Aesthetics is to do with relations. Relational aesthetics can be considered to offer conclusions about how one thinks about the ontology o f art, the nature of the relationship o f artworks with space and time, appropriate analytical approaches to artworks, and the debate as to whether music can ‘do’ philosophy. The practice-led component o f this research has been an important aspect o f the illustration and elucidation o f my points. M y practice-as-m ethodology approach allows me to do conceptual analysis through practice which crucially allows me to make conclusions without having arrived at them through language. By explaining the concept o f relational aesthetics, and analysing w hether it is an epistemological construct arising from existing artworks or an ontological construct from which artworks arise it is possible to show how practice-led research has an important contribution to make to the consideration o f aesthetic problems. These aesthetic problems relate to the particular case o f music and its prior consideration as a special or different case within the ontology o f artworks themselves: considering the case o f music from the starting points of practice and theory, relational aesthetics can prove the music is not an exceptional case at
all. A combination o f poststructuralist analysis o f existing (theoretical and musical) work and practice-led conceptual analysis allows further conclusions to be drawn regarding the ‘w ork’ itself, its ontology and definition, and other
musical features such as quotation and borrowing, and the relationship with time and space. Existing thought, music, and philosophy, have a contribution to make to all o f these discussions, but the inclusion o f relational aesthetics in these individual investigations makes it possible to conclude that: the work does not
exist; there can be supposed to be a work-function which creates the illusion o f the work; time and space should be considered topologically different from the real line in order to define them correctly with respect to the work; quotation can be used as a material exemplar in all o f these cases. Indeed, the historicity of material and its consequences for aesthetic and artistic autonomy are important factors in the re-reading o f all o f the aspects o f the work presented here. The result o f this investigation is the conclusion o f the ontological basis of relations, with respect to the work o f art, and the assertion that an experiential rather than creator-led approach to the art work is most appropriate when assessing works of
music, and indeed all works of art.
Abstracts for Pieces
in the back there was a pigeon (c) [open instrumentation]
This piece considers various settings o f the tantum ergo and their status now and
at the time o f their composition. It approaches the perform ative nature o f
liturgy and musical canon from the stand point o f examining whether in their
structural repetition the creation o f their meaning can be identified.
as a name i am a myth [bcl; vln; hpschd; voices on tape; public address loudspeaker]
This piece reviews the status o f chamber music within the concert hall by
examining the possible forms it might take and the messages that these forms
might send. It also places chamber music within a larger tradition o f writing and
thinking about music, and questions whether this tradition is itself legitimate.
love speed and thrills [open instrumentation; tape; public address loudspeaker;
video projection]
love speed and thrills analyses the effect o f a proliferation o f signifiers within one
piece by making them explicitly distinct from each other. Thus music, image,
instruction, and text all become seemingly separate and yet integrated within the
course o f the piece.
the empiricist view [large ensemble]
the empiricist view examines the relationship between an ensemble as a unit, its
members, the concert hall, and the music which is played. T his is exem plified in
the kaleidoscopic nature o f the musical material and the construction o f a
‘concert’ for solo ’cello within this theatre which itself is built from a solo ‘cello
piece intended to be a performance within a theatrical performance.
the enigma machine
the enigma machine i: hendecaptych o f bans memling [mezzosoprano; bfl; vco]
the enigma machine 2a:properties and essence^ [pc; afl]
the enigma machine 2b: [no subtitle] [tr; hn]
the enigma machine y archipelago [music boxes]
the enigma machine 4: the historicity o f cartography [cl; pno; perc]
the enigma machine y de nostra re, [organ]
A s a project the enigma machine^ examines different kinds o f structural and
mediaeval relationships in a variety o f chamber works. These pieces explore
quotation and relationships with other art works as their starting points and
demonstrate the multitude o f interrelationships possible from the construction
o f music from limited material.
green angel [a chamber opera]
green angel is a collaborative opera written between Adam Strickson (librettist)
and myself. It combines aspects o f opera, N oh theatre, mediaevalism, quotation,
intertextuality, and interrelationships in exploring the em otional journey o f a
single character. A s such it also touches on themes o f nature, metamorphosis,
and identity.