Browsing by Subject "School of Music"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    An Ethnography of Circuit-bending: Reuse, Chance, and Collaboration with the Living Instrument
    (2010-04-21) Kishel, Andy
    Circuit-bending is a folk expression of randomly conceived analog electronic music. The reconstruction and recontextualization of discarded or unused analog sound toys is achieved by altering the circuit board by soldering switches or dials into the electrical circuit path; these connections are found through a process of random testing. The father and initial propagator of the craft, Reed Ghazala, posits that through this random process a circuit-bent device becomes a “living instrument” with a unique lifespan and disposition. Circuit-bending also serves as a commentary on the digital age of sound generation; the corporate-influenced homogeneity of digital loop and sequencer composition is contested by the fertile dialogue between a circuit bender's will and the variant responses of their living instruments in a context of improvised performance. Inherent in the craft is the recontextualization of scavenged materials; bent toys will either be kept in their original housing to make this reuse apparent, or rehoused in other reused cases. I conducted ethnographic research about the culture that ties Midwest circuit-benders together from October 2009 to February 2010, in Minneapolis and in Dekalb and Chicago, Illinois. I discovered that although the community is sparsely distributed in a geographical sense, its tight-knit nature is maintained by internet correspondence and publicity, and periodic gatherings—both of which serve to keep the cultural identity intact and keep cultural knowledge current.
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    Interview with Geneva Southall
    (University of Minnesota, 1995-06-01) Southall, Geneva; Chambers, Clarke A.
    Clarke A. Chambers interviews Geneva Southall, professor for the School of Music and the Department of Afro-American Studies.
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    Interview with Vernon Sutton
    (University of Minnesota, 1995-06-06) Sutton, Vernon; Chambers, Clarke A.
    Clarke A. Chambers interviews Vernon Sutton, professor for the School of Music.
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    Melodic Continuation in Three Dimensions
    (2012-04-18) Graves, Jackson
    On hearing a sequence of pitches, listeners develop expectations for how that sequence will continue. Research on melodic continuation generally supposes two kinds of factors: the top-down influence of perceived tonality, and the bottom-up influence of melodic contour (relative size and direction of the intervals). For bottom-up, contour-based factors, there is converging evidence that melodies with good continuation tend to have small intervals between notes and narrow overall ranges. Since melodic contour can also be perceived in sequences of notes varying in brightness (an aspect of timbre or sound quality) or loudness instead of pitch, it is reasonable to suppose that the same contour-based expectations that apply to pitch sequences also apply to brightness and loudness sequences. The present study found that perceptive continuation ratings for brightness and loudness sequences generally conform to the same contour-based expectations as pitch sequences, though some differences between dimensions were found. This is compatible with the hypothesis that perception of melodic contour is a general auditory phenomenon that is not unique to pitch. The ratings for brightness and loudness sequences were more similar to each other than to ratings for pitch sequences, and it is likely that the factors that set pitch apart from other auditory dimensions are closely related to perceived tonality.
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    Western Classical Music in China
    (2011-04-13) Dizon, Kristine
    This past year, I have been researching the impact of western classical music in Chinese music pedagogy. I observed classes and carried out interviews at the Central Conservatory of Music which specializes in Traditional Chinese music. In this project, I will explain how western classical music came to China and how the Jesuit missionaries played a significant role in the development of music education in China. I also will provide a detailed account of my own observations from interviewing musicians, professors, and students about their views on western classical music and pedagogy. I will be combining these two elements to tell a story of how western classical music became Chinese.