Tag Archives: music theory

Arachnophonia: Pierre Boulez

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Editor’s note: Arachnophonia (“Arachno” = spider / “-phonia” = sound) is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.

All links included in these posts will take you to either the library catalog record for the item(s) in question or to additional relevant information from around the web.

Today’s installment of Arachnophonia is by student manager Xipeng (class of 2024) and features a biography of French composer and conductor Pierre Boulez. Thanks, Xipeng!

Pierre Boulez by Dominique Jameaux

Pierre Boulez

Pierre Boulez (1925-2016), born in Montbrison, France, was a composer, conductor, and theorist whose innovative composition revolutionized traditional ideas about contemporary classical music. He studied piano and composition at the Paris Conservatoire, and his early works were influenced by the serialist techniques of Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern. However, Boulez quickly developed his own distinctive style of complex rhythms and unconventional harmonies. Several of his groundbreaking works include: “Le Marteau sans maître (The Hammer without a Master)” for chamber ensemble and solo alto voice, “Répons” for soloists, ensemble, and electronics, and “Pli selon pli (Fold by Fold),” a cycle of five songs for soprano and orchestra based on texts by the French poet Stéphane Mallarmé.

Besides being known for his remarkable works of composition, Boulez was also renowned for his precision, clarity, and commitment to the score as a conductor. With traditional practices of classical conducting, he also applied his own modern interpretations. Boulez was known for his adventurous programming, featuring works by contemporary composers alongside more established repertoire. Boulez’s advocacy for new music and his willingness to challenge audiences with innovative and challenging works helped to shape the direction of classical music in the 20th century and beyond.

The book Pierre Boulez by Dominique Jameux in our music library talks about the intellectual and career biography of Pierre Boulez, including detailed discussions of his 12 representative compositions. We also have a concert film In rehearsal Pierre Boulez, which recorded Boulez running through his own compositions with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

Arachnophonia: Writing in Music

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Editor’s note: Arachnophonia (“Arachno” = spider / “-phonia” = sound) is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.

All links included in these posts will take you to either the library catalog record for the item in question or to additional relevant information from around the web.

Today’s installment of Arachnophonia is by Music Library associate Melanie and features a guide to writing about music.

Writing in Music: A Brief Guide by Lynne Rogers, Karen Bottge & Sara Haefeli

Writing in Music: A Brief Guide book cover

A new school year is upon us and everyone is getting back into the rhythms of classes and activities.

You’re excited about the new music class you’re taking this term, but feeling a bit trepidatious because the syllabus says you have to write a research paper/review/analysis as a big part of your grade. How on earth do you approach even picking a topic, much less writing a paper about it?

Worry not! The Music Library has useful resources like Writing in Music: A Brief Guide to get you started.

This pocket-sized style guide offers a practical introduction to many aspects of writing about music in an academic context. It offers useful tips and tricks for all stages of the writing process from choosing a topic and creating a thesis to the nitty gritty of researching and drafting a research paper.

Writing in Music will help you explore writing about music from a historical and cultural context and/or writing from a musical analysis point of view (or both!). This comprehensive intro will get you on your way to creating a great paper, thus making your professor happy and making the class a more enriching learning experience for you!

Writing in Music and many more helpful resources are available in the Parsons Music Library – just ask our friendly staff for help.

Arachnophonia: Modern Method for Tympani

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Editor’s note: Arachnophonia (“Arachno” = spider / “-phonia” = sound) is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.

All links included in these posts will take you to either the library catalog record for the item in question or to additional relevant information from around the web.

Today’s installment of Arachnophonia is by student assistant Eli (class of 2024) and features insert title info here. Thanks, Eli!

Modern Method for Tympani by Saul Goodman

Set of 4 timpani (kettledrums)

While performing my duties as music library student assistant, I discovered a thin workbook titled Modern Method for Tympani. I come across hundreds of books, scores, and instruction manuals in my job, but it was the name of the author of the workbook that caught my attention: Saul Goodman, the namesake of one my favorite TV shows, Better Call Saul.

Further research showed Saul Goodman (the percussionist & author of Modern Method for Tympani) has a fascinating history. Born in Brooklyn in 1907, by the time he was 20, Goodman was the principal timpanist of the New York Philharmonic. He played with this premier orchestra for 46 years and taught at Juilliard, the premier U.S. music school, for 41 years.

Goodman was instrumental in innovating the timpani, introducing both new techniques and inventions such as replaceable-ball timpani sticks and chain-tuned timpanis. He also remains one of the most renowned and influential percussion teachers in history. To add to his long list of accolades, Goodman played the first performance of a timpani concert to be broadcast on air. When he died in 1996, the New York Times credited him with over 6,000 concerts and a place as the longest-held principal Philharmonic position in history. If you would like to try to follow in Saul Goodman’s steps, take a look at Modern Method for Tympani, found at library call number MT660.2. G6, or ask a Music Library student assistant for help.

Arachnophonia: David Popper “40 Studies: High School of Cello Playing, opus 73”

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Editor’s note: Arachnophonia (“Arachno” = spider / “-phonia” = sound) is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.

All links included in these posts will take you to either the library catalog record for the item in question or to additional relevant information from around the web.

Today’s installment of Arachnophonia is by student manager Brianna (class of 2023) and features a collection of studies for cello by Austrian composer David Popper (1843-1913. Thanks, Brianna!

David Popper
40 Studies: High School of Cello Playing, op. 73

David Popper, composer (1843-1913)

David Popper, composer (1843-1913)

I, like most young cellists, have a love-hate relationship with David Popper. Popper was a prominent composer of Romantic-era cello solo music in the 19th century. He wrote four concertos, although his most played solo piece is probably “Tarantella.” What some may not know is that in addition to these concert solo pieces, he wrote a book of etudes dedicated to strengthening cello technique – 40 Studies: High School of Cello Playing. As the description might give away, the music in this book is not meant for performance in a recital or concert series. These etudes focus on playing in different positions, frequent shifting, bow control, and much more, meaning some of them sound very strange and complicated to listeners. Some musicians consider mastery of these etudes (among other things) a hallmark of a professional cellist.

While playing through such a book may sound like every aspiring young cellist’s dream, many of them are harder to play than they appear on paper. Then, considering the book has 40 separate etudes each averaging about two pages, you can only imagine how much time and dedication mastering each and every one might take. It’s a wonderful resource – if you have the patience to spend countless hours on them.

Since I was first assigned an etude out of this book, I have struggled and fumbled my way through roughly a quarter of the 40 available to me until I ended up with something I was happy with. I can’t say that I got as much joy out of this type of practice as I have on recent solo pieces I have rehearsed, but I also must admit that playing through the etudes strengthened my playing more than I could have imagined. Thumb position used to be a region of the cello I never thought I would be able to wander into confidently, but after playing Etude No. 1 and 5, I feel stronger and enjoy going high on the instrument. If you are a cellist and don’t have a copy of this book in your library, consider picking up a copy from the Music Library!