At the "Crossroads” : the interaction between speech rhythm and musical rhythm in Tom Waits's spoken-word song
department or school: Arts, Faculty of
department or school: Music, School of
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCV
creator: Lemire, Chantal
issued: 2013-10-08T17:45:03Z
issued: 2013
related degree: Master of Arts - MA
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: In this study I will analyze the spoken-word song, “Crossroads,” by singer-songwriter Tom Waits. “Crossroads” combines natural speech and metrical music, which highlights the rhythmic similarities and differences between speech and music. My analysis combines analytical tools developed in linguistics and music that can examine the rhythmic sensations created through spoken word. Christopher Hasty’s theory of metric projection represents the rhythmic structure of the musical accompaniment, and Bruce Hayes’s theory of metrical stress represents the rhythmic structure of Waits’s speech. The combination of the two theories explores how the presence of natural speech changes my sensation of the musical accompaniment, and vice versa. In my analysis of “Crossroads,” I propose that combination of speech and metrical music can generate a unique sensation of rhythm and structure akin to an optical illusion. This approach offers one possible way that the analysis of spoken word can prioritize its performance aspects to the same degree as the artists who use the form.
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/45218
note: AT THE “CROSSROADS”: THE INTERACTION BETWEEN SPEECH RHYTHM AND MUSICAL RHYTHM IN TOM WAITS’S SPOKEN-WORD SONG by CHANTAL LEMIRE B.Mus, University of British Columbia, 2006 M.Mus, McGill University, 2010 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE AND POSTDOCTORAL STUDIES (Music) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) October 2013 © Chantal Lemire 2013 ii Abstract In this study I will analyze the spoken-word song, “Crossroads,” by singer-songwriter Tom Waits. “Crossroads” combines natural speech and metrical music, which highlights the rhythmic similarities and differences between speech and music. My analysis combines analytical tools developed in linguistics and music that can examine the rhythmic sensations created through spoken word. Christopher Hasty’s theory of metric projection represents the rhythmic structure of the musical accompaniment, and Bruce Hayes’s theory of metrical stress represents the rhythmic structure of Waits’s speech. The combination of the two theories explores how the presence of natural speech changes my sensation of the musical accompaniment, and vice versa. In my analysis of “Crossroads,” I propose that combination of speech and metrical music can generate a unique sensation of rhythm and structure akin to an optical illusion. This approach offers one possible way that the analysis of spoken word can prioritize its performance aspects to the same degree as the artists who use the form. iii Preface All the work presented hereafter is original, independent work by the author, Chantal D. Lemire. None of the research in this thesis has been previously published. iv Table of Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... ii Preface ........................................................................................................................…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
date issued: 2013-11
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0166809
language: eng
degree discipline: Music
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: Attribution-NoDerivs 2.5 Canada
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.5/ca/
scholar level: Graduate
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/45218