University of Cincinnati

UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI Date: 26-May-2010 I, Thomas J. Kernan , hereby submit this original work as part of the requirements for the degree of: Master of Music in Music History It is entitled: The Percussion Group Cincinnati: A History of Collaboration between Ensemble and Composer Student Signature: Thomas J. Kernan This work and its defense approved by: Committee Chair: bruce mcclung, PhD bruce mcclung, PhD 6/6/2010 796 The Percussion Group Cincinnati: A History of Collaboration between Ensemble and Composer A thesis submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Cincinnati in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Music in Music History in the Division of Composition, Musicology, and Theory of the College-Conservatory of Music by Thomas J. Kernan B.M. University of Missouri-Kansas City May 2005 Committee Chair: bruce d. mcclung, Ph.D. ii Abstract The Percussion Group Cincinnati, an ensemble-in-residence at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, celebrated its thirtieth anniversary in 2009. In its first three decades, this trio collaborated with at least fifty composers, several of whom have contributed multiple compositions. The more than seventy works composed expressly for the ensemble comprise the core of its performance repertoire. While the members have amassed a sizable body of chamber percussion compositions, their primary goal has remained the process of collaborating. Whereas comparator ensembles measure success by their number of recordings, performances at specific events, or notoriety among various communities, the Percussion Group Cincinnati can be best understood through a careful consideration of its interactions with composers. Through an analysis of the Percussion Group Cincinnati’s correspondence, concert programs, promotional materials, recordings, and performance reviews, as well as extensive interviews with past and current members, this thesis offers an examination of the ensemble’s partnering composers/collaborations, compositions, and reception. While sharing portions of the ensemble’s history, through the lens of composer-performer interaction, this thesis argues that the absence of the Percussion Group Cincinnati from histories of twentieth-century percussion music evinces a flaw in the existing literature: the prevalence of evolutionary narratives that venture to connect the “great composers” of twentieth-century percussion music with the likes of Haydn, Beethoven, and Berlioz. Instead of exploring the various ways that composers and performers in this genre have functioned, authors have too often set out to legitimize percussion chamber music by placing it in a teleological narrative whose connections are weak and overstatements are many. This thesis demonstrates that, while the members of the Percussion iii Group Cincinnati are known mainly as performers, they are also active participants in the composition of many of the works in their repertoire; thereby blurring the lines, in some cases significantly, between the artistic efforts of the three percussionists and the partnering composers. And due to the trio’s preference for close collaboration, the members tend to seek out composers from circles of people who are geographically close to them: faculty colleagues, friends, and students. With few of these composers achieving canonical status for their efforts in this or other more studied genres, the trio’s repertoire remains unlikely to enter the evolutionary narratives. The Percussion Group Cincinnati provides a vivid example of one approach to contemporary music composition whereby clear delineations between the roles of composers and performers are replaced with a creative process predicated on cooperation toward a shared goal. While this thesis demonstrates the considerable degree to which one ensemble engages in these types of compositional projects, the broader existence of hybrid composer-performer relations is significant, especially in the realm of percussion music, where instruments and techniques frequently extend beyond the boundaries of orchestration textbooks and traditions. To this end, this thesis can serve as a model for further research on twentieth-century percussion history and, particularly, the role performers play in conceiving and crafting the repertoire. iv Copyright © 2010 by Thomas J. Kernan. All rights reserved. v Acknowledgements This thesis was only possible with the unlimited access provided by the past and current members of the Percussion Group Cincinnati: Jack Brennan, Russell Burge, James Culley, Allen Otte, Benjamin Toth, and William Youhass. During numerous phone calls, e-mails, and in- person interviews, the members provided me with as many details as they could recall about performances, compositions, and relationships, which in some instances extended beyond the ensemble’s thirty-year history. Al, in particular, spent countless hours before the official interviews answering questions about the trio, and its formation and goals, as I attempted to assess if enough material existed for a study of this length. Rusty, Al, and Ben aided in collecting surviving concert programs. Jim helped fill in the holes in my data with lists of performances from the ensemble’s tax records. Of all of the exchanges with the members, one comment more than all others struck me as both a significant turning point for one member and a theme on which the trio functions. Al described an undergraduate lesson with his studio teacher, Richard Weiner, the principal percussionist of the Cleveland Orchestra—a man who Al still refers to with deepest respect as Mr. Weiner. During that lesson, Al played Karlheinz Stockhausen’s Zyklus No. 9, an avant-garde solo percussion composition, which, as he described, likely held little attraction for his teacher. Weiner, however, was not in any way dismissive; rather, he offered specific criticism and corrections about the types of beaters he thought Al should use, the sounds he was making, and the techniques he employed. In Weiner, Al found someone who took him “very seriously,” enough so as to provide comments of the most exacting degree on music from a portion of the repertoire that most percussionists were ignoring. Decades later, Al and his colleagues still devote their careers to offering rigorous presentations of contemporary vi percussion compositions—they merge the finest orchestral technique with some of the most non- traditional repertoire. This thesis attempts to conduct a study of an ensemble I take “very seriously.” Any praise or criticism herein was reached with as thorough of consideration as I could provide, and with a hope that this first extended study of the Percussion Group Cincinnati provides ample data, interview transcripts, and commentary for future scholars to pick up where I have left off. To the current members of the Group, from whom the most time and consideration has been granted to this author, I extend my deepest appreciation for your assistance and kindness. Many other musicians, composers, scholars, writers, and organization administrators provided invaluable help in gathering information about compositions and performances. In particular I wish to thank Marilyn Bower of the Dearborn Highlands Arts Council, Casey Brown of Middfest International, Arun Chandra, Ray Cooklis of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Scott Deal, Chris Phelps of WGUC, Cameron Gordon Peck of Pecktackular Music, Mark Saya, and Otice Sircy of the Percussive Arts Society. My fellow graduate students in Matthew Peattie’s fall 2008 seminar on “Music and Change” shared feedback and comments on several portions of my research, which were extraordinarily helpful in completing this thesis. In particular, Amy Lewkowicz drew my attention to similarities between the goals laid out in Otte’s essays and those common to intentional communities. Wenhui Xie, without hesitation, offered her time and abilities in translating portions of Qu Xiao-Song’s book Yi lu liang qiang. I would have been aimlessly browsing Xiao-Song’s beautiful illustrations and calligraphy with little hope of identifying any material about the trio, were it not for her assistance. vii As a writer, I benefited tremendously from the clarity bruce mcclung encouraged in each page of this thesis. He advised with poignant questions that challenge my arguments and fostered new areas of consideration. The best attributes of this thesis resulted from his patience, encouragement, and candor. I am further grateful to my readers, Jeongwon Joe and Robert Zierolf, who supported this project since its inception and eagerly waded through these chapters. This thesis received institutional support in two very significant ways. First, the project was jump-started by a generous Summer Research Grant from the University of Cincinnati’s University Research Council, for which I am most grateful. Second, the staff of The Ohio State University Music Library, especially Gretchen Atkinson, was extremely kind in navigating the various systems and networks necessary to allow me to complete this thesis from Columbus. Gretchen was as caring and helpful in her dealing with my various OhioLink multi-campus requests as are the staff members of my own libraries at the University of Cincinnati. This project is a testament to the success of the sharing and cooperation that takes place between Ohio’s academic libraries. If a master’s degree introduces a young scholar to a field, then I have two mentors who are responsible for granting me those initial musicological handshakes.

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