This research dissertation presents work undertaken to develop new performance techniques and mappings for the expressive control of spatial motion using Ambisonic projection. The dissertation reviews relevant research from the fields of Spatial Sound and Extended Instruments, and establishes playability as a useful set of criteria for a reflexive project methodology and evaluation. This reflexive research systematically investigates Trevor Wishart’s taxonomy of spatial motions through the development of new hardware, software, performance techniques and spatial motion analysis.

This research dissertation presents work undertaken to develop new performance techniques and mappings for the expressive control of spatial motion using Ambisonic projection. The dissertation reviews relevant research from the fields of Spatial Sound and Extended Instruments, and establishes playability as a useful set of criteria for a reflexive project methodology and evaluation. This reflexive research systematically investigates Trevor Wishart’s taxonomy of spatial motions through the development of new hardware, software, performance techniques and spatial motion analysis.

Thesis (M.M.)--University of North Texas, 2008. / For flute oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon, and marimba, with an optional percussion part (glockenspiel, chimes). Duration: ca. 6:45. System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Includes bibliographical references (p. 61-64).

Les synapses se forment selon plusieurs étapes comprenant la stabilisation des contacts nouvellement formés et leur maturation. Ces différentes étapes dépendent d’une mise en place coordonnée entre la terminaison pré- et postsynaptique. Les protéines composant la présynapse et les récepteurs ionotropiques du glutamate ont des rôles clés dans ces processus. Lors de ma thèse, je me suis intéressé à l’implication de la protéine présynaptique Bassoon lors de la maturation des synapses glutamatergiques entre les fibres moussues et les cellules pyramidales de CA3 dans l’hippocampe. Cette synapse constitue un modèle attractif pour l’étude de la maturation synaptique car elle suit des étapes de maturation morphologique et fonctionnelle bien définies. Bassoon est une des premières protéines se mettant en place au niveau des contacts synaptiques nouvellement formés. Par des approches électrophysiologiques, nous avons montré que la protéine Bassoon était importante pour l’organisation du site de libération de neurotransmetteur durant les deux premières semaines de vie post-natale chez la souris.Les récepteurs kaïnate jouent un rôle important dans la régulation de l’activité de réseau au cours du développement post-natal. Cependant l’impact de l’activation de ces récepteurs sur la maturation synaptique est peu connu. J’ai pu mettre en évidence un délai dans la maturation fonctionnelle de la synapse fibre moussue/cellule pyramidale de CA3 chez les souris déficientes pour la sous-unité GluK2 des récepteurs kaïnate (GluK2-/-). Afin de comprendre si ce délai de maturation fonctionnelle est corrélé à un retard dans la maturation morphologique de cette synapse, nous avons mis en place des infections de lentivirus codant pour une protéine membranaire fluorescente (YFP) chez le souriceau nouveau-né (P1-P2). A l’aide de microscopie confocale et de reconstruction en 3D, nous avons ainsi pu décrire la maturation morphologique de la synapse fibre moussue/cellule pyramidale de CA3. Cela m’a également permis de corréler la maturation fonctionnelle à la maturation morphologique et mes résultats montrent également un retard dans la mise en place des synapses chez les souris GluK2-/-. L’ensemble de cette étude révèle l’importance de l’activité synaptique et de la coordination entre mise en place de la pré- et de la postsynapse au cours de la maturation synaptique. / The formation of synapses follows different steps including synaptogenesis and maturation. These different steps depend on coordinated pre- and post-synaptic assembly. Pre-synaptic proteins and ionotropic glutamate receptors play a central role in these processes. During my thesis, I have been interested in the implication of the presynaptic protein Bassoon in the maturation of the hippocampal mossy fiber to CA3 pyramidal cell glutamatergic synapses. This synapse constitutes an attractive model for the study of synaptic maturation because it follows several steps of defined morphological and functional maturation. Bassoon in one of the first protein present at newly formed synaptic contacts. By electrophysiological approaches, we showed that Bassoon is important for the organization of the active zone during the first two postnatal weeks.Kainate receptors play an important role in the regulation of network activity during postnatal development. However, the impact of kainate receptors activation on synaptic maturation is less known. I showed a delay in functional maturation of mossy fiber synapses in mice deficient for the GluK2 subunit of kainate receptors (GluK2-/-). To know if this delay is correlated to morphological alterations of this synapse, we setup in vivo lentiviral infections of membrane fluorescent protein (YFP) in mouse pups (P1-P2). Using confocal microscopy and 3D reconstruction, we described the morphological maturation of mossy fiber synapses. We were able to correlate functional and morphological maturation and our results also showed an impairment in the formation of mossy fiber synapses in GluK2-/-. Together, these data reveal the importance of synaptic activity and of the coordination of pre- and post-synaptic assembly during synaptic maturation.

As the bassoon has evolved over time, the music written for the instrument has evolved around it, and was many times the catalyst for its evolution. Bassoon music of the seventeenth through early twentieth centuries has defined much of the curricula for bassoon studies, and has established how we consider and experience the bassoon. We experience, write, and consume music in vastly different ways than just a generation ago. Humans use technology for the most basic of tasks. Composers are using the technology of our generation to compose music that is a reflection of our time. This is a significant aspect of art music today, and bassoonists are barely participating in the creation of this new repertoire. Performance practice often considers only the musical score; interactive electronic music regularly goes beyond that. The combination of technological challenges and inexperience can make approaching electroacoustic music a daunting and inaccessible type of music for bassoonists. These issues require a different language to the performance practice: one that addresses music, amplification, computer software, hardware, the collaboration between performer and technology, and often the performer and composer. The author discusses problems that performers face when rehearsing and performing interactive electroacoustic works for bassoon, and offers some solutions.

The Pulitzer Prize in Music has been associated with excellence in American composition since 1943, when it first honored William Schuman for his Secular Cantata No. 2: A Free Song. In the years that followed, this award has recognized America's most eminent composers, placing many of their works in the standard orchestral, chamber and solo repertoire. Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, Walter Piston and Elliott Carter are but a few of the composers who have been honored by this most prestigious award. Several of these Pulitzer Prize-winning composers have made significant contributions to the solo and chamber music repertories of the bassoon, an instrument that had a limited repertoire until the beginning of the twentieth century. The purpose of this project is to draw attention to the fact that America's most honored composers have enlarged and enriched the repertoire of the solo bassoon and bassoon quartet. The works that will be discussed in this document include: Quartettino for Four Bassoons (1939) - William Schuman, Three Inventions for Solo Bassoon (1962) - George Perle, Canzonetta (1962) - John Harbison, Metamorphoses for Bassoon Solo (1991) - Leslie Bassett and “How like pellucid statues, Daddy. Or like a . . . an engine” (1994) - John Corigliano. Each chapter will include a brief biography of the composer, a historical perspective of where that composition lies in relation to their other works, background information about the work, a formal analysis and suggestions for performance.

As composers continue to explore new horizons of classical music, performers are asked to stretch and explore their abilities as well. However, there is little pedagogical material that prepares students to learn the style and structure of this contemporary music. Many students primarily study etudes written in the style of pre-1900 music, leaving them without the tools to learn most music written since 1900. The pedagogical literature that does include music from the twentieth century is often very advanced, and lacks an introduction for younger students. This thesis includes a method of teaching contemporary techniques to junior high and high school level students, along with sixty-four original etudes composed to teach the scales, rhythms, meters, styles, and extended techniques that are often used in contemporary music. The accompanying text provides a detailed explanation of the process and pedagogical philosophy behind the etudes, including examples from different systems of music education. The etudes are specifically composed to teach fundamental skills for bassoonists, such as technical facility, solid subdivision and comprehension of meter, an understanding of different styles of music, and extended techniques that require proper fundamentals of tone production. They may also be used as sight-reading pieces or for students who have a specific need to learn certain techniques. Each section of etudes also includes an introductory section that guides the student through the process of learning the skill and performing the etude correctly.

Francisco Mignone was born in São Paulo on September 3, 1897 and died on February 19, 1986. A representative of Brazilian Nationalism and one of the most influential national composers, Mignone was active and prolific through his entire life. Few works of Francisco Mignone's late period are known and performed; nevertheless the interest in Mignone's work has been growing. Since many of his works are not published, efforts to discuss and prepare performance editions of his scores are of great importance. The Concertino para clarineta e fagote is representative of Francisco Mignone's last compositional period that, although written using a universal way of treating dissonances, intervals, or different pitch hierarchies, it is very Brazilian in its essence. The present performance edition highlights the human aspect of Mignone's character through an overview of the composer's last compositional period and compositional techniques. This essay contextualizes the Concertino within the composer's career and presents a performance analysis of the piece. It also contains a list of Mignone's works for the bassoon and a list of prizes awarded to the Brazilian composer.

PhD in Performance / Performance related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMDs) are a frequent reality for practicing musicians. Many aspects of the bassoon make bassoon players particularly susceptible to PRMDs. This thesis explored the prevalence of PRMDs among bassoon players and assessed the frequency, types, and locations of PRMDs. Also identified were treatments used for PRMDs, contributing factors to PRMD development, and the perceptions of the bassoon community regarding PRMDs. The International Bassoonist Questionnaire was distributed via the World Wide Web (n = 166, 58% male, 42% female). Eighty-six percent of bassoon players reported PRMDs. Pain was the most common PRMD symptom reported (78%). Females reported PRMDs (96%) more frequently than males (78%). Younger bassoon players reported more PRMDs. Most bassoon players (88%) were attempting to treat their PRMDs. The most common self-administered treatments were rest (60%) and reducing playing time (53%). Bassoonists attributed the cause of PRMDs to “long hours of practice” and “sudden increase in playing time.” Bassoon players felt strongly that the medical profession did not know how to treat a bassoon related injury. They believed that a knowledgeable teacher was the best resource against the onset of PRMDs even though technical aspects of playing were not identified as significant contributors to PRMDs. The bassoon playing population needs more information about PRMDs in order to develop treatment and prevention strategies.

“Nota” is a merging language of sound, instruction, and visual elements from the unique experience of performing on a wind instrument. I create improvisational drawings inspired by the nature of improvisational sound, performance, and the reflection of moment making. These works are tied to my interest in the human body and its endless variations. The anthropomorphic nature of these instruments ties closely to the human element of touch and breathing. As a focus for this experience, I create drawings that are inspired by the essence of communicating through touch what I am often trying to communicate though musical performance. The results begin to describe the form of the formless of sound and sound thought.