Melbourne Conservatorium of Music - Theses
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ItemThe pursuit of originality: aspects of unity and individuality through compositional synthesis( 2018)This thesis forms case studies using compositions by its author Lorenzo Alvaro as a catalyst for understanding how originality is manifested in the consistent re-enactment of borrowing and self-borrowing. Understanding how compositions ‘come together’ through ‘Synthesis’ oppose long-debated theories of originality being an innate power giving rise to the notion of ‘genius’. More recent scholarship acknowledge borrowing and collaboration as a means for originality, and based on this, the thesis argues that true originality is nothing more than an ideal.
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ItemExhibiting music: music and international exhibitions in the British Empire, 1879-1890( 2018)Between 1879 and 1890 there was barely a year in which an international exhibition was not held somewhere within the British Empire. These monumental events were intended to demonstrate, through comparative and competitive displays, the development of every branch of human endeavour: from industry and manufacturing, to art and design. They were also a massive and literal manifestation of the Victorian obsession with collecting, ordering, and classifying the world and its material contents. Though often considered in scholarly terms of grandiosity—of Victorian monumentalism and Benjamin-esque phantasmagoria—exhibitions were also social events, attended by individual members of the public for both education and entertainment. Music, as a fundamental part of cultural life in the societies that held such events, was prominent at all these exhibitions. This thesis interrogates the role of music at the international exhibitions held in the British Empire during the 1880s, arguing that the musical aspects of these events demonstrate, in microcosm, the broader musical traditions, purposes, arguments, and anxieties of the day. Further, it argues that music in all its forms—whether in performance or displays of related objects, and whether deliberately or inadvertently—was codified, ordered, and all-round ‘exhibited’ within the exhibition-sphere in multiple ways. Exploring thirteen exhibitions held in England, Scotland, Australia and India it traces ideas and trends relating to music and the idea of ‘display’ across the imperial cultural network. This thesis begins with an historical survey of music and exhibitions in London from the Great Exhibition of 1851 to the 1880s, analysed through the lens of contemporary discourses around music and concepts of display, and recent museological scholarship on the presentation of musical art in physical space. Arranged thematically rather than chronologically, several broad concepts relating to music at the 1880s exhibitions are then examined. These include a discussion of musical instruments as spectacularised commodities within the phantasmagoric exhibition space, music as both an educational device and a means of entertainment and leisure in line with contemporary theories of rational recreation, and the ways exhibitions created forums for engagement for Western audiences with non-Western musics.
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Item‘Darling Kath’: Benjamin Britten’s music for Kathleen Ferrier( 2018)This thesis examines the career of contralto Kathleen Ferrier (1912–1953), and her collaborations with composer Benjamin Britten (1913–1976). In the late 1940s, Kathleen Ferrier was among the most famous classical singers of her day. Britten was the pre-eminent composer in Britain, composing solos for Ferrier in three major works: the title role in The Rape of Lucretia (1946), the contralto solos in Spring Symphony (1949), and the part of Isaac in Canticle II: Abraham and Isaac (1952). Although their collaboration ceased with Ferrier’s untimely death, Britten’s work with Ferrier was musically and personally significant, and proved influential for the course of Britten’s career and for shaping Ferrier’s legacy. Drawing on diaries, correspondence, and recordings, this thesis examines Britten’s intricate understanding of Ferrier’s voice and ability, the unusual way in which he exploited them, and how Ferrier in turn interpreted and created the premiere performances. In addition, with reference to the writings of J.P.E. Harper-Scott and Carolyn Abbate, this thesis evaluates the nature of the relationship between an influential male composer and the woman who gives voice to a work or role, to address the vexed question whether it is the composer or interpreter who creates that role.
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ItemMusic, politics and ideology: a critical look at the ideological perspectives that shape our observations of music and politics( 2018)A critical look at the ideological perspectives that shape our observations of music and politics
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ItemRhetoric and the keyboard preludes of Louis Couperin (ca.1626-1661)( 2018)The preludes of Louis Couperin (ca.1626-1661) are a staple of seventeenth-century harpsichord performance. Previous studies have focussed on the interpretation of the written script, an elusive combination of curves and rhythmless notation, deciphered many of the notational mysteries, and extracted stylistic influences. A vital element, absent in the literature, is an in-depth understanding of the perceptions and expectations of the listener of the seventeenth century, the audience for whom the pieces were originally conceived. This study complements the present state of research on the preludes by addressing the aesthetic environment of seventeenth-century France, and its influence on the performance of the keyboard preludes. The foundation of a critical language in preparing these preludes is based on ancient rhetoric. Philosophical and structural components of rhetorical theory and style are based on ancient sources, and the reception of rhetorical theory in music of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century sources and studies. The rhetorical inquiry is deepened by focussing on the metaphysics of the introduction of a speech and a comparative analysis of the rhetorical exordium with descriptions of the musical prelude from seventeenth-century sources. Early biographical sources of Louis Couperin’s life are recontextualised in a critical examination of French society focussing on the events of the Fronde and the impact this had on his actions and life. The observations on harpsichord playing by Monsieur Le Gallois are also incorporated to provide critical guidance in the performance of the preludes. The nature of the audience of Couperin’s preludes is brought into focus. This draws on modern studies of the society, explaining its origins and the formulation of artistic values and judgements. These ideas of aristocratic taste are illustrated with passages from Jean de La Bruyère’s Caractères and philosophical writings by René Descartes. A final chapter analyses a selection of Louis Couperin’s preludes, informed by the ideas and models formulated in the previous chapters. The thesis also includes an appendix of a recording of fourteen of Louis Couperin’s preludes and a selection of other near-contemporary preludes, which explores performative ideas and issues that are raised in the thesis. The study shows that the application of rhetorical theory uncovers a deeper level of understanding preludial concepts, which are missing from period descriptions, and enhances objectives in performance and audience communication.
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ItemThe remains of decay: composing auditory afterimages( 2018)This autoethnographic critical exploration reflects on an accompanying folio of music compositions created between early 2013 and late 2016: Suite from The Bloody Chamber for three harps, Rung for electric guitar, contrabass recorder, violin, double bass and sensor-triggered bells, extracts from The Experiment: a musical monodrama; bound south for string quartet and Harp Guitar Double Concerto for two soloists and chamber orchestra. A post-structuralist reading reveals an emergent philosophical and practice preoccupation with the sonic phenomenon of the auditory afterimage.
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ItemOpera, publicity, disability: a case study of the public persona of Marjorie Lawrence( 2018)This thesis is an investigation of the public life of the Australian dramatic soprano Marjorie Florence Lawrence (b. Deans Marsh, Victoria 1907 – d. Little Rock, Arkansas 1979). Lawrence, who begun her professional stage career in Monte Carlo in 1932, was permanently paralysed from the waist down in 1941 after contracting poliomyelitis (at the time better known as infantile paralysis, now commonly referred to as polio). Despite the considerable challenges facing performers with disability in the pre-disability right era, Lawrence continued to perform in staged operas, concerts, and troop tours around the world. Lawrence published her autobiography in 1949, several decades before the end of her performing career and several years before the beginning of her first teaching position. Given that the basic biography of the singer is still relatively unknown the thesis starts with a brief outline of Lawrence’s biography, focusing on the years leading up to her paralysis. Chapter 1 examines her position as a role model and ambassador for people with a disability in the United States in the wake of several polio epidemics and an influx of returned servicemen with war injuries. Her affiliation with President Franklin Delano Roosevelt is also explored in conjunction with an analysis the solutions Lawrence used to enable her return to the stage. Chapter 2 focuses on the complexity of her public persona and behaviours in the context of the ‘prima donna’ and ‘diva’ categorisations often used in literature concerning the biography of female opera singers. To investigate this, a case study of Lawrence’s interactions with high ranking military and civilian officials during her 1944 troop is used. Chapter 3 is a documentation and reflection on the previously under-researched topic of Lawrence’s role as a university professor at Southern Illinois University, particularly regarding the production of Joplin’s Treemonisha. Research in this thesis is based on archival documents, historical news sources and on new interviews with colleagues and students of Lawrence and family members. This research, conducted in situ across Australia and the United States, allows a more-rounded perspective on perceptions of Lawrence’s career, teaching and personal interactions and introduces Lawrence’s own voice through her letters.
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ItemParents' and music therapists' reflections on the experience of music and home-based music therapy for paediatric palliative care patients and their families, who come from diverse cultural backgrounds( 2017)Music can be an important part of many young children’s lives, especially when a child is unwell, or dying. In recent years, the use of music therapy with children in paediatric palliative care (PPC) has become more widespread, across hospice, hospital and home settings. This qualitative inquiry investigated the experience of music, and home-based music therapy for PPC patients and their families, who come from diverse cultural backgrounds. The inquiry employed a constructivist approach and was informed by grounded theory and meta-ethnography. The inquiry examined how children in PPC and their families experience music, and music therapy in PPC, with a focus on how cultural beliefs and practices shape experience. The inquiry also identified barriers to accessing PPC, music, and music therapy for children and families of diverse cultural backgrounds. Four studies were conducted as part of this inquiry. Study One employed a repeated-interview design to interview six parents of children in PPC about their experience of music and music therapy in caring for a child in PPC. Five mothers and one father participated in an initial interview; and three of the mothers also participated in a six-month follow-up interview, to capture in-the-moment experiences and changes over time. Study Two employed a focus group design to interview three music therapists about their experience of providing music therapy for children and families of diverse cultural backgrounds in home-based PPC. Study Three employed an ethnographic approach for the author to reflect on her work in home-based PPC music therapy with 34 children and their families. Twenty themes emerged from the analysis of Studies One to Three, based around three distinct foci: the palliative care journey; the experience of music; and the experience of music therapy. Study Four conducted a meta-ethnography of Studies One to Three. The meta-ethnography provided a rich and detailed description of how children and families from diverse cultural backgrounds experience PPC, music and home-based music therapy; and also identified barriers to access. Key findings included: 1) Migration, length of time in Australia and cultural shaming can impact isolation, coping, and access to support; 2) Families want music therapy for their child, even if music is not part of their culture or family life; 3) Music can support family health and wellbeing, although the presence of multiple stressors in the family’s life can inhibit use of music; 4) Families use music to express their culture and maintain their cultural identity; 5) Music therapy can support families who have few/no family or other supports, reducing carer stress and isolation, and enhancing parental coping; 6) music therapy can uphold and support cultural and community patterns of relationship in the face of life-threatening illness; 7) child and family experiences of palliative care can be transformed in MT, positively impacting parental coping; and 8) the emotional intensity of music therapy in end-of-life-care can be overwhelming, and lead to family disengagement from music therapy. The thesis makes an important contribution to the fields of music therapy and PPC, in developing understanding of how culture impacts family experiences of PPC, music, and music therapy; and also offers insight into the complexities of conducting research with the highly vulnerable population of children in PPC.
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ItemHurdy-gurdy: new articulations( 2016)The purpose of this thesis is to expand existing literature concerning the hurdy-gurdy as a contemporary musical instrument. Notably, it addresses the lack of hurdy-gurdy literature in the context of contemporary composition and performance. Research into this subject has been triggered by the author’s experience as a hurdy-gurdy performer and composer and the importance of investigating and documenting the hurdy-gurdy as an instrument capable of performing well outside the idioms of traditional music. This thesis consists of a collection of new works for hurdy-gurdy and investigation of existing literature including reference to the author’s personal experience as a hurdy-gurdy composer and performer. It will catalogue and systematically document a selection of hurdy-gurdy techniques and extended performance techniques, and demonstrate these within the practical context of new music compositions created by the author. This creative work and technique investigation and documentation is a valuable resource for those seeking deeper practical and academic understanding of the hurdy-gurdy within the context of contemporary music making.
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ItemThe genetic basis of singing ability: a twin study( 2016)Music is a human universal, an integral part of all known human culture. While most people possess the capacity for music perception and production, individual differences in various forms of music abilities are evident in the general population. The diversity in abilities has sparked intense debates regarding the relative importance of nature and nurture in shaping music ability. While in recent years, researchers have begun to explore the genetic basis of music perception abilities, the interrogation of the genetic basis of music production abilities has been relatively scarce. Singing is an ideal paradigm for investigating the genetic basis of music ability; it is a universal, multifaceted music ability that is spontaneously emergent and shaped by formal and informal music learning environments. The present study therefore employed a twin study design to investigate the genetic basis of singing ability and estimate the relative contribution of genetic and environmental factors influencing singing ability using a comprehensive set of singing tasks and measures. The study also aimed to identify environmental factors associated with singing ability and examine whether these factors have a genetic component, and whether shared genetic influences might explain the association between singing ability and these factors. The twin study was conducted online using a purpose-built online program Let’s Hear Twins Sing, which enabled twins to participate regardless of their geographical location. The 30 minutes online twin study comprised three singing tasks (vocal pitch-matching, singing a familiar song, and melody imitation), two music perception tasks and a questionnaire on music and singing background. The study took approximately 30 minutes to complete and the study data were captured online in real-time and saved on a server for subsequent analyses. The final sample consisted of 70 monozygotic (55 female; 15 male) and 38 dizygotic (24 female; 7 male; 7 male-female) twin pairs (mean age = 32.4 years), the majority were recruited through the Australian Twin Registry. Univariate genetic modelling revealed that both the objectively-assessed singing ability across all tasks and self-rated singing ability had similarly significant and substantial genetic components (A = 69-72%). Additive genetic influences also contributed significantly to the variation observed in various singing task measures, with moderate to large heritabilities (A = 44-71%), negligible to moderate common environmental (C = 0-37%) and moderate unique environmental (E = 19-40%) influences. Significant moderate to large genetic components were also estimated for environmental variables associated with singing ability: instrumental expertise (A = 68%), years of music training (A = 46%), and public singing engagement (A = 66%). Bivariate genetic analyses revealed that the associations between singing ability and both instrumental expertise and years of music training were mediated significantly by shared additive genetic influences. The novel findings therefore provided preliminary evidence for the role of genes in influencing singing ability and formal music training, as well as a partially shared genetic basis for singing ability and music training. The promising results establish a valuable background that encourages further behavioural and molecular genetic interrogations into the genetic bases of various types of music abilities.