ABSTRACT The purpose of this dissertation is to provide an analysis of specific choral compositions by English composer Tarik O'Regan. The selected works share two common traits: (1) they are scored for SATB chorus (2) their subject matter in some way addresses the themes of life and death. The author seeks to facilitate an informed understanding of the specific works and provide a general resource for conductors who have an interest in performing music composed by Tarik O'Regan. Significant events regarding the life of Tarik O'Regan, from his birth until the present, are highlighted. The narrative identifies key experiences in his life that influenced him as a composer, including childhood experiences in Morocco and Algeria, listening to his parents' LP collections during the early 80's, being exposed to multiple languages as a child, being widely read, and his interest in different religious, ethnic and national traditions, architecture, and art (specifically of North Africa). This historical inquiry also investigates how O'Regan's musical and stylistic interests are inspired by: jazz, Renaissance music, English choral music, American minimalism, and al-Andalusian music (North African influence). The study includes a discussion of al-Andalusian music, its origin and how it relates to O'Regan's compositional style. The study concludes with a poetic and musical analysis of three extended choral compositions by Tarik O'Regan. These compositions are: The Night's Untruth, The Ecstasies Above, and Triptych. For each work, a general overview of pertinent compositional information is provided, including instrumentation, vocal ranges, publication facts, and available recordings, including performance times. A complete list of O'Regan's choral output is provided with the aforementioned information. In addition, information of the source of the texts is included. Finally, each composition is analyzed for its musical content, including formal tables and musical excerpts as supporting information.
