An invitation to listen: the creative use of new digital technologies in enhancing audience engagement in new music (03)

Award

PhD Research Studentship

Description of Project:

This will be a practice-led PhD project, based in the School of Music, in which technological approaches to ‘sonic art’ composition will be investigated and developed, in part through the act of composing and performing. It will involve the development of new technologies using programming environments such as Max/MSP/Jitter and OpenMusic, and the composition and performance or presentation of sonic art made using these technologies.

This project aims to explore ways in which the level of engagement with new music and sonic art among ordinary listeners and concert goers may be enhanced through the use of new digital technologies. Examples include: exploring new ways in which listeners may interact with sound materials in installations (through movement tracking or automatic reaction interpretation); technologies for composing using extramusical data (such as the ‘sound’ of complex pharmaceutical molecules or spectral analysis of environmental sounds), and technological approaches which result in music with a particularly engaging and accessible sonic surface (such as those which include developments of techniques and technologies employed in popular music or film-music). The project will give special emphasis to addressing the impact of music and sonic art on specific groups (for example: children; the elderly; people with dementia; stroke victims; people with learning disabilities) as well as the needs of more general audiences.

The outcome of the PhD will be a portfolio of compositions, installations and sonic-art works, and a suite of software and hardware technologies developed in the course of creating those works, together with a supporting commentary describing the technological and aesthetic issues involved.

Candidate:

The successful candidate will be a composer with a track record of creative practice, an interest in sonic art (broadly defined) and some practical experience of relevant technologies, including Max/MSP.

Supervisory team:

The project team will be led by Professor Andrew Lewis, with Dr Pwyll ap Siôn and Dr Guto Puw (School of Music)

For full details of the terms and conditions of this award see

Queries prior to a formal application concerning this research project should be addressed to:
Professor Andrew Lewis (a.p.lewis@bangor.ac.uk)

Application:

The application deadline is noon on Friday 30 April 2010. For more information on how to apply, please visit here.

Applicants will be contacted during the month of June 2010 with information relating to their submissions.