NEW PERSPECTIVES: TRANSCRIPTIONS FOR VIOLA

One must only glance upon Franz Zeyringer’s 400-page, exhaustive Literatur für Viola to understand the error of the familiar but casual criticism of the paucity of the viola catalogue. Examining Zeyringer’s resource, however, we find a trend: while the viola repertoire contains many pieces (over 14,000 works) and does lay claim to many masterworks (Bartok’s Viola Concerto, Hindemith’s Sonatas, Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, etc.), many of the pieces originally written for the instrument are not widely recognized compositions and not often considered outstanding achievements. The violist, much like the double-bassist, bassoonist, and hornist, faces a certain challenge when selecting repertoire for a recital: a lack of large, important works that both fit the instrument and challenge the recitalist. This project will aim to expand recital repertoire for the viola through the development of new transcriptions, using the previously transcribed Fantasy Pieces by Schumann (trans. Leonard Davis) and Sonata No. 2 in E-flat, Op. 120 by Brahms (trans. Brahms) as an inspiration and guide. As a result, the catalogue of viola repertoire will not only be increased but the difference in tone and depth of the instrument may unveil previously unnoticed perspectives on the works. With a primary aim to expand the literature of the viola through the development of new transcriptions, this project will also strive to offer new, previously unnoticed perspectives on preexisting works. Through the changing of the instrumentation, listeners and performers will have the opportunity to explore the character of the compositions in a fresh and possibly illuminating way. Perhaps this project will encourage previously unexplored transcriptions to be realized and performed. While the recital repertoire for the viola boasts many and great works, the original transcriptions of this project attempt to infuse the collection with new and interesting possibilities for both study and performance. This dissertation project is comprised of three recitals featuring works transcribed for viola and, in most cases, newly transcribed by myself. All events took place on the campus of University of Maryland, College Park: Recital #1 on November 9, 2014 in the Gildenhorn Recital Hall of the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center; Recital #2 on May 9, 2015, in Ulrich Recital Hall; and Recital #3 on November 6, 2015, in the Gildenhorn Recital Hall. 

Tracing Beethoven Through the Ten Sonatas for Piano and Violin

Examination of Beethoven’s ten sonatas for piano and violin as a single arc, to uncover linkages between the individual sonatas and observe their stylistic evolution as a set, benefits from placing these works also in relation to the wider realm of Beethoven’s chamber music as a whole. During the years in which his sonatas for piano and violin were written, Beethoven often produced multiple works simultaneously. In fact, the first nine sonatas for piano and violin were written within a mere five-year span (1798 – 1803.) After a gap of nine years, Beethoven completed his tenth and final sonata, marking the end of his “Middle Period.” Because of this distribution, it is important to consider each of these sonatas not only as an interdependent set, but also in relation to the whole of Beethoven’s output for small ensemble. Beethoven wrote the last of his piano and violin sonatas in 1812, with a decade and a half of innovation still ahead of him. This provokes one to look beyond these sonatas to discover the final incarnation of the ideas introduced in these works. In particular, the key creative turning points within the ten sonatas for piano and violin become strikingly apparent when compared to Beethoven’s string quartets, which dramatically showcase Beethoven’s evolution in sixteen works distributed more or less evenly across his career. From the perspective of a string quartet player, studying the ten sonatas for piano and violin provides an opportunity to note similarities between the genres. This paper argues that examining the ten sonatas from a viewpoint primarily informed by Beethoven’s string quartets yields a more thorough understanding of the sonatas themselves and a broader conception of the vast network of interrelationships that produce Beethoven’s definitive voice. The body of this paper contains a full exploration of each of the ten sonatas for piano and violin, highlighting key musical, historical, and theoretical elements. Each of the sonatas is then put not only in context of the set of ten, but is contrasted with Beethoven’s sixteen string quartets, identifying unifying motives, techniques, and structural principles that recur across both bodies of work.

Pairings: Quintets and Duos from the Collaborative Piano Repertoire

Chamber music with piano comprises some of the greatest masterpieces in the Western canon. The works range from duo sonatas with various instruments through septets. In regard to duo sonatas, the violin is the instrument most frequently paired with the piano. Of all the chamber works for larger ensembles, the most popular is the quintet. In this dissertation, I will be exploring the similarities and differences between the duo sonatas and quintets of a given composer. I will be surveying Robert Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44 along with his Violin and Piano Sonata in A Minor, Op. 105. The next pairing will be Johannes Brahms’ Piano Quintet in F Minor, Op. 34 and his Piano and Violin Sonata in D Minor, Op. 108. Dmitri Shostakovich’s Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57 and his Cello and Piano Sonata in D Minor, Op. 40 will be the last two works examined in this dissertation. This dissertation project consisted of three recitals, presented in the Gildenhorn Recital Hall at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center of the University of Maryland. The recitals featured works by Johannes Brahms, Robert Schumann and Dmitri Shostakovich and took place on March 14, 2014, February 13, 2015 and November 22, 2015. All three recitals were recorded on compact discs, which can be accessed at the Digital Repository at the University of Maryland (DRUM) and at the University of Maryland Hornbake Library.

What's the Matter with Extended Techniques? Getting Beyond the Stigma in the Horn and Percussion Repertoire

For this project I prepared a series of recitals featuring music for horn and percussion, in which the horn part featured extended horn techniques. For this project, I considered anything beyond the open or muted horn an extended technique. These techniques range from the common hand-stopped note passages to complex new techniques involving half-valves, multi-phonics, and more, for new sounds desired by the composer. There are several pieces written for solo horn and percussion, with ensembles ranging from simple duets to solo horn with a full percussion ensemble. However, few include extended techniques for the horn. All of these select pieces are lesser known because of their difficulty, primarily because of the challenge of the extended techniques requested by the composer. In the introduction to this paper I give a brief background to the project, where the current repertoire stands, and my experiences with commissioning works for this genre. I then give a brief history and how-to on the more common extended techniques, which were found in almost every piece. I separated these techniques so that they could be referenced in the performance notes without being extremely repetitive in their description. Then follows the main performance notes of the repertoire chosen, which includes a brief description of the piece itself and a longer discussion for performers and composers who wish to learn more about these techniques. In this section my primary focus is the extended techniques used and I provide score samples with permission to further the education of the next musicians to tackle this genre. All works performed for this project were recorded and accompany this paper in the Digital Repository at the University of Maryland (DRUM). The following works were included in this project: o Howard J. Buss, Dreams from the Shadows (2015) o Howard J. Buss, Night Tide (1995) o George Crumb, An Idyll for the Misbegotten, trans. Robert Patterson (1986/1997) o Charles Fernandez, Metamorphosis: A Horn’s Life, “Prenatal and Toddler” (2016, unfinished) o Helen Gifford, Of Old Angkor (1995) o Douglas Hill, Thoughtful Wanderings… (1990) o Pierre-Yves Level, Duetto pour Cor en Fa et Percussion (1999) o David Macbride, Elegy for Horn and Timpani (2009) o Brian Prechtl, A Song of David (1995) o Verne Reynolds, HornVibes (1986) o Pablo Salazar, Cincontar (2016) o Mark Schultz, Dragons in the Sky (1989) o Faye-Ellen Silverman, Protected Sleep (2007) o Charles Taylor, Sonata for Horn and Marimba (1991) o Robert Wolk, Tessellations (2016) With this project, I intend to promote these pieces and the techniques used to encourage more works written in this style, and reveal to fellow horn players that the techniques should not prevent these great works from being performed. Due to the lack of repertoire, I successfully commissioned new pieces featuring extended techniques, which were featured in the final recital.

RACHMANINOFF AND MEDTNER: SELECTED WORKS FROM THE SOLO AND COLLABORATIVE PIANO REPERTOIRE

Sergei Rachmaninoff and Nikolai Medtner occupy a special place in the history of Russian music. Both composers were exceptional pianists and left us some of the greatest works in the piano repertoire. Although these composers shared many similarities, and were often compared, their musical languages and views on composition were very different. Unfortunately, Medtner’s music, which Rachmaninoff admired greatly, has remained neglected for several generations of performers and listeners. In my dissertation I will explore the similarities and contrasts in Rachmaninoff’s and Medtner’s music. Through these performances, I hope to encourage other musicians to discover the imaginative power of Medtner’s music. Of course, no such encouragement is needed for Rachmaninoff’s extremely popular music; however, the technical and musical challenges of performing that repertoire are an invaluable part of every pianist’s education. This dissertation project was presented in three recitals which were performed in Gildenhorn Recital Hall at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center of the University of Maryland on May 8, 2014, December 5, 2014 and March 21, 2016. The following pieces comprised the survey of Rachmaninoff music: Vocalise Op. 34, Variations on a Theme of Corelli Op. 42, Piano Concerto No 2 Op. 18, Selected Songs Opp. 4 and 8, and two Moments Musicaux Op. 16 - Nos 3 and 4. The following pieces were included to represent Medtner: Sonata for Violin and Piano Op. 57 in E minor “Epica”, Fairy Tales for solo piano Op. 20 No 1, Op. 26 No 3 and Op. 51 No 1, and Selected Songs Op. 6 and 15. My partners in this project were Lilly Ahn, soprano, Jennifer Lee, violin and Nadezhda Christova, piano. All three recitals can be found in the Digital Repository at the University of Maryland (DRUM).

A graduate piano recital : an analytical study

The purpose of this thesis is to provide a historical and musical analysis that illustrates characteristic features of musical compositions from the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Twentieth century styles. The structural analysis of the pieces reveal the evolution in the musical expression regarding line, texture, form, and the technical skills employed by the composers through polyphonic, homophonic, and twelve-tone procedures. The works of this recital represent four different styles: The prelude and fugue among the important forms of the Baroque style; the sonata embodying the principles of balance and unity of the Classical style; the etude and waltz as representative of the Romantic style; and the nocturne as an illustration of the transformation of the melody, harmony, and rhythm in the music of the 20thcentury.

A graduate piano recital

The extended program notes include historical background on the composers and pieces being performed, as well as the analytical form regarding the works: Variations on "Ah vous dirai-je-maman," K. 265 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; Sonata in C minor, op. 13 "Pathétique," by Ludwig van Beethoven; Consolation No. 3 and Funerailles by Franz Liszt; Fantasie in F minor, op. 49 by Frédéric Chopin.

Graduate Violin Recital

Sonata for Solo Violin in G-minor, J. S. Bach (1685-1750) Adagio Fuga Siciliana Presto Sonata for Violin and Piano in G-major, L. Beethoven (1770-1827) Allegro assai Tempo di Menuetto Allegro vivace Sonata for Violin and Piano in A-major, G. Faure (1845-1924) Allegro molto Andante Allegro vivo Allegro quasi presto Jennifer Snyder, piano

Företagets kärnvärden i en grafisk profil : Utformandetav en grafisk profil till ett e-handelsföretag med afrikansk inriktning

Sanke är ett nystartat företag som genom sin hemsida ska sälja produkter som producerats i norra och västra Afrika. Konkurrensen mellan olika företag skapar oändliga valmöjligheter för kunden vilket blir ett problem för de företag som vill nå ut i mediebruset. Därför var målet med examensarbetet är att ge Sanke ett enhetligt grafiskt utseende för att öka medvetenheten och igenkännandet av företaget och dess varumärke. Detta har genomförts genom att utforma en grafisk profil som återspeglar företagets kärnvärden. Genom en intervju med Sanke fastställdes företagets kärnvärden. Dessa användes sedan för att skapa nio olika förslag på grafiska profiler som målgruppen genom en webbenkät gett återkoppling på. Resultatet av målgruppens återkoppling blev Sankes grafiska profil. Den grafiska profilen omfattades av en logotyp, profilfärger och hustypsnitt samt riktlinjer för hanterande av elementen och deras samspel. Slutsatsen blev att det faktum att kärnvärden och färgkonnotationer kan ha olika betydelse för olika individer kan ha försvårat bedömningen av förslagen, men att målgruppen till en vis del visat en gemensam uppfattning.

Alexander Scriabin: the definition of a new sound space in the crisis of tonality

This dissertation describes the new compositional system introduced by Scriabin in 1909– 1910, focusing on Feuillet d’Album op. 58, Poème op. 59, nº1, Prélude op. 59, nº2 and Promethée op. 60. Based upon exhaustive pitch and formal analysis the present study (a) claims the inexistence of non-functional pitches in all analysed works, (b) shows that transpositional procedures have structural consequences on the “basic chord”, and (c) for the first time advances an explanation on the intrinsic relation between the sonata form and the slow Luce line in Promethée op. 60; RESUMO: Sob o título de “Alexander Scriabin: a definição dum novo espaço sonoro na crise da Tonalidade”, a presente tese descreve o novo sistema compositivo introduzido por Scriabin em 1909– 1910, tomando como ponto de partida o estudo de Feuillet d’Album op. 58, Poème op. 59, nº1, Prélude op. 59, nº2 e Promethée op. 60. Baseando-se numa análise exaustiva das alturas e da forma, este estudo (a) conclui pela inexistência de alturas não funcionais em qualquer das obras analisadas, (b) mostra que os procedimentos transpositivos têm consequências estruturais no “acorde básico”, e (c) pela primeira vez explica a estrutura formal de Promethée op. 60 a partir da relação intrínseca entre a sua forma sonata e a linha lenta de Luce.

A importância e a influência do génio de Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) na vida e obra do pianista e compositor Milosz Magin (1929-1999)

Este Trabalho de Projecto é composto por duas partes: uma de índole teórica e outra de índole prática. No que diz respeito a parte teórica, ela compõe-se por uma exposição que se divide em quatro capítulos. O primeiro capítulo toma como ponto de partida a apresentação da vida de Milosz Magin, um pianista e compositor europeu da segunda metade do século XX. Os objectivos do segundo capítulo são os de salientar e explicar a influência que Frédéric Chopin teve na vida de Milosz Magin. Este capítulo centra-se nos paralelismos biográficos entre ambos, essencialmente, naqueles que dizem respeito às suas vidas enquanto pianistas e compositores. O terceiro capítulo inclui o estudo analítico e comparativo das semelhanças entre a Sonata em sí bemol menor op. 35 de Frédéric Chopin e a Sonata n.º 1 de Milosz Magin. O quarto capítulo analisa a Mazurka em fá menor op. póstuma de Frédéric Chopin, a qual foi, completamente, reconstruída por Milosz Magin. Ela constitui mais um exemplo paradigmático da influência e importância de Frédéric Chopin na obra do compositor. ABSTRACT: This Project consists of two parts: one of a theoretical nature and the other of a practical one. The theoretical part is in itself made up of an exposition divided into four parts. The first chapter deals with the presentation of Milosz Magin's life, European pianist and composer from the second half of the 20th Century. The objective of the second chapter is to emphasize and explain the influence that Frédéric Chopin had on the life of Milosz Magin. It will concentrate on the biographical parallelisms between Frédéric Chopin and Milosz Magin, essentially on those that concern their lives as pianists and composers. The third chapter includes an analytical and comparative study of the similarities between the Sonata in B Flat minor Op. 35 by Frédéric Chopin and the Sonata n° 1 by Milosz Magin. The fourth chapter analyzes the Mazurka in F minor op. posthume by Frédéric Chopin, completely reconstructed by Milosz Magin, which in itself establishes one more example of the influence and importance Frédéric Chopin had on the works of Milosz Magin.

Ação de formulações comerciais de Bacillus spp sobre lagartas de Grapholita molesta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae).

Grapholita molesta é uma praga-chave em cultivos de macieira no sul do Brasil. Para controle de suas populações inúmeras intervenções com agrotóxicos são necessárias ao longo da safra. Neste estudo, objetivou-se avaliar a eficiência de formulações comerciais à base de Bacillus spp. no controle de lagartas de primeiro ínstar de G. molesta. O estudo foi realizado em delineamento experimental inteiramente casualizado com cinco tratamentos e cinco repetições: B. thuringiensis var. kurstaki (Dipel WG®); B. thuringiensis var. aizawai + kurstaki (Agree®); B. subtilis (Serenade®); B. pumilus (Sonata®) e uma testemunha (água). Cada tratamento foi alocado em uma microplaca contendo 24 células preenchidas com 0,67ml de dieta artificial e 12micronL da solução tratamento (em dose comercial) mais uma lagarta por célula. Os tratamentos foram mantidos em condições controladas e avaliada a mortalidade em 24, 48, 72 e 96 horas. As formulações de B. thuringiensis mostraram eficiência de controle superior aos demais tratamentos e não diferem entre si. Bacillus subtilis e B. pumilus evidenciaram controle da praga, porém, intermediário quando comparado à B. thuringiensis.