Este trabalho apresenta uma reflexão sobre a música do compositor soviético Dmítri Chostakóvitch baseada na análise da Sinfonia nº 10 op. 93. Concluída logo após a morte de Jôsef Stálin, a obra carrega notáveis marcas de seu tempo e sua leitura demanda um cuidadoso estudo das questões relativas à significação musical, em especial uma discussão do conceito de ironia aplicado à música em suas mais diversas manifestações, desde a construção de estruturas musicais expressivas até a disposição de elementos singulares, que requerem uma leitura semiótica. Esta abordagem alinha-se com a perspectiva discursiva que relaciona ironia, intertextualidade e interdiscursividade: o cruzamento de vozes e a confluência de discursos, que constituem elementos fundamentais do conceito de polifonia proposto por Mikhaíl Bakhtín, são identificados aqui como uma chave de leitura capaz de evidenciar, também na música, a ironia como elemento estruturante. A análise da Sinfonia nº 10 a partir dessa perspectiva dá fundamento a novas hipóteses interpretativas e estéticas sobre a obra de Chostakóvitch, evidenciando no texto musical as contradições que surgem no desdobramento analítico do discurso sinfônico e confrontando a crítica histórica da música de Chostakóvitch com uma interpretação semiótica baseada na teoria dos tópicos musicais, desenvolvida a partir das propostas de Leonard Ratner. / The purpose of this work is to present a reflection about the music of the Soviet composer Dmitri Shostakovich based on an analysis of the Symphony no. 10 op. 93. Written immediately after Joseph Stalin\'s death, the symphony carries remarkable traces of its time, and the unfolding of its singularities demands a careful study of musical signification\'s issues, specially a discussion about the concept of irony applied to music in its various manifestations, from the expressive construction of musical structures to the disposition of singular elements. This kind of analysis requires a wide theoretical perspective, which includes a semiotic approach. This analysis is thus aligned with the discursive perspective that relates irony, intertextuality and interdiscursivity: the voice-crossing and discourse confluence, which constitute fundamental elements of Mikhail Bakhtin\'s concept of polyphony, are taken as keys to identify irony as a structural element in music as well. The analysis of the Symphony no. 10 from this perspective grounds new interpretative and aesthetic hypotheses about Shostakovich\'s music, by revealing on the musical text the contradictions which emerge at the level of symphonic discourse, and by confronting the historical criticism of Shostakovich\'s music with a semiotic interpretation based on topic theory proposed after Leonard Ratner.

Exchange between musical cultures has always occurred, but in the age of the global music industry, marketing categories have multiplied and often created boundaries between musics. Today the term “crossover” is attached to many of the musical exchanges that occur across these boundaries. One such exchange is represented by the intersection between Western art music string instruments and popular musics. A well-known commercial niche, this particular crossover is often discussed in popular media, but has been examined by relatively few music scholars. By way of addressing this gap, this study considers the crossover between Western art music string instruments and popular musics in the context of extra-musical promotion and critical reception. It examines four artists in the period 1995 to 2005. These four examples are: U.K./Australian string group bond; Australian string group FourPlay; U.K. violinist Nigel Kennedy; and U.K. violinist Vanessa-Mae. It also draws on other relevant cases to illuminate the discussion. The primary aim of the study is to discover and analyse the complex ways that parties engage, consciously or unconsciously, with the term “crossover”. The inherent complexity of the term is not commonly captured by scholarly musical writing since crossover is often regarded simply as a marketing term. The study begins by establishing the scholarly and popular context of the crossover between the Western art music string tradition and popular forms. Nine constructions or layers of meaning evoked by the term “crossover” are then identified. In the context of each of these nine constructions, the work continues by exploring how the term “crossover” is used in the promotion and critical reception of the examples. It is argued that crossover is constructed as a marketing category, to mark individuality, to provide media shortcuts and signposts, to evoke associations of prestige and of credibility, to increase accessibility, to encourage confrontation and to take part in larger musical debates. This research thus identifies multiple layers of meaning evoked by the term that are “subject to change” and that, in turn, illuminate deeper social and cultural implications of “crossingover”, ones which no doubt themselves continue to change. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1338922 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, Elder Conservatorium of Music, 2008

This study explores the choral cycle as a genre and analyzes in depth four representative choral cycles, all of them American, and all composed in the twentieth century. Choral cycles are multi-movement choral works intended by their composers to be performed as sets. The term “choral cycle” has been used for only about a hundred years; similar genres include song cycles, for solo voice, and cantatas, usually for soloists and choir. Choral cycles, however, typically use several poetic texts unified by common theme or common author, and do not typically contain solo movements. The evolution of the use of the term by some composers and publishers has been inconsistent, but it seems to have been an effort to describe compositions that were inadequately described by other genre names. This study shows that composers and musicologists have used the term with increasing frequency. The four choral cycles analyzed in this study are The Hour-Glass by Irving Fine, American Madrigals by Kirke Mechem, Voices by Stephen Paulus, and Five Hebrew Love Songs by Eric Whitacre. These four cycles demonstrate widely divergent compositional techniques, performing force requirements, and uses of text. As such, they illustrate the wide range of possibilities within this genre. In addition to the detailed analysis of the aforementioned choral cycles, this study also provides background into the historical predecessors of choral cycles. An appendix offers a list of numerous other choral cycles for consideration. / Choral cycles in historical context -- The hour glass by Irving Fine -- American madrigals by Kirke Mechem -- Voices by Stephen Paulus -- Five Hebrew love songs by Eric Whitacre -- Summary and conclusions. / School of Music

Not available

Based on Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of London, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [161]-170) and index. "List of recordings and websites": p. [171]-172.

Text in Afrikaans / Art History, Visual Arts and Musicology / D.Mus. (Musiekwetenskap)

Este trabalho apresenta uma reflexão sobre a música do compositor soviético Dmítri Chostakóvitch baseada na análise da Sinfonia nº 10 op. 93. Concluída logo após a morte de Jôsef Stálin, a obra carrega notáveis marcas de seu tempo e sua leitura demanda um cuidadoso estudo das questões relativas à significação musical, em especial uma discussão do conceito de ironia aplicado à música em suas mais diversas manifestações, desde a construção de estruturas musicais expressivas até a disposição de elementos singulares, que requerem uma leitura semiótica. Esta abordagem alinha-se com a perspectiva discursiva que relaciona ironia, intertextualidade e interdiscursividade: o cruzamento de vozes e a confluência de discursos, que constituem elementos fundamentais do conceito de polifonia proposto por Mikhaíl Bakhtín, são identificados aqui como uma chave de leitura capaz de evidenciar, também na música, a ironia como elemento estruturante. A análise da Sinfonia nº 10 a partir dessa perspectiva dá fundamento a novas hipóteses interpretativas e estéticas sobre a obra de Chostakóvitch, evidenciando no texto musical as contradições que surgem no desdobramento analítico do discurso sinfônico e confrontando a crítica histórica da música de Chostakóvitch com uma interpretação semiótica baseada na teoria dos tópicos musicais, desenvolvida a partir das propostas de Leonard Ratner. / The purpose of this work is to present a reflection about the music of the Soviet composer Dmitri Shostakovich based on an analysis of the Symphony no. 10 op. 93. Written immediately after Joseph Stalin\'s death, the symphony carries remarkable traces of its time, and the unfolding of its singularities demands a careful study of musical signification\'s issues, specially a discussion about the concept of irony applied to music in its various manifestations, from the expressive construction of musical structures to the disposition of singular elements. This kind of analysis requires a wide theoretical perspective, which includes a semiotic approach. This analysis is thus aligned with the discursive perspective that relates irony, intertextuality and interdiscursivity: the voice-crossing and discourse confluence, which constitute fundamental elements of Mikhail Bakhtin\'s concept of polyphony, are taken as keys to identify irony as a structural element in music as well. The analysis of the Symphony no. 10 from this perspective grounds new interpretative and aesthetic hypotheses about Shostakovich\'s music, by revealing on the musical text the contradictions which emerge at the level of symphonic discourse, and by confronting the historical criticism of Shostakovich\'s music with a semiotic interpretation based on topic theory proposed after Leonard Ratner.

This thesis is a study of Prokofiev's musical ideas as they emerge in his early writing for piano. It is concerned with elucidating the connections between Prokofiev's pianistic technique and his compositional technique. In doing so, the study explores the genealogy of composer's musical gestures and thematic ideas. Both his playing and his compositional styles have been labelled as distinctive: the thesis attempts to deconstruct that distinctiveness by pinpointing the origins of the composer's playing and compositional styles, tracing their gradual evolution into a mature idiom. The first chapter is concerned with Prokofiev's juvenilia (1898 to c. 1906). Drawing upon a large amount of previously unpublished archival resources, this chapter uncovers the original gestures and thematic ideas which characterize Prokofiev's early style. The next chapter focuses on Prokofiev's period at the St Petersburg Conservatory, tracing his development into a virtuoso pianist, examining the nature of that virtuosity and chronicling the creation of Prokofiev's performing persona. The gestures and idea- types identified in the first chapter are then examined within the context of Prokofiev's works for solo piano, his early works with orchestra and his first two major operas. Conclusions are then drawn about the nature of Prokofiev's distinctiveness, his compositional legacy and about his current position as a major twentieth-century composer.

In Vienna from about 1918 until the 1930s, contemporaries perceived a high point in the music-historical significance of Mahler's works, with regard to both the history of compositional style and the social history of music. The ideas and meanings that became attached to Mahler's works in this milieu are tied inextricably to the city's political and cultural life. Although the performances of Mahler's works under the auspices of Vienna's Social Democrats are sometimes construed today as mere acts of political appropriation, David Josef Bach's writings suggest that the innovative and controversial aspects of Mahler's works held social value in line with the ideal of Arbeiterbildung. Richard Specht, Arnold Schoenberg, and Theodor Adorno embraced oft-criticized features in Mahler's music, regarding the composer as a prophetic artist whose compositional style was the epitome of faithful adherence to one's inner artistic vision, regardless of its popularity. While all three critics addressed the relationship between detail and whole in Mahler's music, Adorno construed it as an act of subversion. Mahler's popularity also affected Viennese composers during this time in obvious and subtle ways. The formal structure and thematic construction of Berg's Chamber Concerto suggest a compositional approach close to what his student Adorno described a few years later regarding Mahler's music.

Der Beitrag plädiert für eine stärkere Berücksichtigung der Musik des 20. Jahrhunderts im Curriculum Hörerziehung. Dies geschieht nicht zuletzt in Hinblick auf die Befruchtung, welche hierdurch der ›klassische‹ Bereich erfährt. Aus der Arbeit mit Neuer Musik in der Gehörbildung werden drei Schwerpunkte vorgestellt: Lars Edlunds Modus Novus, die Arbeit mit Lückentexten und die speziell für Hörübungen mit nichttonaler Musik entwickelte Methode der Klangskizze. / This article makes the case for the stronger consideration of twentieth-century music in the aural-skills curricula. The argument addresses among other things the benefits this brings for “classical” repertoire. Three priorities are set based on the author’s experience with new music in aural-skills class: Lars Edlund’s Modus Novus, fill-in-the-blank activities, and a method of sketching sound developed particularly for the training of aural skills regarding non-tonal music.