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This dissertation is comprised of a paper on Tristan Murail’s Mémoire/Érosion (1976) and a pair of my compositions—R[o/u]LE(s) for string quartet with percussion instruments (2016) and Projectile Motion (2018) for string quartet. The paper endeavors to draw attention to the rich, individualized voices within the French spectralist movement during its emerging phase, exemplifying various paths of en/decoding spectral thinking with Murail’s Mémoire/Érosion. In view of the interdisciplinary essence of spectralism, my analytical approach extensively adapts theories, research findings, and a posteriori knowledge from fields such as psychology, computer technology, and marketing so as to diversely reason how spectral thinking may be en/decoded by maneuvering information harnessed from the (pseudo-)spectral sources while interpreting the resultant perceptions. In comparison to the theme of the paper, which is heavily centered on pitch manipulation, the two compositions downplay such a musical dimension in varying degrees for different purposes. First, passive in nature and magnified by the incorporations of the percussion as well as the strings’ scratch tones, the reduced presence of pitch in R[o/u]LE(s) signals an attempt to navigate and investigate the topic of (Taiwanese) identity. Second, actively suppressed, pitch in Projectile Motion virtually becomes residual traces left by the heightened impulses of gesture, which, apart from being where the music largely gains its momentum, can be viewed as an expression of reflecting on issues of intimacy, accessibility, and cultural implications that contemporary music elicits in relation to a valued sector of my personal sphere.

For the purposes of expressive intent, Carter developed compositional strategies that possess qualities congruent with the musical language in his Second Quartet (1959). He employed strategies including tempo modulation, triple groupings, and large-scale ratios to assemble the musical discourse and to guide the listener's perception of large-scale continuity. I label these devices collectively as "preferential strategies" because it is Carter who selects certain pre-compositional ideas that organize musical material and demarcate structural locations. Tempo modulations that organize dual meters and triple groupings that interact in transitional and transformational ways demonstrate his concern with controlling the overall time continuity through local level organization. Large-scale ratio relations between nine interlocking sections of this four movement work illustrate how Carter employs a local strategy that projects a large-scale structure. Recognizing that Carter's ultimate compositional goal prioritizes temporal processes, these proposed preferred strategies articulate a convergence of musical elements.

Quintet for winds and piano -- Preludes and fugues for piano solo -- Variation for string quartet. / Wong Kong Yu. / Thesis submitted in: December 2002. / Thesis (M.Mus.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves ). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Abstract --- p.1 Page / Scores with Notes: / Chapter 1. --- Quintet for Winds and Piano / Note --- p.2 Pages / Score --- p.30 Pages / Chapter 2. --- Preludes and Fugues for Piano Solo / Note --- p.2 Pages / Score --- p.31 Pages / Chapter 3. --- Variations for String Quartet / Note --- p.2 Pages / Score --- p.9 Pages / Total Duration: 38 minutes

by Ho Tsz-Yan, Rebecca. / Thesis (M.Mus.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Abstract also in Chinese. / Chapter Part I: --- p.page / Chapter ´Ø --- Abstract --- p.1 / Chapter Part II: / Chapter ´Ø --- "Analysis on ""Conversation""" --- p.3 / Chapter ´Ø --- """Conversation"" (Full Score)" --- p.6 / Chapter ´Ø --- "Analysis on ""Dark Haze´ح" --- p.25 / Chapter ´Ø --- """Dark Haze"" (Full Score)" --- p.28 / Chapter ´Ø --- "Analysis on ""San-Shui Xi-Nan""" --- p.65 / Chapter ´Ø --- """San -Shui Xi-Nan"" (Full Score)" --- p.69 / Chapter Part III： / Chapter ´Ø --- Biography --- p.119

Arnold van Wyk (1916 - 1983) frequently referred to the extramusical concepts of the elegiac, and of mournfulness, introspection and death when describing the intended content of his works. The import of these concepts seems to have been a constant element spanning his entire oeuvre. In this dissertation, William Kimmel's theory concerning the Phrygian Inflection and the Appearance of Death in Music is applied to Van Wyk's Five Elegies for String Quartet. Kimmel's theory is applied to the following parameters of each of the Five Elegies: melody, harmony and structure. In addition. the elements of rhythm, pulse, texture and timbre are investigated. Since Van Wyk often linked the concepts of death and protest, an interpretation of the work as music of protest is included in the final chapter of the study. It is concluded that Kimmel's theory has substantial--although not conclusive--validity in terms of the work under study. It is moreover possible to trace the inflection's presence through the parameters of pulse, rhythm, texture and timbre. In the absence of specific indications by the composer of the substance of the intended protest, observations in this regard are of a speculative nature. / Thesis (M.Mus.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1991.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI Company.

As a little boy, Dmitriĭ Dmitrievich Shostakovich pressed his ear against the wall to hear his neighbors play chamber music. He matured into one of the most prominent Soviet era composers. While the majority of academic interest Shostakovich centers on his symphonic works, his string quartets provide a window into a more intimate facet of Shostakovich’s life. This thesis explores first, why Shostakovich turned to the string quartet after some of the most fearful years of his life: his demise and rise after the scathing Pravda letter that all but threatened his life. Second, this thesis analyzes three of Shostakovich’s String Quartets: No. 1, No. 8, and No. 15. String Quartet No. 1, despite its simplicity, illuminates tender expressivity. Following years of intense artistic and personal scrutiny, Shostakovich sought an escape into an aural world of innocence. However, the quartet proves more complex than its surface suggests. Obscured harmonic complexities, intimate dialogue between instruments, and subtle recollection of prior movements lend the quartet a deeper meaning than its aural simplicity suggests. Decades later, amidst personal crisis, Shostakovich turned to the quartet, again. Composed in 1960, the year of his invocation into the communist party, String Quartet No. 8 demonstrates how Shostakovich utilized the string quartet as an avenue for personal self-expression. The intertwining of his musical signature with constant self-quotations and allusions confirms the deep, personal reflection the quartet provided Shostakovich. This study recounts the quotations previously uncovered by David Fanning, but goes beyond identification and relates the content of the quotations to Shostakovich’s emotional turmoil at the time of his party invocation. Finally, enduring anguishing physical pain and facing death, Shostakovich turned to the string quartet at the end of his life. String Quartet No. 15 provided Shostakovich an external outlet for his internal dialogue on death. Sentiments of meditation, fury, resistance, anguish, and resignation musically intertwine during Shostakovich’s longest and most painful string quartet. This study demonstrates how Shostakovich used the string quartet as a medium for deeper self-expression.

published_or_final_version / Music / Master / Master of Philosophy

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