This document examines the issue of correcting faulty finger coordination in bassoon playing and describes the development and use of a diagnostic device which allows the player to determine precisely what finger(s) is out of synchronization with the others in transitions from one note to the next. A brief history of movement analysis techniques is given, and several studies of the finger movements of adult musicians which used various types of technology are discussed. In order to understand how movements occur, basic physiological information is provided about the brain, the forearm, the wrist, and the structure of the hand. Included is a discussion of motor programming as related to learning the complex sequence of movements involved in playing a piece of music on an instrument. Traditional strategies for improving finger coordination which are applicable to the bassoon have been selected from other woodwind resource books and articles. Mental strategies are also discussed, taken from the fields of "Inner Game" theory, sports psychology, and movement efficiency training. A description of the performance difficulties found in Fantasy for Bassoon, op. 86 by Malcolm Arnold concludes the study.

<p> The purpose of this paper is to provide the conductor with a practical approach to James B. Sinclair's concert band arrangement of <i>"Country Band" March</i> by Charles Ives. Ives's collage style of composition presents many ensemble challenges, the largest of these being the preservation of textural clarity. In effort to maintain clarity in performance, the project report discusses the fundamental components of clarity, being: tempo and pulse, style and articulation, and balance and blend, as related to the piece. Interviews with conductors and Ives scholars, James B. Sinclair and Jonathan Elkus, along with the author's personal experience conducting the work, inform solutions for typical performance issues. Research also provides a proper framework for interpretation.</p>

<p> The purpose of this dissertation was to compile a list of resources to aid singers in their pursuit toward effective practicing. A survey was given to one hundred anonymous participants: fifty vocal students and fifty vocal teachers. The data collected from this survey showed that vocal students would like more resources available to aid in practicing more effectively. Additionally, the study reveals that many of the vocalise books that are in the vocal repertoire have fallen from tradition for reasons unknown, while one composer's vocalise book, Nicola Vaccai's, still remains in the teacher and student repertoire. </p><p> This study provides resources culled from journals, text books, and musical scores. Also provided is a library of vocalises, which are divided into categories on specific vocal matters. The vocalises are categorized alphabetically, by both the category and composer. The final chapter shows the results of the surveys.</p>

<p> This project report will provide a description and analysis of the original musical score, as composed and arranged by the author, for the short animated film <i>Ma&lstrok;y Tre&cedil;bacz,</i> which was produced in collaboration with the film's director, Monica Kozlowski. It will detail the process of the music's composition, including those decisions which were made whilst scoring the picture, the reasons and justifications for so doing, a scene-by-scene analysis of the film and accompanying music, background information concerning the film's origins and influences (including the historical origins of the narrative), the role of the film's score in communicating the story of the film to the audience, how certain choices in scoring impacted the direction of the film's narrative, and a short discussion of the major themes and musical motifs heard within the score (including its incorporation of the <i>Hejnal mariacki</i>).</p>

<p> Trumpeter Larry Black, now retired from a thirty-three-year career with the Atlanta Symphony, studied with legendary trumpet pedagogue Vincent Cichowicz from 1964 to 1966. During this short time, Cichowicz transformed Black from a non-collegiate student receiving lessons on a trial basis to a young professional with master's degree from Northwestern University, where Cichowicz taught from 1959 to 1998. Because Black has preserved his entire collection of lesson assignments from this period, spanning sixty-three leaves in two separate notepads, it is possible to form an impression of Cichowicz's pedagogical style. Black's data indicates that Cichowicz prioritized sound quality over musical complexity, believed that music of minimum difficulty would yield maximum progress, and stood by these convictions even in the face of time-sensitive issues such as performances or auditions. </p><p> Black's curriculum represents but one example of Cichowicz's methodology. Because Cichowicz himself wrote only generally (and briefly) about his pedagogical philosophies and chose not to outline a curriculum of musical examples in the form of a method book, it would be presumptuous to suppose that a single student's assignments could adequately compensate for this void. Consequently, this research will likely prove particularly useful to other former Cichowicz students who can measure Black's assignments against their own. The trumpet community at large should hope that one day such students might choose to publicize their own curricula, and so enlarge the existing body of data. Only then might a comprehensive view of Cichowicz's teaching, not only in theory but also in detailed practice, begin to emerge.</p>

<p> Jazz education within academia is still young, yet many educators have been recognized for successful leadership of high school jazz ensembles. Directors of finalist bands from the 2012 Essentially Ellington competition, a national opportunity hosted by Jazz at Lincoln Center, completed a questionnaire and interview regarding their pedagogical techniques and supplemental methods. All participants responded that listening to recordings and the fostering of peer mentoring are crucial elements. Other important techniques include singing, sight reading, rhythmic exercises, and the use of blues improvisation as a warm up activity. Important supplemental factors included personality traits such as intense, detail oriented, energetic, and fun, while participants noted the positive experiences and techniques learned from events with Jazz at Lincoln Center. In conclusion, leaders of successful high school jazz ensembles share several techniques, qualities, and behaviors, yet there is no single formula for a great high school jazz ensemble director. </p>

<p> The art of western choral music has evolved over the past millennia with various traditions, including standing arrangements, having been passed down through the generations. More recently, differing methodologies of seating arrangements for choral singers have led to studies into the processes used by choral conductors to create the ideal choral sound in performance. In the past century, the advancements in mathematics and in technology have led to the development of spectrographic analysis, which allows the human speaking and singing voice to be objectively analyzed.</p><p> This study will use spectrographic analysis to examine the differences between different formations of singers to determine the effect of changing the standing arrangement of choral singers. The singers, in groups of three, are recorded in different configurations of line and triangular formations and evaluated using spectrographic analysis. These analyses include the power spectrum, long-term average spectra, linear predictive coding graph and the vowel formation display. This study shoes that a triangular formation yields some benefits that allow singers to match vowels better in certain situations compared to a linear formation. </p>

<p> This paper analyzes B&eacute;la Bart&oacute;k's <i>For Children </i> as an ideal pedagogical example of introducing contemporary musical concepts to the beginning through intermediate piano students. Contemporary concepts include non-diatonic harmonies, modal tonal centers, surprising harmonic shifts, utilizing the entire range of the piano, and changing meter, including additive meter. This paper also analyzes <i>The Contemporary Child</i>, a set of eleven pieces for the beginner through intermediate pianist. <i> The Contemporary Child</i> uses <i>For Children</i> as its inspiration in finding a way to introduce contemporary musical concepts in a manner that is simultaneously elementary yet engaging.</p>

<p> Although Johannes Brahms is one of the world's best-known composers, with many works in the standard repertoire, the majority of his output for female voices is missing from the performance canon. <i>Drei Geistliche Ch&ouml;re</i>, Opus 37, is one such set of pieces missing that is a rich example of music he wrote early in his career for women's chorus. Many of these works were influenced by the women in his life, from the Hamburg Frauenchor (for whom Opus 37 was composed) to Clara Schumann.</p><p> Due to the historical relevance and educational value, conductors should have the resources to program <i>Drei Geistliche Ch&ouml;re</i> and other music Brahms wrote for women's chorus. This project report gives a brief biographical background of Brahms, a compositional and performance history of _{Drei Geistliche Ch&ouml;re}, issues of performance practices, and a guide for how to plan and complete the rehearsal process.</p>

<p> This auto ethnography examines how a timid young boy grew up to become a confident music composer and how he developed a method of auto ethnographic songwriting. Through a process of systematic narrative inquiry and hermeneutic analysis, the study uncovers personal insights in self-awareness and in compositional technique. The study examines how the author reacted to personal and professional failures, regained emotional equilibrium through creative expression, and developed a method of transforming spoken text into complete songs. The study also considers how educational practices and cultural expectations in the late twentieth century American affected the composer's musical upbringing and sense of belonging. Additionally, the study recounts how the composer trained his own mind and body to perceive tempo and syncopation in order to compensate for a lack of an innate sense of rhythm. The study illuminates the transforming effect that acts of creativity had on this individual's belief system and how they helped him sustain his enthusiasm for life.</p>