire of many composers to incorporate American musics that lay outside the European musical heritage, including the simultaneously local and exotic musical materials from African American and Native American cultures. Cabildo exemplifies this complex negotiation of American identity in opera: it is an American opera with a libretto in English, treating a historical topic important to the history of the United States, yet incorporating a mix of Creole folk songs and dialect with music in Beach's own style, all set in the exotic location of New Orleans. By uniting a significant event from national history with a distinctive regional music set in a familiar Romantic style, Beach and Stephens created an opera that is at once intrinsically American and still appealing to a diverse and cosmopolitan audience.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: FSU_2017SP_Powlison_fsu_0071E_13860
Format: Thesis

Title: An Examiniation of the Doctor of Music as a Comprehensive Degree.
Creator: Steinman, Olivia, Bish, Deborah, Brewer, Charles E. (Charles Everett), Hodges, Anne R., Holden, Jonathan, Thrasher, Michael, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: First adopted in 1951, the Doctor of Music, or Doctor of Musical Arts degree, has been on campuses across America for nearly 70 years now. Since its inception, the main concern surrounding the education of the performer has been how best to develop and serve the artistic needs of the musician while maintaining the level of high scholastic achievement required of the doctorate. Even after decades of existence, the idea of balancing the demands of both the artist and scholar is still relevant,...
Show moreFirst adopted in 1951, the Doctor of Music, or Doctor of Musical Arts degree, has been on campuses across America for nearly 70 years now. Since its inception, the main concern surrounding the education of the performer has been how best to develop and serve the artistic needs of the musician while maintaining the level of high scholastic achievement required of the doctorate. Even after decades of existence, the idea of balancing the demands of both the artist and scholar is still relevant, perhaps even more now than ever before. This treatise considers what constitutes a “comprehensive” terminal degree for performing artists in today’s field. Particular attention will be given to the curricular requirements for obtaining the Doctor of Music or Doctor of Musical Arts degree as they relate to the artist’s life post-academia. The purpose of this research is to gather information about the Doctor of Music degree, concentrating specifically on coursework and curriculum within the context of the development of the arts in America. It aims to examine what constitutes a comprehensive terminal degree for performers, the Doctor of Music or Doctor of Musical Arts degree, and proposes curricular changes to enhance the degree. The author will achieve these objectives through: 1) A brief summary of the evolution of the arts in America, with particular attention given to the period of “cultural-consciousness;” 2) A brief summary of the evolution of the Doctor of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees to provide historical context for the current state of the degree; 3) A consideration of curriculum questions relevant to the doctorate in music and proposals for continued improvement.
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Date Issued: 2019
Identifier: 2019_Spring_Steinman_fsu_0071E_15086
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis and New Edition of Julius Weissenborn's Method for Bassoon.
Creator: Schaub, Christopher G., Keesecker, Jeff, Spencer, Peter, Kowalsky, Frank, Ohlsson, Eric, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Julius Weissenborn's Practical Method for Bassoon is widely regarded as the best comprehensive bassoon method book for private instruction. It was originally published in 1887, one year before the famous bassoonist's death. Since that time, it has been revised many times by several different editors throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Weissenborn's original edition and all revised editions are out of date. Of the two current editions, the most popular version was...
Show moreJulius Weissenborn's Practical Method for Bassoon is widely regarded as the best comprehensive bassoon method book for private instruction. It was originally published in 1887, one year before the famous bassoonist's death. Since that time, it has been revised many times by several different editors throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Weissenborn's original edition and all revised editions are out of date. Of the two current editions, the most popular version was first published in 1930, although much of its material comes from earlier editions. Many important approaches regarding the bassoon's performance practice and pedagogy have changed since then. Additionally, the fingering charts provided in both current editions are missing keys found on current models and have numerous errors. Modern philosophies in music pedagogy reveal that Weissenborn's method, in both its original and revised forms, has many deficiencies. These problems include poor concept sequencing and a shortage of explanatory text, to name a few. Moreover, current editions of the method contain many editing errors and inconsistencies. This treatise has three purposes: to present a background on the life of Julius Weissenborn and his Practical Method for Bassoon, to pedagogically analyze the method, and to propose a revised edition.
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Date Issued: 2006
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2051
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis and Performer's Guide to Mark Schultz's Dragons in the Sky for Horn, Percussion, and Computer-Generated Tape.
Creator: Lieser, Benjamin Paul, Stebleton, Michelle, Dunnigan, Patrick, Jiménez, Alexander, Florida State University, College of Music, College of Music
Abstract/Description: The purpose of this study is to analyze Dragons in the Sky for horn, percussion and computer-generated tape (1989) by American composer, Mark Schultz (1957-2015). Dragons in the Sky won the 1990 International Horn Society Composition Contest, and has subsequently been performed over four hundred times worldwide and recorded on three music labels: Summit Records, Hard Cor Music, and Sunset Music Australia. Because of the popularity of Dragons, a consortium of horn players commissioned Schultz...
Show moreThe purpose of this study is to analyze Dragons in the Sky for horn, percussion and computer-generated tape (1989) by American composer, Mark Schultz (1957-2015). Dragons in the Sky won the 1990 International Horn Society Composition Contest, and has subsequently been performed over four hundred times worldwide and recorded on three music labels: Summit Records, Hard Cor Music, and Sunset Music Australia. Because of the popularity of Dragons, a consortium of horn players commissioned Schultz to orchestrate the work for orchestra (1998) and wind ensemble (1999). Despite its fame, there is little information – published or unpublished – on the composer and his works. It is the intent of this paper to add to the relatively small body of literature on Mark Schultz and his compositional additions to the horn repertoire. Dragons in the Sky is a completely octatonic work and employs technology, in the form of computer-generated sounds, unique to the large mainframe supercomputers of the 1970's and 1980's. Although this paper was not intended as a historical source, the author includes biographical information on the composer. A performer's guide to Dragons in the Sky is included to aid those performing the work. Also, the author has included an annotated bibliography of Schultz's works for horn and a current discography.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: FSU_2015fall_Lieser_fsu_0071E_12892
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis of Double Bass Vibrato: Rates, Widths, and Pitches as Influenced by Pitch Height, Fingers Used, and Tempo.
Creator: Mick, James Paul, Darrow, Alice-Ann, Punter, Melanie, Geringer, John, Kelly, Steven, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The purpose of this study was to investigate the rates, widths, and pitches of university double bass players' vibrato in relation to pitch height, fingers used, and tempo. Forty (N = 40) undergraduate and graduate double bass players were individually recorded performing three music exercises that were used for analyses. Each exercise was comprised of three identical excerpts that were transposed for first, fourth, and thumb positions. Excerpts in first and fourth positions utilized fingers...
Show moreThe purpose of this study was to investigate the rates, widths, and pitches of university double bass players' vibrato in relation to pitch height, fingers used, and tempo. Forty (N = 40) undergraduate and graduate double bass players were individually recorded performing three music exercises that were used for analyses. Each exercise was comprised of three identical excerpts that were transposed for first, fourth, and thumb positions. Excerpts in first and fourth positions utilized fingers 1, 2, and 4, while excerpts in thumb position utilized fingers 1, 2, and 3. The overall mean vibrato rate and width of university double bass students in this study was 5.17 Hz and 19 cents. A comparison of the vibrato rates and widths of participants' 1st and 2nd fingers revealed that the 2nd finger (5.22 Hz, 21 cents) used both significantly faster and wider vibrato than the 1st finger (5.07 Hz, 18 cents). Additionally, the descriptive data from this study revealed that the 3rd and 4th fingers vibrated faster than both the 1st and 2nd fingers, and they had a wider vibrato width than the 1st finger, but a narrower width than the 2nd finger. The 3rd finger had the overall fastest recorded vibrato rate for any finger in any position. Analysis of vibrato data also indicated that university double bassists use significantly faster vibrato rates as they perform in progressively higher registers. When comparing the combined mean vibrato rates of the 1st and 2nd fingers, participants vibrated at 4.88 Hz in first position, 5.06 Hz in fourth position, and 5.50 Hz in thumb position. Vibrato widths also increased with pitch register. Mean vibrato widths in first position (16 cents) were significantly narrower than mean vibrato widths in both fourth position (21 cents) and thumb position (22 cents). Tempo also significantly affected mean vibrato rates and width. Musical examples played with a fast tempo were faster and wider (5.35 Hz, 20 cents) than musical examples played with a slow tempo (4.94 Hz, 19 cents). Additionally, analysis indicated that university double bassists vibrate almost equally above and below the in-tune pitch. Using the descriptive data for all fingers in all position, the total difference found between mean pitches of vibrated and non-vibrated tones was 1 cent. Music educators can use these results to create more consistent descriptions of double bass vibrato, and potentially, more efficient methods for teaching vibrato.
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Date Issued: 2012
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-5036
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis of Gender, Authority and Educational Background of Voice Teachers in Undergraduate Degree-Granting Institutions.
Creator: Puller, Shawn I., Weelden, Kim Van, Morris, Richard, Madsen, Clifford, Geringer, John, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Music education is a predominantly female occupation; however while women dominate the ranks of elementary and choral education they lose representation as grade level increases. In addition sex-role segregation within the field is also evidenced by the domination of males in the areas of instrumental and jazz music education. As with other areas of post-secondary education, females have made gains and now occupy 43% of music faculty positions, however it may be that the males and females...
Show moreMusic education is a predominantly female occupation; however while women dominate the ranks of elementary and choral education they lose representation as grade level increases. In addition sex-role segregation within the field is also evidenced by the domination of males in the areas of instrumental and jazz music education. As with other areas of post-secondary education, females have made gains and now occupy 43% of music faculty positions, however it may be that the males and females have gender specific sex-roles. Due to the specific, gendered nature of voice parts, it may be that applied voice teacher training programs would have an equal distribution of females (sopranos, mezzo-sopranos, contraltos) and males (counter-tenors, tenors, baritone, basses). The distribution of the sexes within the career field may affect hiring practices, promotions, and access to administrative positions thereby mitigating sex inequalities and sex-role biases which exist in other areas of post-secondary education. This study was an initial step investigating biological sex and authority as they relate to applied voice teachers in four-year institutions in the United States. Voice-teaching was found to be a predominantly female occupation with men and women holding a near equal number of full-time professor status positions. Upon closer examination, sex-role stratification within the field may be evidenced. For example, the proportion of males increased as faculty rank increased while the proportion of females decreased as faculty rank increased. There also seemed to be sex-role stratification with regard to specific teaching responsibilities held by males and females. The reasons for these differences are explored.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0468
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis of Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco's Vogelweide: Song Cycle for Baritone and Guitar.
Creator: Robles, Eric B., Shaftel, Matthew, Holzman, Bruce, Punter, Melanie, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Castelnuovo-Tedesco's meeting with the great Spanish guitarist, the late Andres Segovia, began a collaboration between composer and performer that lasted over thirty years. This friendship resulted in not only a wealth of solo guitar repertoire, but inspired Castelnuovo-Tedesco to write music for the guitar in combination with other instruments, including works for guitar and voice. Whereas the vocal music by his countrymen in the Nineteenth-Century had reduced lyrics to being a vehicle for...
Show moreCastelnuovo-Tedesco's meeting with the great Spanish guitarist, the late Andres Segovia, began a collaboration between composer and performer that lasted over thirty years. This friendship resulted in not only a wealth of solo guitar repertoire, but inspired Castelnuovo-Tedesco to write music for the guitar in combination with other instruments, including works for guitar and voice. Whereas the vocal music by his countrymen in the Nineteenth-Century had reduced lyrics to being a vehicle for melodic expression, Castelnuovo-Tedesco's models for vocal composition were the German-Romantic composers of Lieder. Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, and Hugo Wolf had chosen the texts of great literary figures and tried to respect and convey these words in sound. Castelnuovo-Tedesco pursued this approach in regard to his own vocal music. This treatise attempts to support Castelnuovo-Tedesco's philosophy of musical text depiction in his song-cycle for baritone and guitar, Vogelweide. Through harmonic and formal analysis, it will be shown that Castelnuovo-Tedesco respected and conveyed Walther von der Vogelweide's text through music.
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0299
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis of Music Therapy and Music Education Intergenerational Programs and Their Importance to the Psychosocial, Physical, and Cognitive Needs of Older Adults.
Creator: Camareno, Nicole, Gooding, Lori F. (Lori Fogus), Standley, Jayne M., Gregory, Sarah Dianne, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: The purposes of this study were to: (a) analyze trends in music therapy and music education intergenerational programs pertaining to older adults; (b) identify the most important components pertaining to the psychosocial, physical, and cognitive needs of older adults in intergenerational programs; and (c) demonstrate their importance to the older adult population. Results indicated that intergenerational music programs were increased community engagement and were more effective in larger...
Show moreThe purposes of this study were to: (a) analyze trends in music therapy and music education intergenerational programs pertaining to older adults; (b) identify the most important components pertaining to the psychosocial, physical, and cognitive needs of older adults in intergenerational programs; and (c) demonstrate their importance to the older adult population. Results indicated that intergenerational music programs were increased community engagement and were more effective in larger groups because more people could benefit from the outcomes of such programs. Furthermore, a systematic literature search indicated that both music therapy and music education intergenerational programs encompass the psychosocial, physical, and cognitive needs of older adults through interventions such as increasing breath support, interacting with a younger generation, and including choreographed movements. In conclusion, both music therapy and music education intergenerational programs are important to the older adult population; while the areas focus on dissimilar interventions at times, the goal is always the same: increase the quality of life in those actively aging.
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Date Issued: 2019
Identifier: 2019_Spring_Camareno_fsu_0071N_15243
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis of Musical Narrative and Signification in Jason Robert Brown's Score for Parade.
Creator: Roberts, Adam, Clendinning, Jane Piper, Buchler, Michael, Green, Elna C., College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The musical "Parade," with music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown and book by Alfred Uhry, opened at Broadway's Vivian Beaumont Theatre on December 17, 1998. Although criticized for its heightened degree of intellectuality, Brown's score exhibits an artistic design that is remarkably appropriate for the musical theatre. The purpose of this thesis is to examine musical symbolism, signification, metaphor, and allegory in the music of "Parade" via a narratological reading, with Claudia Gorbman's...
Show moreThe musical "Parade," with music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown and book by Alfred Uhry, opened at Broadway's Vivian Beaumont Theatre on December 17, 1998. Although criticized for its heightened degree of intellectuality, Brown's score exhibits an artistic design that is remarkably appropriate for the musical theatre. The purpose of this thesis is to examine musical symbolism, signification, metaphor, and allegory in the music of "Parade" via a narratological reading, with Claudia Gorbman's principles of classical film music serving as the primary analytical framework. The result is not an exhaustive analysis covering the entire score, but rather analyses of musical events and excerpts to illustrate functions of narrative elements throughout the show's music.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1823
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis of Performance Practice Trends in Recent Recordings of Tomás Luis De Victoria's O Magnum Mysterium, O Quam Gloriosum, O Vos Omnes, and Officium Defunctorum as Related to Historical and Contemporary Scholarly Literature.
Creator: Luebke, Adam Gerhard Walter, Thomas, André J., Brewer, Charles, Fenton, Kevin, Bowers, Judy K., College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This dissertation investigates performance practice trends in the music of Tomás Luis de Victoria as performed on commercially available recordings. The study discusses the prevailing philosophies surrounding musicians' quest for authenticity in performance, and examines five elements of performance practice relevant to Renaissance music: the make-up of the performing ensemble, the performing pitch level, the tempo and proportional mensural relationships, the use of vibrato, and the...
Show moreThis dissertation investigates performance practice trends in the music of Tomás Luis de Victoria as performed on commercially available recordings. The study discusses the prevailing philosophies surrounding musicians' quest for authenticity in performance, and examines five elements of performance practice relevant to Renaissance music: the make-up of the performing ensemble, the performing pitch level, the tempo and proportional mensural relationships, the use of vibrato, and the employment of melodic embellishment. Ninety-two recorded performances of four works by Victoria, O magnum mysterium, O quam gloriosum, O vos omnes, and Officium defunctorum contributed to the data. The findings are contextualized in relation to the descriptions of primary source materials from the Renaissance era and modern scholarly research in the area of Renaissance performance practice. The types of ensembles and the given pitch level of a piece are highly dependent on the nature of the singers. All types of choral ensembles perform Renaissance music, both a cappella and accompanied, at a pitch level that suits the ranges of the singers. Tempo decisions vary widely among performers, though they tend to adhere to the belief that the pulse of a human informs the pulse of the music. The character of the text and the complexity of the music also influence tempo. Some performers sing with vibrato and some without, though modern scholars agree that the presence of vibrato results from healthy singing and need not detract from the Renaissance tonal aesthetic. A vast majority of performers do not attempt to embellish melodic lines despite evidence that Renaissance singers were highly skilled in ornamentation. The disparity and variety of practices evident on the recorded performances do not produce specific hard and fast rules. The data show that performers make performance practice decisions based on the context of their performance. Authentic performances blend an understanding of historical evidence and research about music performance with the reality of performing ancient music within a modern framework.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1013
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis of Saxophone Music by Anders Eliasson.
Creator: Giles, Thomas Amos, Meighan, Patrick, Brewer, Charles E. (Charles Everett), Amsler, Eva, Holden, Jonathan, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: "…we live in an age in which celebrity is often confused with greatness, in which a genius like Anders Eliasson – who lives as an ‘artistic monk' – can fall completely through the cracks of public awareness. In a sane world, Anders Eliasson would be a household word." — John-Edward Kelly Over the past 35 years, a large body of solo literature was inspired by the internationally renowned saxophone soloist, John-Edward Kelly (1958-2015), and yet a vast majority of these works remain unknown to...
Show more"…we live in an age in which celebrity is often confused with greatness, in which a genius like Anders Eliasson – who lives as an ‘artistic monk' – can fall completely through the cracks of public awareness. In a sane world, Anders Eliasson would be a household word." — John-Edward Kelly Over the past 35 years, a large body of solo literature was inspired by the internationally renowned saxophone soloist, John-Edward Kelly (1958-2015), and yet a vast majority of these works remain unknown to the classical saxophone community. Among these works, Anders Eliasson's music is some of the most significant. Relatively little has been written on the composer, but there is even less on his saxophone music. This treatise embodies an important first step in discussing the legacy of John-Edward Kelly by examining some of the most exciting music dedicated to him. It is the author's intention that the works herein be adopted as standard repertoire. Eliasson's three works for saxophone are a superlative collection, deserving more performance and research than has been afforded thus far. It is hoped that this document will generate meaningful conversation, moving performances, the circulation of recordings, and further study of one of Sweden's finest composers and his contributions to the instrument. These are works that every saxophonist should know and recognize as companions to the masterworks of other instrumental traditions. Combining primary sources, historical information, and various analyses, this treatise will display the merits of Anders Eliasson's saxophone music, providing a base-study for future performers and researchers. Without this effort, the greatness of such a composer and his critical contributions to the instrument might very well "fall through the cracks."
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Date Issued: 2016
Identifier: FSU_2016SP_Giles_fsu_0071E_13294
Format: Thesis

Title: Analysis of Two Early Euphonium Concertos, Their Composers, and Their Impact on the Euphonium Repertoire.
Creator: Dickinson, Paul Thomas, Ebbers, Paul D., Dunnigan, Patrick, Drew, John Robert, Moore, Christopher, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: As a relatively young instrument, the euphonium's solo repertoire lacks the depth available for instruments such as the violin or piano. Even other instruments in the brass family have repertoire composed by historically important musicians like Haydn and Mozart. Though the euphonium began to enjoy recognition as a virtuosic solo instrument with bands in the early 20th century, a number of these solos were borrowed from other instruments and none were concertos. Significant music written by...
Show moreAs a relatively young instrument, the euphonium's solo repertoire lacks the depth available for instruments such as the violin or piano. Even other instruments in the brass family have repertoire composed by historically important musicians like Haydn and Mozart. Though the euphonium began to enjoy recognition as a virtuosic solo instrument with bands in the early 20th century, a number of these solos were borrowed from other instruments and none were concertos. Significant music written by prominent British composers specifically for euphonium began to surface in the early 1970s, leading with Euphonium Concerto (1972) by Joseph Horovitz and Fantasia (1973) by Gordon Jacob. John Golland followed soon after, writing his Euphonium Concerto No. 1 in 1982. The euphonium's strength as a solo instrument grew because of its role in music written numerous British composers through the mid-20th century, both in concert band and brass band settings. Even in non-solo lines, composers often depended on the euphonium to supply a virtuosic tenor voice in their writing. Some of these same composers eventually supplied some of the first large-scale solo works for euphonium. Joseph Horovitz was among the first to write for the euphonium as a solo instrument with the brass band. John Golland followed these traditions in his own brass band compositions, and wrote two prominent euphonium concertos with brass band accompaniment. He wrote each of his concertos in collusion with two of Britain's most prominent euphonium stars of the 1980s, the first with Robert Childs and the second with Robert's brother, Nicholas. The first Concerto strongly represented Golland's own life, and includes some of the most virtuosic solo writing in existence for euphonium. The perceived limits of possibility challenged by Golland in this composition started a trend of increasingly difficult requirements in subsequent euphonium works, eventually changing the assumed lyrical and technical limits for euphonium performers over time. Though the demands of range and difficulty in later compositions expanded beyond Horovitz's original writing, composers still include direct references to his Euphonium Concerto in terms of style, structure, and closely-related quotes of his music. A few of the more highly regarded new concertos from the past twenty years were composed by the next generation of brass band composers who were taught by Horovitz, extending his influence even deeper into the euphonium repertoire. This treatise focuses on two early euphonium concertos and the lives of the composers who created them. Joseph Horovitz and his Euphonium Concerto (1972), which is recognized as the first concerto written specifically for the euphonium, will constitute the first chapter. The second chapter centers on John Golland and his Euphonium Concerto No. 1 (1982). Each composer's personal history will be the first portion of each chapter, but their compositional idiom will also be examined using other selections from their respective bodies of music. Finally, each chapter will briefly assess the role of these pieces and their composers in the overall development of the euphonium concerto, especially in relation to British brass band music. The body of this treatise came from books, periodicals, radio interviews, notes by the composers and publishers, and personal accounts from friends and colleagues close to the composers. Recordings and scores of the two concertos were analyzed alongside recordings and scores of other works by these composers to draw conclusions regarding the each composer's general style of writing. In the case of Horovitz, his students and their work were also examined in order to gauge that aspect of his continuing influence on the brass band world. The end result gathered from these sources formed a biography of each composer which also addresses their music and influence on the early development of the euphonium repertoire.
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Date Issued: 2016
Identifier: FSU_2016SP_Dickinson_fsu_0071E_13151
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analytical Model for the Study of Multimedia Compositions: A Case Study in Minimalist Music.
Creator: Atkinson, Sean, Shaftel, Matthew, Glahn, Denise Von, Buchler, Michael, Jones, Evan Allan, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The examination of multimedia compositions by minimalist composers demands the analysis of not only the music, but also the visual and narrative domains. While there are many ways of addressing the music, there are relatively few methods that engage all of the constituent domains that comprise these multifaceted works. One of these existing methods, developed by Nicholas Cook, analyzes a multimedia work using a series of models based on the literary concepts of semiotics and metaphor. However...
Show moreThe examination of multimedia compositions by minimalist composers demands the analysis of not only the music, but also the visual and narrative domains. While there are many ways of addressing the music, there are relatively few methods that engage all of the constituent domains that comprise these multifaceted works. One of these existing methods, developed by Nicholas Cook, analyzes a multimedia work using a series of models based on the literary concepts of semiotics and metaphor. However, these models fail to address the underlying meaning of the composition. This dissertation addresses the problem of uncovering meaning in minimalist multimedia works by developing a new analytical model. The new model, like Cook's models, makes use of semiotic and metaphorical concepts, but uses them in an entirely different manner. The result is a comprehensive model designed to incorporate the music, visual, and narrative domains into an all-inclusive blended meaning. To demonstrate the model, four relatively recent multimedia works by minimalist or minimalist-influenced composers are examined: Three Tales by Steve Reich, Nixon in China by John Adams, Lost Objects by Bang-on-a-Can-composers Michael Gordon, Julia Wolfe, and David Lang, and Naqoyqatsi by Philip Glass. These analyses reveal nuanced interpretations and hidden subtexts that are only accessible through the examination of the entire multimedia structure.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0252
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analytical Overview of Min-Chong Park's Impromptus Pentatoniques for Violin Solo.
Creator: Han, Hyun Jin, Chapo, Eliot, Jones, Evan Allan, Sauer, Greg, Punter, Melanie, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: ABSTRACT The purpose of this research is to provide biographical information about Min-Chong Park (1918 - 2006) and an analysis of his composition Impromptus Pentatoniques for Violin Solo. In the late nineteenth century, Western music was first introduced in Korea through Christian missionaries. Korean musicians started to learn Western instruments in the early twentieth century, and violinist Min-Chong Park was one of them. He became one of the most prominent musicians in Korea, and had a...
Show moreABSTRACT The purpose of this research is to provide biographical information about Min-Chong Park (1918 - 2006) and an analysis of his composition Impromptus Pentatoniques for Violin Solo. In the late nineteenth century, Western music was first introduced in Korea through Christian missionaries. Korean musicians started to learn Western instruments in the early twentieth century, and violinist Min-Chong Park was one of them. He became one of the most prominent musicians in Korea, and had a great impact worldwide through his travels and students. His work often served as a bridge between Korean traditional music and Western classical music. As a composer, Park left several string works, vocal works, and short pieces for piano. His compositions use western instrumental techniques, but they contain a distinctive musical language related to Korean traditional music. He composed primarily with Korean traditional material for western instruments, especially strings. In this sense, his works contain a special combination of tradition and modernity. This study begins by presenting Park's biography and introducing his composition Impromptus Pentatoniques for Violin Solo. It then examines how this composition, a five-movement work based on a pentatonic scale, was influenced by Eastern traditional elements such as folksong melodies, rhythms, and abrupt dynamic shifts. The treatise is organized as follows: The first chapter reviews Park's life and career. The second chapter discusses Korean traditional idioms and their influence on Park's compositions. The third chapter is an analysis of Impromptus Pentatoniques for Violin Solo. The final chapter provides a conclusion of the work.
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Date Issued: 2012
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-4889
Format: Thesis

Title: Analytical Research of Wind Band Core Repertoire.
Creator: Wiggins, Timothy D., Clary, Richard, Jimenez, Alexander, Dunnigan, Patrick, Madsen, Clifford, College of Music, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Acton Ostling was a pioneer in providing empirical evidence that certain compositions are worth consideration due to their acceptance, skill and degree of serious artistic merit. His research allowed band directors to sort through a relatively young band repertoire, but did not provide them with a method for facing a much more difficult task: to discover and utilize resources for the preparation and performance of quality wind works. A review of related literature suggested a need to discover...
Show moreActon Ostling was a pioneer in providing empirical evidence that certain compositions are worth consideration due to their acceptance, skill and degree of serious artistic merit. His research allowed band directors to sort through a relatively young band repertoire, but did not provide them with a method for facing a much more difficult task: to discover and utilize resources for the preparation and performance of quality wind works. A review of related literature suggested a need to discover, catalog and describe what research is available on works that the profession considers its canon. The purpose of this project was to identify relevant analytical research on wind band core repertoire. This project sought to answer the following research questions. 1) How much research is available on compositions that our profession has deemed to be of serious artistic merit? 2) What taxonomy can be developed to analyze the depth of a research article? 3) What type and to what depth are the analyses on each work? 4) What compositions have been inadequately addressed through research? The core repertoire, for the purposes of this study, was defined as those compositions deemed to be of serious artistic merit in two of three studies based on Acton Ostling's research (N=107). Analytical research was found for each of the compositions utilizing online database search engines and print resources. Based on the initial search parameters, 963 citations were found regarding core repertoire. The data were categorized using a five-tiered taxonomy. Tier one research was further analyzed and annotated for future reference. Results indicate a growing body of analytical research regarding the selected compositions. The depth of the individual analytical studies varies greatly, from annotations to full dissertation-length documents focusing on one composition. A percentage (19%) of this selected core repertoire has no or little known in-depth research associated with it. Results suggest a need for further scholarship not only with regards to analyzing under-represented works, but also with making such analysis research available to a larger population of the profession via inclusion in standard database search engines and print sources. Additionally, such research may provide a method with which to catalog and categorize other research, analytical and otherwise, and could provide a starting point in programming and preparing works of value.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-7660
Format: Thesis

Title: Analyzing Film Music Across the Complete Filmic Structure: Three Coen and Burwell Collaborations.
Creator: Jarvis, Brian Edward, Shaftel, Matthew R., Johnson, David F. (David Frame), Buchler, Michael Howard, Rogers, Nancy, Florida State University, College of Music
Abstract/Description: While film-music studies have explored the interactions between film and music at the local level of the scene, large-scale film-music analysis is a rare and under-researched phenomenon. I propose a methodology that allows for a film's music to be discussed at the level of the entire film. Drawing on works by literary scholars Gustav Freytag and Seymour Chatman, I present a methodology for graphic representation of the Narrative/Dramatic Structure of complete films that combines with the work...
Show moreWhile film-music studies have explored the interactions between film and music at the local level of the scene, large-scale film-music analysis is a rare and under-researched phenomenon. I propose a methodology that allows for a film's music to be discussed at the level of the entire film. Drawing on works by literary scholars Gustav Freytag and Seymour Chatman, I present a methodology for graphic representation of the Narrative/Dramatic Structure of complete films that combines with the work's complete score. As a test case, I scrutinize three filmic collaborations by Joel & Ethan Coen and Carter Burwell (Barton Fink, Miller's Crossing, and Fargo). Through the use of various analytical techniques, I demonstrate how music functions at the global and local levels and reveal that Burwell and the Coens use their scores to project important narrative information about their films that changes the way they are perceived by audiences. I conclude by showing how my methodology allows for the comparison of large-scale musical usage to finally take place in the context of a film's complete score.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-9357
Format: Thesis

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