Tyzen Hsiao's Ilha Formosa Requiem: A complete background, musical analysis, and performance guide

This dissertation is a complete performance guide to the Ilha Formosa Requiem---Requiem for the martyrs of Formosa---by Tyzen Hsiao. Based on his love for his homeland, Taiwan, Hsiao is not only a patriot but also an advocate for his native music. Hsiao is especially sympathetic to the political victims of Taiwan due to his eighteen years of exile from being blacklisted by the Taiwanese government. Many of his compositions reflect the political history of Taiwan, including the most appalling event in Taiwanese history, the 228 Incident. The Ilha Formosa Requiem is written not only for the victims of 228 Incident but also for the victims of forty years of political oppression of the Taiwanese nationalist government's authoritarian rule, known as the White Terror . The Ilha Formosa Requiem is the composer's own testimony to the political history in Taiwan and his hope for reconciliation among the Taiwanese people.;This dissertation is divided into three main sections. The first section contains chapters on the background information of the Requiem, including a brief history of Taiwan and the political climate on the island, complete biographies of the composer, Tyzen Hsiao, and the poet, Min-Yung Lee, as well as an analysis of the Requiem texts, which are four original poems in the Taiwanese language, also known as the Hoklo language. The second section includes the complete musical analysis of the Requiem, including characteristics of Hsiao's compositions and his musical influences from traditional Taiwanese folksongs and instruments. The last section gives the performance history of the Requiem and practical performance notes on how to sing the Taiwanese language and the Requiem texts in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), to help the performers give an authentic performance of the piece.