Thesis (D. Mus. Arts)--University of Washington, 1995. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [165]-176).

Thesis (D.M.A.)--University of North Texas, 2008. / System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Accompanied by 3 recitals, recorded Apr. 22, 2007, Nov. 11, 2007, and Apr. 6, 2008. Includes bibliographical references (p. 48-50).

Treatise (D.M.A.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This study first traces the evolution of a new musical design, one which emphasizes textual elements in the structural foundation. It follows with an account of the life and musical style of Olivier Messian, a contemporary composer who has emphasized timbre as a structural parameter in his music - most notably in several works of the sixties. An analysis of his Couleurs de la Cité Céleste (1963) is offered in the final chapter, indicating in particular the important role that timbre, as well as other textual elements, plays on forming the large-scale design.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to determine the physical elements which experienced trombonists associate with selected descriptors in characterizing the tone quality of that instrument. Stimuli sampled from live trombone tones and synthesized into musical phrases represented 17 variations in (1) presence/absence of attack transient, (2) rise time, (3) duration, (4) number of harmonics, (5) upper limit of harmonicity (6) spectral envelope shape, and (7) frequency.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of trained musicians and musically untrained college students to discriminate music instrument timbre as a function of duration. Specific factors investigated were the thresholds for timbre discrimination as a function of duration, musical ensemble participation as training, and the relative discrimination abilities of vocalists and instrumentalists. Under the conditions of this study, it can be concluded that the threshold for timbre discrimination as a function of duration is at or below 20 ms. Even though trained musicians tended to discriminate timbre better than musically untrained college students, musicians cannot discriminate timbre significantly better then those subjects who have not participated in musical ensembles. Additionally, instrumentalists tended to discriminate timbre better than vocalists, but the discrimination is not significantly different. Recommendations for further research include suggestions for a timbre discrimination measurement tool that takes into consideration the multidimensionality of timbre and the relationship of timbre discrimination to timbre source, duration, pitch, and loudness.

Timbre is an important aspect of music, particularly in the twentieth century. Relatively little serious work on this subject has been published, however, either from a historical standpoint or from an analytical view. The purpose of this present study was to clarify the nature of timbre and to demonstrate the structural role it can have in music. The development of the timbre concept was traced from as early as the fifteenth century to present. From a very simple idea, timbre evolved into a complex phenomenon involving scientific, acoustical analysis and subjective, perceptual evaluation. It was found that currently timbre is not merely a physical manifestation, but also a function of aesthetic judgment and human response to stimuli. A brief historical survey was made of the importance of timbre in music. It was shown that timbre emerged as a significant musical element, forming the characteristic sound structure of a composition and (by extension) the distinctive sonorous style (Klangstil) of a composer. In developing to this point, the idea of timbre metamorphosed into a particular concept of "sound," a term that includes any sound quality that contributes to the character and structure of a composition. A process of analysis was developed to determine musical sound structure. It was shown that the sound-related aspects of the parameters of pitch, dynamics, time, texture, and timbre can act and interact to construct formal shape through cohesion and differentiation. It was established that the music of George Crumb shows a high regard for sound as a structural element. His Night of the Four Moons was analyzed, demonstrating the process of sound analysis. The analysis also showed that various qualities of sound itself are used as compositional material as well as for cohesion and differentiation. This aurally perceived, characteristic structure formed by or related to the action of sound was termed the "audiogenic image."

One of the main responsibilities of a sound engineer is to control the quality of the sound during the recording process. An important qualitative aspect of a recording, besides the musicality of the performance, is its timbral content. Proper level and spectral balance between the mixed elements of the recording and the absence of extraneous noises and distortion are key elements. Therefore, timbre perception acuity is an essential skill for sound engineers. / This thesis proposes a computer-assisted system as a training tool for developing and maintaining aural skills related to timbre perception. A set of criteria for the design of such a system based on current knowledge in timbre perception is presented and an exploratory implementation is described. Limits of the current system are discussed and areas that need further investigation are identified.

Thesis (M. S.)--Music Technology, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2008. / Committee Chair: Chordia, Parag; Committee Member: Freeman, Jason; Committee Member: Weinberg, Gil.