[PDF] A Portfolio Of Eleven Compositions With An Accompanying Commentary Submitted For The Degree Of Phd In Music Composition At The University Of Aberdeen eBook

Author : Thomas LaVoy
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Page : 0 pages
File Size : 39,92 MB
Release : 2017
Category : Composition (Music)
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This thesis, A Portfolio of Original Compositions, contains six musical compositions and accompanying commentary presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Music Composition at the University of Aberdeen in 2017. The focus of these musical works is on the composition of music for the human voice, though there are significant examples of instrumental composition included in the portfolio as well. The focal point of the accompanying commentary is an extended work for choir, string quartet and percussion ensemble titled Endless, which uses verses from Rabindranath Tagore's Nobel-Prize-winning collection of devotional poetry Gitanjali as its textual basis. The other works contained within the portfolio, O Great Beyond, Songs of the Questioner, The Dream I Knew, Ave, maris stella and When daylight came ..., are shown in the commentary to be important examples of supplemental research that led to the composition of Endless. The individual chapters of the accompanying commentary discuss various aspects of research-based composition found throughout the portfolio, again with specific emphasis on Endless. These include the approach to form and text setting, the use and development of musical motives, the approach to harmony and specific techniques of orchestration. The commentary also discusses how research into the music of other cultures, most importantly the pitch and ornamental systems employed in Indian music, has informed the composition of the works contained in the portfolio.

Author : Sarah Rimkus
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Page : 0 pages
File Size : 40,98 MB
Release : 2018
Category : Choral music
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This thesis, A Portfolio of Original Compositions, contains six musical compositions and an accompanying commentary presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Music Composition at the University of Aberdeen in 2018. The focus of my research at the University is sacred choral music composition, though not exclusively; many instrumental works and secular choral and vocal works have contributed to the development of my compositional technique. The portfolio contains two large-form sacred works: the St Andrew's Mass, a setting of the mass ordinary for chorus and quartet, and Babylon, a 30-minute work for large choir and percussion on themes of journeying and solitude, excerpting texts from both sacred and American folk sources. This commentary will focus on these works, as they have been the focal point of my research at the University, with supplementary examples of techniques and ideas from the other shorter works in the portfolio. The individual chapters of the accompanying commentary will discuss various aspects of research-based composition found throughout the portfolio, with particular focus on my use of text, texture, and harmony. I will examine how these elements are used in the St Andrew's Mass and Babylon, whereas these two works comprise the bulk of my research. Additionally, I will discuss the contributions of influences from works by other composers of the past and present, as well as folk and traditional sources, to my compositional outlook and research.

Author : Robert Spearing
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Page : pages
File Size : 49,10 MB
Release : 2010
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Commentary Scores: 1 After Haydn?s?Farewell? 2 She Solus 3 Two Pieces for clarinet and piano 4 Wings? dreams 5 Piano Symphony.

Author : Louis James Johnson
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Page : pages
File Size : 42,47 MB
Release : 2011
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The main focus of my PhD submission is a portfolio of compositions. This selection of pieces presents work for a variety of ensemble types, from symphony orchestra, through different kinds of chamber groups, to compositions for solo instrumentalists. Although all of the pieces were written for some kind of concert setting, my portfolio includes music that was written to act as the basis of a film score, music that uses text specifically written for me to set as part of an operatic project and groups of pieces that share and represent parts of larger connected conceptual worlds. My music explores different approaches to form, content, compositional system, word-setting and instrumentation; however, there are musical and conceptual connections that run across and between pieces, some works realising shared fundamental material whilst others seek to develop in contrasting directions. The portfolio is accompanied by a written component that falls into two main parts. The first part investigates the relationship between narrative and music through a comparative analysis of aspects of narrative theory and music theory. The aim of this investigation was to ascertain whether or not music can be understood to function as narrative and whether such functioning could be described using terminology commonly applied to descriptions of narrative in other artistic media. The results of this investigation revealed a number of possible ways that musical narrative could be understood and described as well as suggesting how such ideas could be applied to the process of composition. The second part of the written component is concerned with a discussion of the works in my portfolio of compositions. Each piece is looked at in detail with regard to all aspects of its context and construction. This approach has allowed for an in-depth examination of my compositional methodology and has facilitated an understanding of how my work and working methods have developed during the course of my PhD studies. For the purposes of this examination, I have divided my portfolio into two broad categories: pieces that engage with extra-musical aspects and pieces that engage with musical conventions of various kinds or, as I have termed them, meta-musical aspects. This division has enabled me to draw out conceptual and musical connections between individual works and groups of pieces; it has also enabled me to suggest ways in which my work operates as narrative. This, in turn, potentially demonstrates that narrative is not something that is necessarily extra-musical but that it might instead be a category that can embrace both musical conventions and a wider conceptual context in the processes of composing and understanding music.