To musicians, linguists, and historians, it is a given that music and language are intimately connected throughout history. Practically all Western musics and languages developed from vocalization, an activity that was so foundational to human expression that some scholars suggest the existence of a mythical “musilanguage” in prehistory. In this study, I propose that music, language, and musilanguage are needlessly divided, and that they are all simply modes of human expression. First, I will analyze the prosodies of musics and languages from different eras to present the timeless correlation between music and language. I will be drawing from a diverse variety of musical styles, including: Ancient and Medieval Chant, Opera, Sprechstimme, Improvisational Jazz, and Hip-Hop. Then, I will engage in philosophical discussion about how people choose to express themselves and how we can use music to alleviate social isolation and disengagement in interpersonal relationships and communities. Those who may be interested in this study include current and prospect teachers, live performers, musicologists, linguists, sociologists, therapists, and other humanities workers.

The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is an international organization of Lutheran churches. Officially founded in 1947, its first initiative was to organize an aid response to the mass displacement of people from Eastern and Central Europe into Germany and Austria post-WWII. Its sub-branch, the LWF Service to Refugees (LWF-SR), was led by Howard Hong, a professor at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. This research project examines aspects of the work of the LWF-SR in Europe and in Northfield, where approximately 250 displaced persons (DPs) were resettled. The aim is to build on the research led by Dr. Amanda Randall, published as a website established in 2023, documenting the history of St. Olaf faculty, student, and staff involvement in the LWF-SR. My contribution is to create a timeline that emphasizes how significant historical events affected Baltic Lutherans and ultimately provoked their mass displacement, thereby aiding in its contextualization. Furthermore, this study shows how digital media can be used in humanities research to make the acquisition of knowledge more accessible to a broad, general audience. I demonstrate how my dynamic timeline, through a combination of primary and secondary sources, aids a reader’s understanding not just the chronology, but how the displacement of Baltic Lutherans is situated within the larger picture of persecution under successive foreign occupations. By understanding what created the so-called “Churches in Exile,” who were the recipients of LWF-SR assistance, website visitors can get a sense of possible patterns in other histories of mass displacement and humanitarian aid.

My research project explores the cultural stigma and embarrassment that some adults experience when reading children’s and young adult (YA) literature, despite the genre’s growing emotional and cultural effect. It explores how this stigma results from long-standing social norms and cultural and literary hierarchies that construct YA fiction as less legitimate than adult literature, especially literature traditionally recognized as part of the ‘classics’. This research will highlight the long-standing body of literature and readership scholarship on crossover literature and its role in challenging this stigma. This project's goal is to ultimately challenge the idea that age should be a determining factor in what people should read.

This project examines Loveless, the 1991 album by My Bloody Valentine, widely regarded as the defining record of the shoegaze genre. Shoegaze, a subgenre of indie and alternative rock that emerged in the late 1980s and early 1990s, is characterized by heavily effected guitar tones, dense walls of sound, and introspective songwriting. The genre displayed a distinct sonic identity before fading from the music scene in the mid 1990s, and has since seen a significant resurgence, with contemporary artists continuing to draw from the foundation Loveless provided. This research explores the question: What core compositional, instrumental, and production techniques defined shoegaze through Loveless, and how can these elements be demonstrated through the creation of an original musical excerpt? To answer this, the research examines the factors My Bloody Valentine used to create Loveless and demonstrates these factors through an original musical excerpt. Compositional elements such as modal harmony, contrary motion between vocal and chord lines, and ostinato figures will be examined. Guitar specific techniques such as glide guitar, alternate tunings, the heavy application of effect pedals, and sampled guitar parts will also be examined as major contributors to the album's sound. The resulting musical excerpt will be recorded applying these elements identified, serving as a fist hand demonstration of the techniques Loveless established as staples to the shoegaze sound. Through this process, the research aims to offer a concrete, practice based understanding of what makes Loveless so foundational to the shoegaze genre.