The notion of identity between the ancient and the contemporary, which has its source in Mayan studies, informs the design principles of this work. Specific techniques are listed for the design of musical space and time in Guacamayo, which is "a musical drama that strives for synthesis." There follows an outline of the principle motivic material, approaches to melodic construction and text setting, techniques used to design space (or pitch) and time (or rhythm)--including traditional harmony, symmetrical modes, non-octaviating space and random number generation in the first case, and speech rhythm, folk rhythm, metre and tempo in the second--as well as the role of summation series in the construction of both time and space. A discussion of dialectic concepts, and the ways in which different techniques are combined to create a sense of motion between simple textures and complex ones leads to consideration of form-determining placement of important scenes from the opera. Comments on the composition of the orchestra and electroacoustic music conclude the essay.

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"Eyes Without Light" is conceived and scored for symphonic orchestra. The title of this work reflects personal concerns regarding global environmental issues. The phrase "eyes without light", derived from the Gaelic term "sul gan solas", refers in this instance to the blind greed of multi-national industrial and political corporations which are responsible for the destruction of the earth's ecosystem (primarily the forests and oceans). This work, influenced by the 19th-century symphonic poem initiated by Beethoven, Berlioz and Liszt, is programmatic in nature. The busy, confrontational destructiveness of mankind is represented by repeated or moving sixteenth notes at the beginning and end of the piece. These sections utilize varying densities of semitone clusters and are predominantly dissonant. The calmness and balance of the planet earth is represented by the middle section of the work, which consists primarily of slow-moving sustained lines. These sustained lines move to a sonority which is the structural focal point of the work (m 129-131). This sonority is resolved in the final measures. Both the focal point sonority and its resolution are constructed of P5 and P4 intervals. The aggressive destructiveness of mankind is emphasized by the repeated dissonant chords in the concluding measures (m 140-147, m 151-157) of the section. / Arts, Faculty of / Music, School of / Graduate

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