Connecting you with the University of Missouri’s innovative research and creative activityWriting Music that Speaks to the Human Spirit
A visit with Thomas McKenney, Professor, Composition and Music Theory
Additional Interview Clips
What research and creative activity looks like for music composer W. Thomas McKenney
Employing harmonic vocabulary
More on tonal systems and McKenney’s philosophy of music
McKenney's compositional process: Combining old and new technologies
More on the pros and cons of using computerized software to compose music
The types of musical pieces McKenney composes and the compositional process he employs
The dilemma of publishing for composers
"Music needs to balance emotion and intellect"
McKenney’s philosophy of music
Writing music to elicit an emotional response
Teaching music at MU
From score study to original musical composition: How research and creative activity inform each other
Topics:
tonal_system
Béla_Bartόk
Johann Sebastian Bach was very much a tonal composer who wrote contrapuntal compositions, “which are linear in design with some vertical concepts as well.” For example, Bach would have the basses sing the melody at one point, and the altos later, creating a linear, contrapuntal design. Through such research into the work of other composers, McKenney seeks to understand how other composers have handled a certain idea, concept, or technique.