College of Arts & Humanities
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The collections in this community comprise faculty research works, as well as graduate theses and dissertations.
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Item Resonance of Change: An Exploration of Repertoire Programming Shifts in Choral Conducting Graduate Programs in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic and George Floyd Protests(2024) Helms, Mark; Ferdinand, Jason M; Music; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Few decisions made by a choral conductor are as important as the selection of repertoire. This study seeks to uncover the ways repertoire selection practices may have shifted in choral conducting graduate programs following two major concurrent disruptive events: the COVID-19 pandemic and the George Floyd protests. The study also seeks to fill a gap in the literature by examining repertoire trends in standard concerts on university campuses rather than in concerts occurring exclusively in festival settings (such as ACDA conferences). Complete repertoire data for four academic years (2017–2019 and 2021–2023) were collected from sixteen research universities with choral conducting graduate programs. The design of the study was guided by four major questions, which concerned: (1) the overall characteristics of the body of repertoire performed, (2) changes in the characteristics of performed repertoire between the two-year time periods studied, (3) similarities and differences in programming practices among the sixteen participating schools, and (4) whether the trends found in the present study echo those found in previous studies of repertoire trends in festival settings. The data were also analyzed with two hypotheses in mind: (1) that composer and composition diversity and representation would increase (in part in response to the George Floyd protests), and (2) that composition difficulty would generally decrease (due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic). Findings reveal high variation in the works and composers performed by the sixteen schools in the study, with few specific composers and works seeing broad performance across a majority of the schools. Demographically, performed composers were overwhelmingly White and male, though the percentage of non-White- and non-male-composed works performed at each school increased significantly between 2017–2019 and 2021–2023. It was found that much of this increase could be attributed to non-idiomatic works by Black composers, though this increase did not come at the expense of idiomatic works by the same. The data further suggest that conductors may often select a single piece to fill both race- and gender-based diversity goals. Performed compositions skewed significantly toward newly-composed works, though to what extent varied substantially between schools; the data suggest these variations are largely attributable to the programming practices of individual faculty members. A high level of variation among the schools was seen for sacred/secular status and accompaniment status. No conclusive result was found concerning the average difficulty of performed works, but English- language works were found to be inversely related to composition difficulty; the percentage of English-language works increased significantly between 2017–2019 and 2021–2023, suggesting a corresponding decrease in average difficulty.Item IN SEARCH OF A THEME: ALTERNATIVE STRUCTURES FOR THE MODERN VIOLIN RECITAL(2022) Ducreay, Phillip Alexander; Stern, James O; Music; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)It is the purpose of this dissertation, at its core, to ask and explore a central question: Can a successful and diverse recital program be curated not based on a pre-set historical or theoretical theme but rather on some type of narrative arc that runs throughout the program? By exploring how these programs work I hope to find hidden connections which both tie these pieces together and justify my programming in the order I have chosen. The curation I have proposed aims to change the way audiences consume and engage with music by connecting them with new works and a well-ordered musical experience. Inspired by the flexibility of nineteenth and twentieth century programs, modern programs can be crafted with a narrative approach in mind. Just as a composition can express an idea or feeling, the order and narrative of a program can be crafted to do the same in the manner I have put forth. The first recital described in this dissertation was performed in Gildenhorn Hall at the Clarice Smith Center on April 14th 2021 at 5pm with the pianist Alexei Ulitin. The second recital was performed in Ulrich Hall in the Tawes building at UMD on December 9th 2021 with the pianist Leili Asanbekova. The recording submitted as part of this dissertation is of the second recital program, recorded in Nashville, TN at Laura Turner Hall in the Schermerhorn Symphony Center on Oct. 13th and 26th with pianist, Megan Gale.Item DE LA LITTÉRATURE UNIVERSALISTE SENGHORIENNE AU TOUT-MONDE DE GLISSANT: MÉTISSAGE ET DIALOGUE DES CULTURES DANS L’ÉCRITURE DE FATOU DIOME, ALAIN MABANCKOU, GASTON KELMAN ET AMINATA SOW FALL(2018) DIENE, Khady; Orlando, Valérie; French Language and Literature; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This thesis focuses on how Senghorian universalism has influenced the world-views of contemporary mondial authors as well as Glissant’s concept of Tout-Monde. After reading the works of contemporary authors as Fatou Diome, Alain Mabanckou, Gaston Kelman and Aminata Sow Fall, we realized that their main themes as Métissage and Dialogue des cultures echo Senghor’s Civilisation de l’Universel. We also examine how le voyage, with its relation to globalization, influences or not these authors’ vision, as well as their writing and discourse about the universal ideas on the human condition. The objective of this thesis is to put in conversation Senghor’s Civilisation de l’Universel with contemporary works and to show through our literary and theorethical analysis that Senghorian universalism is atemporal.