Melbourne Conservatorium of Music - Theses
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ItemPebbles, shattered glass, plastic, metal & dried grass: a research project on ritual action, experience & the everyday( 2012)This masters thesis is a reflection on two years of making, playing, walking, talking, looking and reading. I address the question: “How can I develop a project that encompasses daily activities and rituals, recognises minor phenomena, brings me into an encounter with people, objects and animals and that frames lived experience?” In addressing this question I define the artistic process as both a method of framing and as the creation of the new, a force which effects my experience of the everyday. This is influenced by the writings of Elizabeth Grosz. In my project, I employ daily rituals as a means of encountering subjects for my work. Walking is a primary strategy I use in collecting objects, images and events. I describe my methods of framing as a shifting, searching process. I describe activities and works where I have incorporated conversation into my methodology - using formal meetings as a way to create potential accidents and alliances with others. I discuss the text Profanations by Giorgio Agamben and weave it in to many aspects of my argument. In particular I relate his notion of play to my process of sculpture and performance making. I draw links from the works of Alexander Calder, Richard Serra and Gabriel Orozco to the strategies of my own project. In particular, I respond to Calder’s lightness of forms and Orozco’s engagement with transitory moments in urban/suburban environments. This document augments the presentation of my creative work. This work is an installation of materials combined from the broad-ranging activities I engaged in during the project. It includes a configuration of videos of actions and encounters, and sculptures made from steel, glass, wood and generated from material collections. It also combines elements of a more arbitrary nature, like text, photographic works and other residue from the project.
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ItemElliott Carter's rhythmic language: a framework for improvisation( 2011)Musicians are often categorised into narrow genres such as ‘classical’, ‘jazz’, and ‘popular’. This categorisation conceals the fact that musicians often draw influence from outside their sphere of music practice. The thesis draws upon Elliott Carter’s piano piece 90+, which, in its form and content, demonstrates a highly developed rhythmic language that informs my practice of contemporary improvisation. This thesis answers the question: how can I make use of Carter’s rhythmic language as a framework for improvisation? Chapter One details the personal context, a statement of need for this project, and a synopsis of methodology. It continues with a literature review that identifies a gap in other research concerning Carter’s rhythmic language. Chapter Two is a comprehensive presentation and examination of theoretical properties of the terms and concepts I use to analyse Carter’s rhythmic language in 90+. Chapter Three provides an analysis of 90+ using the language outlined in Chapters One and Two. Chapter Four, informed by a personal journal charting my progress in assimilating chosen aspects of Carter’s rhythmic language, provides examples and analyses of original compositions and improvisations that represent the research outcomes of this project.
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ItemMotivational forces that influence the career aspirations of undergraduate music majors( 2011)Every year, cohorts of music students enter music conservatories aspiring to progress their musical development to a level where they can succeed within the challenging profession of performing music. The reality is however, that only a handful actually succeed to being able to perform or compose professionally as their chosen career. Rarely have studies examined the career aspirations of musicians and much less how social and psychological influences impact on the career aspirations of music students. The purpose of this study is to identify the range of motivational forces as defined in Self-Determination Theory that influence the career aspirations of undergraduate music majors, as well as to investigate relationships between students’ aspirations and basic needs, on selected career development factors. Self-Determination Theory's framework of psychological needs and continuum of depth of intrinsic motivation consequently conveys an understanding of how a behaviour is developed, sustained, and satisfies needs. This theory was deemed as a suitable theoretical framework from which to examine how intending professional musicians define and explain their career aspirations. Findings suggest that the motivational aspirations of music undergraduates at the University of Melbourne ranged across the Self-Determination Theory dimensions from intrinsic motivation, integrated regulation, to identified regulation. These show that these students derived some enjoyment and pleasure from their musical involvement, with music satisfying their psychological needs, through a musical education that feeds their drive to become accomplished musicians. Parents, teachers, and peers were all reported by the students as influential in shaping their musical motivations. Discussion of these findings demonstrates how the students themselves personally reacted to the (external) influence of these significant others. Self-Determination Theory was found to be a useful tool in understanding career aspirations in music albeit partially, as there are other aspects within an individual’s behaviour that remain elusive and require further study. Findings from the study also suggest that the actual motives for one’s musical pursuit were even more extensive to those of which Self-Determination Theory encompasses.
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ItemComposition folio( 2009)At the age of nine, I began my musical studies in violin. Like so many musicians, I’d already been sold on my future career. I didn’t realize back then however that my musical journey would lead me to write. I didn’t come from a musical background, in fact, I can’t think of anyone in my family that played or sung. In my youth I played in various orchestras and ensembles, all classical, and enjoyed playing music in groups. Through my years of study, listening and playing, I have come to realize that no particular influence has come forth in my own music but each has come together to make my music what it is.