Echoes is an interactive composition for amplified chamber ensemble and computer. The entire research that led to this piece was based on the exploration of the evolution of the sound produced initially by the acoustic instruments and then interpreted by the computer. Why "Echoes"? / As a sonic phenomenon the echo has several fairly distinct dimensions. These are commonly understood to include the following: the repetition of a sound by reflection of sound waves from a surface; any repetition or imitation of words, style or ideas; the sympathetic sound response; and, in music, a soft repetition of a phrase. Note that these standard definitions include the figurative dimensions, as in the 'imitation of style or ideas.' This is no coincidence, since I am very much intrigued by the idea of a computer first imitating the actual instrument and then expanding that instrument's possibilities far beyond its timbre.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.Mus.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1981.

The pieces presented in this portfolio are in some ways a synthesis of my own musical history up to this point in time. Though I was scarcely aware as a child, I now know that the diverse strains of modem African American music and their largely non-African American inspirations originate from the larger, older branches of Jazz and Blues. Nevertheless, the music that forms the lion's share of my early musical memories-African American and African American inspired music- is still quite distinct from its West African ancestral music that I would later come to learn and love so much. After being inspired primarily by Rhythm and Blues, Rock, Blues and Jazz through the pre-teen and teenage years, I discovered Latin music of Cuban origin. Soon after that I began to explore traditional Afro-Cuban and West African music. These new musics resonated strongly with me, and I began to learn and play them not long after that first exposure. A probable reason for the aforementioned resonance lies in the 'rhythmic priming' provided by my early exposure to African American music. This state of rhythmic awareness was excited by the complex rhythmic interplay subsequently heard between West African musicians and between Afro-Cuban musicians, hinted at but rarely as fully developed in the African American music I was used to. In retrospect, it makes perfect sense that this rhythmic sensibility, developed through exposure to American music, would be stimulated and fulfilled by traditional West African percussion music. As much as I came to enjoy that type of polyrhythmic, percussion based music, however, in time I also began to wonder at the possibility of creating a similar music but with more harmonic movement, perhaps even modulation to different keys. This would require different instruments, and it would require mastery of another musical world: that of western, and in particular for my sensibilities, Jazz harmony. This pursuit-the attempt to combine at once an African rhythmic sensibility with a Jazz harmonic sensibility-is one that will no doubt occupy me for some time into the future. It is also a major source of inspiration, sometimes obvious and at other times more subtle, in the creation of this portfolio. The aforementioned fusion of African rhythm and Western harmony, in conceptual terms, is not something altogether new. That rhythmic, melodic and harmonic complexities co-exist in the Jazz tradition is no secret. What's more, much of the music referred to as 'Latin' is named as such because it has already absorbed and incorporated the rhythmic vitality of the African origins of much of the populace, and their predisposition to Afro-Latin (Afro-Cuban, Afro-Dominican, Afro-Puerto Rican, Afro-Brazilian, etc.) folkloric music with its direct link to the percussive music of West Africa. However, composition and arrangement are processes of the individual. I don't claim to be the first one to attempt the stated objective combination of African and European elements; what I can say is that I am the first one to do it in my own particular way. Thus this portfolio presents a combination, not only of different styles, but of underlying objectives as well. These objectives have been in mind throughout the creative process. In addition to the aforementioned objective of blending African and Jazz elements (1), it has been my intent to demonstrate proficiency in more traditional Jazz, Latin and even orchestral arranging frameworks (2), hopefully achieving a balance that allows my own voice to shine subtly through (3). / Thesis (M.Mus.)-University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban, 2010.

No description available.

Objective: Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) are measures collected from a patient to determine how he/she feels or functions in regards to a health condition. Longitudinal PROs, which are collected at multiple occasions from the same individual, may be affected by response shift (RS). RS is a change in a person’s self-evaluation of a target construct. Latent variable models (LVMs) are statistical models that relate observed variables to latent variables (LV). LVMs are used to analyze PROs and detect RS. LVs are random variables whose realizations are not observable. Factor scores are estimates of LVs for each individual and can be estimated from parameter estimates of LVMs. Factor scoring methods to estimate factor scores include: Thurstone, Bartlett, and sum scores. This simulation study examines the effects of RS on factor scores used to test for change in the LV means and recommend a factor scoring method least affected by RS. Methods: Data from two time points were fit to three confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) models. CFA models are a type of LVM. Each CFA model had different sets of parameters that were invariant over time. The unconstrained (Uncon) CFA model had no invariant parameters, the constrained (Con) model had all the parameters invariant, and the partially constrained (Pcon) model had some of the parameters invariant over time. Factor scores were estimated and tested for change over time via paired t-test. The Type I error, power, and factor loading (the regression coefficient between an observed and LV) and factor score bias were estimated to determine if RS influenced the test of change over time and factor score estimation. Results: The results depended on the true LV mean. The Type I error and power were similar for all factor scoring methods and CFA models when the LV mean was 0 at time 1. For LV mean of 0.5 at time 1 the Type I error and power increased as RS increased for all factor scores except for scores estimated from the Uncon model and Bartlett method. The biases of the factor loadings were unaffected by RS when estimated from an Uncon model. The factor scores estimated from the Uncon model and the Bartlett and sum scores method had the smallest factor score biases. Conclusion: The factor scores estimated from the Uncon model and the Bartlett method was least affected by RS and performed best in all measures of Type I error, statistical power, factor loading and factor score bias. Estimating factor scores from PROs data that ignores RS may result in erroneous (or biased) estimates.

There is no abstract available for this thesis.

Spanish Priests of the Franciscan order built 21 missions along El Camino Real between 1769 and 1835 before the mission system collapsed. El Camino Real, now generally referred to as “The King’s Highway” or “Mission Road,” runs 600 miles in California between Mission San Diego de Alcalá in modern-day San Diego to Mission San Francisco Solano in modern-day Sonoma. The missions served as communities with Catholicism and music, specifically music for services, at the heart of the culture. The music reflected the culture of these missions by presenting a hybrid of European and Native American styles. The Misa de Cataluña appears in nine of the extant mission manuscripts making it one of the most frequently transcribed surviving works in the California Mission System. Often the work appears in a position of honor within the intentional ordering of the choirbooks. Frs. Durán and Tapís, noted for their musical contributions to the California Mission System, both included this work in their choirbooks. Since the mission period, there have been at least two known arrangements of the work. As such, this work holds a respected place in California’s musical history. In this project, I seek to honor and explore this notable work by creating a critical edition of the Misa de Cataluña from the nine surviving manuscript sources to enable performance by modern choirs. Additionally, I discuss various challenges of performing the work with modern choirs and provide solutions to potential difficulties. / School of Music

Intertwinings is written for full orchestra, and is in one continuous movement. It takes as its subject certain aspects from human nature. The human nature is very complex. Sometimes people project extroverted actions, while at the same time disguising their inner thoughts and emotions. This work consists of three main themes, which represent three different characters. These themes first appear alone and then later in combination. They clash together producing positive and negative emotions that culminate with all three of them erupting together towards the end of the piece (beginning at measure 298 until the end). The piece ends abruptly leaving the questions unanswered. / Instrumentation -- Program notes and analysis -- Intertwinings / Thesis (M.M.)--Wichita State University, College of Fine Arts, School of Music

The Crying Wave is a twenty minute music composition for an amplified ensemble of fifteen instruments combined with a prerecorded electroacoustic audio component and live signal processing. The composition explores the use of fundamental electroacoustic music techniques such as additive, subtractive, and granular synthesis as models for the creation and manipulation of materials and structure in both the instrumental and electroacoustic aspects of the work. Two series of harmonies underlie the piece and serve as both harmonic and melodic resources. Procedures including additive/subtractive durations, palindrome and canon, the Fibonacci series, and antiphonal alternation of instrumental groups are used throughout the composition to provide structural coherence. The MIDI data processing software Max is employed to control a number of aspects of the work during performance, including playback of prerecorded electroacoustic audio segments on compact disc, changes of effects algorithms for digital signal processing modules, and the generation of a click track for synchronization. The following dissertation presents an analysis of the work in terms of the aforementioned concepts and techniques.

Souvenirs du vent is a composition for soprano and chamber orchestra with a duration of approximately 16'.30". The piece consists of three movements, a prelude, two interludes and a postlude. The poems set in the three movements were chosen for their similar subject matter, the wind. This common subject is emphasized by a music in which both the large-scale and small-scale formal divisions are blurred through structural counterpoint. The poets of the three poems are all from the Montreal area; they are: Emile Nelligan, Claude Brouille and Remi-Paul Forgues.