Solo and Chamber Music of Pulitzer Prize-Winning Composers

The Pulitzer Prize in Music, established in 1943, is one of America's most prestigious awards. It has been awarded to fifty-three composers for a "distinguished musical composition of significant dimension by an American that has had its first performance in the United States during the year." Composers who have won the Pulitzer Prize are considered to be at the pinnacle of their creativity and have provided the musical world with classical music compositions worthy of future notice. By tracing the history of Pulitzer Prize-winning composers and their compositions, researchers and musicians enhance their understanding of the historical evolution of American music, and its impact on American culture. Although the clarinet music of some of these composers is rarely performed today, their names will be forever linked to the Pulitzer, and because of that, their compositions will enjoy a certain sense of immortality. Of the fifty-four composers who have won the award, forty-seven have written for the clarinet in a solo or chamber music setting (five or less instruments). Just as each Pulitzer Prize-winning composition is a snapshot of the state of American music at that time, these works trace the history of American clarinet musical development, and therefore, they are valuable additions to the clarinet repertoire and worthy of performance. This dissertation project consists of two recitals featuring the solo and chamber clarinet music of sixteen Pulitzer Prize-winning composers, extended program notes containing information on each composer's life, their music, the Pulitzer Prize-winning composition and the recital selection, and a complete list of all Pulitzer Prize-winning composers and their solo and chamber clarinet music. Featured Composers Dominick Argento, To Be Sung Upon the Water Leslie Bassett, Soliloquies William Bolcom, Little Suite of Four Dances Aaron Copland, As it Fell Upon a Day John Corigliano, Soliloquy Norman Dello Joio, Concertante Morton Gould, Benny's Gig Charles Ives, Largo Douglas Moore, Quintet for Clarinet and Strings George Perle, Three Sonatas Quincy Porter, Quintet for Clarinet and Strings Mel Powell, Clarinade Shulamit Ran, Private Game Joseph Schwantner, Entropy Leo Sowerby, Sonata Ernst Toch, Adagio elegiaco

Selected Solo Music for Saxophone by United States Composers: 1975-2005

This dissertation project identifies important works for solo saxophone by United States composers between 1975 and 2005. The quality, variety, expressiveness, and difficulty of the solo saxophone repertoire during these thirty years is remarkable and remedies, to some extent, the fact that the saxophone had been a largely neglected instrument in the realm of classical music. In twentieth-century music, including Jazz, the saxophone developed, nevertheless, a unique and significant voice as is evident in the saxophone repertoire that expands immensely in many instrumental settings, including the orchestra, solo works, and a wide variety of chamber ensembles. Historically, the saxophone in the United States first found its niche in Vaudeville, military bands, and jazz ensembles, while in Europe composers such as Debussy, D'Indy, Schmitt, Ibert, Glazounov, Heiden, and Desenclos recognized the potential of the instrument and wrote for it. The saxophone is well suited to the intimacy and unique timbral explorations of the solo literature, but only by the middle twentieth century did the repertoire allow the instrument to flourish into a virtuosic and expressive voice presented by successive generations of performers – Marcel Mule, Sigurd Rascher, Cecil Leeson, Jean-Marie Londeix, Fred Hemke, Eugene Rousseau, and Donald Sinta. The very high artistic level of theses soloists was inspiring and dozens of new compositions were commissioned. Through the 1960’s American composers such as Paul Creston, Leslie Bassett, Henry Cowell, Alec Wilder, and others produced eminent works for the saxophone, to be followed by an enormous output of quality compositions between 1975 and 2005. The works chosen for performance were selected from thousands of compositions between 1975 and 2005 researched for this project. The three recital dates were: April 6, 2005, in Gildenhorn Recital Hall, December 4, 2005, in Ulrich Recital Hall, and April 15, 2006, in Gildenhorn Recital Hall. Recordings of these recitals may be obtained in person or online from the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library of the University of Maryland, College Park.

High School Choral Students' Perceptions of Choral Music Experience

The purpose of this study is to explore high school students' perceptions of their choral experiences, providing an understanding of students' ongoing perspectives of choral experience. Specifically, how have these experiences influenced the formation of their musical identities as members of a choral ensemble? The researcher collected data from the three participants during a full school year. The participants were current students in the researcher's advanced choral ensemble. Through axial coding, three themes emerged: musical interpretation, attitude, and group efficacy. The study revealed that experienced choral students have well-informed musical perspectives that influence their choral experiences. Implications for music education include using students' perspectives for creating rehearsal strategies, planning and programming performances, and fostering a nurturing learning atmosphere. Suggestions for further research include comparing experienced students to non-experienced students, comparing ensembles with student-chosen repertoire to those with director-chosen repertoire, and further examining the impact of choral experience on musical identity.

TALLY HORN! ECHOES OF HOOFBEATS AND HAUNTS: RECORDED SELECTIONS FOR HORN AND PIANO

In the 17th and 18th centuries, the European hunting horn was an instrument associated with the thrill of the chase, rustic scenes, and the pageantry of royal hunts. The sound of this horn and the music that evolved from its heritage would inspire composers writing for the modern horn. TALLY HOrn! Echoes of Hoofbeats and Haunts: Recorded Selections for Horn and Piano are two compact discs of works for horn and piano as well as solo horn reflecting this association with the hunt and include additional works of expressive contrast – lyrical pieces and nocturnes. Nine of the pieces reflect the modern horn’s beginnings and they are Abbot’s Alla Caccia, Berge’s Horn-Lokk, Boutry’s Chassacor, Bozza’s En Fôret, Büsser’s La Chasse de St. Hubert, Pessard’s In the Forest, Piantoni’s Air de Chasse, Schmid’s Im Tiefsten Walde, and Vinter’s Hunter’s Moon. By contrast, three of the selections, Gliére’s Nocturne, Strauss’ Nocturno, and Van Ecchaute’s Nachtpoëma are nocturnes that showcase the expressive quality of the horn. In addition, Bush’s Autumn Poem, Bacon’s Song After the Rain, and Webber’s Summer Pastures are included for their lyric qualities and evocations of nature. The largest work of the project is John Williams’s Concerto for Horn. Its five movements feature both hunting horn traits and expressive qualities. Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez and Grace Cho were the two pianists engaged for the recording. The recording engineer was Edward Kelly. The producer was Carlos Rodriquez. The pieces were recorded at the Spencerville Seventh-day Adventist Church sanctuary in Spencerville, Maryland between November 2010 and February 2011.

A GLOBAL SAMPLING OF PIANO MUSIC FROM 1978 TO 2005

Pianists of the twenty-first century have a wealth of repertoire at their fingertips. They busily study music from the different periods -- Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and some of the twentieth century -- trying to understand the culture and performance practice of the time and the stylistic traits of each composer so they can communicate their music effectively. Unfortunately, this leaves little time to notice the composers who are writing music today. Whether this neglect proceeds from lack of time or lack of curiosity, I feel we should be connected to music that was written in our own lifetime, when we already understand the culture and have knowledge of the different styles that preceded us. Therefore, in an attempt to promote today’s composers, I have selected piano music written during my lifetime, to show that contemporary music is effective and worthwhile and deserves as much attention as the music that preceded it. This dissertation showcases piano music composed from 1978 to 2005. A point of departure in selecting the pieces for this recording project is to represent the major genres in the piano repertoire in order to show a variety of styles, moods, lengths, and difficulties. Therefore, from these recordings, there is enough variety to successfully program a complete contemporary recital from the selected works, and there is enough variety to meet the demands of pianists with different skill levels and recital programming needs. Since we live in an increasingly global society, music from all parts of the world is included to offer a fair representation of music being composed everywhere. Half of the music in this project comes from the United States. The other half comes from Australia, Japan, Russia, and Argentina. The composers represented in these recordings are: Lowell Liebermann, Richard Danielpour, Frederic Rzewski, Judith Lang Zaimont, Samuel Adler, Carl Vine, Nikolai Kapustin, Akira Miyoshi and Osvaldo Golijov. With the exception of one piano concerto, all the works are for solo piano. This recording project dissertation consists of two 60 minute CDs of selected repertoire, accompanied by a substantial document of in-depth program notes. The recordings are documented on compact discs that are housed within the University of Maryland Library System.

VINTAGE MODERNISM: EARLY EXPERIMENTALIST MUSIC FOR VIOLIN IN THE UNITED STATES

The historical narrative of concert music in the early twentieth century has focused a great deal on the influence of European composers as well as the American composers who went to Europe to study. Often overlooked, however, is the influence of an entire generation of composers working in the United States during that time period. These artists experimented with polyrhythm, polytonality, dissonant counterpoint, and a whole host of other musical techniques in order to express their perceptions of a changing world. Over the years, the new techniques became associated with various movements including futurism, experimentalism and ultramodernism. Regardless of label, these composers were some of the first to introduce the new musical styles to the listening public.The recitals that make up this dissertation explore the sound world of experimentalist composers working in the United States during the early twentieth century. Serving as the foundation of these recitals are all four of the violin sonatas by Charles Ives, the “grandfather” of modernist music whose financial support helped to foster a whole generation of American composers. Also prominently featured is the music of Henry Cowell. His Suite for Violin and Piano, Mosaic Quartet (String Quartet No. 3), and Quartet Euphometric demonstrate the composer's use of cluster tones, dissonant counterpoint, polymeter, and indeterminate form. Additional works by George Antheil, Leo Ornstein, Wallingford Riegger, Dane Rudhyar, Carl Ruggles, and Ruth Crawford (Seeger) highlight other approaches taken by members of the ultra-modernist movement. Rounding out the repertoire for these recitals are works by Johanna Beyer and Conlon Nancarrow, both of whom either worked with or were influenced by Cowell in some way. All of the pieces selected date roughly from 1900 to the mid 1930's. Thus, the purpose of these recitals is not to provide a comprehensive overview of each composer's development, but rather to examine the influence and interconnections of a specific cross-section of the musical landscape.

DEGENERATE MUSIC?! MUSICAL CENSORSHIP IN THE THIRD REICH

In 1938, in Düsseldorf, the Nazis put on an exhibit entitled "Entartete Musik” (degenerate music), which included composers on the basis of their “racial origins” (i.e. Jews), or because of the “modernist style” of their music. Performance, publication, broadcast, or sale of music by composers deemed “degenerate” was forbidden by law throughout the Third Reich. Among these composers were some of the most prominent composers of the first half of the twentieth-century. They included Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Webern, Berg, Mahler, Ernst Krenek, George Gershwin, Kurt Weill, Erwin Schulhoff, and others. The music of nineteenth-century composers of Jewish origin, such as Mendelssohn and Meyerbeer, was also officially proscribed. In each of the three recitals for this project, significant works were performed by composers who were included in this exhibition, namely, Mendelssohn, Webern, Berg, Weill, and Hans Gal. In addition, as an example of self-censorship, a work of Karl Amadeus Hartmann was included. Hartmann chose “internal exile” by refusing to allow performance of his works in Germany during the Nazi regime. One notable exception to the above categories was a work by Beethoven that was presented as a bellwether of the relationship between music and politics. The range of styles and genres in these three recitals indicates the degree to which Nazi musical censorship cut a wide swath across Europe’s musical life with devastating consequences for its music and culture.

THE PIANO MUSIC OF ROBERT SCHUMANN (1810-1856) AND JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833- 1897): A SURVEY OF CONCERTI, VARIATIONS, AND CHARACTER PIECES

Robert Schumann (1810-1856) and Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), in some ways Robert Schumann's artistic descendant, are the most important and representative German piano composers during the Romantic period. Schumann was already a mature and established musician in 1853 when he first met the young Brahms and recognized his talents, an encounter that had a long-lasting affect on the lives and careers of both men. After Schumann’s mental breakdown and death, Brahms maintained his admiration of Schumann’s music and preserved an intimate relationship with Clara Schumann. In spite of the personal and musical closeness of the two men, Schumann’s music is stylistically distinct from that of Brahms. Brahms followed traditions from Baroque and Classical music, and avoided using images and expressive titles in his music. Brahms extraordinarily intermingled earlier musical forms with multicolored tones of German Romanticism. In contrast, Schumann saw himself as a radical composer devoted to personal emotionalism and spontaneity. He favored programmatic titles for his character pieces and extra-musical references in his music. While developing their own musical styles as German Romantic composers, Schumann and Brahms both utilized the piano as a resourceful tool for self-realization and compositional development. To investigate and compare the main characteristics of Schumann and Brahms’s piano music, I looked at three genres. First, in the category of the piano concerto, I chose two major Romantic works, Schumann’s A minor concerto and Brahms’s B-flat major concerto. Second, for the category of piano variations I included two sets by Brahms because the variation framework was such an important vehicle for him to express his musical thoughts. Schumann’s unique motivic approach to variation is displayed vividly in his character-piece cycle Carnaval. Third, the category of the character piece, perhaps the favorite medium of Romantic expression at the piano, is shown by Schumann’s Papillons and Brahms’s sets of pieces Op.118 and Op.119. This performance dissertation consists of three recitals performed in the Gildenhorn Recital Hall at the University of Maryland, College Park. These recitals are documented on compact disc recordings that are housed within the University of Maryland Library System.

USE OF VARIATION AND FUGUE IN PIANO MUSIC FOLLOWING THE CLASSICAL PERIOD

The variation and fugue originated from the 15th and 16th centuries and blossomed during the Baroque and Classical Periods. In a variation, a theme with a particular structure precedes a series of pieces that usually have the same or very similar structure. A fugue is a work written in imitative counterpoint in which the theme is stated successively in all voices of polyphonic texture. Beethoven’s use of variation and fugue in large scale works greatly influenced his contemporaries. After the Classical Period, variations continued to be popular, and numerous composers employed the technique in various musical genres. Fugues had pedagogical associations, and by the middle of 19th century became a requirement in conservatory instruction, modeled after Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier. In the 20th century, the fugue was revived in the spirit of neoclassicism; it was incorporated in sonatas, and sets of preludes and fugues were composed. Schubert's Wanderer Fantasy presents his song Der Wanderer through thematic transformations, including a fugue and a set of variations. Liszt was highly influenced by this, as shown in his thematic transformations and the fugue as one of the transformations in his Sonata in b. In Schumann’s Symphonic Études, Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and Copland’s Piano Variations, the variation serves as the basis for the entire work. Prokofiev and Schubert take a different approach in Piano Concerto No. 3 and Wanderer Fantasy, employing the variation in a single movement. Unlike Schubert and Liszt's use of the fugue as a part of the piece or movement, Franck’s Prelude Chorale et Fugue and Shchedrin’s Polyphonic Notebook use it in its independent form. Since the Classical Period, the variation and fugue have evolved from stylistic and technical influences of earlier composers. It is interesting and remarkable to observe the unique effects each had on a particular work. As true and dependable classic forms, they remain popular by offering the composer an organizational framework for musical imagination.

EFFECT OF MUSIC ON THE SOUL: INTENT OR INDIFFERENCE IN THE COMPOSITION OF EWAZEN, FETTER, HIDAS, HOVHANESS, PEDERSON AND WILDER

This performance dissertation completed in 2009 by bass trombonist and Doctor of Musical Arts candidate Karl Wiederwohl consists of three live recitals and a written document which serves as a complement to the performances. The document discusses the six composers whose music is performed on the recitals. The document's six chapters respectively discuss each composer's disposition with regard to their purpose in composing music. As a complement to the performances the document gives special attention to each composer's thoughts on affecting listeners through their music. Wiederwohl creates a window into the mentality behind the artistry of Eric Ewazen, David Fetter, Frigyes Hidas, Alan Hovhaness, Tommy Pederson and Alec Wilder. The document serves to inform and enrich the experience of both performers and listeners of these six composers. This is achieved through the document's treatment of the following four questions for each composer: How did each come to be a composer? How did each come to compose in his particular style? Does the composer intend his music to serve a purpose? Does the composer intend his music to serve a purpose, and, if so, does this purpose involve reaching and/or affecting the listener at the deepest level?

FLUTE MUSIC FROM THE MID-TWENTIETH CENTURY BY THREE FRENCH COMPOSERS: JEAN-MICHEL DAMASE, ANDRE JOLIVET, AND HENRI TOMASI

Jean-Michel Damase (b.1928), Andre Jolivet (1905-1974), and Henri Tomasi (1901-1971) are three prominent French composers ofthe twentieth century. Tomasi won the Prix de Rome in 1927, and Damase won the Prix de Rome in 1947. All three composers were educated and lived in Paris around the same period; however, their musical styles are quite distinct. Most of Jolivet's compositions for flute are well known and are often selected as international competition repertoire. The compositions for flute by Damase and Tomasi are not as recognized as those of Jolivet, and most of their works for flute still have not been commercially recorded. The purpose of this dissertation is to provide a more comprehensive guide to the compositions for flute by Damase, Jolivet and Tomasi, and, in addition, to make the works ofDamase and Tomasi familiar to flutists. This dissertation will focus on the compositions ofDamase, Jolivet, and Tomasi for flute alone and those for flute and piano, written between 1928 and 1971 (1928 is the year Damase was born, and 1971 is the year that Tomasi died). Damase continues French romanticism, and his music is always playful, elegant, and accessible with rhythmic and harmonic surprises, but with an underlying complexity. His compositions for flute include three concertos, two double concertos, one flute solo work, and nine works for flute and piano. Jolivet's compositions make use of ancient rituals, incantations, and spirituality, as well as repeated phrases and single notes, irregular rhythmic patterns, dissonant effects, and rhythmic drive. He composed one flute concerto, three works for flute solo, and four works for flute and piano. Tomasi's compositions also continue French romanticism and contain melodies which often seem to tell a story, and which are not only full of flourishes and vitality, but are also delicate, colorful, and romantic. Virtuosic technical demand is another characteristic of his style. Tomasi composed three flute concertos, three works for solo flute, and one work for flute and piano. Appendix I is a list of the compositions for flute by Damase, Jolivet, and Tomasi, and Appendix II is a discography of their works.

THE LESSER-KNOWN PIANO CHAMBER MUSIC OF CAMILLE SAINT-SAENS: A RECORDING PROJECT

Throughout his long and industrious lifetime, Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921) devoted himself unconditionally to music both as a composer and a performer. Saint-Saens was a self-described traditionalist and musical purist, yet his works are distinctly expressive and imaginative, and they reflect the composer's own unique musical language which incorporates recognizably modem traits such as chromaticism and frequent modulation. As a performer, Saint-Saens preferred to premiere his own works and often included his chamber music in his concert programs. Regarded primarily as a symphonic composer in the present day, however, his extensive and varied collection of chamber music works is sadly neglected. Six varied small-ensemble works with piano from his chamber music repertoire have been selected for study and recording for this project: Piano Trio No. 1 in F Major, Op. 18 (1864); Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 1 inC Minor, Op. 32 (1872); two pieces for two pianos, Le Rouet d'Omphale (The Spinning Wheel ofOmphale), Op. 31 (1871) and Phaeton, Op. 39 (1874); piano duet Konig Harald Haifagar (King Harald Haarfager), Op. 59 (1880); and a wind quartet, Caprice sur des airs Danois et Russes (Caprice on Danish and Russian Airs) for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet and Piano, Op. 79 (1887). Analyses of the forms and harmonic structures of these compositions will be included in this dissertation paper as well as studies from the viewpoint of Saint-Saens' compositional style, ensemble characteristics, and writing for the piano. The recordings for this project were made in four sessions in LeFrak Concert Hall at Queens College, the City University of New York. On September 24, 2003, Op. 31, Op. 39 and Op. 59 were recorded with Professor Morey Ritt, piano. On March 2, 2004, Op. 18 was recorded with Elena Rojas, violin, and Clare Liu, cello, and on March 15, 2004, Op. 32 was recorded, also with Ms. Liu. The Caprice, Op. 79 was recorded on June 27, 2008 with Laura Conwesser, flute; Randall Wolfgang, oboe; and Steve Hartman, clarinet. The recordings may be found on file in the library at the University of Maryland, College Park.

EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY VIOLA MUSIC FROM ENGLAND AND GERMANY: FROM POST-ROMANTICISM TO MODERNISM

In the early twentieth century, the viola began to gain status as a solo instrument with the appearance in England of the virtuosic violist Lionel Tertis. Because of a lack of music for viola at that time, such English composers as York Bowen, Arnold Bax, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Arthur Bliss and William Walton began to write viola music for Tertis. Meanwhile, in Germany, the well-known composer and virtuosic violinist and violist Paul Hindemith wrote and premiered several viola sonatas and concertos. Viola music became even more developed later with William Primrose, the legendary Scottish violist, and all the works written in the early twentieth century have remained significant in the viola literature. Although this new viola music appeared in both countries during same period, it developed along different lines in each country. Because they were under the influence of earlier periods and traditions, the English composers who associated with Tertis wrote their music in a Romantic style, with expanded harmony, various colors of sound and timbre, and lyrical melodies. Hindemith, as a composer himself, employed a more Modernist style, using atonality and angular melodies, which represented German trends at that time. I have given three recitals, of which the first two were divided between selected English music and German music. Although I originally intended to focus solely on music by Hindemith and music written for Terts, I decided that in order to give a more complete view of the national trends of those two countries, I included Rebecca Clarke's Sonata, Lachrymae by Benjamin Britten (dedicated to William Primrose), and Max Reger's Suite for Viola. Rebecca Clarke was herself a fine violist, and her sonata's Romantic style is also representative of the English trends of viola music. Lachrymae was written with a different concept and shows more modernity than had ever before occurred in England, though it still differs from the modernity of other countries. Max Reger's Suite is in a truly Romantic style, yet it is old fashioned in ways that differ not only from Wagner or Strauss, but also from English music of the period. In my last recital I wished to pay homage to Tertis, with a program consisting entirely of music written for him. For the finale, Arthur Bliss's Viola Sonata was especially chosen because it provides interesting similarities and contrasts with earlier English music in the Romantic style.

BAROQUE MUSIC FOR TRUMPET: A STUDY OF SOLO AND CHAMBER REPERTOIRE

The trumpet experienced important changes in terms of its musical use during the middle and late Baroque period. Prior to the Baroque, and even in to the first half of the 17th century, the trumpet had historically been used for rather "non-musical" purposes, sometimes as an instrument for battle or as a tool to be used in the town square to announce the arrival of a dignitary. On the whole, the trumpet was most certainly not used as an instrument of melody -that was typically reserved for violins, flutes, and oboes. However, in the late 1600's, composers such as Allesandro Stradella and Henry Purcell began to treat the trumpet differently. They saw the melodic potential in the trumpet and began to feature the trumpet more as an instrument of melody, as opposed to relegating it to only outlining triads and emphasizing harmony. Of course, keyboard, string, and woodwind instruments had long established a significant catalogue of works by the late 17th century. Additionally, even after the trumpet had been established as an instrument of melody, prominent composers of the time still wrote significantly more solo music for these other instrument families than for the trumpet. Consequently, the overall Baroque repertoire for the solo trumpet pales in comparison to that of the other families of instruments. But, much of this Baroque literature not originally written for trumpet can be presented effectively in the form of a transcription, thereby adding greatly to the repertoire of the Baroque solo trumpet. The goal of these three dissertation recitals is twofold: 1) to perform literature that offers music from a variety of countries of origin that span the entire Baroque era and 2) to feature music that has remained relatively unknown in the trumpet world, yet is musically strong. I will also introduce viable "new" music to the trumpet repertoire through Baroque transcriptions originally written for other instruments or voice. The majority of the transcriptions I will be performing have originated from my own listening and study of Baroque music, and I have selected music that I felt would translate well for the trumpet.