There is a longstanding historical and cultural relationship between Congo and Cuba via the slave trade and the ‘return’ of Cuban music to Africa, a relationship that has apparently been very scantily documented. It is acknowledged that Congolese roots are present in Cuban music but there is little musical analysis of the actual elements concerned. This thesis addresses this imbalance. Using a performance-as-research methodology, it charts the formation and experience of the fusion band Grupo Lokito. Through bringing Congolese and Latin musicians together in a performance situation, I explore the ways in which musicians from the two traditions recognise and assimilate each other’s groove. This dissertation investigates whether the historic connections enable contemporary musicians from both worlds to recognise similarities in each other’s music. Also included is a historical overview of the Congolese arrival on Cuba, how Congolese musical practices were preserved and assimilated into Cuban music as well as an overview of the evolution of twentieth-century Congolese music. Existing research has focused on issues such as the return of Cuban music to Congo (Topp Fargion 2004), the emergence of rumba Lingala in the 1950s and 1960s (Kazadi 1970; Stewart 2000), and the subsequent development in the 1970s and 1980s of Congolese music away from the Cuban era (Stewart 2000; Ewens 1994). However, this thesis argues that, rather than diverging from the 1970s onwards as is frequently thought, Congolese and Cuban music retained commonalities that can be recognised by musicians immersed in the two styles. An analysis of the musical structure and instrumentation of well-known Cuban and Congolese songs is included, as well as original compositions by Grupo Lokito, with further audio and video available on the separate CD and video. The accompanying CD Rom details the process of creation of material and outlines relevant musical structures.

<p> Wuhan Han Opera Theater (WHOT, formerly Han Opera) is a 400-year old regional opera based in Wuhan, in Hubei Province, in China. WHOT&rsquo;s recent designation as a <i>public institution</i> under China&rsquo;s neoliberal creative economy initiative to enter the global market has necessitated its transformation from a <i>cultural institution</i> (<i> wenhua jigou</i>) into a <i>creative industry</i> (<i> wehua chanye</i>). As such, WHOT must now create adaptive strategies, alter traditional conventions of performance, infrastructure, education and community presence, reconstitute traditional social functions at the national level, and most importantly, manage a relationship with the government that is entirely novel for both. In the summer of 2016, WHOT participated in two government-led projects: Opera into Campuses and the Chinese National Arts Fund. These programs were the focus of my ethnographic fieldwork, to identify possible effects of the creative economy initiative on a traditional musical institution. Specifically, inquiry was made as to whether and how creative musical and organizational adaptations were being decided, implemented and executed, and as to how the outcomes of these adaptations were being evaluated. Despite using an ethnographic approach, findings from the preliminary study were found to be much more broadly generalizable and applicable across disciplines than expected. As a result, this thesis makes the following arguments: for modernization of an institution of traditional music to be effective, a relationship must exist whereby the transitioning institution is given creative license to generate continued socio-cultural productivity through its creative class (&ldquo;talent&rdquo;) in joint cooperation with, rather than dependence on, government agencies. The goal must be to revitalize rather than simply preserve such an institution, and to avoid cultural attrition of unique musical qualities of the institution.</p><p>

<p> American composer Jake Heggie wrote <i>Camille Claudel: Into the Fire</i> in 2012 for the Alexander String Quartet and mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato. As Heggie is known for his operas <i>Dead Man Walking, Moby-Dick,</i> and most recently, <i>Great Scott,</i> it is not surprising that his seven-song cycle about this passionate female French sculptor is of operatic dramaturgical and musical quality. Due to the complexities and bias that surround Claudel&rsquo;s life story, and the relative novelty of Heggie&rsquo;s music within the art song genre, there is a lack of literature regarding the presentation of an authentic performance of this cycle. This project report concentrates on providing the singer with an interpretive framework based on how Heggie&rsquo;s musical influences and tendencies, along with Gene Scheer&rsquo;s historical, first person narrative, reflect Claudel&rsquo;s life, work, and fiery personality. Through a deeper understanding of Heggie&rsquo;s music in correspondence with Scheer&rsquo;s poetry, a singer can effectively embody the unparalleled passion, artistry, and voice of Camille Claudel.</p>

<p> American Indian music and dance traditions unilaterally contain the following three elements: singing, dancing, and percussion instruments. Singing and dancing are of the utmost importance in American Indian dance traditions, while the expression of percussion instruments is superfluous. Louis W. Ballard has composed a piece of music for percussion ensemble which was inspired by the music and dance traditions of American Indian tribes from across North America. The controversy that this presents is relative to the fact that there is no American Indian tradition for a group comprised exclusively of percussion instruments. However, this percussion ensemble piece, <i> Cacega Ayuwipi</i>, does exhibit the three elements inherent to all American Indian music and dance traditions. <i>Cacega Ayuwipi</i> is consistent with American Indian traditions in that the audience must see the instruments, watch the movements of the percussionists, and hear the percussive expressions in order to experience the musical work in its entirety.</p>

<p> The female musical theater belt voice has been heard onstage for almost one hundred years, yet the demands for this type of singing continue to evolve. While the style dominates Broadway, an understanding of successful teaching of the female belt voice seems to be lacking. Therefore, this study was undertaken to appropriately address the needs of female musical theater singers, and to establish effective strategies for teaching the female belt voice.</p><p> Individual case studies of four nationally recognized master teachers of female belting were created from observations in the studio, interviews with the teachers, and interviews with their students. Thirty-two hours of private voice lessons were observed with 18 female belt students in the studios of these master teachers in an effort to determine the extent to which they employed common techniques in the pedagogy and agreed on the characteristics of the female belt voice. Interview responses and field notes from the teachers and singers were analyzed individually and a cross-comparison of the data was analyzed for consensus or conflicting information on female musical theater belt pedagogy. </p><p> Interestingly, there was much consensus among the teachers on the physicality, sound, and strategies for female belting. Included in the findings were that the female belt voice is not a pure chest voice production, and development of the entire voice is key since working in head voice allows a female to create a lighter belt sound and to make the transition into the higher belt range. Distinct techniques for the traditional and contemporary belt voices emerged. The traditional belt, up to D5, uses more chest voice and full, open vowels. The contemporary belt, higher than D5, is produced with more head voice and closed, narrow vowels. Belting is considered speech-like and exciting, and is a joint process between teachers and students. </p><p> Based on this research, voice teachers working with musical theater students must be educated and proficient on the specific strategies and techniques of the evolving female belt voice. The female belt voice, though different from classical singing, does have its own set of techniques.</p>

Thesis (M.M.)--Bowling Green State University, 2010. / Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 112 p. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (MMusPerf)--University of Melbourne, The Faculty of the Victorian College of the Arts and Music, 2010. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (p. 37-40)

<p>The purpose of this study was to explore the union of technical and imagery-based instruction (hereinafter, T-I instruction) in two phases. Phase one: The researcher (1) explored T-I instruction&rsquo;s influences on aspiring performing artists&rsquo; acquisition of learning and performing newly composed pieces and improvisation, and; (2) observed aspiring performing artists&rsquo; feelings of learning with T-I instruction versus technical instruction. Phase two: The researcher investigated (1) listeners&rsquo; perceived expressivity of aspiring performing artists&rsquo; performances that were either influenced by T-I instruction or technical instruction; (2) listeners&rsquo; perceived expressivity of aspiring performing artists&rsquo; performances of newly composed pieces versus improvisations; (3) whether there was a statistical significant difference of T-I instructions&rsquo; influence on the progressive differences in the means of listeners&rsquo; perceived expressivity between the aspiring performing artists across the time frame of the study; (4) the explanations for their ratings, and; (5) information that helps listeners perceive music as expressive using the <i> Perceived Expressivity Questionnaire</i> (PEQ). </p><p> Results for Phase one: 60 sub-themes and 13 themes emerged from the data relating to two meta-themes: <i>Learning</i> and <i>Quality of Life</i>. Results for Phase two: Cronbach&rsquo;s alpha statistical procedure revealed an unacceptably low internal consistency for listeners&rsquo; perceived expressivity of aspiring performing artists&rsquo; performances (&alpha; = .02). Hence, no further statistical analysis was implemented to answer research questions one through three. Explanations for their ratings dealt primarily with aspiring performing artists&rsquo; use of 11 musical components. The Brief Essay Responses from the <i>Perceived Expressivity Questionnaire</i> (PEQ) provided possible explanations for the low internal consistency and insight on what kind of information help listeners&rsquo; perceive music as expressive. Further discussion on the finding and implications for performing artists and educators&rsquo; use of T-I instruction are offered in this document. </p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Canterbury, 2007. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 269-294). Also available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Teachers College, Columbia University, 1994. / Includes tables. Typescript; issued also on microfilm. Sponsor: Robert Pace. Dissertation Committee: Lenore Pogonowski. Includes bibliographical references (127-132).