Folklore of Chadetsky Highlanders from Bukovyna

The article is the first part of a work conceived by the author, dedicated to the folk musical traditions of the ethnic group of Poles who migrated from the western Beskyds more than 200 years ago (namely, from the vicinity of the city of Chadca, located on the Kisuca River, northern Slovakia) to the Romanian part of the Carpathians, called Bukovyna. The name of this ethnic group in Poland is gorali czadecki = Chadian gurals. Their descendants still live in several settlements of the Carpathian Bukovyna: the villages of Plesha, Solonetul Nou and Poiana Mikuli, located in the basin of the Humora River in the Suceava region of Romania. The traditional culture of the Chadian highlanders, in particular their musical folklore, is still insufficiently studied by scientists. The material on which the ethnomusical part of the article is based was mainly collected by the author in the course of his own expeditionary research in these territories in the 2000s. A significant part of the article is a summary of the history of the origin and migrations of this group, as well as ethnographic information about it. After all, complex and varied historical events (mainly the so-called «Volosh colonization», which began in the XII century: the resettlement of the Romanian-speaking population to the Carpathian region from the Northern Balkans, historical Transylvania and Moldova), as well as natural landscape living conditions – cattle breeding in high-mountain pastures) identified some of the features of their traditional musical culture. The second section of the publication is a general overview of the main vocal genres of the Chadetsky gurals living in Bukovyna. A specific marker of the local singing repertoire is taidans (local name) – ritual (mostly wedding) or non-ritual (shepherd's) songs / choruses with verses 6 + 6 in a two-line stanza. Their texts are predominantly monostrophic, following in each performance in no particular order. The article examines the problematic aspects of the genre interpretation of these works: these are full-fledged songs or choruses, where words are more important. Memorial songs (of a religious nature) and lamentation over the departed still occupy an important place in traditional life. The memories of older respondents keep archaic games held at night near the dead. Christmas carols of various types, performed by different age groups of carol singers, are still an actively widespread genre: children, youth – the «young brotherhood» (with mummers), older men - the «old brotherhood». Also known is the children's ritual of sowing grain in houses on New Year's morning. Information about song genres is presented in the context of their functioning in everyday life and rituals

¡Canta Conmigo!

Sing, play, move, create, and experience joy with living musical traditions from Guatemala and Nicaragua. Suitable for use in families, schools, or community centers, this resource contains a playful collection of 90 songs, singing games, chants, and games the author learned from teachers, children, and families while living in several communities in both countries. While the majority of the songs are in Spanish, a few in a Mayan language, Kaqchikel, are included. Field videos, audio recordings, and select song histories are available on the companion website to witness the music in authentic contexts, guide in pronunciation, and trace musical origins. Ethnographic descriptions of locations where songs were learned and personal biographies of a few singers written in Kaqchikel or Spanish and translated to English allow the reader to develop a connection to the land and the musicians. Culturally responsive and sustaining teaching pedagogies are discussed alongside strategies to responsibly include the music in school curriculums. A brief history of Central America and an overview of music genres in the region are included to frame this song collection within historic, cultural, and musical contexts. ¡Ven a cantar y jugar! Come sing and play! The song pages are playfully and thoughtfully illustrated by Sucely Puluc from Guatemala.

Style evolution of Sting’s creativity

The purpose of this article is to outline the evolutionary vector of the style evolution of G. M. T. Sumner’s (Sting) creativity. The methodology. The study is based on the comprehensive use of systematic, historical and cultural approaches, as well as methods of periodization and genre-style analysis. The results. The article analyzes the work of one of the recognized masters of world popular music — English musician G. M. T. Sumner, better known by the stage name Sting. The topicality of the chosen topic is due to the artistic and socio-cultural significance and genre and stylistic diversity of Sting’s creative work, which in the research space of modern musicology still remain poorly understood. The article considers the preconditions for the formation of Sting’s authorial style, reveals the key stylistic trends that shaped his individual authorial style, and highlights the personal and professional-artistic criteria of his creative activity. Embodying in one person the guise of a composer, poet, singer, guitarist and actor, G. M. T. Sumner (Sting) is a shining example of a modern universal artist. He illustrates by his own example typical genre-style metamorphoses of mass music of the late XX — early XXI century, revealing new paradigms of modern world music art. The stylistic evolution of Sting’s creativity is substantiated in accordance with the proposed concept of periodization of his creative activity. The main periods of the artist’s creative activity are outlined: 1) early (1977–1990); 2) mature (1991–2012) and 3) late (since 2013). The stylistic priorities inherent in each of these periods are described. The uniqueness and originality of Sting’s authorial artistic style lies in the peculiarity of his artistic thinking, which to some extent is based on the concept of stylistic pluralism. The stylistic evolution of Sting’s works represents his appeal to various stylistic models of modern mass music (rock, jazz, pop, reggae). At the same time, the artist’s stylistic search goes far beyond popular music, extending to the spheres of academic and ethnic musical traditions. The scientific novelty of this article is that this study for the first time reveals the stylistic evolution of Sting’s works, its periodization and identifies the main stages, identifies the leading genre and style features of the artist’s works and the characteristics of his artistic thinking. The practical significance of the article lies in the possibility of using its materials and conclusions in further research on this issue, in performing and pedagogical practice (in the courses “Music of the XX century”, “History and theory of modern music”, “History of rock music”, etc.).

Some Aspects of Pedagogical Corpora

This essay focuses on the characteristics of corpora drawn from pedagogical materials and contrasts them with the properties of corpora of larger repertoires. Two case studies show pedagogical corpora to contain relatively more chromaticism, and to devote more of their probability mass to low-frequency events. This is likely due to the formatting of and motivation behind classroom materials (for example, focusing proportionately more resources on difficult concepts). I argue that my observations challenge the utility of using pedagogical corpora within research into implicit learning. I also suggest that these datasets are uniquely situated to yield insights into explicit learning, and into how musical traditions are represented in the classroom.

Towards New Forms of Pianistic Improvisation Across Musical Boundaries

<p>This thesis is practice-based. The main element in which the research outcomes are manifested is the portfolio of creative work. There are three CD albums of original music: Southern Shift, Between Moons, and Tales from the Diaspora. There are also three video recordings including a performance of my piece Saraband (for piano trio), along with my performance of two classical piano pieces by Rachmaninoff: Elegie op 3 no. 1 and Etudetableau op. 33 no. 5. There is a written exegesis which serves to inform the reader how the creative work may be understood or apprehended, as well as placing it in relevant context The creative work centres on contemporary piano improvisation and how diverse musical strands can be drawn together in a coherent improvised musical idiom. Models for contemporary improvised music, that constitute key external sources for my musical practice, include the work of pianists Keith Jarrett, Cecil Taylor, Matt Bourne, John Taylor, Misha Mengelberg, Gabriela Montero and Gwilym Simcock. How these pianists’ work relates to my music will be discussed in the exegetical text. Several approaches and techniques, to free improvisation and jazz, will be explored through the creative practice and discussed in the exegesis. The ideas of scholars Nicholas Cook and Ed Sarath play a significant part in the concepts behind the music in this portfolio and in my thinking about improvisation in a wider sense. Cook suggests that improvisation represents a wider and more nuanced set of musical functionalities than is commonly understood by the one term ‘improvisation’. This is a key factor in this research. Extemporaneous Composition is the most salient concept at work in the creative work. The aim is to explore how an improvisation can have elements of a controlled and structured musical argument, as a composed piece would. This connects to the issue of how improvisation and composition are closely linked as creative processes. The issue of how improvisation and the interpretive performance of composed music are linked will be an important topic, as will the relationship between aurality and textuality in creative musicianship. The two research questions are: • When diverse and divergent aspects of musical practice, from traditions such as Western classical music, jazz and other African-based music are integrated into an improvised musical practice to give voice to a personal, creative musical identity, what can the nature of that music be? What perspectives will emerge about how creative performers operate? • Textuality and aurality function differently in these musical traditions. Can improvisation, in its wider sense, be re-evaluated to account for the employment of these through a more complex and nuanced set of creative functionalities than is typically understood by the single term improvisation?</p>

Towards New Forms of Pianistic Improvisation Across Musical Boundaries

<p>This thesis is practice-based. The main element in which the research outcomes are manifested is the portfolio of creative work. There are three CD albums of original music: Southern Shift, Between Moons, and Tales from the Diaspora. There are also three video recordings including a performance of my piece Saraband (for piano trio), along with my performance of two classical piano pieces by Rachmaninoff: Elegie op 3 no. 1 and Etudetableau op. 33 no. 5. There is a written exegesis which serves to inform the reader how the creative work may be understood or apprehended, as well as placing it in relevant context The creative work centres on contemporary piano improvisation and how diverse musical strands can be drawn together in a coherent improvised musical idiom. Models for contemporary improvised music, that constitute key external sources for my musical practice, include the work of pianists Keith Jarrett, Cecil Taylor, Matt Bourne, John Taylor, Misha Mengelberg, Gabriela Montero and Gwilym Simcock. How these pianists’ work relates to my music will be discussed in the exegetical text. Several approaches and techniques, to free improvisation and jazz, will be explored through the creative practice and discussed in the exegesis. The ideas of scholars Nicholas Cook and Ed Sarath play a significant part in the concepts behind the music in this portfolio and in my thinking about improvisation in a wider sense. Cook suggests that improvisation represents a wider and more nuanced set of musical functionalities than is commonly understood by the one term ‘improvisation’. This is a key factor in this research. Extemporaneous Composition is the most salient concept at work in the creative work. The aim is to explore how an improvisation can have elements of a controlled and structured musical argument, as a composed piece would. This connects to the issue of how improvisation and composition are closely linked as creative processes. The issue of how improvisation and the interpretive performance of composed music are linked will be an important topic, as will the relationship between aurality and textuality in creative musicianship. The two research questions are: • When diverse and divergent aspects of musical practice, from traditions such as Western classical music, jazz and other African-based music are integrated into an improvised musical practice to give voice to a personal, creative musical identity, what can the nature of that music be? What perspectives will emerge about how creative performers operate? • Textuality and aurality function differently in these musical traditions. Can improvisation, in its wider sense, be re-evaluated to account for the employment of these through a more complex and nuanced set of creative functionalities than is typically understood by the single term improvisation?</p>

Descriptions of improvisational thinking by expert musicians trained in different cultural traditions

Research about improvisation often focuses on one musical tradition. The current study investigated descriptions of thinking behind improvisation in different cultural traditions through interviews with advanced improvisers residing in a metropolitan area in the United States. The participants were rigorously trained in their tradition and have performance experience within it. However, as immigrants they are experienced in communicating with Western audiences and conversant in Western ways of thinking about music. Immediately after completing the improvisation, each participant listened to a recording and looked at its visual representation, while describing the underlying thinking. The visual representation showed pitch contour and note length without reference to any notational system. A thematic analysis revealed eight main themes: Licks and Conventions describe how prelearned material and convention guided creation; Reaction, Forward Looking, and Repetition &amp; Variety outline various processes that shape creation in the moment; and Aesthetics, Communication, and Emotion provide clues to the improvisers’ motivation behind choices. Interestingly, the use of prelearned patterns appear to facilitate improvisations in all the traditions represented. This and other identified strategies appearing cross-culturally may be shaped by shared cognitive constraints. These shared strategies may also facilitate understanding as educators broaden their curricula to multiple musical traditions.

Friendship of Well-known and Undeservedly Forgotten Masters in Late 19th and Early 20th Century Russian Piano Music. The Life and Work of Medtner, Rachmaninoff, and Scriabin

"In this study, I explore the life and work of three outstanding pianists and composers in the late 19th and early 20th century: Medtner, Rachmaninoff, and Scriabin, who were not only contemporaries and colleagues but also supportive friends to each other. All three were largely influenced by their years at the Moscow Conservatory, where they became prominent pianists and first showed promise as composers. They received similar impulses and could learn from the same teachers. As a defining common element in their lives, they explored and strived to combine Russian musical traditions and Western classical music. At the same time, their different personalities are apparent from their music, so despite their common roots, their individual musical language is unmistakable. Even at the beginning of their careers, it was clear that despite the commonalities, their lives and careers took a different direction. All three tried their luck abroad, but only Scriabin returned home for the rest of his short life. In addition to their distinct life paths and musical language, their recognition is quite different. Scriabin’s name sounds familiar to many, but he does not belong to the most popular composers of our time. Rachmaninoff’s widespread popularity can be observed among professional musicians as well as the public. In contrast, it is not impossible to meet a professional for whom Medtner’s music is unknown. This is not necessarily explained by disparities in talent and abilities but rather by differences in circumstances, opportunities, and personalities. In this study, I attempt to shed light on the reasons for the three composers’ contrasting popularity from the perspective of their life and work. Keywords: Russian composers, Russian music, Late 19th, and early 20th century, Rachmaninoff, Scriabin, Medtner "

Steve Reich

Steve Reich (b. 1936) is an American composer who, alongside Philip Glass, Terry Riley, and La Monte Young, is considered an originator of musical minimalism. His compositions consist primarily of instrumental pieces for various ensembles, ranging from solo instruments with prerecorded tape to pieces for full orchestra. The most frequent configurations make prominent use of melodic percussion instruments, attesting to his training as a percussionist. Reich engaged periodically with disparate musical traditions throughout his early career—technological experimentalism in the 1960s, African drumming and Hebrew cantillation in the 1970s—and has since forged a compositional idiom distinguished by its attention to pattern and pulsation. Born and raised primarily in New York City, Reich studied philosophy at Cornell University and music at Juilliard before moving across the country in 1961 to study at Mills College with Luciano Berio. Moving within the Bay Area’s experimental art scenes, Reich discovered the process of phasing when working with tape loops, leading to his first acknowledged pieces: It’s Gonna Rain (1965) and Come Out (1966). After relocating to downtown New York in 1965, Reich translated this phasing process into instrumental music, resulting in works such as Piano Phase and Violin Phase (both 1967), as well as his influential manifesto, “Music as a Gradual Process.” In the early 1970s, Reich’s palette expanded to encompass new timbres and processes of pattern and repetition. The large-scale Drumming (1970–1971) and Music for 18 Musicians (1974–1976)—both conceived for his ensemble, Steve Reich and Musicians—are exemplars of his mature minimalist style and helped establish his reputation both within and outside of the classical music world. By the early 1980s, Reich’s music began a process of legitimation within academia and performance institutions: Tehillim (1981) and The Desert Music (1983), for instance, were composed for major orchestras. Both reveal a rekindled interest in voice, text, and speech which found new expression in Different Trains (1988), a string quartet which utilized speech fragments of Holocaust survivor testimonies as generative melodic and harmonic material. Reich continued to explore this technique in large-scale documentary music video theater works (The Cave [1990–93] and Three Tales [2000–03]), as well as chamber works such as City Life (1995) and WTC 9/11 (2010). By the end of the millennium, Reich was widely regarded as America’s foremost living composer; his Pulitzer Prize in 2009 for Double Sextet (2007) seemed a belated affirmation of this perspective.