Warren Benson's The Dream Net for alto saxophone and string quartet (1975) is often overlooked in the chamber music repertoire. Benson aims to blend the differing timbres of the saxophone with a string quartet through the use of extended techniques and non-standard notation in the parts of all ensemble members. As composers have sought to utilize the full timbral potential of the saxophone, they have found the need to invent notation markings for the performer to interpret as a means of achieving the desired effect. The Dream Net is a perfect example of this, and visually the score can be quite difficult to read. The purpose of this document is to serve as a guide for any saxophonists and string quartets that wish to perform the work. Included in this document is a performance guide of The Dream Net as well as an analysis of Benson's use of extended techniques.

In the field of twentieth-century musicology, studies have emphasized the music of Bela Bartok from a strictly hannonic standpoint. While these studies have provided insight into harmonic manipulation and tonal language there has been little emphasis placed on the role of rhythm and how it relates to the development of Bartok’s music. This study provides an analysis and discussion of rhythmic manipulation, structure and contour of rhythmic motives in String Quartets Nos. I and 4. This analysis was influenced by the methods and philosophies created and discussed by Edward Cone, Emo Lendvai, and John Roeder, among others. I adapted Lendvai's harmonic diagrams to illustrate the rhythmic conflict in Bartok's music. In addition to expanding established analytical models and concepts, I have created original analytical concepts such as rhythmic environments, rhythmic· oppression, and confrontation to identify and discuss important musical events. This is a novel rhythmic rather than harmonic study which provides an original method of analysis that is inspired by the rhythmic life of Bartok's String Quartets and may be used to interpret other music of the twentieth century.

Irish born British composer, teacher, conductor, and organist Sir Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924), is today best known for his choral works and as teacher to some of Britain's most successful composers of the twentieth century. Stanford was a prolific composer of numerous genres of music, and his chamber works for strings comprise a significant portion of his total compositional output. A great many of Stanford's chamber compositions were never published and are absent among today's standard chamber music repertoire. Until now, Stanford's String Quartet No. 4 in G minor, Op. 99 has never been published. This project comprises the first published edition of the String Quartet No. 4, making the work more readily available to performers and scholars. The String Quartet No. 4 is the last of Stanford's string quartets to be published, and this project makes the publication of his works in this genre complete. The author hopes that this project will help generate interest in Stanford as an important figure in British music history and bring his works to a greater public awareness through performance and study.

Trypanosoma brucei, un parasite flagellé unicellulaire, est responsable de la trypanosomiase humaine africaine aussi connue comme la maladie du sommeil.Les microtubules (MTs) sous-pelliculaires, le quartet de MTs (MTQ), le flagelle (F) et le collier de la poche flagellaire (CPF) sont les principaux composants du cytosquelette dutrypanosome. À ce jour, une seule protéine du CPF, BILBO1, a été identifiée et caractérisée.Dans cette étude, nous montrons in vivo que BILBO1 forme des polymères capables deconstruire un échafaudage qui permet l’ancrage de protéines partenaires. Ainsi, un crible en double hybride chez la levure a identifié plusieurs protéines partenaires de BILBO1,notamment une nouvelle protéine appelée FPC4. Nous démontrons que FPC4 est une protéine spécifique des kinétoplastides, localisée au CPF mais aussi au hook-complex, une structure proche du CPF. L’interaction FPC4 – BILBO1 est démontrée in vitro et in vivo, etles domaines d'interaction identifiés. En outre, nous démontrons in vivo et in vitro que FPC4est une protéine associée aux microtubules. Nos données suggèrent fortement que FPC4est impliquée dans le processus de séparation des CPFs au cours du cycle cellulaire. Nos résultats mettent en évidence un lien étroit entre le MtQ et le CPF et l'implication probable duhook-complex. Enfin, nous mettons en évidence une structure analogue au hook-complex chez les Leishmanies. L’interaction BILBO1 – FPC4 représente une nouvelle cible thérapeutique et sera caractérisée plus avant. / Trypanosoma brucei, a unicellular flagellated parasite, is responsible for the human African trypanosomiasis also known as sleeping sickness. Sub-pellicular microtubules (MT), the MT quartet (MtQ), the flagellum (F) and the Flagellar Pocket Collar (FPC) are the main components of the T. brucei cytoskeleton. To date, only a single FPC protein, BILBO1, has been identified and characterized. In this study we demonstrate in vivo that BILBO1 forms polymers able to build a scaffold structure that anchors partner proteins. As such, a yeast-2-hybrid screen identified several BILBO1 interacting protein partners. We demonstrate that FPC4 is a kinetoplastid-specific protein, which is localized at the FPC and at the hook complex. Its specific interaction with BILBO1 has been demonstrated in vitro and in vivo, and the interacting domains identified. Furthermore, we demonstrate that FPC4 is a microtubule binding protein. Our data strongly suggest that FPC4 is involved in the separation of the old and the newly formed FPC during the cell cycle. Altogether, our results demonstrate a tight connection and interplay between the MtQ and the FPC and the likely involvement of an adjacent third structure, the hook complex. Finally, we highlight a structure similar to the hook-complex in Leishmania. The BILBO1 – FPC4 interaction represents a new therapeutic target and will be characterized further.

In this dissertation I argue that in the characters in Lawrence Durrell's The Alexandria Quartet there is consistently evidenced a psychological orientation towards growth. An introductory Chapter One surveys and a concluding Chapter Six summarizes the dissertation, but the body of the text is four chapters demonstrating the growth-orientation in four characters.

Les G-quadruplexes sont des structures non-canoniques fascinantes de l’ADN et/ou de l’ARN qui surviennent dans les régions riches en Guanines. La surreprésentation de ces structures dans des régions spécifiques comme les promoteurs des oncogènes et les télomères, suggère leur intervention dans les processus cellulaires clés comme la transcription, la réplication ou bien la maturation de l’ARN. De nouveaux outils in silico, in vitro et in cellulo pour la prédiction des G-quadruplexes ont été proposés, reflétant la pertinence croissante de ces structures. Des cibles potentielles de G-quadruplexes ont été décrites dans le génome humain, chez la levure, des bactéries, virus et bien d’autres. Cependant, un des problèmes dans l’étude des G4s dans le génome humain est le grand nombre de séquences susceptibles de former des structures G4s (370,000 PQS selon Quadparser et plus d’un million en utilisant un seuil de 1.5 selon G4Hunter). Il est alors presque impossible de déconvoluer les effets biologiques reliés aux G-quadruplexes dans les cellules humaines. Pour cela, nous avons choisi Dictyostelium discoideum – dont le génome est pauvre en G4s - comme modèle eucaryote pour compléter les études sur le génome humain. Avec une analyse in silico du génome de dicty en utilisant G4Hunter, un algorithme développé dans notre laboratoire, nous avons pu détecter entre 249 (seuil=2) et 1055 (seuil=1.5) séquences pouvant adopter une structure G4. D’une façon intéressante, bien que les promoteurs soient plus pauvres encore en GC que le reste du génome de dicty, la densité des G4s dans ces régions est significativement plus haute. En utilisant une combinaison de différentes méthodes biophysiques et biochimiques, nous avons démontré que parmi les séquences prédites, 14 séquences qui sont présentes dans des gènes susceptibles de jouer des rôles importants dans dicty forment des structures G4 stables. En plus, cinq gènes de dicty contenant des séquences G4s dans leurs promoteurs ont été étudiés pour l’effet d’un nouveau ligand G4 dérivé de Porphyrine sur leur expression. Nous avons démontré que ce nouveau ligand inhibe l’expression de ces gènes significativement. Globalement, nos résultats constituent le premier pas dans le but d’adopter Dictyostelium discoideum comme un nouveau modèle pour l’étude des G-quadruplexes. / G-quadruplexes (G4) are fascinating non-canonical DNA/RNA secondary structures that occur in genomic Guanine-rich regions. The over-representation of such structures in specific regions such as promoters of oncogenes and telomeres, suggests their involvement in key processes such as transcription, replication or RNA maturation. The development of in silico, in vitro and in cellulo tools for G4 prediction is emerging, reflecting the increasing relevance of these structures. Putative G4 forming sequences (PQS) have been reported in Homo sapiens, yeast, bacteria, viruses and many others. However, one of the problems in studying G4 structures in the human genome is indeed the high number of putative G4 forming sequences (370,000 PQS according to Quadparser and over 1 million when using a threshold of 1.5 with G4Hunter). It is therefore difficult to deconvolute G4-related biological effects in human cells. For this, we chose Dictyostelium discoideum - a G4 poor genome - as a eukaryotic model to complement the human studies. By an in silico analysis of dicty genome with G4Hunter a home-made algorithm, we detected 249 (threshold=2) to 1055 (threshold=1.5) G4-prone motifs. Interestingly, despite an even lower GC content in comparison to the whole dicty genome, the density of G4 motifs in dicty promoters is significantly higher than in the rest of the genome. By using a combination of different biophysical and biochemical methods, we demonstrated that 14 dicty sequences located in key genes fold into stable G4 structures. In addition, five dicty genes containing G4-prone motifs in their promoters were studied for the effect of a new Porphyrin derivative on their expression. Our results demonstrated that the new ligand decreased the expression of the several dicty genes significantly. Overall, our results constitute the first step to adopt Dictyostelium discoideum as a model for G4 studies.

This study investigated the effects of score study on novice conductors’ nonverbal and verbal conducting behaviors. Presented with a brief musical excerpt of which they had no prior knowledge, undergraduate conducting students (N = 11) conducted and rehearsed a live brass quartet. After an initial conducting session, participants in the experimental group (n = 6) received two individual 30-minute score study tutorials, while the control group (n = 5) received no assistance. All participants returned one week after the first conducting session to conduct and rehearse the ensemble for a second time. Brass quartet members and three experienced conductors, all whom were blind to the experimental condition, evaluated participants’ conducting in terms of eye contact, facial expression, effective gesture, ability to lead toward a musically accurate performance, knowledge of the score, and pacing. Significant differences were found between the score study and control conditions. The brass quartet members’ ratings for eye contact and knowledge of the score were higher for the participants who studied the score. I found no significant differences between conditions in the ratings given by experienced conductors. At the conclusion of the second rehearsal, brass quartet members accurately identified five of the six conductors who had received score study assistance and four of the five conductors who had not. Experienced conductors were asked to identify the order of the two videos of each conductor. They accurately identified the order of five of the six score study conductors’ videos. Identifications of participants’ videos in the control group were mostly inaccurate and reflected much disagreement among the experienced conductors. In reviews of the participants’ written and verbal responses about their experience and the comments provided by brass quartet members and experienced conductors, I noted three characteristics that distinguished those who engaged in score study from those who had not: (1) more meaningful, instrument-specific eye contact; (2) greater confidence and comfort; and (3) more effective gestures and other nonverbal behaviors in rehearsal, all of which seemed to result from a more clearly defined interpretation of the music. / text

This thesis presents an analysis of Copland's first major serial work, the Quartet for Piano and Strings (1950), using pitch-class set theory and tonal analytical techniques.

In 1873, Brahms completed the two op. 51 quartets. These were not the first string quartets Brahms composed, hut they were the first that Brahms allowed to be published. He found the string quartet difficult; as he confided to his friend Alwin Cranz, he sketched out twenty string quartets before producing a pair he thought worthy of publishing. Questions arise: what aspect of the string quartet gave Brahms so much trouble, and what in the op. 51 quartets gave him the inclination to publish them for the first time in his career? The op. 51 quartets are essential to understanding the evolution of Brahms's compositional technique. Brahms had difficulty limiting his massive harmony and polyphony to four solo strings. This difficulty was compounded by his insistence on deriving even the accompaniment from the opening main motivic material. This study investigates the manner in which Brahms distributes the main motivic material to all four voices in these quartets, while at the same time highlighting each voice effectively in the dialogue.

This portfolio consists of eight works (five choral, one multi-media, one string quartet and one symphonic orchestra) written during my doctoral candidacy from 2011-2015. They are arranged according to genre - from choral works to instrumental, sorted according to the ensemble size and chronologically thereafter. In these works, there are some common traits – the application of interval of second is found in all pieces with distinctive purposes; the emphasis of poetic image in the aesthetic of Chinese music is observed in some pieces. Furthermore, characteristics of choral music such as homophonic progression among parts and cantabile melodic writing can be traced in the instrumental pieces, particularly in the slow section of the String Quartet. / A substantial part of this portfolio is allocated to choral music. Before admitting to the DMus program, I had been establishing myself as a choral composer and conductor in the local choral communities. The last five years I spent at CUHK inspired me not only on the possibility of new sound and harmonic approaches to this genre, but also, and most importantly, the structure and form of music. The diverse manners to develop a musical piece based on simple motives certainly contribute to consistency and coherence. This is inevitably a major breakthrough in my composition career. / The diverse inspirations are channeled into music compositions through different operations of the interval of a second, which contribute to the formation of individual character of each piece: In Wo Jiang, the permeating taste of primordiality is brought by the continuous repetition of the second interval as a driving agent in the bass part, giving origin to the music developed; where vertically there is overtone singing in the upper part, which combines to create a sense of remoteness. The highest notes in the tone cluster passages are sometimes dissonance of second interval that enables a more ringing sound in the high register, whereas in Huan Hun Cao the vertically aligned second interval appears in the inner voices, specially in soprano two and alto, giving way to the emphasis of the highest note sung by soprano one. On the other hand, the horizontal employment of second interval typifies the opening and ending sections of this piece when the moving line shows some descending half step against the long drones sung by the lower parts. This effectively depicts an eerie but yet spacious sensation with regard to the select texts. The usages of second interval are two-folded in Yi Nian – vertical and ornamental – the pitched water glasses are tuned to A, G and F; the humming passages of the chorus feature a descending step in the first tenor to function as an appoggiatura. These altogether enrich the harmonic progression of the chordal harmonies. Encircled begins with irregular subdivisions of beat on C# within the common time by both first and second sopranos though the first soprano repeatedly drives to a semitone higher on the last note of each phrase. Such metallic sound yet sometimes dissonant connects to the imaginary sword fight. The interval of second in the style of ornaments fits well the flute part in the third movement of Chun Hen – The Reunion to orientalize it into Dizi. Wintry sketches also includes interval of second, especially over long notes in the woodwind section, to make depiction of a uncomfortable and piercing scenery atop of a bare mountain. / 此作品集由八首作品組成，包括五首合唱，一項多媒體創作，一首弦樂四重奏及一首管弦。它們都是於二零一一至二零一五年間，本人為博士研究生時創作。作品集裡的作品都有以下共通點：有目的地運用二度音程及展現中國音樂藝術美學的氛圍與詩意。此外，作品集中的器樂作品，都會帶有一點合唱音樂的特徵。 / 本人入讀香港中文大學音樂博士課程前，已致力發展合唱指揮及創作事業，所以合唱音樂佔整個作品集不少篇幅。於在學五年間，本人於聲音及和聲處理上得到很大的啟發；及於樂曲發展、結構與曲式上，更獲資深的指導，創作中更能強調藝術作品的連貫與統一性，乃本人一大突破。 / 於創作上，透過靈活運用二度音程，此作品集中每首作品皆展現獨特性。《我將》的低音聲部，由橫向重複二度音程句組成，豐富了樂曲的推進性。縱向角度，男高音一使用的泛音唱法，則為音樂營造出遙遠感。於多高音和弦（四個音以上的和弦），最高的兩個音也會出現二度音程。透過產生此類不協調和聲，高音聲部較亮麗的音色會更為突出。而於《還魂草》，縱向二度音程則發生於內聲部，見於女高二音及女低音，並停留於中音區，讓女高音一的旋律性能明顯地呈現。另外，樂曲首尾兩段均應用了橫向二度音程。此手法與其他聲部的持續長音同時發生，使兩個聲部產生渺小卻奇異的音程變化，有效地塑造歌詞表達的空間感。《一念》中，二度音程運用大致見於兩段落：已定音的盛水玻璃杯及合唱部份的哼唱段落。後者的二度音程出現於男高音一的倚音，為和聲發展加添色彩。此種把二度音程應用於裝飾音的技巧，亦出現於《春痕》第三樂章《再遇》。為強調東方感，長笛演奏一系列上、下行的倚音，模仿笛子的加花演奏。《圍》除了強調開首女高音一、二於升C音的重複對唱、不規則的四・四拍分拍外，首段樂句均以二度音程作結，產生一種金屬性的聲音，模仿古代的刀光劍影。《冬之素描》亦包括了二度音程與和聲的運用，尤其於木管組的長音上，描繪於空曠高山上不安及寒風刺骨的感覺。 / Chan, Ka Hei. / Thesis D.Mus. Chinese University of Hong Kong 2015. / Abstracts also in Chinese; includes Chinese. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on 06, October, 2016). / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only.