Composer Christopher Deane has published two vibraphone solos, Mourning Dove Sonnet and The Apocryphal Still Life, which are performed frequently by collegiate and professional percussionists. Scholarly analyses of these pieces do not currently exist. This document provides the first known examination of these compositions, offering advanced percussionists an in-depth theoretical and musical analysis designed to inform and guide future performances.
In addition to the focus on Deane's compositions, this document offers a concise history of the vibraphone and an examination of the extended techniques and effects required to perform these pieces. This study examines only those that are pertinent to Mourning Dove Sonnet and The Apocryphal Still Life. These include an in-depth focus on bowing, pitch bending, bowed harmonics, struck harmonics, dead strokes, mandolin roll, and glissandi. Further discussion of specialized vibraphone effects address bar muting, continually sustained notes, and the use of the motor.
Background information is provided for each piece, as is a theoretical analysis, an examination of how these extended techniques are implemented, and a discussion relating to performance issues. A comparison of the two pieces concludes the document. An errata list for each piece, corroborated by the composer, is also included in two appendices.
To enhance the reader's understanding of the discussions, thirteen video and eighty-six audio examples are included as part of this document. Videos are used to demonstrate techniques and performance practices and an audio file is embedded into each figure containing a musical excerpt from the score. To utilize these multimedia features, this document must be viewed using Adobe Acrobat 6 or later. To view or listen to the embedded file, click on the musical excerpt or video poster frame.