A euphonium is a valved brass instrument that is the tenor voice of the tuba family and it is most commonly seen in military and brass bands. The musicians who play this instrument are called euphoniumists. During the past few hundred years the euphonium has been transformed by euphoniumists. My research focuses on nine euphoniumists from the past to the present and examines how they have shaped the euphonium world. From dictionaries, biographies, and blogs, I gathered the history and success of each of the 9 musicians and discussed the progression of the euphonium world. My research reveals that the euphonium world would not have evolved into a more prominent solo instrument if it weren’t for all euphoniumists and their passion.

We propose to perform an original composition for an unusual quartet of instruments that blend together very different performance traditions and practices. The piece is the result of a collaboration between musicians that normally do not work together because of a lack of common chamber music repertoire. Our composition explores the timbral and compositional possibilities of strings and both traditional and non-traditional percussion instruments. It consists of two contrasting ideas that are juxtaposed: a slow, mysterious, and lyrical idea featuring various metallic percussion and high string harmonics, and a fast mixed meter fugue. These ideas conflict and transform each other, eventually coalescing asymmetrically into a dramatic conclusion. Writing and rehearsing this piece allowed us to merge together the largely classically trained basis of string instrument performance practice with contemporary percussion performance practice, each helping inform the other and leading to unique musical ideas and results. Hopefully this piece and others like it will allow for more future collaboration between musicians from these different backgrounds and performance practices.

This project combines research and musical examples in which flutists learn how to use six different musical elements used in playing Baroque music, while also learning about the Baroque era, and history of the flute. Covered in this book are sections on how to articulate, use dynamics, interact with other parts, breathe properly, style ornaments, and define tempos in Baroque style music. Each Baroque element is discussed in detail, applying to the flute. Using online and paper resources, I gathered information on the Baroque era and style in order to write this method book. The goal of this book is to provide a resource for high school and college students for learning Baroque style at an introductory level. Students who use this book will learn how to interpret and perform Baroque music in the style it was written, while also gaining knowledge on basic histories of the Baroque era and flute.

The purpose of this research was to create a pedagogical tool to be used by college professors in effectively teaching jazz improvisation in a group setting. Throughout the history of jazz and jazz improvisation, many works have been created to aid in the individual’s education and understanding of the art form. However, there have been no recent pedagogical works to aid the teacher in conducting group improvisation classes, as has become the common method of instruction. Thus, this research is unique and necessary to help further jazz education in our students. The following presentation details the processes and findings of a combination of various research dating back from the 30s through today, spanning the genres of jazz music, jazz improvisation, and teaching. The research was informed via survey of various professors and jazz musicians across the United States, three interviews, and many different books read, websites scoured, and documentaries watched. These factors combined accumulates into the following three semesters of curriculum for jazz improvisation.