Date of Award

1994

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Music

Abstract

British composer and keyboardist Keith Emerson(b.1944)has composed for various mediums,which include piano,orchestra and rock trio.A consistent level of musical awareness is manifested in all three of these mediums,and a unique compositional style can be identified by studying the rhythmic,melodic,harmonic,and formal language of his music.The subject of this discussion is one representative large-scale work,Tarkus(1971),as it appears on side one of the eponymous album recorded by the rock music trio Emerson,Lake and Palmer (ELP).The Tarkus album was released in 1971 during the early initial ELP period.Theintent of this thesis is to define and document the compositional approaches keyboardist Keith Emerson took when writing the suite Tarkus for Emerson,Lake and Palmer.Following a biographical chapter,this study examines each of the seven movements of the suite,detailing Emerson's compositional treatment of instrumentation,text (where applicable),rhythm,texture,harmony,melody,counterpoint and form.An eclectic analytical approach is taken,with theoretical descriptions of vertical and linear events including traditional functioning harmony,jazz chord symbols,atonal set theory,and other devices.Emerson's compositional collaboration with Greg Lake on certain meovements is also addressed.A Summary and Conclusions chapter ends the study.Tarkus was chosen for analysis for the following reasons:it is oen of the few large-scale works by Emerson with a published score;it contains representative a large-scale work from the beginning of the early initial ELP period,Emerson's most prolific and successful period to date.Emerson's compositional style in Tarkus is consistent with both earlier and later works,as it involves an abundance of harmonic and melodic intervals of a fourth,the use of ostinatos,and the recurrence of compound meters.

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