Postgraduate Researchers

PhD Research Student - Conservatoire

Project Title “Foreshadowings – Universal Musico-Media Cognitive Networks’’ 

The development of a musical style and language incorporating traditional, modern, acoustic, electronic and audio-visual compositional techniques. 

Project Abstract 

The research will present and document the creation of a novel portfolio of original contemporary classical music compositions. The central hypothesis will explore the possibility of developing a congruent and holistic music compositional style completely incorporating traditional, modern, acoustic, electronic, and audio-visual compositional methodologies situated within modern live digital interactive production and performance spaces. 

The seemingly dichotomous characteristics of the accessibility and immediacy of modern electronic music creation, when compared with traditional classical and acoustic music methodologies and performance, lead to the composer existing in an expansive creative space. This ‘working space’ that the composer now inhabits is both a ‘real’ embodied physical and virtual digital realm. Real in that the acoustic space itself can be used as an ‘interactive frame’ for the music, and virtual in that music can be completely and accurately represented without the need for live performance. It could be argued that the contemporary composer works in a completely unrestricted creative space, due to the vast canvas of modern production, post production and performance techniques. In previous generations creative restrictions and limited media have inspired and honed creativity and style; the modern composer is now unrestricted in an unprecedented way, the implications of which have not yet been fully explored. 

This research project aims to create a musical style and language that encompasses all the available media and work spaces incorporating traditional 20th and 21st Century acoustic composition techniques, electronics, electro-acoustic, and synthesized electronic methodologies. It will seek to address this central dilemma of contemporary composition through synthesising multiple techniques into coherent contemporary compositions that offer insight into the plurality of contemporary approaches and advance current trends. 

The acoustic and electro-acoustic works within the portfolio will be scored in traditional notation following the western art-music tradition of writing large form pieces for orchestral instruments and for various solo and ensemble combinations, including works for voice and choir. Studio and/or live recordings of the works or midi-file renderings of the works will also be included as audio representations. Electronic and audio-visual pieces will also be included as audio or video files. 

The thesis will describe and analyse the compositional techniques, methodologies and aesthetics of the original works within the portfolio. In addition, it will situate the work within a compositional tradition through research into the canon of classical and contemporary classical music in reference to various musicological resources and positions. 

Supervisor: Professor Gráinne Mulvey