During the reign of Kangxi (r. 1662-1722), the second Manchu emperor of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), Western music began to take root in the Manchu court. There is abundant evidence that the missionaries performed Western music before Kangxi and the emperor looked upon the Jesuits Ferdinand Verbiest (1623-1688) and Tomas Pereira (1645-1708) as his music tutors. In 1713, Kangxi commissioned a treatise on music, Yuzhi Lulu zhengyi (A True Doctrine of Music, by Imperial Authority), which was completed in 1714. Begun by Pereira but completed by the Italian Lazarist Paolo Felipe Teodorico Pedrini (c. 1670-1746), the third part of this musical treatise Xieyun duqu, is devoted exclusively to Western music theory. This treatise is the earliest official Chinese source concerning Western music theory. / Evidence that Western theoretical writings were included in Lulu zhengyi raises an important question: why did Kangxi demand that Western music theory be incorporated within his imperial treatise? There are only a limited number of studies on Western music in the early Qing court, and this research fills in a serious lacuna. This study will argue that it is not simply due to Kangxi's open mind and fondness for European knowledge that leads to the incorporation of Western music theory in Lulu zhengyi. Kangxi's goal was to use Western music as a tool to restore the lost Chinese ancient music. / The reign of Kangxi witnessed the elevation of Western music in the Qing court. After the reign of Kangxi, Western music continued to be performed at the court, however, its prestige diminished, and it served solely as entertainment for the emperors. Indeed, in Yongzheng's preface to Luli yuanyuan (1723), Western music theory was regarded as that of the Western barbarian. Later, when Qianlong ordered the compilation of the sequel to Lulu zhengyi in 1741, no Western music was included. / Chiu, Wai Yee Lulu. / "May 2007." / Adviser: Michael Edward McClellan. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-01, Section: A, page: 0020. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 186-219). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / School code: 1307.

This study traces the significant developments in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries which led to the development of electronic music and increased writing for percussion. Whether by coincidence or premeditation, the field of percussion in Western culture and electronic music share many parallel aspects in their history. Carlos Chavez, Edgard Varese and John Cage foresaw a time when electronic music would allow composers to realize compositions with ease, provide new sounds to the spectrum of possible material for pieces and aid in the conception of works. Significantly, these same composers were important figures in the development of percussion composition. In many ways, Lejaren Hiller's Machine Music can be seen as a culmination of the developments which had been taking place in the history of electronic music and percussion music. A product of the innovations in both fields, it poses some formidable problems for the performers. This study will give some background into its composition, examine its structure and deal with its performance problems.

In the history of seventeenth-century European music the court of Christian IV (r. 1588-1648) occupies a position of prominence. Christian, eager for fame as a patron of the arts, drew to Denmark many of the musical giants of the age, among them the lutenist John Dowland and the composer Heinrich Schltz. Sadly, except for financial records and occasional letters still in the archives, few traces remain of these brilliant years in Denmark. The music composed and played during this half century has largely disappeared, most of it probably in the tragic fire of 1794 that destroyed the old Christiansborg Castle in Copenhagen and with it the court music archives. Except for the recently-discovered Clausholm Fragments, only three specimens of keyboard music from the period remain: Ny kgl. Saml. 1997 fol. (Obmaus Tablature), Gl. kgl. Saonl. 376 fol. (Copenhagen Tablature), and mu 6703.2131/6 (VoigtlaJnder Tablature). It has generally been assumed that the manuscripts were of German origin. The present study, however, demonstrates a probable Danish origin for the third, possible Danish connections for the second, and establishes that the first is of Austrian provenance. The Obmaus Tablature is an amateur's preservation of a German keyboard style already outdated. This slender manuscript, dated 1637, contains a total of ten "archaic" pieces exhibiting the peculiarities of keyboard dances and song settings from the late sixteenth century. The awkward style of the pieces leads to the conclusion that they were transcribed for keyboard--more literally than imaginatively--from lute originals. The Copenhagen Tablature, consisting of thirty-four folios, is of primary importance for its evidence of the spread of the French claveqin style and the development of the keyboard suite. Of the sixty-nine pieces the majority are French dance forms, several with doubles; also included are preludes, German dances, and settings of chorales, psalms, and secular songs. In this study the dating of the various portions of the manuscript is discussed, and conjectures as to the compilers are presented.

Bibliography: leaves 94-99.

No description available.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (M.A.) - University of Natal, Durban, 2000.

The relationship between mbira dzavadzimu mode and Zezuru Spirit Possession. This thesis investigates the relationship between mbira dzavadzimu modes and different levels of Zezuru spirit possession. The research adopted an ethnographic paradigm. Fieldwork, participant observation, face-to-face interviews and video recordings were employed during data collection. The theoretical underpinnings of the research were grounded in Neher’s 1960 theory of auditory driving1, Seeger’s 1987 theory of metamorphosis, Wiredu’s 2007 theory of interpretation and Tempels’ 1959 theory of cosmology. The researcher carried out the research from an emic perspective. Both deep reflexivity and narrative reflexivity frameworks were used in the writing of this documentation and editing of my film. The position of mbira music in the religious life of the Zezuru is quite significant in that it is used to evoke spirits in spirit mediums during occasions when the Zezuru communicate with their ancestors. Mbira music is embedded in the modes and tuning systems played on the mbira. The Zezuru believe that the modes belong to the ancestors and are passed from generation to generation as part of their heritage. My hypothesis is that mbira dzavadzimu modes are responsible for evoking spirits in spirit mediums. / Thesis (M.Mus.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

No abstract available / Thesis B.A.(Hons)-University of Natal, 1983.

This thesis is an exploration of the history of the pennywhistle in black South African popular music, the most important style to evolve around this instrument being kwela music. An analysis of kwela is conducted from several perspectives: historical, musical, socio-cultural and political. Chapter I explores the urban South African musical styles which preceded and influenced kwela. The first of these genres was marabi, which developed in Johannesburg's slumyards in the first three decades of the this century. Marabi was followed by tsaba-tsaba in the late thirties, which in tum gave way to the swing influenced genre of "African Jazz" in the forties. Chapter II chronologically traces the use of the pennywhistle in urban black South African popular music. An examination of kwela is preceded by a discussion of the pennywhistle-and-drum "Scottish" marching bands of the thirties and forties, and the rhythm-and-blues pennywhistle style of the early fifties. Various venues and their effect on the performance of kwela are explored, as are the effects of international recognition on the style's development. Chapter III comprises an in-depth musical analysis of kwela's stylistic components. The structure of kwela music and its harmonic, melodic and rhythmic components are examined. A discussion of kwela's instrumentation includes an examination of the roles of the guitar, banjo, string bass, drum-set, pennywhistle and saxophone. Chapter IV is an exploration of the social context and cultural milieu which spawned and nurtured the development of kwela music. Chapter V examines the relationship between kwela and South African politics in the fifties. An overview of this political environment is followed by an examination of the effects of particular apartheid legislation on the development of music in general and kwela in particular. Chapter VI concludes with an exploration of the ways in which various interest groups were able to find meaning and identity in kwela music. Included here, for instance, are the ways in which kwela contributed to the formation of urban black identity, and how the style came to have meaning for various white interest groups. Finally, the meaning of kwela today is considered. / Thesis (M.Mus)-University of Natal, Durban, 1993.

This study provides a resource for performers preparing Walton's Viola Concerto. It is intended to provide information regarding history, technical and musical obstacles, and common alterations to the viola part. The study begins with a historical overview of the work, including information about the composer and the composition. A review of the existing literature examines sources for parallel information and similar studies.The development of a methodology of study is based on the examination of nine excerpts from the Concerto. These excerpts represent technical and musical challenges found in the Concerto. Each example is accompanied by an excerpt from a study or etude that closely reflects the same technical musical challenges. These excerpts are provided as possible technical enhancement studies that, when practiced prior to or in conjunction with the study of the Concerto, provide the methodology of study with the means to actually address the technical demands of the Concerto.Included in the study are the opinions of professional violists, solicited for this study by means of a survey. The survey group is identified, and their opinions on the previously identified technical passages are presented. Compilations of survey responses, along with additional comments and suggestions, are provided in conjunction with the corresponding excerpts.The final portion of this study examines the alterations most frequently made to the viola part. These so-called "William Primrose alterations" are presented with the suggestions and recommendations of the survey respondents. Various aspects of performance practice are examined, and the study offers several conclusions on this subject.Survey participants agreed that performance of the Concerto is a task of considerable difficulty. Regardless of the performer or the performance venue, great technical, musical, and intellectual skill and energy is required. This study provides historical information that all performers should acquire, as well as a methodology of study. It includes performance and practice suggestions from several prominent violists. This methodology of study serves as a resource for violists who undertake to perform what is one of the most significant works in the viola repertoire. / School of Music