M.A. (English) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

The three recitals consisted of performances of original twentieth century solo works for trombone with the exception of two trombone quartets, Adagio, by C. Saint-Saëns, arranged by Ken Murley, and Sonata by Daniel Speer. The lecture recital establishes the position of Kazimierz Serocki (1922-1981) as a major composer not only in Poland but in the rest of the world as well. His many works cover a wide spectrum of styles and genres. The solo trombone works, in particular, are among his most often performed works from his early neoclassic period. The lecture is also an attempt to illuminate the role of neoclassicism in Poland through a brief discussion of Polish neoclassicists, Grażyna Bacewicz and Michael Spisak, and other composers before and after World War II including Constantin Regamey and Roman Haubenstock-Ramati. An analysis of the two solo trombone works, Sonatina and Concerto, shows the technique of composition used by Serocki and the demands placed upon the performer by the music. These works were among the first in a growing list of works for solo trombone composed in response to the notable lack of large scale works of quality for solo trombone during the early twentieth century. The high quality of performance demanded by these works did much to advance the trombone as a solo instrument in the twentieth century.

Ida Gotkovsky, a student of Olivier Messiaen and Nadia Boulanger, composed for nearly every instrument, voice, and ensemble. Although Gotkovsky's Concerto for Trombone is a monumental work for the trombone it is rarely performed and recordings are scarce. There is a general lack of scholarly attention to the music of Ida Gotkovsky, however, the technical and aesthetic quality of her music merits further examination. Previous studies of Gotkovsky's music focused on the analysis of individual compositions. However, much more can be learned by examining a work within the context of her general compositional output. Gotkovsky's compositional style includes extensive musical self-borrowing. The goal of this project is to demonstrate melodic and textural similarities and differences within her music to inform performance practice and to establish interest in her music. The context in which Gotkovsky reuses her music is significant and can provide additional musical insight. An informed awareness of her extensive use of self-quotation familiarizes the performer with her compositional language in a variety of musical settings. Such familiarity with her musical style leads to an improved and artistically educated performance.

1 Nucleotides are organic molecules that have a wide range of functions in living organisms. They participate in cell signaling, serve as cofactors of enzymatic reactions, play a central role in cellular metabolism, and are the basic monomeric units of nucleic acid polymers. Nucleotides consist of three subunit molecules - nitrogen nucleobase, a five-carbon sugar (ribose or 2'-deoxyribose), and a phosphate group containing one to three phosphates. The subject of this master thesis is the study of various nucleotides and their self-assemblies in water by means of vibrational spectroscopy - Raman scattering and its chirally sensitive variant Raman optical activity (ROA). ROA has the potential to provide new information about the structural arrangement, dynamics, and interactions of nucleotides, as it supposes to be much more sensitive to vibrations of its sugar part containing three to four chiral carbons, compared to Raman scattering. We study spectral manifestations associated with chemical modifications (difference between ribo- and deoxyribonucleotides, the influence of different phosphate positions) and the change of physical conditions (various charge states according to the set pH, effect of concentration, influence of ions). A substantial amount of work is devoted to studying the self-association of...

published_or_final_version / Music / Master / Master of Philosophy

Inspired by Chinese poems, the overall characteristics of the work reflect the assimilation of several non-Western musical and philosophical influences such as the use of pentatonic scale patterns, the principle of embellishing a single note, and the application of the I-Ching in dealing with active instrumental passages over a long-sustained computer music drone. Traditional Western compositional techniques such as aleatory counterpoint, serialism, and moment form are also employed in the treatment of thematic material, developmental processes and formal design.

published_or_final_version / Music / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Thesis (M. Mus)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Music Studies, 1993?

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Two sets of recordings included, each in its own container. The first work is for string quartet; the second for bangdi, soprano sheng, yangqin, pipa, guzheng, erhu, gehu and percussion; the third for harmonica quintet, sheng, harp, piano and percussion. "Symphonic poem-Genesis" is for orchestra with piano and celesta. "Ghost opera" is for string quartet and pipa, with water, stones, paper and metal. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print.