Search

'Crowd-composition' is the practice of outsourcing a creative task to a crowd, leading to a new musical composition that is assembled and shaped by collective input. Crowdsourcing is a key stimulus. However, whilst crowdsourcing has become a commonplace and well-researched practice, crowd-composition itself remains largely unexplored. This project aimed to consolidate, add to and develop the field. Its central research concern was to investigate properties relating to participation, and in doing so asked: • How can crowd-composition facilitate meaningful experiences for participants? • How can crowd-composition lead to musical works or perspectives that are distinct from sole agent composition? This led to four original crowd-composition works, submitted as the portfolio component of this doctoral project, which are built on a process of experimentation that sought to explore these questions. The works utilised voting techniques as the primary mechanism for collective decision making. Analysis demonstrated the effectiveness of a number of particular elements, as well as insights into distinct outcomes of crowd-composition. A central finding was the importance of engaging and managing the attention of crowds, which was shown to be an essential factor in the success of the aforementioned works. To this end, the project led to a number of lessons to share for enhancing this aspect.

There is a tangible divide between community music making and contemporary repertoire in Britain today. One must ask why it is that so many composers seem unable (or unwilling) to produce vibrant, progressive, and artistically fulfilling music in amateur contexts. While there are numerous examples of good practice, this remains something of a niche field for the majority of twenty-first century composers. The goal of this research project is to find methods of negating barriers which might prevent composers from writing in amateur contexts, or likewise, amateurs from engaging with contemporary music. I ask to what extent the principles of amateur music making can underpin compositional technique, and explore how a composer can function as a force for expanding ideologies within community settings. These concerns are explored in a gallimaufry of contexts where varying degrees of collaboration blur the notion of an autonomous single author identity. In responding to these research questions, I have created original music in scenarios where abstract, collaborative, and devised approaches have been employed respectively. These works highlight both areas of good practice, as well as common issues associated with composing for amateurs. Through this explorative work I have proposed a set of principles designed to alleviate such concerns and which a composer might employ when tasked with composing in community settings.

This portfolio of compositions and accompanying commentary explores methods of engagement with iconic works from Western Art Music as an embedded, contingent aspect of a wider contemporary Western culture. The primary aim of this portfolio was to create a set of compositions that concretely engaged with well-known works from the Western Art Music canon explicitly as works and not as quotation. Secondly, it aims to find a set of methods for treating these historical works that not only engages with their materiality, but also with aspects of cultural association and reception that have accrued around them. To these ends, the portfolio draws on historical approaches to the application of Critical Theory in other artistic disciplines such as theatre and the visual arts. These approaches, which are discussed and critiqued within the opening methodological section of the commentary, form a set of frameworks that provided stimulation for the compositions that are presented in the portfolio. The portfolio of compositions, and their discussion within the commentary, are presented in the chronological order of their creation. This thesis, therefore, provides a selection of snapshots in time that reflect an on-going and dynamic process of composition, performance and critical reflection, whereby reflection on the approaches applied to one work feed directly and indirectly into the composition of the next. The portfolio and accompanying commentary thereby blends narrative account with systematic inquiry.

The aim of my research for the PhD has been to explore the possibilities of sacred music composition beyond liturgical contexts. Although the bedrock of Western sacred music has traditionally been vocal music, I have attempted to broaden the boundaries by delving into the feasibility of instrumental sacred music. The word ‘sacred’ has been used in this thesis in the context of the Christian faith. Chapter I explains the reasons behind choosing sacred music composition as the objective of this thesis. In Chapter II, details of three different approaches are discussed, along with analysis of the individual pieces. These approaches are: application of modern musical language to sacred music; composing sacred instrumental music without pre-existing references; composing sacred instrumental and vocal music with pre-existing references, such as quotations from the established canon of sacred music or derivations of the system for change-ringing English church bells.

The following commentary introduces six pieces written between 2012 and 2015, during the period of my PhD research at the University of Southampton, UK. All of the pieces discussed here are, on some level, concerned with the subject of borrowing, be it the use of pre-existing musical material, or elements of different traditions, compositional practices in a broad historical context. Different approaches are represented in the ways the individual pieces refer to existing music, ranging from literal quotations to stylistic allusions. The commentary presents the ways these references are transformed, manipulated, and re-contextualised in the pieces discussed. I also attempt to contextualise my music through considering related works by other composers, as well as related debates within postmodern theory. Today - partly as a result of globalisation - the concept of tradition takes on a new aspect: it is less significantly defined by national affiliations, or commitments to particular trends and movements that stem from regional cultures/aesthetics. It is no longer something given, inherited; a multitude of traditions are available to choose from and explore through the arts. In this spirit, the presented works refer to a wide variety of musical traditions, from folk music, through Renaissance polyphony, the German Lied to post-war compositional styles and practices. The commentary includes a general introduction to the compositional techniques lying behind the works presented as well as six analyses supplementing the pieces included in my composition portfolio.

This commentary paper explores two fundamental structural principles of music: repetition and change. In Western art music of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, there are works that utilise repetition and change not simply as binary tools for musical progression within a piece, but as the actual purpose and character of that work. Similar processes are found in other forms of art, such as visual arts and literature. Each portfolio composition is written whilst pursuing such works of the past, and some of them are reconstructions of similar examples in other artistic media. The introduction in Part One – 1 of this commentary reveals the motivations behind my choice of this particular topic. After examining what composers achieved through repetition, there will be a brief examination of past musical examples containing traits of repetition and change in manners that are intriguing enough for discussion. The analysis in Part One - 2 includes detailed analyses of each work of the portfolio, with explanations on how past examples are applied to my compositions. This section also illustrates how elements of repetition and change found in visual art and literature are musically reconstructed. The conclusion in Part One - 3 describes the transformation of my compositional perspective that occurred during my research. The main issues that were raised when the individual pieces were composed are also discussed.

This commentary documents the changes in my compositional practice. It explores the rationale for my move towards collaborative compositional approaches, and the variety of processes that I have used. The work occurs in a range of environments, and involves diverse participants, highlighting the relevance of this work for people of all backgrounds, ages and skill levels. By altering the nature of the composition process and its context new arenas for educational and social practices have emerged. This commentary describes some of the benefits and challenges that arise from working in these new ways.

Finding a balance between intellectual tools and a spontaneous development of ideas is one of the most challenging aspects of composition. With the common ground of a preference for rich and varied musical grammars, this thesis looks at three different strategies to organize materials and structures, and explores the individuality and variety that emerges from an improvisatory approach to writing music. The research that is described in this commentary has resulted in the development of a rational system that, using mathematical constants, modifies pitch, durations and dynamics in a continuous and predetermined way. The relevance of this method lies on its potential to unfold directional material and create subtle deviations from an original sound or group of sounds. A second strategy explores music in which motivic connections relate analogously to poetic structures. This approach reveals the potential of literary forms to construct meaningful musical nanatives; phonetic resemblances are translated into motifs in order to experiment with the proportions and rhythms of poetry. Finally, free compositional strategies (variant types of improvisation) have been used to create a comprehensive musical language. Making use of textures and techniques that derive from the previous two strategies, this approach draws upon atonality and elements borrowed from functional tonality to outline heterogeneous narratives. In relation to form, the contrast between complex textures and simple settings, and the coexistence of diverse materials, contribute to yield dynamism and directionality. Richness is an essential part of this language as musical objects are frequently presented in a wide variety of forms.

This thesis considers Steve Reich's speech-based compositions between 1963 and 1988 in the light of their source materials. The collection comprises seven pieces: The Plastic Haircut(1964); Livelihood (1964); It's Gonna Rain (1965); Come Out (1966); Buy Art, Buy Art (1967); My Name Is (1967), and Different Trains (1988). The sources for these pieces constitute a plethora of hitherto unexamined audio recordings, transcriptions of which are included in a separate volume of appendices. The study presents a detailed transcription and consideration of these archival sources, culminating in a new narrative reading of each of Steve Reich's speech-based pieces from the first three decades of his compositional output. Although some recordings now exist on-line, Reich's decision in 2008 to transfer his private archive to the Paul Sacher Stiftung in Basel, Switzerland, has opened up a much larger collection. This considerable body of source material allows a new understanding of the stories told by each of these seven pieces. Whilst firmly rejecting the notion that his music tells stories, Reich has accepted that the documentary nature of the recorded materials for his speech-based works marks them out as a special case. This invites scrutiny of the relationship between these recordings and the pieces themselves, shedding new light on the narrative trails that connect them.

Through the composition of five new works, I attempt to develop compositional methods that might better allow the creation of a more palpable sensation of time within the listeners. I then examine my compositional language, developed incrementally through the composition process for these five works, inspecting the possible implications for understanding a listener's perception and cognition of musical time. Via the repetitions of ideas in my compositions from numerous focal points and depths of focus, I also apply researched ideas, to further examine the complex interrelations between a listener's memory, attention, expectations, and the resultant information levels and hierarchical structures that they perceive. In addition to this, I investigate the role of perceptual pivot points in one's categorical understanding of musical processes. My goal is to address these issues in a way that should advance a better temporal communication with an audience.

Interpreting a scored musical composition entails the composer’s relinquishing some control over the piece to the performer. In ‘open’ scores the composer relinquishes most control and in effect allows the performer to collaborate in the compositional process; in traditional scores the composer specifies as much as possible in order to leave little to no room for the performer to use personal judgment regarding interpretation. The principal focus of this portfolio will be to examine, through different scores and compositional techniques, a possible available spectrum between these two types of scores and to define more clearly different options presenting varying degrees of control over a score. The initial stimulus for this research stems from a fascination with alternative compositional scenarios that consequentially aid the creation of incidental musical materials that are not specified or scored. These moments resemble an improvisation in their immediacy of execution and erratic sound characteristics. Hence, it is this quality that many of the ‘open’ elements in these portfolio pieces try to extract, but not exclusively so. The thesis will also dwell on elements of performance psychology in attempts to better define the mechanisms at work in different interpretation/improvisation scenarios, as well as refer to non-classical musical traditions as an example of alternative didactic systems leading towards a non-score based, quasiimprovisational practice. Finally, each portfolio composition will be described in detail with a particular emphasis on its erratic sound-qualities, its ‘open’ element, or both.

The spiritual journey of many greatly influential figures throughout history has been subject to physical journeys. The enlightening visions and experiences that prophets, poets and thinkers have witnessed have given birth to new intellectual horizons that might not have been achieved, but for the challenges and adventures entwined with the nature of migration. The musical journey of my life, too, has been affected by the physical and spiritual journey I have made by leaving Iran. The nature of Persian music, also, takes one on a mystical journey of self--‐analysis and awareness. Inevitably, my music is the product of the culture I was raised in and the ones I have had the privilege of living in. My interpretation of these cultures, hermeneutics of humanities and understanding of music, is also strongly influenced by my personality and psychological characteristics. As a composer, I have always refrained from commenting on my own music. I find the experience somewhat challenging, yet amusing, non--‐musical, yet poetic and unnecessary, yet fruitful. In writing this commentary, I have re--‐visited some of the most intimate compositional experiences I have had and I am grateful for the depth of insight provided by this experience.

During my Master’s degree I created a series of electronic collage compositions by superimposing pre-existing recordings of ‘found’ musical material. The aim of my PhD has been to expand upon this work by applying a modified version of the same electronic techniques to the composition of acoustic instrumental music, employing transcription as a means of converting audio recordings into MIDI information, which was edited using a computer sequencer to create new works. In Section One ‘PhD Background and Development’, I present a summary of the earlier work to illustrate the technical and conceptual concerns that were the point of departure for my thesis. An overview of the PhD work follows, focusing on central issues such as: the relationship between material, process and structure; definitions of musical information; the philosophical implications of using collage techniques, embodied in the phrase ‘the refusal of totality’; and the practicalities that result from working with notation and acoustic instruments as opposed to electronic media. In addition, I contextualise my work and practice in relation to those musicians who have directly affected my compositional aesthetic, thereby demonstrating how I have attempted to build upon pre-existing lines of development to create original music. In Section Two ‘Analysis’, I outline my compositional technique in greater detail, and provide individual analyses for each of the works in the portfolio.

The portfolio of compositions (part one) offers a selection of the composer’s most significant contributions to the body of creative human knowledge during four years of PhD study. The accompanying commentary (part two) has two objectives: 1. Exposition of the principal technical apparatus and aesthetic interests of the portfolio. 2. Investigation into the nature of poietic Ideas, music’s capacity to exemplify or embody Ideas, the analogising tendency in aesthetic experience and the impact upon the Idea of factors both intrinsic (technical, organological) and extrinsic (social and interpersonal) to the work. The commentary addresses compositional problems relating to large- and small-scale organisation and the perceptibility and expressive import of such features of a work, the problem of relating present work to past cultural achievements in the contemporary capitalist and pluralist Western world, and the problem of the social and educational situations that lead to composers’ loss of status as cultural assets and the marginalisation of the Idea. The thesis of the commentary is largely ‘anti-abstractionist’. It proposes that, through the analogising experience, music can express Ideas, not merely ‘abstract’, temporal geometric relations, but experiential, social and linguistic Ideas. These Ideas can be generated within the material organisation of a work, through cultural resonances associated with musical borrowings, or through the focusing influence of text. Contingent circumstances can serve to limit an Idea or to render it more precise. The commentary also argues that certain vicious circles in music-making and music education serve to damage musical culture, and suggests some causes for these phenomena. A Philosophical Introduction surveys attitudes and theories towards the Idea and musical expression and meaning; Arnold Schoenberg, Ferruccio Busoni, Arthur Schopenhauer, the claims of the logical positivists and Ludwig Wittgenstein, Milton Babbitt and Benjamin Boretz, the expression theories of Nelson Goodman and Jerrold Levinson and the relationship between music and physical movement all feature. Chapter One discusses the main technical apparatus of the composer, and the importance of Janusian thinking, harmonic architecture, canon, microtonality and spectralism. Chapter Two discusses musical borrowings and the significance of the past for the creative artist. Chapter Three discusses text as a powerful ‘designator’ (Kramer) of metaphorical meaning in music and possible text-music isomorphisms. Chapter Four discusses factors influencing composerperformer- listener interaction. A Preface and Afterword offer an anecdotal conte by the languages of contemporary art music.xt to this body of research and adumbrate future pathways for the composer. Together, the portfolio and commentary offer a conceptual framework for understanding 1. The nature and communication of poetic Ideas through music, and 2. The difficulties of audience reception engendered.

This is the written commentary on a practice-based period of research. This research has focussed on the development of a substantial series of new musical compositions considering the development of unique and personal identity in composition. As well as broader technical consideration the commentary emphasises the incorporation of new technology and electronic media into composition, collaborations with other creative artists and performers and in developing vocal music with Matthew Welton, a literary collaborator. The commentary prioritises three main compositions; the terminus wreck for cello and electronics; My name is Peter Stillman. That is not my real name. for piano and electric piano and; Things that are blue, things that are white and things that are black. for piano, electric piano, prepared piano with clarinet/bass clarinet, cor anglais, horn, viola, cello and at least 16 violins. These are all substantial pieces between 15 and 30 minutes in duration for a variety of forces and, particularly between the two piano works, demonstrate a clear trajectory of development. Chapters are also dedicated to smaller-scale chamber works, vocal music, collaboration and the house of bedlam, a new ensemble formed as an element of the research.

The commentary focuses on the predominantly applied extraneous media in my music, that is, the inclusion of literary sources. The discourse begins with a biographical sketch (Chapter 1), followed by a succinct description of the concept of polymediality, which involves two dimensions: the work-immanent compositional and polymediality on the process of staging (Chapter 2). Chapter 3 considers literary sources as a constituent component of music's polymediality. The first part is preoccupied with the implementation of textual elements and vocality in instrumental works, with special reference to the orchestral piece AKANTHAI. Simultaneously, this section elucidates a series of fundamental architectural tools and aspects of the music, encompassing (a) the methodological advancement concerning analogous relationships, (b) the processing of linear transitions and polyphonic settings depending on the model of imitative interaction, (c) the polydimensional articulation of homogeneity, (d) the aspect of permanent fleetingness, (e) the different facets of hybridization and their implications, (f) the question of the musico-literary intermediality form, and (g) the concept of polyaesthetics. To this extent, the commentary reports on a research aiming at elaborating the hypothesis that musical and non-musical elements, like the literary sources, are mustered from a diversified spectrum of coherent principles. Turning to the example of the opera entitled DIE JAGD, the second part of Chapter 3 is concerned with the situative conditions resulting from the abrupt omission of the relationship to the libretto, whereby the focus is displaced 'outside' the textual frame of reference. Chapter 4 briefly highlights the scope of three further text-related parameters of the music in conjunction with their aesthetic issues: the specified titles of the works, the delineated expressive nuances, as well as the descriptive commentaries and textual depictions found on the score. Furthermore, the chapter outlines the consequences of two-dimensional theatricality and meta-theatricality. In conclusion, the commentary argues that the compositional procedure adopts literary references for the benefit of creating self-generated concepts. In other words, constituted within a plethora of musical and extra-musical elements, texts function as energetic catalytic stimuli; they become the key mechanism to enhance interactive system performance amidst the music's structural-strategic and conceptual framework.

My Ph.D. composition portfolio consists of six works including a large graphic piece and a 21 Act circus show. The majority of the pieces centre on the concept of visual and sound synesthesia, with the emphasis on graphic stimulation and interpretation and the use of the Object as score. The audio-visual relationship is explored with reference to the works and philosophies of Marcel Duchamp and John Cage. Also explored are the absurdist implications of indeterminate and determinate forms and structures within my work with specific reference to Camus' absurdist sensitivity. The abstract and unique forms generated by the use of the cut-up technique provide the musical landscape in which the clown show explores the controversial themes of sex and violence. The power of visual manipulation and audio illusion in my work is also examined in relation to the work of Hans Bellmer and Bruce Nauman.

My D.Phil. composition portfolio consists of six works including a major work for solo electric guitar. The pieces centre around symbolism and archetypes derived from Hermetic philosophy, alchemical symbolism and the writings of Swiss psychologist C. G. Jung. The role these ideas play in the constructive and performative aspects of each individual composition is explored and analysed. Also, an historical examination of models which resonate and/or have influenced my approach to coalescing these concepts in composition are addressed, particularly the role in which metaphysics and music are integrated in the works of Mozart and Schoenberg, and the alchemical and hermetic treatises of Michael Maier and Robert Fludd.

My music is generally composed against a background structure of defined time. At the same time as holding what might be described as this purely formal concern, I am also increasingly drawn to narrativity, i.e. ways of thinking about music which may be susceptible to ideas from film and literature. My research has therefore centred on this question: how can seemingly formal musical processes relate to and illuminate issues of narrativity? In the course of this research I have considered the importance of cyclic models of composition, both to myself and to previous composers, and how such models might relate to theories of myth, plot structure and the recurrence of formal archetypes in the output of a single artist. As examples in my own work, I cite first in my portfolio a single movement work which is the final work in a cycle of six related compositions for piano solo, and then a song cycle based on multiple voicings of the experience of a classical, semi-mythical figure. To conclude I show how concerns with formal rhythm and narrativity have led naturally into work with archive silent film, resulting in two very different scores for the abstract short film Rain (1929), and a longer narrative film, I Was Born, But ... (1932). In the course of the commentary, I relate compositional methodology to notions of musical rhythm and visual rhythm, and the structuring of images and sound in time.