Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Saxophone with orchestra'

Initially, my motivation for writing saxophone music started with curiosity about the saxophone's timbre rather than influence of jazz music or specific musical styles. I think composers' ideas of sounds are not always easy to realize because of the physical instrument's characteristics. For instance, in case of woodwind instrumental works, performers are occasionally confronted with difficult fingerings, long notes with fastidious articulation, tunings, rapidly leaping motions and so on. From this perspective, clarinet is an easier and satisfactory instrument for realizing composers' idea compared with other instruments and many clarinet works have been attempted successfully. The saxophone, as a single reed instrument, has not only the similar advantages of the clarinet's instrumental mechanism but also timbral characteristics mingled with wood wind and brass instruments. In fact, the saxophone has a complex harmonic spectra whereas clarinet's timbre consists of only odd harmonics.

In the work, the main compositional ideas are applications of short repetitive motive patterns using variation, diminution and extension. The first etude-like pattern appears in an easier register to articulate the saxophone's sonority. The orchestra performs not only material supporting the saxophone's passages but also contrasting ideas of melodic and rhythmic passages.

Thesis (M.M.)--Conservatory of Music. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2007.
"A thesis in music composition." Typescript. Advisor: James Mobberley. Vita. Title from "catalog record" of the print edition Description based on contents viewed Nov. 12, 2007. Online version of the print edition.

This paper discusses the historical background of the Rapsodie for Orchestra and Saxophone by Claude Debussy and includes a comparison of two piano performance editions. Chapter I includes information on Elise Hall, her work with the Boston Orchestra Club and the circumstances of her commission of Claude Debussy which yielded the Rapsodie. Chapter II discusses the Editions Durand piano reduction and the reasons for its neglect by saxophone performers. This chapter includes a study of the techniques used by Eugene Rousseau to create his arrangement of the Rapsodie for saxophone and piano. The study concludes that the arrangement by Rousseau is more attractive to saxophonists and will be performed more frequently than the Durand reduction.

French composer Fernande Decruck (1896-1954) composed over forty works for the saxophone, but her music fell into obscurity soon after her death. In recent years, the Sonate en ut# pour saxophone alto (ou alto) et orchestre (1943) has been rediscovered, performed, and recorded by prominent concert saxophonists. This document takes a historical approach by examining Decruck's biography, as well as a theoretical approach to provide a deeper understanding and appreciation of her work through analysis. The first four chapters of this document provide biographical background on Decruck, her career, professional associations, and her husband, Maurice Decruck, saxophonist and music publisher. Additionally, an examination of her saxophone output includes a brief discussion of her compositional development. Fernande Decruck dedicated her sonata to French saxophone virtuoso Marcel Mule, but a version for solo viola also exists. From the discrepancies between the versions, one might infer that portions of the work were composed originally for the viola. There are also two versions of the accompaniment: one for full orchestra and the other for piano. Analysis comprises the bulk of this study. The work is composed in a traditional four-movement setting: a sonata-form opening movement, a slow second movement, a movement entitled "Fileuse" (spinning song), substituting for the traditional scherzo, and a rondo-like finale. The work incorporates trends of Impressionism through its harmonic vocabulary, chordal planing, and pentatonic scales. It also demonstrates a sophisticated application of polytonal techniques in several passages. In addition to analysis of each movement, common interpretive practices are discussed, based upon available commercial recorded performances, and performance suggestions are given. There are several notation errors within the parts, as well as some significant differences between the two accompaniments. These errata and discrepancies between the solo parts are listed and discussed.

Master of Music
School of Music, Theatre, and Dance
Anna Marie Wytko
Ingolf Dahl’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Orchestra is considered a master concert work in saxophone literature. The work was written for saxophone pioneer Sigurd Rascher who was active in commissioning new works for the instrument. Piet Swerts’ Klonos, composed over 40 years after Dahl’s Concerto, is a much newer composition. The work has gained national recognition as a popular competition piece and is a synthesis of new and old compositional styles. These two works strongly showcase the flexibility and virtuosity capable of the skilled saxophonist. This master’s report, presented as extended program notes, includes biographical information about the composers, a historical and stylistic overview of the selected compositions, and a harmonic and formal analysis of the music with respect to performance considerations.

I have enjoyed this year, writing pieces that are special to me because they relate to experiences during 2008. I've written for orchestra, choir and an ensemble of xylophones and saxophone. Each piece has extended my skills and creativity in different ways from previous compositions. Prelude to the Unspoken This work is for symphony orchestra. Last year, it was rehearsed and recorded by the NZSO as part of the NZSO/Todd Young Composers Awards 2008. The pieces were recorded in the Michael Fowler Centre and conducted by Hamish McKeich. It was exciting to hear the piece come alive and watch the orchestra rehearse. Now I have heard the recording in a calmer state and know what it actually sounds like, I have been able to evaluate some decisions and whether or not they worked. As long as I have played instruments, I have played in orchestras. I can draw on these experiences when composing because as a clarinettist, you sit in the middle of the orchestra, and can hear the different sections playing and how their parts/notes relate to the rest of the orchestra. As a percussionist, hearing the orchestra from the back (when counting rests!) also reveals a different point of view. This year I chose to compose a slower, more contemplative piece. Last year, my compositions were dense and busy, so writing this piece required me to use space and texture in new ways. The title Prelude to the Unspoken alludes to something being stated but stopping before anything is revealed. A Schulwerk Orffering I was inspired to compose for the forces used in this piece because of an Orff- Schulwerk teacher training course I attended in 2008. As part of the Masters of Music degree, I completed a Level 1 workshop and on-line component - Orff Music Education-Theory and Practice 1, and more recently, completed the Level 2 workshop. Orff-Schulwerk education is a holistic, hands-on approach that explores music physically and through different instruments such as body percussion and approachable instruments (for children) such as recorders, mallet instruments and small percussion. One activity during the course was playing a tune from the Orff-Schulwerk volumes, where everyone was playing a mallet instrument - xylophone, marimba, glockenspiel, from soprano to bass, while the teacher improvised a tune on the recorder, over the top of this moving carpet of sound we were making with our ostinatos and drones. This was just like being in the middle of the orchestra. While playing my ostinato, I was in the centre of all of this sound, hearing how each simple ostinato made an interesting accompaniment. I was also influenced by Philip GIass' Fascades, where the cross rhythms of the accompaniment create a carpet of sound, while the simple saxophone melody floats over top. I wanted to create something similar with tenor saxophone and the educational xylophones. I chose to write for two alto and two bass xylophones (small, educational instruments with no chromatic notes). These instruments were available at the course and I was able to have these with me while I composed. Because I do not usually play a mallet instrument, I composed ostinatos that I was able to play. All the techniques are those explored in Orff-Schulwerk - ostinato, drone, sound carpet, imitation. The saxophone sits quite high in the first movement, holding long notes, while in the second movement, the saxophone is active with a wide range of notes. I recently had an item about this piece in the Orff New Zealand Aotearoa newsletter 'Sounding Orff'. I hope to get a recording/performance of this piece from a response to the newsletter. Missa Brevis I sing in the Hamilton Civic Choir and have sung many Masses so was interested in writing a Missa Brevis. The movements Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus, Benedictus and Agnus Dei are for SATB with some movements scored for divisi voices. The style of this piece is approachable for many choirs because of traditional harmonic and musical organisation, while including modern arrangements of the text and approach to the music. Some choir members queried the fact that sometimes their part does not say a whole word, for example, just singing 'Dom', not 'Domine'. The words were deliberately set like this because when using block writing, as opposed to polyphony, I felt the extra syllables would change the desired musical and rhythmic texture. I wrote this piece with the Hamilton Civic Choir in mind because I know their capabilities. For example, I know the second basses can reach a low D. For the very low notes, I've added an octave option for the first basses or all basses if another choir cannot reach them. This recording by members of the choir was not up to the choir's usual standard because of time restrictions. The piano is used in my recording but is for rehearsal use only. The Gloria will be performed in the Choir's first 2009 concert in March.

Ida Gotkovsky, a student of Olivier Messiaen and Nadia Boulanger, composed for nearly every instrument, voice, and ensemble. Although Gotkovsky's Concerto for Trombone is a monumental work for the trombone it is rarely performed and recordings are scarce. There is a general lack of scholarly attention to the music of Ida Gotkovsky, however, the technical and aesthetic quality of her music merits further examination. Previous studies of Gotkovsky's music focused on the analysis of individual compositions. However, much more can be learned by examining a work within the context of her general compositional output. Gotkovsky's compositional style includes extensive musical self-borrowing. The goal of this project is to demonstrate melodic and textural similarities and differences within her music to inform performance practice and to establish interest in her music. The context in which Gotkovsky reuses her music is significant and can provide additional musical insight. An informed awareness of her extensive use of self-quotation familiarizes the performer with her compositional language in a variety of musical settings. Such familiarity with her musical style leads to an improved and artistically educated performance.

Rossignolet des bois pour chœur à quatre voix mixtes, Pièce concertante pour saxophone alto, percussion et 24 cordes, et Rives pour orchestre sont des œuvres réalisées au cours des trois dernières années dans le cadre de la maîtrise en composition. Des rapports entre les protagonistes et la musique sont établis dans la pièce pour chœur. Ces protagonistes sont représentés par les différents solistes et les regroupements vocaux. Le contenu poétique correspond à la forme musicale et à la série utilisée dans la pièce pour orchestre. La Pièce concertante s’inspire du motif musical de l’œuvre The Unanswered Question de Charles Ives. Ces compositions font appel à divers langages musicaux : modalité, chromatisme et sérialisme. La Pièce concertante et Rives sont construites à partir d’une organisation de la durée, du tempo, de la métrique, de l’orchestration et du jeu instrumental.
Québec Université Laval, Bibliothèque 2019

Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 2007. Graduate Programme in Music.
Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 81-84). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004 & res_dat=xri:pqdiss & rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation & rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:MR32037.

abstract: The purpose of the paper is to outline the process that was used to write a reduction for Henry Brant's Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra, to describe the improvements in saxophone playing since the premiere of the piece, and to demonstrate the necessity of having a reduction in the process of learning a concerto. The Concerto was inspired by internationally known saxophonist, Sigurd Rascher, who demonstrated for Brant the extent of his abilities on the saxophone. These abilities included use of four-octave range and two types of extended techniques: slap-tonguing and flutter-tonguing. Brant incorporated all three elements in his Concerto, and believed that only Rascher had the command over the saxophone needed to perform the piece. To prevent the possibility of an unsuccessful performance, Brant chose to make the piece unavailable to saxophonists by leaving the Concerto without a reduction. Subsequently, there were no performances of this piece between 1953 and 2001. In 2011, the two directors of Brant's Estate decided to allow for a reduction to be written for the piece so that it would become more widely available to saxophonists.
Dissertation/Thesis
D.M.A. Performance 2013