There is no abstract available for this thesis. / School of Music

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1942. / Title from title screen (viewed Nov. 15, 2007). Includes bibliographical references. Online version of the print original.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1942. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University

Preface: This thesis presents perspectives on Bruckner's compositional approach with regard to theme and harmony in the first and final movements of his symphonies one to nine. It must be realised that a fully systematic and comprehensive discussion along these lines would run into volumes. So, salient examples and common tendencies have been extracted as representative of the overall approach. However, Bruckner being the composer he is, is not dogmatic in his approach to composition and so the reader must at all times see for himself how the general technique is adapted to the individual usage in those parts not referred to in this thesis. The thesis presents the subject features of the expositions, first movements, as these are found in various adaptations in all other movements: it also aims to present a comparative study of the structural tonal principles of the works, showing how these influence the thematic forms. Whenever necessary, in the text, definitions are repeated in their original format to avoid cumbersome cross references. The most immediate source is the scores themselves, issued by the International Bruckner Society of Vienna, compiled by Dr. Leopold Nowak. All the analysis is based on these editions except for the third symphony which is based on the 2. Edition of 1878 (Wiesbaden G.M.B .H.)

This study has attempted to observe and understand the reorchestrations of the four Robert Schumann symphonies through the analysis of revisions found in the edited scores of several eminent conductors. To provide a faithful and effective performance of Schumann's orchestral conception, the conductor may find it necessary to alter certain features in his scores. Conductors have complained that Schumann's symphonies are ineffectual in many passages. This is the reason they are less frequently performed than they deserve. Four performance editions of the complete Schumann symphonies were chosen to form the basis for this study. They are: Gustav Mahler, Arturo Toscanini, George Szell, Felix Weingartner. The revisions of other conductors were incorporated as available and appropriate. These include: Fritz Reiner, Bruno Walter, Wilhelm Furtwangler, Georg Solti, Joseph Keilberth, Gotthold Lessing, Willem Mengelberg, Eugene Ormandy, Hans Pfitzner, Theodore Thomas, Max Reger, Fritz Busch. The study of Schumann's orchestration involved the investigation of his development as an orchestral composer, including the influence of the piano on his scoring and his understanding of the orchestra. The state of the orchestra in Schumann's time and his development as an orchestral composer were also studied in order to better understand his technique in terms of his orchestral experience. The study of the revisions reveals that Schumann's scoring was less successful than many other composers in providing an orchestration which supports and clarifies the structural logic of the composition. It thus becomes the conductor's responsibility to assume the role of editor to provide a faithful performance of the work. Analysis of the reorchestrations reveals changes concerning dynamic balance, clarity, timbre and style, as well as manner of performance. This study has attempted to provide vital information about the performing editions and the aesthetic effect achieved through alteration of the original Schumann scores.

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

The musical portion of this dissertation is comprised of my two compositions: Agnosco Veteris, a fifteen-and-a-half-minute work for orchestra, written in 2015 for Robert Spano and the Aspen Philharmonic Orchestra; and its partner and template Vestigia Flammae, a fourteen-minute work for sinfonietta (fifteen musicians) written in 2014 for the Nouvel Ensemble Modern. The written portion of this dissertation is an accompanying essay that provides a conceptual and musical analysis of the partnered pieces. The essay situates the compositions within the context of my recent musical output by specifically focusing on a method I have heartily employed from 2011-16: the reuse of musical/sonic material through repetition, computer-aided manipulation, reorchestration, composed reinterpretation, and self-appropriation. Agnosco Veteris and Vestigia Flammae are partner works that engage with personal musical memories. I explain the desires behind, and the process of, transforming one piece into another. A section of the essay places this concept in the historical context of other composers who employ appropriation of material and methods of reorchestration to generate new works. I discuss my compositional process and style as an alloy of my musical genetic makeup – a mixing ground of my experience as a performer of the classical canon in dialogue with my affinity towards minimalism, modernism, romanticism, spectralism, Slavic folk and liturgical musics, electronic music, and popular music production techniques. The latter portion of the essay provides a theoretical analysis of the two pieces in terms of poetic genesis, form, motivic material, harmonic structure, orchestration, texture, and rhythmic development.

This study presents an analysis of the first five symphonies of Dmitri Shostakovich. These works are-analyzed according to the following categories: form, harmony, thematic treatment, texture and orchestration. The purpose of this process is to reveal the essence of his' compositional style as exemplified in the first five symphonies, and to study musical features which may be considered unusual.A review of the musical elements strongly suggests that social and political factors had a significant impact on these works. The First Symphony illustrates the polished work of the gifted student Shostakovich, yet it is not innovative by contemporary standards; rather, it represents the high standards of craftsmanship at the Petrograd Conservatory. Shostakovich intentionally defies traditional symphonic form and content in the Second and Third Symphonies by incorporating many "modernistic" techniques which epitomize the progressive musical atmosphere of the 1920's as promoted by the Soviet Association for Contempoary Musicians.The Pravda attack on Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk came while Shostakovich was midway through the composition of the Fourth Symphony. Since the composer withheld the Fourthfrom performance until 1961, this postponement strongly indicates that he regarded his personal approach to form and great use of dissonance as too progressive for the period. Clearer formal organization, less dissonance, clearer textures and more effective use of instrumental resources characterize the Fifth Symphony's musical language. Yet in the Fifth, Shostakovich made no significant concessions to the Pravda criticism and produced his first mature symphony.A free treatment of form, less or no use of thematic development, extreme use of orchestral resources and frequent employment of dissonance in the Second, Third and Fourth Symphonies suggest that the composer experimented in these early works, making them significant in his evolution as a symphonist. Many similarities exist between the First and Fifth Symphonies, but in the latter work the balance of form and content is greater than in any of the earlier symphonies. The Fifth demonstrates that Shostakovich learned to combine artistic liberty with traditional techniques.

Not available / text