The focal point of the work is the turntable and DJ (or Disk Jockey; one who controls the turntables). This concept not only manifests itself through the utilization of actual turntables, but also much of the acoustic material performed by the ensemble consists of "metaphoric turntables". These are contrasting layers of sound superposed over one another that are played by small groups of specific instruments within the larger ensemble. These instrumental groups simulate the sonorities generated through turntable manipulation such as warping, oscillations, crossfading, transforming, and numerous scratching techniques. The DJ (sometimes referred to as a turntablist) employs many techniques, articulations, and effects that are notated and explained in the accompanying analysis.

There is no abstract available for this thesis.

There is no abstract available for this thesis. / School of Music

Territorios is a 15-minute composition for eight percussionists and prerecorded sounds on digital tape. The composer chose this particular instrumentation because of his conviction that percussion and electronic/digital instruments are the most powerful sources of fresh and innovative sound matter that have appeared during this century. This choice also allowed him to challenge the development of a new and consistent rhythmic syntax derived from the internal structure of percussion instruments, which in turn made it possible to establish solid ties between the sound itself and the musical syntax that rules its organization. / Since different tempi are often used simultaneously in Territorios, the performance of the piece requires a set of computer-generated click-tracks carrying individual pulse lines; hearing these pulses through headphones, the performers are able to play the piece in precise tempo.

Three Scenes in Dreamland is a 17-minute piece for mixed choir and instrumental ensemble. It consists of three movements: "Crystal Sky," "The Chanting Light" and "The Field Where I Was Born, Where I Died." Each movement uses a particular combination of the available instruments. The work is inspired by various aspects of Chinese culture and Buddhism, and certain possibilities of combining Western and non-Western musical elements are explored over the course of the three movements.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University

No description available.

No description available.

The succeeding pages contain scores of my music—Passage to Kublb, Dalamhati ni Osang, Pintig, and Talibun-ag. "Passage to kublb" , for large orchestra, is a travelogue. Using a certain number of intervals, the instruments go through a journey, signifying life's constant changes and ceaseless motion. Melodic and rhythmic motives are used, fragmentation, and variation of timbral colors. "Kublb" is a fictional place; in essence, a destination of one's life journey. "Dalamhati ni Osang" (Lament of Osang) for a soprano, bass clarinet and marimba, is a composition revolving around a hextatonic scale which goes through a process of change as the music progresses. The text, written in the Filipino language, conveys the lament of a woman wanting to escape from her sorrows as she pleads her beloved to "lull" her; thus the repeated phrase "iduyan mo, o hirang" which means lull me or cradle me, my beloved. The woman's concept of "sleep" is an end-goal from which she frees herself of bitter memories of the past. The nuances of the vocal lines point to some native materials common to the Filipino "kundiman"(ballad). Use of expressive lines in legato phrasing, repeated sections (ABA form), and in some instances, use of embellishments like the repeated grace notes. The hextatonic scale is the composer's own material injected to some pre-formed structure already existing as in the mentioned ballad. "Pintig" (Pulses of Mother Earth) which was originally written for the "Elektra Women's Choir" during a pre-Christmas choral reading is a study of tribal vocables and different vocal effects. Stomping of foot, tapping, and other ritual sounds are employed to concoct an amalgam of primitive or earthy vista. (Note that the recording provided with this thesis is simply a reading session of the piece). "Talibun-ag " is a coined title from the Filipino words "tali" and "bun-ag" (bondage and birth) which if combined literally can mean "birth of freedom". This is a music drama for a chamber ensemble (piano, alto flute and percussions), a mono-dramatist and a choral quartet. / Arts, Faculty of / Music, School of / Graduate

The Latin Mass is a musical composition in five movements, scored for large choir, standard orchestra, and two soloists. The movements are the standard parts of the Roman Catholic Mass Ordinary. The language is set mainly in Latin with two exceptions: the Kyrie movement is set in Greek (which is the standard Roman Catholic setting), and the Credo is simultaneously recited in English and sung in Latin. The work is scored using conventional notation techniques and employs rather conservative technical demands on both the choir and orchestra. No extended techniques are required of any of the performers. It is set in a modal harmonic language.