This document provides a resource for Franz Liszt's unfamiliar piano work, the Grosses Konzertsolo and his subsequent rearrangement of the work for two pianos entitled Concerto pathetique. The Introduction places the work in its historical context as a precursor to the great Sonata in B minor and discusses possible reasons for its various revisions. Chapter One details Liszt's productive years from 1849-1853 in Weimar and selected keyboard works from this period which are closely related to the Grosses Konzertsolo. Chapter Two provides information on Liszt's first published piano works and his experiments with form, as well as a comparison of the Grosses Konzertsolo with the Sonata in B minor, in terms of motivic and thematic development. Technical issues and obstacles to performance are also addressed. Chapter Three compares the Concerto pathetique with the Grosses Konzertsolo showing how Liszt's rearrangement becomes more practical as well as effective. Chapter Four discusses Hans von Bulow's version of the Concerto pathetique and includes a brief biography.

No description available.

Sans etoiles is a musical composition in three movements written for clarinet, horn, violin, cello and piano. This essay deals with the principal characteristics of the musical material used in the piece, the modalities governing transitional processes and the influence of these factors on memory and the perception of musical time. The artistic project gave way to a reflection on the directional aspects of music in order to establish transitional links between independent musical entities defined as 'musical objects'. The main transitional agent between these entities consisted of an autonomous musical layer bearing an exclusive impact on the surrounding musical context. The harmonic network of the piece, a set of interchangeable chord progressions, was conceived from the self-replication of a three-note cell. Each movement of the final work proposes a unique approach to musical time.

A Guide to Transcriptions and Arrangements for Two Pianos was designed as a reference tool for the pianist and duo-pianist. 1378 entries are catalogued in this dissertation. Each entry contains information from the following list: Composer name; Birth and death dates; Country; Title of work; Date arrangement written; Publisher; Publisher identification number; Date of publication; Arranger name; Number of pages; Length in minutes; Library or source where found; Origin of work; Editor; Comments and level of difficulty.The writer read music for the research of this dissertation at number of libraries including the Library of Congress. Additionally, an original questionnaire was sent to 393 pianists who are listed as Master Teacher or College Faculty in the 1995 Directory of Nationally Certified Teachers of Music. The results are printed from the 219 replies. / School of Music

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of graduated exercise at the piano on the pianist's cardiac output, forearm blood flow, heart rate, and blood pressure. Also considered were the effects of piano practice conditioning, general cardiovascular conditioning, and acute cigarette smoking on the aforementioned parameters during and after graduated piano exercise.Fifteen adult pianists participated in the study. The piano exercises consisted of bilateral scales played in eight three-minute stages. Tempo was constant within stages but increased with each new stage. Cardiac output and forearm blood flow were monitored by electrical impedance utilizing a tetrapolar electrode-placement system.FindingsCardiac output, forearm blood flow, heart rate, and systolic blood pressure generally increased proportionally to exercise intensity and returned to basal levels within a five-minute recovery period.ConclusionsStrenuous piano exercise stresses the body in general, not just the active forearm muscles.The stress load placed on the heart by piano playing can be at least as great as that produced by a brisk walk.Piano playing can generate an oxygen debt in the forearm muscles.Conditioning of forearm muscles through regular piano practice results in training effect for piano playing in those muscles.Pianists who participate regularly in quality aerobic exercise programs generally begin and end piano exercise with lower heart rates than those who do not exercise. Frequently, they increase heart rates to a lesser extent during exercise and settle into steady postexercise rates more quickly as well.Both regular piano practice and general cardiovascular conditioning gained through quality aerobic exercise contribute to increased piano-playing endurance.Acute smoking increases cardiac outputs and heart rates of pianists resulting in higher levels of cardiac work during piano exercise.During piano exercise, acutely smoking pianists require greatly increased forearm blood flows to meet muscle needs.

This dissertation is an analytical study of five Chinese piano pieces: Buffalo Boy's Flute by He Lu-ting, Flower Drum by Qu Wei, Xing-jiang Dance No. 1 and No. 2 by Ding Shan-de and Tunes at Sunset by Li Ying-hai. These five pieces represent a specific historical period from the 1930s to the 1950s--a primary phase in the establishment of Chinese piano music. Each piece is analyzed in terms of melody, rhythm, harmony, form and style, in order to ascertain how Chinese composers fused Western compositional techniques with the Chinese musical heritage. A second objective was to provide an historical background of the introduction and development of the piano in China. Through the investigation, this study has traced the channels through which Western music was introduced to China.The study consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 presents introductory information as well as the purpose, significance, procedures and delimitation of the study. Chapter 2, a review of related literature, provides a brief description and evaluation of important sources utilized. Chapter 3 presents a brief history of the piano in China. Chapter 4 provides an analysis of each of the five Chinese piano pieces. Also included are an evaluation of each work, brief biographies, and the historical circumstances surrounding the composition of each piece. Summary and conclusions are reported in Chapter 5.The history of Chinese piano music is relatively short--spanning approximately eighty years. Western music was not introduced to China until the beginning of the twentieth century. The founding of the National Conservatory in 1927 marked the beginning of professional musical higher education in China. Because of the musical training which Chinese musicians received, the German-Russian romantic style exerted a strong influence on the musical development of China. In the past eighty years, Chinese musicians have taken different paths trying to establish a national identity within their musical culture. The five pieces analyzed in this study reflect the accomplishments which Chinese musicians achieved in combining Western compositional techniques with Chinese musical idioms. These innovations have since become common practice among most Chinese composers. / School of Music

Studies concerning the development of the piano trio primarily cultivate analyses of the musical structures found in this genre. Few of these studies deal in depth with the socio-historical aspect of the development of the piano trio. Such a neglected process can only lead to the loss of valuable information. It is important to pay careful attention to our ever-changing environment and how this phenomenon impacts upon music. The study of the development of the early piano trio (because of the social nature of chamber music) requires greater attention to the social history associated with this genre. This development can be traced as an integral part of the Germanic culture, more specifically that of eighteenth century Germany and Austria. Both societies' love for the piano led to the full blossoming of the piano trio. The question arises: to which degree did the early development of the piano and the changing society- as it mostly appeared during the eighteenth century in Germany and Austria- have an impact on the development of the early piano trio? This hypothesis holds that the development of the early piano trio depended (among other aspects) on the early development of the piano and the changing society of eighteenth century Germany and Austria. Thus, a mutual connection exists between all three factors. / Thesis (M.Mus.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011

Studies concerning the development of the piano trio primarily cultivate analyses of the musical structures found in this genre. Few of these studies deal in depth with the socio-historical aspect of the development of the piano trio. Such a neglected process can only lead to the loss of valuable information. It is important to pay careful attention to our ever-changing environment and how this phenomenon impacts upon music. The study of the development of the early piano trio (because of the social nature of chamber music) requires greater attention to the social history associated with this genre. This development can be traced as an integral part of the Germanic culture, more specifically that of eighteenth century Germany and Austria. Both societies' love for the piano led to the full blossoming of the piano trio. The question arises: to which degree did the early development of the piano and the changing society- as it mostly appeared during the eighteenth century in Germany and Austria- have an impact on the development of the early piano trio? This hypothesis holds that the development of the early piano trio depended (among other aspects) on the early development of the piano and the changing society of eighteenth century Germany and Austria. Thus, a mutual connection exists between all three factors. / Thesis (M.Mus.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011

Studies of Alexander Scriabin (1871-1915) have traditionally focused on his middle- and late-period music after 1902. Discussions of his personal philosophy and its impact on his music also concentrate on these two periods. This thesis examines Scriabin’s philosophy and piano music from a sub-section of his early period—1892 to 1897—that I designate his “formative” period. I argue that Scriabin’s eccentric belief in transcendence through music was already developing and influencing his music during his formative period. Evidence to support this theory is found in three areas: context, performance practice and analysis. A contextual evaluation of Scriabin’s formative years is compared against his late ideologies from his opera and the Mysterium. Scriabin’s performance practices, as seen in both first-hand documentation and his piano roll recordings, reveal possible philosophical performance traits. Analyses of selected formative compositions expose philosophical and performance related elements, demonstrating the interaction between composer, pianist and philosopher. / Graduate / 0413 / lauralwhitehead@hotmail.com

Studies of Alexander Scriabin (1871-1915) have traditionally focused on his middle- and late-period music after 1902. Discussions of his personal philosophy and its impact on his music also concentrate on these two periods. This thesis examines Scriabin’s philosophy and piano music from a sub-section of his early period—1892 to 1897—that I designate his “formative” period. I argue that Scriabin’s eccentric belief in transcendence through music was already developing and influencing his music during his formative period. Evidence to support this theory is found in three areas: context, performance practice and analysis. A contextual evaluation of Scriabin’s formative years is compared against his late ideologies from his opera and the Mysterium. Scriabin’s performance practices, as seen in both first-hand documentation and his piano roll recordings, reveal possible philosophical performance traits. Analyses of selected formative compositions expose philosophical and performance related elements, demonstrating the interaction between composer, pianist and philosopher. / Graduate / 0413 / lauralwhitehead@hotmail.com