The subject of this thesis is to show how to use folk songs and various musical activities when working with pre-school children. The theoretical part of this thesis includes a definition of folk music as well as a brief introduction into the history of folk music in Bohemia and Moravia. There are also numerous suggestions of musical activities which develop musical talent of children. The activities are divided into groups according to the age of children and therefore can be used not only in kindergarten but also on other occasions. The last chapter of this part is dedicated to Framework Educational Programme for Preschool Education. The practical part focuses on how to use folk songs in everyday life of pre-school children. The songs are grouped so that they are suitable for particular age group, bearing in mind the overall programme of the pre-school educational system. The first chapter called Meeting consists of songs which could be nicely used in September, when children are new to the kindergarten. Then there is a part called Autumn, suitable primarily for this part of the year. Next, children work on a dramatization of the fairy tale called Začarovaný les which is then, together with songs, used as a performance for their parents and friends. At the end of the thesis there are...

In this diploma thesis we focus on instrumental activities, particularly accompaniment for selected folk songs to be played by 1st - 5th grade pupils. The thesis contains information about instrumental activities, Orff´s musical instruments, instrumental activities in music textbooks, how to choose a song for accompaniment and how to create and practise accompaniment. The core of the work are the scores of accompaniment and their verification at school. The main objective of the thesis is to impart knowledge and experiences with instrumental acitivities and the scores which teachers can use in their teaching process.

This diploma thesis, titled Czech Folk Song in Violin Pedagogy, discusses the use of folk songs in classes of playing the violin. It presents general information about Czech folk songs, describes their characteristics, examines the forms of their existence in the present times, and thinks about their future. The practical part surveys the problems of their use in improving musical and performance skills and introduces violin instructive literature of arrangements of folk songs. The final part shows the results of the research, through the answers of the questionnaires, the goal of which was to find if violin pedagogues of these days use folk songs during their teaching and how much they use the potential of these songs for the formation of skills of playing the violin. Keywords playing the violin, folk song, violin pedagogy, collections of folk songs

The fundamental question in this study is what elements from my folk music back ground will I bring into my work when I aim to articulate a new sound? I’m a singer, composer and choir conductor based in the folk music tradition.    After a while my research question grew into three directions: composing, shaping of voice and influences from other fields of art.    To re-orientate in my artistic practice I have projected my musical ideas on a fantasy world. The purpose is to find new ways of composing that can be both recognized as folk music and at the same time different from what I used to call my tradition. At the start a fictional world was created with a storyline, and inhabitants with a backstory. This narrative has remained my research ground though the whole project. After some time the ensemble side of the project grew and the solo project diminished.    A new ensemble, Stormsvalan, was formed and interactive collaborative methods became more central. My goal was to create space for both individual and collective work in our performance, in a way that is sprung from traditional music. Together we did twohree live performances, video documentations and a studio recording.    The findings of my study is the long term development of voice personas, and how a fantasy narrative influences performance and ensemble work. In the ensemble we can go further to explore a new soundscape that belongs to my fictional world of new folk music. The findings has arised new questions about metamorphose, voice shaping, music bridge building and the process of artistic research.

With the exception of the music of Aram Khachaturian, the output of Armenian composers has been largely overlooked. This small Middle-Eastern country with a population of almost four million and an intriguing history indeed has a rich musical heritage. From its roots in sacred music and folksong, Armenian music has evolved into a unique blend of national elements and Western art music. Although it remains largely undiscovered, there is an entire repertoire of works in this aesthetic. The Trio for clarinet, violin, and piano by Khachaturian has long been a standard in the clarinetist's repertoire. This project brings to light lesser-known works of other Armenian composers. After providing a brief history of Armenia and her music (Chapter 2), this document presents an annotated bibliography of works using the clarinet (Chapter 3). Because there are a significant number of Armenians living outside their homeland, composers considered for this bibliography include all those of Armenian descent: those born,schooled, and presently living in Armenia, as well as those born to one or both Armenian parents residing in other countries. The bibliography includes works for unaccompanied clarinet, clarinet and piano, clarinet and orchestra, and chamber music for up to seven players. Each annotation includes the composer's name, dates, title of the work and its movements, date of composition, instrumentation, publisher and date of publication (in the case of published works), source from which the score can be obtained (in the case of unpublished works and works that are no longer published), duration of the work, and any recordings that are commercially available. Specific information about each piece, such as its dedication, first performance, historical background, musical characteristics, and performance practice issues is provided when available.

This thesis explores how contemporary Appalachian women’s gendered experiences influence their choices of ballad repertoire. This inquiry is pursued through a feminist analysis of interviews with six women ballad singers from Madison County, North Carolina. In evaluating the women’s choices of ballads and their commentary on the songs, this thesis draws upon narratological theories as well as concepts from Appalachian traditional music studies. This study finds that women’s repertoire preferences reveal contemporary female concerns for physical safety and political agency. The singers also extract hidden transcripts from ballad texts and use ballads to educate audiences about women’s historic oppression. However, some singers find other factors, such as a song’s tune, or its significance as a part of regional heritage, to be more significant than the narrative content of the songs. This work affirms the contemporary influences of gendered concerns in ballad singing communities.

The diploma thesis deals with regional songs from the surroundings of Uherské Hradiště and their modifications created by dulcimer music groups from Uherské Hradiště region. In the selection of the chosen materials the thesis analyzes especially the characteristic structure, peculiarities and typical features of individual songs from this area, and finds characteristic elements in the arangements of the performers of the set of these songs. It deals in detail with the analysis of song series (from recording media and listening to authentic productions), their basic tendencies in the formation of instrumental and vocal-instrumental modifications and the deduction of rules and characterizing structures in harmony, melody, bow movement, volume changes, and others. It points out the difference between amateur and artistic performances, the difference between their processing and creative making. It determines the conditions under which purely folklore production of a given region is created and when it incorporates elements that cannot be perceived in the given area as authentic folklore and thus are already taken as artistic inventions of artists and only folklore-inspired stylization. It creates a conception of the level of stylization of folk songs from the region of Uherské Hradiště, recommend...

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.