Musical Stories
FROM OFF-BROADWAY WORKS TO CHAMBER MUSIC COMPOSITIONS
(AND YES, PEOPLE WHO HAVE PURCHASED MUSICAL WORKS CAN PERFORM THEM ON THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA - @EDWARDWHARDY)
Thank you so much for your interest in reading my dissertation, A Compendium of Three Musical Works Inspired by the African American Experience: Recordings, Commentary, and Pedagogical Observations! I am so excited to share my work with you. In celebration of Juneteenth, I created a free children's coloring book featuring the iconic figures that inspired my dissertation, Color the Legacy: A Coloring Book of African American Cultural Pioneers. I included this in the download to give kids something to do while parents and guardians are reading the paper. I hope you and your beautiful family and friends enjoy my dissertation, the coloring book, and my recordings of Evolution, Strange Fruit, and Born Free!
With all my love, confidence, and strength,
Dr. Edward W. Hardy
Recommended Citation
Hardy, Edward W. A Compendium of Three Musical Works Inspired by the African American Experience: Recordings, Commentary, and Pedagogical Observations. Doctor of Arts dissertation, University of Northern Colorado, 2024.
| Abstract | This dissertation focuses on three of my musical compositions inspired by Wade in the Water, Billie Holiday, and Margaret Walker respectively: Evolution (for solo violin, 2016), Strange Fruit (arranged for string quartet, 2020), and Born Free (for voice, violin, and piano, 2022). From the perspective of a classical composer-violinist, I created musical portraits that reflect America's pre-civil rights oppression, the celebration of the Harlem Renaissance, and the landscape of political, social, and economic experiences. This dissertation can also serve as a tool for various individuals: fellow violinists seeking modern techniques that bridge classical music to popular music, composers in search of original compositions responding to our current times, and storytellers seeking an understanding of how music can be composed using literature as a structure. Following an introductory section, three chapters are presented and dedicated to the compositions and their connections to facets of our nation’s history. This compendium also includes recordings of my three works and an in-depth analysis of specific passages from a pedagogical approach. I hope scholars, educators, and performers are left with a spark of inspiration to create and perform works that reflect their heritage. |
| Title | A Compendium of Three Musical Works Inspired by the African American Experience: Recordings, Commentary, and Pedagogical Observations |
| Author | Hardy, Edward W. |
| Number of pages |
81 |
| Format | |
| Publication year |
2024 |
| Degree date |
2024 |
| ISBN | 9798382597119 |
| Advisor | Fulks, Jubal |
| Committee member |
Oravitz, Michael; Kauffman, Deborah; Junne, George |
| University/institution |
University of Northern Colorado |
| Department |
Music |
| University location |
United States -- Colorado |
| Degree | D.A. |
| Language | English |
| Copyright | © Edward W. Hardy |
| Database | 2 databases Dissertations & Theses @ University of Northern Colorado ProQuest One Academic |
| MP3 Recordings |
Evolution, Strange Fruit, and Born Free Recordings are also on YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnFYHJ7DYFEGLgO... |
Recommended Citation
Hardy, Edward W. Color the Legacy: A Coloring Book of African American Cultural Pioneers. New York: Edward W. Hardy Publishing, 2024.
| Title | Color the Legacy: A Coloring Book of African American Cultural Pioneers (There are two PDFs of the coloring book: one for digital use on an iPad or tablet, and the other for printing. In the print version, blank pages are inserted so that each illustrated page prints on its own sheet.) |
| Author | Hardy, Edward W. |
| Number of pages (digital version) | 21 (one-sided printing) |
| Number of pages (book version) | 40 (2-sided printing) |
| Format | |
| Publication date | June 19, 2024 |
| Language | English |
| Copyright | © Edward W. Hardy |
