Please note: this thesis are permanently embargoed in OpenBU. No public access is forecasted for these. To request private access, please click on the lock icon and fill out the appropriate web form. / Klásma, meaning “fraction”, in Greek; the intent of this piece is to present how a piece of music can be put together with seemingly disjunct materials, yet sounding as a unified entity. / 2999-01-01

This thesis explores the composition Amorphous, a contemporary piece for string quartet. The composition aims to delve into the fluidity and dynamism of musical form, drawing inspiration from the concept of amorphousness—defined by its lack of a definite shape or structure. The composition fuses microtonality, traditional tonal references, and experimental timbral techniques to create an extraordinary soundscape. Drawing inspiration from Kaija Saariaho, Joshua Fineberg, and Chaya Czernowin, experiment with an 8-tone microtonal system that coexists with conventional tonal elements. The result is a seamless integration of both tonal worlds, producing unique harmonic textures and melodic lines. Amorphous is structured in four movements, utilizing the quartet as a single entity. The compositional techniques include glissandi, harmonics, and unconventional bowing methods, all of which contribute to a rich and varied timbre. These methods enable Amorphous to flow between different states, from smooth, fluid transitions to sharp, fragmented interludes. The final work was performed by MIVOS String Quartet.

Pianist Ferruccio Busoni (1866–1924), famous for his virtuosity, compelling interpretations and mastery of the art of transcription, also composed prolifically in most every genre. From among his piano compositions, the six sonatinas stand as pieces technically less challenging than the others, though they are equals with regard to their interpretive difficulties. Written between 1910 and 1920, they are products of Busoni's maturity, a maturity inseparable from the reflection of his comprehension of several centuries of musical styles including the developments of the early part of the twentieth century. The very different styles of the sonatinas themselves provide a fair sampling of Busoni's great diversity. The sonatinas are also as formally different from one another as their styles, growing progressively further away from the traditional sonata idea and following, instead, unique abstract programs and formal agendas. Busoni's aesthetics are reviewed and the sonatinas are discussed in context of his entire output. Each sonatina is analyzed, and performance considerations are discussed in light of the analyses.

A conversation you cannot hear explores one of my deepest musical fascinations - the ability of the human brain to follow multiple strains of activity and information at the same time. From the outset, there are two lines of musical thought presented - one begins as soft, warm, consonant harmonies in the strings and piano, and the other is represented by angular, shrill gestures in the winds and snare drum. This is not a peaceful coexistence, however. As the piece continues, the competing drives of these two musics bring them into more and more direct conflict, which gradually causes both of their identities to be compromised. Ultimately, this musical “battle” culminates in the deafening strike of a bass drum, which to me symbolizes the ramifications of this struggle: the infliction of an irreversible, critical harm that - not unlike the strikes of the hammer in the final movement of Mahler’s Sixth Symphony - smashes the structural integrity of both musics to dust and brings the processual progress of the piece to a brutal, abrupt halt.

Este trabalho apresenta a comparação entre excertos do primeiro movimento da Sonata K. 284 com trechos de obras de compostas no estilo concertante, com o objetivo de identificar texturas que sejam compartilhadas em ambos, e assim fornecer subsídios para uma interpretação. Para o reconhecimento da equivalência entre essas as texturas, foi utilizada a obra The Technique of Orchestration de Kent W. Kennan, O Diálogo Musical e O Discurso dos Sons de Nikolaus Harnoncourt. / This dissertation presents a comparison between excerpts of the first movement of Mozart Piano Sonata K. 284 with excerpts of Mozart works composed in the concertante style, aiming to point out textures that are shared by these genres to provide to basis for an interpretation. The relationship of idiomatic features was based on Kent W. Kennan´s book The Technique of Orchestration and on Nikolaus Harnoncourt´s books The Musical Dialogue and Music As Speech.

Precise pitch is important to musicians. We created algorithms for real-time pitch detection that generalise well over a range of single �voiced� musical instruments. A high pitch detection accuracy is achieved whilst maintaining a fast response using a special normalisation of the autocorrelation (SNAC) function and its windowed version, WSNAC. Incremental versions of these functions provide pitch values updated at every input sample. A robust octave detection is achieved through a modified cepstrum, utilising properties of human pitch perception and putting the pitch of the current frame within the context of its full note duration. The algorithms have been tested thoroughly both with synthetic waveforms and sounds from real instruments. A method for detecting note changes using only pitch is also presented. Furthermore, we describe a real-time method to determine vibrato parameters - higher level information of pitch variations, including the envelopes of vibrato speed, height, phase and centre offset. Some novel ways of visualising the pitch and vibrato information are presented. Our project �Tartini� provides music students, teachers, performers and researchers with new visual tools to help them learn their art, refine their technique and advance their fields.

Thesis--Princeton. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 253-256).

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the ability to perceive pitch direction across a variety of melodic contours differs across grade levels. In addition, differences between responses to ascending versus descending patterns and between responses to two- versus three- versus four-note patterns were examined. / The main study involved two experiments; Experiment 1 examined children's ability to identify pitch direction using a visual aid; Experiment 2 examined children's spontaneous notations of the same melodic contours. / The results showed a subsequent increase in mean scores from grades 1 to 6 across both tests. The clearest increase in ability occurred within the first three grades with a plateau reached by grade four. Same-pitch patterns received the highest overall means. The ability to identify direction using a visual aid was easier for children than to write spontaneous notations. Melodic contours with larger intervals were more easily perceived.

The present study examined 1st, 3rd, and 5th graders' ability to hear two simultaneous melodies. Two familiar ("Frere Jacques" and "The Barney song") and one unfamiliar melody were used as the stimuli. The pairs of simultaneous melodies were presented in different registers and timbre combinations. The children were asked to press specially labeled keys on a computer keyboard to indicate which song(s) they heard. Responses were recorded by a computer. The older children identified two simultaneous melodies faster (df = 2, F = 12.803, p $<$.01) and more accurately (df = 2, F = 13.098, p $<$.01) than the younger ones. While 70% of the 1st graders reported hearing two melodies and identified them with 75% accuracy, over 95% of the 5th graders reported hearing two melodies and identified them with 97% accuracy. Children who were able to correctly identify two simultaneous melodies did not tend to identify the melody in the upper or the lower register in any particular order when the timbre was the same in both registers. When the melodies were played with contrasting timbres (trumpet and piano) they tended to identify the trumpet melody before they identified the piano melody. However, in terms of response-speed they identified the upper melody faster than the lower melody. Children who were only able to identify one melody tended to focus on the upper melody when the timbre was the same in both registers but when the melodies were played with contrasting timbres they would attend to the trumpet melody regardless of register.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of three different vocal timbres on uncertain singers' ability to match and discriminate pitches. Fifty-six children between six and eight year old were randomly assigned to one of four groups. / In the Own Voices group, subjects were training in pitch matching using subjects' own voices. They trained in pitch discrimination using a model child voice as stimuli. In the Model Child group, subjects were training in pitch matching and pitch discrimination using a model child voice of the same sex and age as that of the subject. Subjects in the Female Adult group were training in pitch matching and pitch discrimination using a female adult voice as stimuli. Subjects in the control group had no training. / It was found that timbre affected uncertain singers' ability to match and discriminate pitches. Pitch matching to one's own voice was more accurate than pitch matching to a child's voice. / The discrimination of high and low pitches was more accurate when a model child's voice was used than when an adult voice was used.