Bei den steigenden Sequenzen, die im Œuvre Arcangelo Corellis vorkommen, lassen sich drei Grundtypen unterscheiden, die unterschiedliche formale Funktionen innerhalb der Kompositionen erfüllen. Die steigende Quintfallsequenz tritt in Corellis Triosonaten op. 1 bevorzugt in Zwischenspielen fugierter Sätze auf. In späteren Opera etabliert sie sich an drei Positionen im Verlauf zweiteiliger Sätze: in deren erstem Wiederholungsteil als Fortspinnung, zu Beginn des zweiten Wiederholungsteils als modulierendes Satzmodell sowie in der den Satzschlüssen vorausgehenden Phase, indem die Grundtonart gefestigt und eine Klimax herbeigeführt wird. Die seltenere Quintanstiegsequenz dient im Frühwerk zunächst der Modulation, während sie sich in späteren Kompositionen dank ihrer reizvollen Kanon- und Syncopatio-Wirkungen für die ausführliche Darstellung einer einzigen Tonart empfiehlt. Um ein Sequenzmodell, das sich ebenfalls mit einem Oberstimmenkanon darstellen lässt, bei dem die Sequenzierung aber quartweise abwärts verläuft und das auf Molltonarten beschränkt ist, handelt es sich bei der über Zwischendominanten vermittelten Quintanstiegsequenz. Der Dur-Moll-Parallelismus spielt in Corellis späteren Kompositionen zunehmend eine Rolle bei der Inszenierung des Kontrasts zwischen einer Moll- und ihrer parallelen Durtonart. Bevorzugte verwandte Satzmodelle sind die 9–8- sowie die 7–6-Konsekutive. / In the works of Arcangelo Corelli, three basic types of rising sequences occur, fulfilling different formal functions. In Corelli’s trio sonatas op. 1, the “rising sequence of falling fiths” usually appears in the episodes of fugal movements. In later works, it establishes itself in three positions over the course of a two-part movement: as a continuation in the first repeated section, as a modulating “Satzmodell” at the beginning of the second section, and as a climatic affirmation of the basic key in the phrase preceding the end of the movement. In the early works, the rarer rising fifth sequence is initially used for modulation; in later compositions its charming canon and syncopation effects make it ideal for exploring a single key in detail. The rising fifth sequence with inserted dominants can also be employed with a canon in the upper voice in which the sequence moves downwards by fourths, but this is limited to minor keys. In Corelli’s later compositions, what Carl Dahlhaus termed “Dur-Moll-Parallismus” increasingly plays a role in creating the contrast between a minor key and its parallel major. Consecutive 9–8 and 7–6 “Satzmodelle” are commonly used, related options.

The purpose of this thesis is to introduce a musical work of one of the world's most favorite composers of the 20th century - Sergej Prokofiev. Even though I would like to address all his pieces, given the extensiveness of his work and my profession as a pianist and a pedagogue, I decided to focus only on the pieces for solo piano. I detail each piano piece in a catalogue organized by opus number. My analysis focuses on compositions, eventually on cycles, which can be somehow beneficial to us. Beneficial, in this sense means exposure to pieces with variety of character, use of melody and eventually pieces from a various work periods. Another condition during a selection of pieces for my dissertation was various levels of difficulty. The majority of my thesis is dedicated to the piano sonatas. Although they are not very long, they belong to the piano masterpieces forever. Further, I mention less performed Etudes, Op. 2 and Visions fugitives, Op. 22, and on the other hand well known Suit from Romeo and Juliet, Op. 75. The music for children is represented in my analysis by one piece only - Children's Songs, Op. 65. Prokofiev wrote nearly 40 opuses for piano, which makes up almost a third of his work. That is a remarkable number and these pieces are worth interest.

Absent Presence: Women in American Gangster Narrative investigates women characters in American gangster narratives through the principal roles accorded to them. It argues that women in these texts function as an “absent presence,” by which I mean that they are a convention of the patriarchal gangster landscape and often with little import while at the same time they cultivate resistant strategies from within this backgrounded positioning. Whereas previous scholarly work on gangster texts has identified how women are characterized as stereotypes, this dissertation argues that women characters frequently employ the marginal positions to which they are relegated for empowering effect. This dissertation begins by surveying existing gangster scholarship. There is a preoccupation with male characters in this work, as is the case in most gangster texts themselves. This preoccupation is a result of several factors, such as defining the genre upon criteria that exclude women, promoting a male-centred canon as a result, and making assumptions about audience composition and taste that overlook women’s (and some women characters’) interest in gangster texts. Consequently, although the past decade saw women scholars bringing attention to female characters, research on male characters continues to dominate the field. My project thus fills this gap by not only examining the methods by which women characters navigate the male-dominated underworld but also including female-centred gangster narratives. Subsequent chapters focus on women’s predominant roles as mothers, molls, and wives as well as their infrequent role as female gangsters. The mother chapter demonstrates how the gangster’s mother deploys her effacement as an idealized figure in order to disguise her transgressive machinations (White Heat, The Sopranos). The moll chapter examines how this character’s presence as a reforming influence for the male criminal is integral to the earliest narratives. However, a shift to male relationships in mid- to late-1920s gangster texts transforms the moll’s status to that of a moderator (Underworld, The Great Gatsby). On the other hand, subsequent non-canonical texts feature molls as protagonists and illustrate the potential appeal of the gangster figure to women spectators (Three on a Match). Subsequently, the wife chapter explores texts that show presence is manifested in the wife’s cultivation of a traditional family image, while absence is evident in her exposure of this image as a façade via her husband’s activities (The Godfather, Goodfellas). In the following female gangster chapter, I examine how gender functions to render this rare character a literal absent presence such that she is inconceivable as a subject (Lady Scarface, Lady Gangster). Expanding upon this examination of gender, a final chapter on the African-American female gangster (in Set It Off and The Wire) explores how sexuality, race, and female—as well as “gangsta”—masculinity intersect to create this character’s simultaneous hypervisibility and invisibility. By examining women’s roles that often are overlooked in a male-dominated textual type and academic field, this dissertation draws scholarly attention to the ways that peripheral status can offer a stealthy locus for self-assertion.

Absent Presence: Women in American Gangster Narrative investigates women characters in American gangster narratives through the principal roles accorded to them. It argues that women in these texts function as an “absent presence,” by which I mean that they are a convention of the patriarchal gangster landscape and often with little import while at the same time they cultivate resistant strategies from within this backgrounded positioning. Whereas previous scholarly work on gangster texts has identified how women are characterized as stereotypes, this dissertation argues that women characters frequently employ the marginal positions to which they are relegated for empowering effect. This dissertation begins by surveying existing gangster scholarship. There is a preoccupation with male characters in this work, as is the case in most gangster texts themselves. This preoccupation is a result of several factors, such as defining the genre upon criteria that exclude women, promoting a male-centred canon as a result, and making assumptions about audience composition and taste that overlook women’s (and some women characters’) interest in gangster texts. Consequently, although the past decade saw women scholars bringing attention to female characters, research on male characters continues to dominate the field. My project thus fills this gap by not only examining the methods by which women characters navigate the male-dominated underworld but also including female-centred gangster narratives. Subsequent chapters focus on women’s predominant roles as mothers, molls, and wives as well as their infrequent role as female gangsters. The mother chapter demonstrates how the gangster’s mother deploys her effacement as an idealized figure in order to disguise her transgressive machinations (White Heat, The Sopranos). The moll chapter examines how this character’s presence as a reforming influence for the male criminal is integral to the earliest narratives. However, a shift to male relationships in mid- to late-1920s gangster texts transforms the moll’s status to that of a moderator (Underworld, The Great Gatsby). On the other hand, subsequent non-canonical texts feature molls as protagonists and illustrate the potential appeal of the gangster figure to women spectators (Three on a Match). Subsequently, the wife chapter explores texts that show presence is manifested in the wife’s cultivation of a traditional family image, while absence is evident in her exposure of this image as a façade via her husband’s activities (The Godfather, Goodfellas). In the following female gangster chapter, I examine how gender functions to render this rare character a literal absent presence such that she is inconceivable as a subject (Lady Scarface, Lady Gangster). Expanding upon this examination of gender, a final chapter on the African-American female gangster (in Set It Off and The Wire) explores how sexuality, race, and female—as well as “gangsta”—masculinity intersect to create this character’s simultaneous hypervisibility and invisibility. By examining women’s roles that often are overlooked in a male-dominated textual type and academic field, this dissertation draws scholarly attention to the ways that peripheral status can offer a stealthy locus for self-assertion.