It is not a tremendous exaggeration to suggest the world almost ended on September

26, 1983. At the command center for the Soviet Union's Oko nuclear early warning

system a report came in stating that six hostile missiles were launched from the United

States. The commanding officer at the center, Stanislav Petrov, was convinced that the

missiles were a false alarm, and indeed the Oko system had malfunctioned. Petrov was

justified in reporting the attack to his superiors, which would have likely resulted in

retaliatory strikes from the Soviet Union, leading to nuclear war. This relatively obscure,

but immensely important moment in history is the inspiration for Alarm.

This work is not a direct retelling of Petrov's story, but a musical journey imagining the

many emotions this man must have been feeling. The piece is also not a look at the

Cold War politics surrounding the event, but a study of a choice, one of massive

consequences. The most significant element in Alarm is tension. The goal of the

opening statement of the piece, played by the brass, is to immediately transport the

listener into this world on the edge. This motive is developed throughout the work, and

serves as a binding agent as the music evolves. Another crucial element is the

oscillating staccato notes usually played by high-pitched instruments. This is implying

stress one might feel- whether it be an alarm going off or time running out. As the piece

seems to reach its breaking point just past the halfway mark, Petrov makes his choice.

The final part of the work is decidedly more peaceful, emphasized by the "Tranquillo"

and "Calmo" descriptors, but there is a consistent dark undertone to Alarm. Petrov's

story is bittersweet- he is a hero, but his accomplishments were swept under the rug by

Soviet leadership, humiliated by their nuclear system's failure. The near disaster in 1983

has barely been addressed by the world at large, even as the threat of nuclear war

seems to fade. When the next nuclear crisis arises, what choices will be made?

The purpose of this document is to create a template for a master’s degree in Collaborative Piano using data collected from an online survey and from publicly available information on institutional websites. The history and development of the graduate collaborative piano degree in the United States is examined to provide the background to this research. In addition to the degree template, other aspects useful for the creation of such a degree are discussed, including proposed required and optional courses, financial considerations, community outreach opportunities, and balancing off-campus professional engagements with on-campus academic duties. A list of all institutions currently offering collaborative piano degrees at the graduate level is included in the appendix.

The degree template conforms to the requirements of the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) in order to allow the greatest number of institutions the ability to embrace the curriculum. Designed to be flexible within the overall requirements of the degree, the proposed curriculum favors a balanced approach between instrumental and vocal collaboration, with a combination of traditional courses, project-based courses, and customizable elective courses designed to develop important competencies in collaborative piano. Both solo and collaborative applied lessons would be required, with three coached collaborative recitals and one uncoached collaborative recital required to fulfill the degree requirements. The project-oriented Collaborative Piano Seminar course has the flexibility to allow team teaching or community partnerships and requires an off-campus class performance once per academic year.

The goal of this template is to provide a pedagogically solid foundation for a master’s degree in collaborative piano, with the flexibility to add a variety of elective courses best suited to the needs and talents of the students, faculty, and institution. The synthesis of classical and popular styles within the curriculum is designed to give the collaborative pianist diverse musical competencies in order to succeed and thrive as a professional musician in the 21st century, whether the student continues with self-education after the master’s degree, pursues further study at the doctoral level, or enters the professional world.

ABSTRACT



"The Soul Unto Itself," a chamber music song cycle, was commissioned by the author, Rosa LoGiudice, and composed by William Clay, a doctoral candidate in composition at Arizona State University. The cycle was conceived and composed in the summer and fall of 2019. The chamber ensemble was a sextet comprised of Megan Law, mezzo-soprano, Kristi Hanno, clarinet, Emilio Vazquez, violin, Rittika Gambhir, bassoon, Nathaniel De la Cruz, double bass, and Rosa LoGiudice, piano, all based in Tempe, Arizona. The song cycle was premiered in a lecture recital on December 8, 2019 at Hammer and Strings Conservatory in Gilbert, AZ.

"The Soul Unto Itself" is a cycle of six songs based on poems of Emily Dickinson. The poems all have common themes of personal transformation achieved through the introspective observations of the poet. An unusual chamber ensemble was chosen to include instruments not commonly used in vocal chamber music in order to create a greater variety of musical colors and timbres. This project included the creation of the musical score, a live performance that was video recorded, and the research paper. This document discusses the process of working with the composer, rehearsing the music as it was being composed, and negotiating revisions necessary to make the music more effective in performance. Each song is discussed in detail, especially the connection between the music and poetry, the overall form of the song, revisions discussed and implemented, and important motivic relationships between the songs that unify the cycle. In summary, the process of collaborating with a composer is a rewarding experience for both the performers and the composer, as everyone is challenged to improve their craft and overcome obstacles to achieve a successful performance.

This research paper will examine William Bolcom’s compositional style and performance challenges related to Three Popular Rags (1967-1968), Knockout: A Rag (2008), Estela: Rag Latino (2010), and Contentment - A Rag (2015). The aim is to reveal some of his contributions to the revival and expansion of ragtime. The paper includes a brief background on William Bolcom and a history of ragtime music. Differences between the compositional styles of Scott Joplin and Bolcom are discussed through descriptive analysis, focusing on musical forms, rhythms, harmonies, and textures. The performance suggestions include elements of dynamics, articulation, extended piano techniques, and pedal use. The author hopes that this stylistic analysis and performance guide will further interest in Bolcom’s piano ragtime music.

Patterns and Soundscapes explores the concept album format, popularized in the late 1960s and into modern times by artists such as the Who, Pink Floyd, and Frank Zappa. Specifically, I sought to adapt this format as a compositional process aimed towards the completion of a large-scale work that can be presented in album format and live performance. Further influenced by the concept album, I sought to create pieces consisting of similar musical techniques, motivic ideas, and harmonic language, so that each piece could be performed on its own or be combined as a multi-movement work.

I began writing this work in the spring of 2019, with “Colored Red Currents” for string quartet and “Conspiracy Wall” for two drum sets. After realizing that both pieces had a similar sound and style, I began to consider how they could function within an album format, and how they could also work together to form a large-scale musical work. I then decided that each subsequent piece, in addition to being composed of similar musical ideas, would be written in a manner that allowed for seamless transitions between the end of one and the beginning of another, and would also introduce the instrumentation making up the full ensemble in the last movement.

This work begins with the sparkling and rapid string quartet, “Colored Red Currents,” then moves to the energetic and groove based “Conspiracy Wall” for two drum sets, the meditative “Interlude” for solo viola and electronics, and the quick and mechanical “Beat Frequency” for alto saxophone, bass clarinet, and electronics. The work ends with “ALL IN,” where the full ensemble is finally formed, and all of the patterns and soundscapes come together to form a bombastic and wild finale.

“The Mystery of Light” is the first movement of a yet to be completed larger work titled ...to melt into the sun for chamber choir and percussion quartet. The text of the work is an excerpt from Kahlil Gibran’s masterpiece, The Prophet. This book tells the story of a prophet-like man, Almustafa, who, before embarking on the journey back to his native land, stops in the city of Orphalese, where the townspeople, having known him for many years, entreat him to share his wisdom before he departs. The seeress, Almitra, urges him, “speak to us and give us of your truth.” Almustafa proceeds to philosophize on a range of topics including love, laws, pain, friendship, children, time, beauty, and self-knowledge. Just before his farewell to the people of Orphalese, he speaks of death, saying that it is not something to be feared, but rather, embraced as a necessary and beautiful part of life.

This interconnectedness of the life and death process, of which Almustafa speaks, is the subject of “The Mystery of Light.” Almitra’s aforementioned request returns directly and indirectly throughout the movement as a reference to humanity’s undying desire to understand the great mysteries of our own mortal condition. The choir shifts throughout the movement between the three following perspectives: 1) that of people who live in fear, whose anxious whispers grow into shouts of horror as they are faced with the threat of death, 2) that of people who share Almitra’s inquisitiveness and are inspired with wonder by the secret of death and 3) that of the prophet, as he speaks words of comfort and wisdom to those who look, either in terror or wonder, upon the face of death. My hope with this music is to share the comforting words which Gibran has spoken through the character, Almustafa, so that, as they have done for me, these words may provide comfort to those who will stand trembling in the presence of life’s most inevitable consequence.

This research project will focus on two poems by the Korean poet So-wol Kim (1902-1934). His poems are admired throughout Korea and are often set by Korean art song composers. This paper will examine four art song settings by composers Sung-tae Kim (1910-2012) and Soon-nam Kim (1917-1986) of two poems by So-wol Kim: “Azalea” and “Wildflowers of the Mountains.” The discussion will examine in detail the varied interpretations and expressions of the texts by each composer. To be clear, the translations of the poems investigated in this paper are poetic renderings and are not meant for performance purposes.

Reverend Stormfield Goes to Heaven is an operetta in six scenes for seven vocalists and

flute, clarinet, horn, percussion, piano, violin, cello, and double bass. The work’s approximate length is 40 minutes. The libretto is written by the composer and based on the short story by Mark Twain titled “Captain Stormfield Goes to Heaven.” The short story features the typical biting sarcasm of Mark Twain. The libretto combines part of the original text with alterations to satirize modern day Christianity and religious values in general. The story follows Reverend Stormfield as she arrives in Heaven and quickly learns that the locations and people she expected to see and meet are shockingly different. The journey takes her through comical scenarios and deeper philosophical dilemmas, and in the end she is left to confront her own disturbing past.

The musical elements of the operetta include traditional and octatonic scales, twelve- tone rows and set theory based on the overriding intervallic relationship of the perfect fourth. The sets implemented as motivic ideas: 0-1-4-5, 0-1-6-7, and 0-2-5-7 are based on the perfect fourth and serve as the framework for many of the melodic ideas. The instruments provide an accompanimental role often incorporating melodic fragmentation and contrapuntal textures and techniques. Instrumental solos are featured prominently in arias and the instrumental interludes between scenes.