Degree

Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA)

Department

School of Music

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

This dissertation examines the pedagogical possibilities of fixed media in newly composed viola etudes. While fixed media is commonly treated as accompaniment or as a performance medium, this project argues that it can also serve as an active component of technical and musical training. By providing stable and repeatable sonic environments, fixed media can support forms of listening, intonation, sound production, and performer awareness that are difficult to cultivate through traditional etudes alone. This argument responds to a broader pedagogical gap in string training, where long-established etudes and models of technical development remain central even as contemporary viola performance increasingly demands different modes of practice, coordination, and technological interaction.

Through a practice-based and autoethnographically informed methodology, I composed, practiced, and performed three etudes for viola and fixed media, each addressing a different area of contemporary viola technique. BREAKPOINT focuses on rhythmic complexity, including polyrhythms and irrational subdivisions. Festa explores vibrato, left-hand release, and continuity of sound. Dallas, 2024 addresses quarter-tone intonation and the development of active pitch listening within a 24-EDO system. The composition, preparation, and first performance of these works served as the primary means of inquiry, with reflective practice, score revisions, sketches, DAW sessions, and performance experience informing the analysis.

The findings suggest that fixed media creates pedagogical possibilities that are not available in traditional unaccompanied etudes. Across the three works, fixed media functioned as a temporal and formal guide, a source of progressive challenge, a memorization aid for rhythmic and pitch relationships, an expressive environment for technical work, and a tool for developing active listening. Rather than functioning as a single pedagogical device, fixed media emerged as a flexible compositional tool whose pedagogical role must be shaped according to the technical, musical, and interpretive goals of each etude. This dissertation argues that fixed media can expand the pedagogical function of the viola etude while also contributing concert-worthy works to the contemporary viola repertoire.

Date

7-13-2026

Committee Chair

Sparr, Kimberly

LSU Acknowledgement

1

LSU Accessibility Acknowledgment

1

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