The Composer-Conductor: An Examination of the Relationship and Connection between Two Disciplines D.M.A. Document Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in the Graduate Program in Music at The Ohio State University By Zachary Jacob Friedland, M.M. Graduate Program in Music The Ohio State University 2018 DMA Committee: Dr. Thomas Wells, Advisor Dr. Anna Gawboy Dr. Russel Mikkelson Dr. Jan Radzynski Copyright by Zachary Jacob Friedland 2018 Abstract This dissertation explores the relationship between composing and conducting from the perspectives of individuals who routinely perform both disciplines. Sixteen individuals, varying age, gender, and experience provided responses to a structured interview that explored the relationship between composing and conducting. They responded from various perspectives of college band directors, college composition professors, high school band directors, freelance composers, and graduate students in music. During the interviews we discussed how their involvement in composing and conducting has affected their outlook on numerous parts of their work including score study, rehearsal technique, compositional process, and teaching methods. All 16 noted that the conducting informed composing and vice versa, enhancing overall musicianship. While the interviewees’ noted the challenges of conducting one’s own music, overall, the connection between composing and conducting is an invaluable tool that leads to the creation of special experiences for the performers, the audience, and the conductor him/herself. Additional findings include that the longer one is involved with composing and conducting, the more the individual is able to reinforce the connection between their composing, conducting, and performing and get a more mature sense of their overall musicianship. Finally, a practical study was done with students at The Ohio State University. The goal was to look for observable difference between a conductor who is conducting his/her own music compared to conducting another composer’s work. The results were inconclusive, but I did observe a real need for composers to develop good conducting skills. As a result, I have made several recommendations about the curriculum for undergraduate Bachelor of Music in iii Composition that I believe will fill in a gap in the young composer’s understanding of the practical side of music making. iv Dedication To my parents Kevin Friedland and Beth Dworetzky. Thank you for your infinite love and support and for always being there – to drive me to piano lessons, attend recitals and band concers, and premiers of my music, whether in Kingston, RI, Cambridge, MA, North Augusta, South Carolina, or Columbus. Your advice, ideas, and reminders to innovate have helped me do better than my best. I love you. To my grandparents Philip and Florence Dworetzky. You took me to the Metropolitan Opera, the New York Philharmonic, and instilled in me a love and enjoyment of music. Thank you for sitting in the rain to cheer me on in my first marching band parade, and for every concert you traveled from New York to hear. The best part of writing a piece was when you got to hear it. And to my percussion teacher, mentor, and friend Ron Stabile. You helped me find my voice as a young musician and composer, but your greatest lessons were those of character, which have shaped the way I work with my fellow musicians. v Acknowledgments Many thanks to my advisor Dr. Thomas Wells. Your lessons helped me grow as a composer and take my music in new directions. Thanks also to my committee members Dr. Jan Radzynski, Dr. Anna Gawboy, and Dr. Russel Mikkelson. It was a great honor to have Dr. Mikkelson conduct the premier of my dissertation composition “Symphony No. 1 for Band: Ohi yo’” with The Ohio State University Wind Symphony. I extend additional thanks to Dr. Scott Jones, Dr. David Hedgecoth, Dr. Shawn Wallace, and Professor Kris Keith for the multiple times you programed my music with your ensembles. I am grateful to the 16 key informants who generously shared their time, expertise, insights, and anecdotes with me for the research component of my dissertation. Last, but not least, thanks to the six conductors, five quintet musicians, and five evaluators who volunteered their time to participate in the practicum research component of my dissertation. vi Vita Education 2016 – Present Doctorate in Musical Arts in Music Composition The Ohio State University (ABD, Projected Graduation, Dec. 2018) 2013 – 2015 Masters of Music in Music Composition | Teaching Artist Certificate The Longy School of Music of Bard College 2008 – 2013 Bachelor of Music in Music Composition University of Rhode Island, Magna Cum Laude Work Experience 2017 – 2018 Music Theory Tutor for The Ohio State University School of Music, Anna Gawboy, Supervior 2013 – 2015 Graduate Assistant for Longy School of Music of Bard College, Department of Historical and Theoretical Studies Libor Dudas, Chairperson 2012 – 2016 Administrative Assistant for Kingston Chamber Music Festival Brian Mitchell, Managing Director 2009 – 2012 Student Employee for University of Rhode Island Music Department, Joseph Parillo, Chairperson 2007 Congressional Internship, Home Office of Congressman James Langevin, Nancy Beattie, Constituent Relations Director Selected Compositions For Wind Ensemble/ Symphonic Band 2018 Symphony No. 1 for Band: Ohi yo’, for the Ohio State Wind Symphony 2018 Mercury’s Glimpse, for the Ohio State University Symphonic Band 2017 Kapow! for the Ohio State University Collegiate Winds 2017 On Greens of White and Blue, Commissioned by University of Rhode Island College of Arts and Sciences 2016 Mosaic, Commissioned by Kappa Kappa Psi, Kappa Upsilon 2015 Boston Strong, for the Metropolitan Wind Symphony 2015 Rhythm and Compassion, Commissioned by the Armenian National Committee of Rhode Island 2015 Wind Chimes for 1915, Commissioned by the Armenian National Committee of Rhode Island 2014 Dusk 2012 Leader of the Band, for Archie R. Cole Middle School 2012 Hataali Dances, Commissioned by Woonsocket High School, Woonsocket, RI 2011 Someday, for the Theta Upsilon Chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi, Kingston, RI 2010 American Dreams, URI Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Kingston, RI vii For Chamber Ensemble 2018 Riding Waves (Violin and Piano), Commissioned by the Kingston Chamber Music Festival, Kingston, RI 2018 Confluence (String Quartet), Commissioned by the 4th Annual Symposium on the Effects of Climate Change on the World’s Oceans, District of Columbia 2018 Drift (Reed Quintet), for the TIMBER Reed Quintet, Columbus, OH 2017 Woodland Dawn (Wind Trio) 2017 Currents of Change (String Quartet), for the ICES Annual Science Conference, Fort Lauderdale, FL 2016 Skyglimmer (Viola, Clarinet, Piano Trio) 2013 The Monarch Flew Towards Amber Skies (Piano Trio) For Voice 2017 Wilderness (Soprano and Piano, Text by Carl Sandburg) 2017 Songs in a Time of War (Soprano and Piano, Text by Alfred Noyes), 2015 Creatures of Nature (Soprano, Piano, and Alto/Tenor Saxophone, Text by William Blake) 2014 Sailing Songs (Soprano, Piano, and Clarinet, Text by Walt Whitman) Musical Conducting/Leadership 2017 – 2018 Treasurer, Ohio State University New Music Collective 2016 Conductor and Musical Director, Holy Rosary Band Society, East Providence, RI 2013 – 2014 Conductor, Latitude New Music Ensemble, Cambridge, MA 2013 – Present Managing and Artistic Director, Rhode Island Recording Ensemble, Kingston, RI 2011 – 2013 Assistant Student Conductor, URI Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Kingston, RI 2011 Drum Major, URI Marching Band, Kingston, RI 2010 Vice President of Kappa Kappa Psi, National Honorary Band Fraternity Chapter, Kingston, RI Discography 2018 “Shades of Green, White, and Blue,” Rhode Island Recording Ensemble Print Publications 2011 “Someday,” The Podium, National Publication of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma, Service Fraternity and Sorority – Fall 2011, p.4 Awards and Recognition 2017 Honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi – Kappa Upsilon, Marist College 2016, 2017 The Ohio State University School of Music Harris Scholarship in Composition viii 2013 Longy School of Music Department Scholarship in Composition 2012 Kappa Kappa Psi W. Francis McBeth Student Musicianship Award (First Recipient in Fraternity History) 2011 James Ladewig Scholarship in Music History 2011 Richard Bearu Hope and Heritage Travel Grant 2010 S. Aronian & G. Gibbs Scholarship in Music Composition 2008 University of Rhode Island Centennial Scholarship Volunteer and Community Work 2014 – Present Board of Directors, The American Band of Providence 2013 – Present Coordinator, Ronald N. Stabile Memorial Scholarship Concert Field of Study Major Field: Music ix Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................................ iii Dedication ..................................................................................................................................................... v Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................................................ vi Vitae ............................................................................................................................................................ vii List of Tables ..............................................................................................................................................