Research & Teaching
"What Happened to Seaton Snook?"
PhD in Music Composition at University of Southampton
Supervisors: Matthew Shlomowitz and Drew Crawford
A practice-based research project, for which I am curating an archive of sounds and music from and related to the quasi-fictional County Durham coastal resort of Seaton Snook, which mysteriously disappeared in 1968 without a trace.
The project explores the blending of historical and fictional events, and the practise of sonic journalism in creative practice.
To find out more, visit seatonsnook.com
Early Modern Soundscapes Network
AHRC-funded international research network examining how sonic interaction shaped identities c. 1500-1800.
In association with principal investigator Dr Rachel Willie (Liverpool John Moores Univeristy) and the National Trust, I am composing soundscapes and interactive sound walks to be experienced by visitors to Speke Hall, a Tudor house on the outskirts of Liverpool.
The pieces involve historical investigations into Catholic recusants during the Reformation, and still-relevant issues surrounding persecution and hidden identities. I explore the fascinating acoustic qualities of Speke Hall itself, with all its minstrel galleries, priest holes, and eavesdrops...
Jazz as Social Machine
Alan Turing Institute Pilot Project
As a postgraduate student in electroacoustic composition, I am part of a team working on the relationship between Artificial Intelligence and jazz improvisation. The project argues that jazz is a "social machine" that converts the "data" of the myriad performers, audience members, historical influences, social and political issues, and so on, converting it all via interaction into meaning.
The project is led by Turing Fellow Dr Thomas Irvine of the University of Southampton, and will collaborate with project partners in Taiwan and the United States.
Soundscapes in Poor Theatre
Workshop for drama/theatre studies
GCSE to Degree level; can be adapted for younger students
Non-verbal sound plays an important part in theatre, but often the sonic possibilities are left unexplored beyond obvious sound effects and incidental music. In this workshop, we will look at ways of creating soundscapes that fundamentally affect the not only the tone of a piece, but also the performance of the actors, and the experience of the audience. No experience in technology is required - in Poor Theatre tradition, we will be using just our voices and bodies.
Originally delivered for 1st and 2nd year drama students at University of West of England, Bristol
In addition, I am involved as a teaching assistant on undergraduate music production and music composition modules at the University of Southampton.