The Mosley Street Suite: A Third Stream Chamber Work for Six Players

Abstract

In 1957 Gunther Schuller coined the term Third Stream as a description of a developing trend wherein elements of jazz and 20th century art music were being combined, creating a new body of compositions, performances and recordings by a diverse community of musicians. This thesis presents an original composition entitled The Mosley Street Suite, demonstrating some of the trends of third stream music and consisting four movements entitled: "Song Within The Story, Paper Air Plane, Chalet Music and Mbira Kids. A brief overview of third stream music from its inception in 1957 to the present day is included, as well as a discussion of some of the musical techniques and styles that embody third stream, citing examples from a variety of composers, arrangers and performers. A final section of this thesis contains a detailed description of the methodology and score of The Mosley Street Suite. !