Master of Music in Composition
Overview
The program in composition is designed to expose students to a rich variety of multicultural influences while developing compositional technique. All composition students are strongly encouraged to study with each of the faculty composers, thus receiving a variety of perspectives and feedback on their music. This approach enables students to glean from each faculty member what is most useful in developing a unique compositional voice. Composers Workshops provide a forum for interaction and the study of new music and relevant issues. Student composers have access to a new music technology lab with computer notation, multi-media and MIDI features. UH-Manoa does not specialize in electronic or computer music, but we do encourage students to take advantage of technological tools which may help develop their compositional skills.
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Faculty Interests
The four fulltime composers bring a rich diversity to the premise of wider influences enriching the conventional bases of composition.
Donald Reid Womack is a native of Tennessee whose works have drawn inspiration from Southern American themes and bluegrass. Since arriving in Hawai`i in 1994, he has expanded his interests to include composing for Asian instruments. In addition to a concerto for shakuhachi, koto, and orchestra commissioned by the Honolulu Symphony, he has written works for shakuhachi, pipa, and koto; shakuhachi, shamisen, and koto; koto and violin; and shakuhachi ensemble. At present he is spending a year in Japan on a Fulbright Grant, serving as a composer in residence with AURA-J, a Tokyobased ensemble of Japanese instruments. [more about Donald Reid Womack]
E. Takeo Kudo is a Japanese-American born in Hawaii. For over 30 years, many of his works have integrated concepts of Japanese music arising out of his study of the shakuhachi in Japan as well as graduate work in the field of ethnomusicology. His compositions have presented non-Western instruments in concert with Western instruments as he envisions a time when global resources will comprise the orchestrational palette. [more about E. Takeo Kudo]
Byron K. Yasui is also a Japanese-American born in Hawaii who has established himself as a jazz bassist, guitarist, and ukulele virtuoso in addition to his role as a composer. He is knowledgeable and experienced in Hawaiian music and has incorporated traditional hula chant in works for orchestra. He is considered the premiere jazz bassist in Hawai`i and has written concert pieces which draw from this genre. Jazz is also the one area of interest which is shared by all three composers and reflected in a recent release of a CD of their works featuring jazz-influenced compositions. [more about Byron Yasui]
Thomas Osborne, originally from Indiana, is active as a composer, conductor and pianist. Interested in writing music in a variety of styles and mediums, in recent years he has composed a number of works incorporating non-Western music. He has written a song cycle on ancient Japanese texts, drawing on Japanese court music, as well as a work for marimba and percussion duo which takes inspiration from Balinese gamelan music. Fascinated by the creative possibilities of writing for non-Western traditional instruments, he recently composed a work for koto and violin. He is also director of the UH Contemporary Music Ensemble, which strives to present a variety of works by today's most compelling composers. [more about Thomas Osborne]
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The Setting
Hawai`i consists of a rich mix of people representing cultures from all parts of the world. One of the department's strengths is its Ethnomusicology program, which is renowned for its focus on musics of Asia and the Pacific. There are regular ensemble offerings in Gagaku, Gamelan (Java and Bali), Chinese Instrumental Ensemble, Hawaiian Chorus, Hawaiian Ensemble, Hula & Chant, Koto, Okinawan Jamisen & singing, Samoan Ensemble, Slack Key Guitar and Tahitian Ensemble. In addition to composing for traditional Western instruments, students have composed for various instruments from Polynesia and Asia including the Koto, Shakuhachi, Pipa, Taiko and Komungo. Additionally, jazz has been a strong preoccupation of students in the program. The new music scene in Honolulu revolves primarily around the UH composition program, and the department regularly works with ensembles, organizations, and individuals in the community, the U.S. and the world to present concerts and other events. Frequent performances of UH faculty works also enable composition students to witness the professional collaboration between composer and performer.
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Performance Opportunities
Invaluable opportunities for students to hear their works come in the form of reading sessions with professional ensembles. The Honolulu Symphony Orchestra has annually scheduled a reading session for UH student works, enabling students to hear their music played by and receive feedback from a professional orchestra. In addition, a close collaboration with the Honolulu Chamber Music Series has resulted in numerous readings of student works by world-renowned ensembles such as the Eroica Trio, American String Quartet, Ying String Quartet, Dunsmuir Piano Quartet, Debussy Trio, and Sirius. The opportunity to work closely with ensembles of such high stature has proved to be one of the most important experiences for UH composition students. Each semester, the works of composition students are publicly presented in the Young Composers Symposium (for undergraduate students) and the Graduate Composers Symposium.
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Activities in Support of Composition
The composition program has undertaken initiatives in support of new music and has received funding from the Orvis Foundation, the Society of Composers, Inc. (SCI), the College of Arts and Humanities, the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, the Hawai`i Cultural Foundation and the Music Department. The 1999 Orvis competition received entries from composers representing 17 countries and 24 U.S. states. The winning work, "Four Ambitions" by Beth Wiemann, was premiered at the Music21C Festival hosted by UH in March 2000. Several new-music events in recent years, including the 1999 Society of Composers, Inc. (SCI) Region VII Conference, have brought approximately 100 composers from the U.S., Canada, Australia, Japan, China, and Korea to Honolulu for workshops, presentations, and concerts featuring their works. In recent years the department has also hosted short-term residencies featuring such distinguished composers as Tan Dun, Zhou Long, Pulitzer-Prize winner George Walker, Minoru Miki (Japan), Donald Erb, JeeYoung Kim (Korea), Vincent Plush (Australia), David Stock (Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble and Duquesne University), Judith Shatin (University of Virginia), Paul Rudy (Kansas City Conservatory of Music), Elena Ruehr (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Dan Coleman (Tucson Symphony composer-inresidence), Dennis Kam (University of Miami), Eric Ewazen (Juilliard School), Robert Moran and Billy Childs (Grammy-nominated jazz composer and performer). Professional performers who have worked with composers in recent lecture and masterclass settings include Yang Jing (Pipa), Reiko Kimura (Koto), Seizan Sakata (Shakuhachi), Kenny Endo (taiko and kotsuzumi) and the Yukimi Kambe Viol Consort.
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Summary
The UH-Manoa composition program offers students rich exposure to a variety of opportunities in a culturally unique, vibrant, and beautiful setting. The multicultural population of this state is comprised of an ethnic mix not found anywhere else in the U.S., thus providing students with unique experiences as they acquire musical craft. Samples of UH composition faculty works can be heard on East Meets West (Albany), dragoneyes (Tokyo CMC Entertainment), Blue: New Music from Hawaii (Equilibrium), on Music for Wind Ensemble Choirs Orchestra, and on Trio Manoa. East Meets West, dragoneyes, and Blue are available in record stores, online, or directly from their respective labels. The latter two CDs are available directly from the UH Music Department.
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Requirements
| Language Requirement |
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| Recital Requirement |
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| course | credits | |
| 661 | Bibliography & Library Resources in Music | 3 |
| 600B | Seminar in Composition | 3 |
| 687 | Master's Composition Practicum (minimum two semesters) | 6 |
| Six credits chosen from 680 Studies in Music Theory | 6 |
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| Three credits from | 3 |
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| One credit | 1 |
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| 700 Thesis Research (V) | 8 |
| Minimum Number of Credits | 30 |
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Thesis Program (Plan A) for Composition
An original work in one of the larger forms, plus a detailed essay on the background and problems involved, or a detailed theoretical analysis.