Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Music

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

As the materials that composers work with have become increasingly focused on elements outside traditional pitch relations such as timbre or register, so have their approaches to form. One such stream in modern composition, starting from electronic composers such as Pierre Schaeffer, is the use of ”sound” or ”musical” objects. These materials are marked by their wholistic nature, where qualities such as timbre, density, and con- tour are as important to their identity as pitch relationships. Composers such as Schaeffer, James Tenney, and Denis Smalley have all discussed these sound objects in their writings, though they refer to them under different names. However, much of what has been writ- ten about sound objects is either in their classification or how they relate to each other in a statistical or comparative context with a primary focus on electroacoustic music. This document provides a new framework for analyzing objects in relationship to large scale formal units and how objects can be manipulated over time. A core concept in this framework is the idea of territories, or spaces which objects inhabit (adapted from the writings of French philosopher Gilles Deleuze). This framework is then used to address the concept of otherness in music, where an object may seem strange or out of place from its surroundings. This approach allows for meaningful formal language around the use of objects that goes beyond purely comparative readings, instead focusing on how objects relate to their surroundings. The concepts of objects and territories are used to analyze otherness in selections from three works: Charles Ives’ The Unanswered Question (1908), George Crumb’s An- cient Voices of Children (1970), and Wang Lu’s An Atlas of Time (2013). Additionally, the concepts developed in this document were used by the author in the creation of a new large scale work for soprano, chamber ensemble, and electronics titled Left Hand Paths.

Date

7-3-2026

Committee Chair

Mara Gibson

LSU Acknowledgement

1

LSU Accessibility Acknowledgment

1

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