Sound Body
(2025)
author(s): Zornitsa Stoyanova
published in: Research Catalogue
Sound Body is a project created by Zornitsa Stoyanova(BUL/USA) and Peter Sciscioli (USA), with an international cast of artists.
The project was created over 8 workshops and rehearsal days in Sofia, Bulgaria.
This is a written description of the project done specifically for a Master's degree assignment.
KEYNOTE at SIMM-posium, November 2024, on Echoes from the torn down fourth wall
(2024)
author(s): Jacob Anderskov
published in: Research Catalogue
This is a exposition-version of a Keynote speech, held at SIMM-posium, Copenhagen, November 2024
Drawing on findings and experience from the Artistic Research project "Echoes from the torn down fourth wall", this keynote will explore key perspectives on building bridges between “art music” (whatever that means) and community singing. The research project began with an inquiry into audience participation within improvised concerts and has reinterpreted familiar Danish song material in an art music setting where the audience sings along in songs they know.
Topics will include proposals for understanding the social dynamics of participation and listening through the framework of 4e cognition; in this case, thinking of listening as embodied, embedded, enacted, and extended. The role of the spectator across different performance art domains will be examined, focusing on how the project has challenged notions and ideals of the spectator’s separation (or lack thereof) from the musical event.
Additionally, genre theory will be employed to rethink the distinctions and overlaps between “cultural” and “art” perspectives in the interpretation of inherited musical traditions. Approaches to possible renegotiations of musical traditions – whether through confirmation or destabilization – will also be discussed, partly in the Danish context of the project, but also extended more generally beyond this specific starting point.
Genklangen fra den væltede fjerde væg - DK version
(2024)
author(s): Jacob Anderskov
published in: Rhythmic Music Conservatory, Copenhagen
DK abstract: (scroll down for UK abstract)
Projektet “Genklangen fra den væltede fjerde væg” forsøger at bygge broer mellem kunstmusikken og fællesskabet, her repræsenteret ved den danske sangbog ‘Højskolesangbogen’. I et hybridt koncertformat, skabt til projektet, hvor en intens, abstraheret tilgang til det musikalske materiale er gennemgående, opstår i løbet af koncerterne adskillige passager med fællessang, hvor publikum synger med på sange de kender. Projektet har blandt andet undersøgt hvordan vi kunne skabe et musikalske miljø, der kan bygge bro over de forskellige positioner (kunstmusik og fællessang), hvordan ideer om lytterens/tilskuerens roller kan genforhandles indenfor forskellige kunstdomæner, og hvordan projektet fra et genre-teoretisk perspektiv kan opfattes som et møde mellem bekræftende og destabiliserende kræfter. Det, der bliver gentænkt i projektet, er ikke så meget selve fortiden og heller ikke nødvendigvis etablerede fortællinger om fortiden, men snarere mulige samtidige og fremtidige fortællinger om, hvordan vi kan genfortolke sange fra fortiden – sammen. Og det der opdages, er ikke så meget skjulte perspektiver i fortiden, men derimod skjulte potentialer i, hvordan en majoritetskulturel ’assemblage’ som Højskolesangbogen kan genforhandles. Samtidig nedbrydes barrierer mellem udøvende og lytter, og der etablere nye måder at opleve ny musik på. Og vi mindes om, at vi aldrig ved, hvordan vores kulturelle fortid bliver fortolket i morgen.
UK abstract:
The project “Echoes from the torn down fourth wall” aims to build bridges between contemporary-music-as-an-art-form and community singing within songs from the Danish songbook ‘Højskolesangbogen’. In a hybrid concert format created for the project, within the context of an abstracted approach to intense, improvised concert music, several passages with community singing occur, where the audience sings along in songs they know. The research process has investigated how to create a musical environment that might bridge the different positions (art music and community singing), how the idea of the listener/spectator can be negotiated within different art domains and how, from a genre perspective, the project can be narrated as a meeting between confirming and destabilising forces. What is being reimagined in the project is not so much the past itself, and not necessarily established narratives about the past, but rather possible current and future narratives of how we may reinterpret songs from the past – together. What is being revealed is not so much specific perspectives in the past but rather hidden potentials in how a majority cultural assemblage like Højskolesangbogen may be renegotiated.
Echoes from the torn down fourth wall - UK version
(2024)
author(s): Jacob Anderskov
published in: Rhythmic Music Conservatory, Copenhagen
The project “Echoes from the torn down fourth wall” aims to build bridges between contemporary-music-as-an-art-form and community singing within songs from the Danish songbook ‘Højskolesangbogen’.
In a hybrid concert format created for the project, within the context of an abstracted approach to intense, improvised concert music, several passages with community singing occur, where the audience sings along in songs they know.
The research process has investigated how to create a musical environment that might bridge the different positions (art music and community singing), how the idea of the listener/spectator can be negotiated within different art domains and how, from a genre perspective, the project can be narrated as a meeting between confirming and destabilising forces.
What is being reimagined in the project is not so much the past itself, and not necessarily established narratives about the past, but rather possible current and future narratives of how we may reinterpret songs from the past – together. What is being revealed is not so much specific perspectives in the past but rather hidden potentials in how a majority cultural assemblage like Højskolesangbogen may be renegotiated.
Echoes from the torn down fourth wall - Genklangen fra den væltede fjerde væg
(2024)
author(s): Jacob Anderskov
published in: Rhythmic Music Conservatory, Copenhagen
The project “Echoes from the torn down fourth wall” aims to build bridges between contemporary-music-as-an-art-form and community singing within songs from the Danish songbook ‘Højskolesangbogen’. In a hybrid concert format created for the project, within the context of an abstracted approach to intense, improvised concert music, several passages with community singing occur, where the audience sings along in songs they know. The research process has investigated how to create a musical environment that might bridge the different positions (art music and community singing), how the idea of the listener/spectator can be negotiated within different art domains and how, from a genre perspective, the project can be narrated as a meeting between confirming and destabilising forces. What is being reimagined in the project is not so much the past itself, and not necessarily established narratives about the past, but rather possible current and future narratives of how we may reinterpret songs from the past – together. What is being revealed is not so much specific perspectives in the past but rather hidden potentials in how a majority cultural assemblage like Højskolesangbogen may be renegotiated.
Abstract in Danish:
Projektet “Genklangen fra den væltede fjerde væg” forsøger at bygge broer mellem kunstmusikken og fællesskabet, her repræsenteret ved den danske sangbog ‘Højskolesangbogen’. I et hybridt koncertformat, skabt til projektet, hvor en intens, abstraheret tilgang til det musikalske materiale er gennemgående, opstår i løbet af koncerterne adskillige passager med fællessang, hvor publikum synger med på sange de kender. Projektet har blandt andet undersøgt hvordan vi kunne skabe et musikalske miljø, der kan bygge bro over de forskellige positioner (kunstmusik og fællessang), hvordan ideer om lytterens/tilskuerens roller kan genforhandles indenfor forskellige kunstdomæner, og hvordan projektet fra et genre-teoretisk perspektiv kan opfattes som et møde mellem bekræftende og destabiliserende kræfter. Det, der bliver gentænkt i projektet, er ikke så meget selve fortiden og heller ikke nødvendigvis etablerede fortællinger om fortiden, men snarere mulige samtidige og fremtidige fortællinger om, hvordan vi kan genfortolke sange fra fortiden – sammen. Og det der opdages, er ikke så meget skjulte perspektiver i fortiden, men derimod skjulte potentialer i, hvordan en majoritetskulturel ’assemblage’ som Højskolesangbogen kan genforhandles. Samtidig nedbrydes barrierer mellem udøvende og lytter, og der etablere nye måder at opleve ny musik på. Og vi mindes om, at vi aldrig ved, hvordan vores kulturelle fortid bliver fortolket i morgen.
Making a simple International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)—For singers, conductors and composers
(2023)
author(s): Bas Ammerlaan
published in: KC Research Portal
This research develops a simplification of a graphical resource: the International Phonetic Alphabet. The choices made to simplify it are based on an analysis of existing diction methods. The thesis format seemed most suitable for my research, as the IPA is a graphical notation method which is meant to be used by writing it down. (While it is of course used to notate sounds, these sounds themselves are not actually the focus of the research. There are also already an abundance of audio examples for the IPA symbols.)
The IPA can be a very useful aid for classical singers, from ensemble singers to soloists, but appears intimidating from the amount of symbols it has. This research looks at which IPA symbols are used and which are not used in five different diction methods for classical singers. These are systematically analysed and presented graphically to the reader to help visualise which of all the symbols presented on the IPA chart are regularly used by singers. The end result is practical in nature: a Simple IPA chart which uses only those symbols a classical singer really needs to sing the five main languages for classical singing: English, French, German, Italian and Latin.
Voicelanding - Exploring the scenographic potential of acoustic sound in site-sensitive performance
(2021)
author(s): Mareike Nele Dobewall
published in: Stockholm University of the Arts (SKH)
This practical artistic research project explores how the performance of acoustic sound in dialogue with site can create a sonic scenography, experienced by an audience from within the sonic structures.
Six art projects were carried out in the context of this research. Their form varies due to the site-sensitive approach that is employed: the space and the participating musicians are both the source and the frame for the resulting spatial sound performances.
During workshops the collaborating musicians are introduced to site-sensitive methods. They learn full-body listening, spatial sounding, and space-care. The musicians learn to co-create with the space. In a collaborative process, spatial sound compositions are created using the site-specific sonic material that is elicited from the dialogue between the performers and the space. The relation to the audience plays an important role in the sharing of the performance space and the experience of the sonic scenographies. Therefore, active audience encounter is considered during the creative process towards the performance and it is further explored during each performance.
As sound is invisible and ephemeral it is a vulnerable material to engage with when creating scenographies. In this research its instability has revealed itself as an indispensable quality of a scenography that aims to connect the elements of a shared space and make their relations perceivable.
There is a tendency to make ‘reliable’ material scenographies and to sustain spatial sound through audio systems while attempting to overcome the challenges a site brings to performance. This approach to performance, scenography, and spatial sound composition, however, limits the relation between acoustic sound and site. In my sonic scenographies the performers are dependent on the dialogue with the space in order to create sonic structures that can be experienced by an audience. The attention needed for this collaboration is space-care. It includes care for all entities in the space, and especially the audience. The ephemeral quality of acoustic sound creates an active sonic scenography that performs together with the musicians, and engages multimodal listening.
The resulting spatial sound performance includes the placement and movement of sonic expressions that are specific for each instrument-site relation. In the created performance, as the audience can ‘roam through’ it, they can experience a sonic scenography that unfolds around them. In the interaction of performers and audience in these shared spaces (architectural space and sonic space) a social space can develop that allows for an ephemeral community to emerge.
E quando mai potro cessar di piangere ? : an exploration of the links between arias with obbligato instruments and musical affects in Antonio Caldara’s oratorios composed between 1716 and 1736 for the Habsburg’s Hofmusikkapelle in Vienna
(2021)
author(s): Maud Haering
published in: KC Research Portal
Student Number
3262561
Supervisor
Inês de Avena Braga
Title
E quando mai potrò cessar di piangere ?
An exploration of the links between arias with obbligato instruments and musical affects in Antonio Caldara’s oratorios composed between 1716 and 1736 for the Habsburg’s Hofmusikkapelle in Vienna
Research Question
What is the link between obbligato instruments, text and affects in Antonio Caldara’s oratorios composed for the Vienna’s Hofmusikkapelle between 1716 and 1736?
Sub-questions
How can the creation of a descriptive catalogue of Caldara’s oratorios help uncover his choices for instrumentation in relation to the libretti and religious context?
How does Caldara’s choice of obbligato instrument emphasize the affects already present in the text?
Summary
The aim of this research is to rediscover music that has been forgotten for centuries. Through the topic of making links between obbligato instruments and affects in the texts from the libretti in Caldara's oratorios written when he was a composer at the Vienna Hofmusikkapelle, I would like to shine a light on new arias for voice and obbligato instruments which are, in my point of view, very beautiful and which deserve to be highlighted. Antonio Caldara needed to adapt to the imperial court music taste and also to its available instrumentarium, and from the day he started to compose for Charles VI, he began to use different instruments in his way of writing arias in his oratorios. In order to keep the focus of the research on his oratorios composed in Vienna, I purposefully will not discuss the considerable number of operas he composed in the same period, and I will contextualize these works thanks to a descriptive catalogue of each of the oratorios, to the translations of the texts of the arias, and by paying attention to the Habsburg dinasty in Vienna.
Short biography
Maud Haering is a French soprano. After studying Medieval Music at the Sorbonne University of Paris (France), she decided to continue her specialization in the Early Music repertoire in singing more Baroque and Renaissance music. With several ensembles, she performed different baroques styles (Italian, German, English and French) of different periods (17th and 18th centuries) either secular or sacred. Always looking for new repertoire to discover and sing, she really enjoys going into libraries to see manuscripts or to explore the thousands of resources available online to find new pieces. This research about Caldara is one of her explorations.
Russian school of singing in the 19th century
(2021)
author(s): Orsolya Janszová
published in: Research Catalogue
Short article about the historical development of the Russian school of singing in the 19th century
Singing and Well-being - The Experiences of Professional Choir Singers
(2020)
author(s): Laura Ginström
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Laura Ginström
Main subject: Ensemble Singing
Supervisor: Gerda van Zelm
Title of research: Singing and Well-being - The Experiences of Professional Choir Singers
Research question: How do professional choir singers describe the effects of singing and the professional life on their well-being, and what is the importance and effect of singing-related well-being for my own artistic development?
Summary of results:
Singing in choirs has been an integral part of my life, and I have personally experienced enjoyable physical sensations, positive emotions and social bonding associated with choir singing. Researching this topic further, I learned that these experiences can be described as singing-related well-being. According to a growing number of studies amateur choir singing produces various beneficial effects on health and well-being. Research on professional singers about their experiences and occupational well-being has been much scarcer. Based on the limited studies, they might not enjoy all of the same benefits of singing as amateurs do. The goal of this research was to start closing this research gap and to learn what professional choir singers have to say about singing-related well-being. I created an online questionnaire to gather experiences from professional singers, and also kept a diary of my own well-being experiences during professional choir projects. Analysing these two sources of data revealed that professional singers did recognise many of the well-being experiences associated with singing. However, professional choir singing was not perceived as something especially relaxing or therapeutic, which are common themes emerged from research on amateurs. The social aspects of choir work were deemed important in experiencing singing-related well-being, as well as the conductor’s artistic approach. For me personally, these well-being experiences have been the motivation for my career choice and for this research, and they also serve as an indicator of my development as a musician.
The format of this research is a thesis.
Biography:
Laura Ginström (1992) is a Finnish mezzo-soprano who has studied vocal pedagogy and clinical psychology in Helsinki. Her love for choir singing brought her to The Hague, where she started in the new Master Specialisation Ensemble singing at The Royal Conservatoire in 2018. She currently studies with Noa Frenkel and sings projects with The Netherlands Chamber Choir as a part of the master’s course. She is passionate about combining her two careers in singing and psychology, being particularly interested in the beneficial effects of singing on the body and the mind.
La pratica degli affetti - The practice of affections
(2020)
author(s): Elisa De Toffol
published in: KC Research Portal
Research question: How the relationship between seconda prattica (Claudio Monteverdi) and poetica del gesto (Luciano Berio) can be absorbed in a singing study process and which are the practical results/vocal consequences?
Abstract:
This research wants to investigate through a personal vocal approach the nature of the connection between music and text in Claudio Monteverdi’s and Luciano Berio’s compositions. It started with my personal wish as a singer to be able to express feelings behind words in such a way that the relation between both becomes more clear. I found in the connection between these two composers the perfect ground to build this vocal study path which I documented with recordings. This vocal path has proven to be full of inspiration and stimuli: on one side the open, honest and modern full of love language of Monteverdi, which shapes the harmony according to the meaning of the text (pone l’armonia serva all’orazione). On the other side the inspiring, rich, creative and fascinating writing of Luciano Berio that with his poetics of the gesture seems to reveal in a direct and elegant way a world of infinite possibilities of colorful combinations between musical sounds and words. This research exposition, is divided in four main chapters. The first one is an introduction to Monteverdi and his seconda prattica in which the doctrine of affections is exposed with a special focus at the Lamento d'Arianna along with my research about vocal interpretation. The second chapter describes the musical context in Italy at the beginning of the 20th-century observing how the new composers looked back at the past and in particular at Monteverdi and his contemporaries; in the third chapter Luciano Berio's poetics of gesture will be exposed and it will be observed how some of his composition refer to Monteverdi's seconda prattica. A final chapter will show, with a video recording, my vocal research during the approach to their music.
Masterprosjekt - monodrama
(2019)
author(s): Ragnhild Thu Austnaberg
published in: NMH Student Portal
Dokumentasjon av mitt masterprosjekt i klassisk sang ved Norges Musikkhøgskole.
The Music of Johann Rudolph Ahle
(2018)
author(s): Jacob Gramit
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Jacob Gramit
Main Subject: Early Music Singing
Research Supervisor: Kathryn Cok
Title of Research: The Music of Johann Rudolph Ahle: Editorial and Performance Issues Surrounding the 1658 Neu-Gepflanzter Thüringischer Lustgarten
Research Question: How can creating a critical-performance edition of the music of Johann Rudolph Ahle impact my performance of his music?
Summary of Results:
Having always been drawn to German Music of the seventeenth century, I found a collection of music from Johann Rudolph Ahle (1623-1673) that was largely unknown and unperformed. This enabled me to start from nothing when creating an edition and researching Ahle's life and music; meaning I could see what effect the process would have on my performance. By doing detailed research into a specific collection, looking at both his compositional style and his use of pre-existing texts and music, I discovered Ahle's seeming fascination with personal spirituality, leading to new ideas for the performance of his music.
Biography:
Originally from Edmonton Canada, Jacob Gramit is currently living in the Netherlands, pursuing a Master’s Degree in The Hague, studying with Pascal Bertin, Peter Kooij, Dorothee Mields, Robin Blaze, and Lenie van den Heuvel. Recently, he both prepared the edition and performed in Michael Chance’s production of Cavalli’s Giasone, and upcoming projects include Handel’s Dixit Dominus with Holland Baroque and Cappella Amsterdam.
Before moving abroad, Jacob lived in Vancouver, where he still performs - most recently he performed in the 2017 Vancouver Bach Festival, and coordinated the Summer Festival of Sacred Music at Christ Church Cathedral, which he will return to run in 2018. He attended the University of British Columbia (BMus, 2012), and sang for three seasons with musica intima, a professional and self-directed vocal ensemble.
Building Bridges Between the Modern Composer and Classically Trained Singer
(2018)
author(s): Georgi Sztojanov
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Georgi Sztojanov
Main Subject: Classical Singing
Research Supervisor: Anna Scott, Yannis Kyriakides
Title of Research: Building a Bridge Between the Contemporary Composer and Classically-Trained Singer
Research Question: How can the aesthetic oxymoron between the wishes of modern composers and the needs of singers be mediated or resolved, and what changes could be made on both sides in order to achieve a more fruitful relationship, resulting in compositions that are both singable and that explore the voice's potential beyond its Classical boundaries?
Summary of Results:
As a case study, I document the process of learning the tenor solo in Louis Andriessen's De Materie, and discuss how my classical training helped me to sing this demanding part even though it is not meant to be sung with a Romantic sound. After discussing two further projects in which I acted as a mediator between composers and singers, I found my initial suspicions to be true: many composers do not receive enough education in composing for the voice, meaning that they do not respect its physical limitations, they often misjudge the combination of ranges, dynamics and colors possible, and they believe that any singer can reproduce any sound (regardless of culture, style, or tradition). Clearly, studying these elements while working closely with singers would be one solution, as would choosing a more performer-centric notational system including expression markings and other indications that invite singers to find the intention or subtext behind the music—all of which can help the singer's instrument work more effectively. For their part, singers need more training in music theory, solfege and score reading skills, and while they need to master their classical technique, they must also be openminded and flexible enough to experiment beyond that training—while staying within the healthy limits of their sound production, and knowing how to communicate in order to preserve these boundaries. This study helped me to successfully mediate between composer-singer collaborators, and I hope to turn my findings into a booklet for those looking to create beautiful and exciting new vocal works together—not in spite of one another.
Biography:
Georgi Sztojanov has two MAs in composition from the Liszt Academy in Budapest and The Royal Conservatoire of The Hague. He obtained his BA in singing in 2016 with Sasja Hunnego. As both singer and composer he has broad experience with vocal premieres, multidisciplinary collaborative works, and leading ensembles and festivals. He received the Tenso Young Composers Award in 2014. As a composer he has a wide spectrum of works, and as a singer his activities are equally diverse, ranging from opera to lied, numerous premieres, staged productions, and ensemble singing (recently as a member of Groot Omroepkoor).
Ornamenting Vocality. Intra-active methodology for Vocal Meaning-Making.
(2018)
author(s): Elisabeth Laasonen Belgrano
published in: RUUKKU - Studies in Artistic Research
This exposition departs from the silence of a non-existing voice. A voice about to touch the ears and eyes of both author and readers/listeners. A voice already sounding in the head of the author - sounding as thoughts, words, letters and sentences. A non/voice being part of a never ending development of new materialities. An onto-epistemological voice diffracted through a singer's process of making sense of a lesson from a 17th century vocal manuscript. A voice as a mattering method for the art of singing through new materialist theories, vocal and discursive narratives and somatic awareness.
Singing in the Music Theory Lesson: A model for how singing can be used as an effective teaching tool for a practical approach to the subject of music theory
(2016)
author(s): Ewan Gibson
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Ewan Gibson
Subject: Music Theory
Research Supervisor: Laszlo Némes
Title of Research: Singing in the Music Theory Lesson - A model for how singing can be used as an effective teaching tool for a practical approach to the subject of music theory
Abstract:
In a typical music theory programme, the act of singing is often confined to the single skill of sight-reading prima vista. My background as a school teacher has taught me that singing can be used in a variety of ways to help children to learn skills such as reading and aural skills and so my wish is to investigate ways in which singing can be used in a music theory lesson at a conservatoire level.
In the last few years at the Koninklijk Conservatorium (Royal Conservatoire of The Hague), the music theory department has been investigating ways in which skills can be transferred across disciplines. One change that has been made is that many music theory related subjects are now taught as a single subject. Teachers are now free to make connections where ever they are found. My own interest is on the use of singing as a tool to achieve these ends.
My own investigation, as show in this research paper, will show models of lessons that can be created where singing is used as a core part of the lesson. A range of skills can be developed and theoretical concepts understood when singing activities are sequenced well and taught carefully. The result will be a model for other teachers to use and adapt for their own teaching.
In addition, the result of the research has also produced a collection of vocal material for teachers to use in lesson in order to encourage singing with advise on how to use it within a lesson.
Biography
Ewan L. Gibson comes originally from Wales in the United Kingdom. His previous studies include Bachelor of Music (University of Exeter), Postgraduate Certificate of Education (Oxford Brookes University), and Master of Music (Royal Conservatoire of Scotland). He has worked in the field of music education as a teacher in schools and conservatoires. As a qualified school teacher, Ewan has taught in a variety of schools in the U.K. and in international schools in The Netherlands. These have included everything from pre-school to 18 years old. In addition, he has worked for the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, The National Youth Choir of Scotland and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra as a musicianship teacher, choral conductor and singing teacher. He has also given many workshop shops to music teachers on the use of singing in schools and teaching music literacy skills to children.
Body Language
(2016)
author(s): Charlotte Houberg
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Charlotte Houberg
Main Subject: Classical Singing Research Supervisor: Gerda van Zelm
Title of Research:
Body language of a singer on stage
Research Question:
How can a singer on stage use his body language to support his expression?
Summary of Results:
By the use of different research methods, there have been created ideas and strategies to become aware of your body language and how to use it in a confident way on stage. Body language is, next to singing, an equally important communication tool for singers on stage. It shows knowledge of the movements of the body and understanding of the role or character. The libretto can be translated into body language, so the audience can understand it without knowing exactly what text is sung. It can be concluded that all body parts can be chosen to show a certain mood which fits within the role or character. Gestures do not have to be over- exaggerated, because the audience is able to see and interpret small signs, even from a distance. Consciously chosen body language is easier to decode than spontaneous body language and can be more convincing, even though the singer is not in that certain
mood. Body language is part of the luggage of a singer and a tool for showing his expression and intentions.
I chose for the form of a research paper, because I would like to share new or expanded knowledge with my colleagues by doing an in-depth research.
Biography:
Charlotte (1991) takes part in Studio 32, an opera studio of her teacher Henny Diemer. She sang the roles Amor (Cadmus et Hermione), Zerlina (Don Giovanni) and Bess (Porgy and Bess). She had a tour with Sinfonia Rotterdam and sang solo with several Dutch orchestras. In Jordan she performed Miroir de Peine of Andriessen with the Amman Orchestra. She has been invited for chamber concerts and has given song recitals on several stages of the Netherlands. From the oratorio repertoire she sings regularly the Matthew Passion (Bach) and the requiem (Fauré and Mozart). She will sing the role First Witch in the new opera of Andriessen (The Theatre of the World) in LA and Amsterdam.
The use of Bel Canto singing in the Italian opera of the XVIII century
(2015)
author(s): Mariana Andrade Pimenta
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Mariana Andrade Pimenta
Main Subject: Early Music Singing
Research Coach: Inês de Avena Braga
Title of Research: The technical principles of Bel Canto in the 18th and 19th centuries:
an experimental case study on dynamic range
Research Question: How did the vocal exercises from Bel Canto singing influence my
singing technique, especially in the dynamic range associated with pitch?
Summary of Results:
The format chosen by the author for this investigation was the Research Paper, as this
study required an investment on knowledge about Bel Canto singing technique and the
application of the latest into her singing practice, which resulted into a deep reflection
and reached new conclusions. The focus of the practical sessions of the author was on her
dynamic range. The purpose was to increase flexibility in her dynamic range in the
different registers of the voice. The research went through the following process: (1) an
audio recording of G. F. Händel aria: “Se Pietà di me non senti”, from the opera Giulio
Cesare; (2) in this same phase of the research, she used the software Voice Profiler 5.1 to
record her Voice Range Profile (VRP), the same piece and the vowel /a/, throughout the
vocal registers, exploring the complete dynamic range of her voice; (3) after three months
of practicing specific exercises designed to train the dynamic range, the same recordings
were made and also a comparison with the first ones. The results indicated that the
training had an impact: An increase of flexibility in realizing Messa di Voce was verified
in the author’s middle vocal register. This impact did not happen in the highest vocal
register, where technical differences were not detected by the VRP recording. The latest
result is also applicable in the Händel aria. This method has proved to be beneficial in the
middle section of the author’s vocal range. The appliance of this method is a work in
process, which the author believes that it should bring more beneficial results; it offered
the author a much bigger awareness of the breathing system, which resulted in a better
quality Messa di Voce. The knowledge gained from the sources from the 18th and 19th
centuries, guided the practical study in this investigation. In future studies, the author
wishes to further research Italian vocal technique and use this important knowledge of
historical information by transferring it to her singing practice. The outcome of the
present study is an interesting interdisciplinary fusion between Old Italian vocal
pedagogy of Bel canto singing and advanced vocal technology.
Biography:
Mariana Pimenta is a soprano born in Madeira Island, Portugal. She graduated in
Classical singing in Aveiro, Portugal in 2011 and started her specialization in Early
Music Singing at the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague in 2012. As a performer Mariana
has been performing as a soloist and in ensemble singing, in some countries, as The
Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and Ecuador.
Cranio Sacral Therapy and Singing
(2014)
author(s): Anna Walker
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Anna Walker
Main Subject: Classical Singing
Research Coaches: Yvonne Smeets and Ami Shamir
Title of Research: Craniosacral Therapy and Singing
Research Question: How can craniosacral therapy be relevant in helping singers free up their voices and overcome physical obstructions to make them better performers?
Research Process: My goal was to understand more about why craniosacral therapy (CST) has helped my singing so much and to find out whether it could also help other singers become freer artists on stage. Studying literature by osteopaths and CST therapists such as John Upledger, Michael Shea, David McFarland and Michael Kern has given me insight about the nature of CST, its background in osteopathy and some basic knowledge of anatomy. In addition to the theoretical background I used my own journey with CST as an example and looked closely at how CST has helped me. I interviewed my singing teachers Gerda van Zelm and Rita Dams and my osteopath Ami Shamir about my technical and artistic progress and wrote about my own perception of the development. To understand more about how CST and singing could work together I interviewed Hamburg-based singer, singing teacher and CST therapist Stefanie Hoffmann.
Summary of Results: CST, which has its roots in osteopathy, uses gentle manual techniques to detect and release restrictions that occur in the body as a reaction to trauma (injury, surgery, illness). The rhythm of the cerebrospinal fluid that flows around the brain and the spinal cord, called craniosacral wave, is a stable motion that is not influenced by heart rate or breathing. It is palpable because its waves are transmitted through membranes enveloping all structures of the body (fascia) and can therefore be used to detect areas of restricted movement. Some areas of the body are frequently places of restricted craniosacral movement, e.g. all major transverse/horizontal structures such as diaphragm, pelvic floor, cranial base and thoracic inlet. These areas happen to be crucial for singing as well. For example a free diaphragm is very important for a singer’s breath support or a free jaw and neck (connected to cranial base and thoracic inlet) are crucial for flexible articulation. CST’s techniques for release of the transverse structures can therefore be highly beneficial for a singer. The body’s numerous functional connections can produce symptoms as a sort of chain reaction in various parts of the body after trauma. CST can help find the cause of the problem and help release the tension by facilitating the body’s own motion. My development as a singer has been greatly supported by CST, because CST was the therapy form which addressed my initial problem (difficult birth, vacuum delivery: pressure on head, neck and spine) at its core, at the level of the nervous system. My body reacted to this treatment with (lasting) structural changes, which have made breathing, articulating and resonating easier for me. CST is certainly a good tool for a singer to become more aware of his/her body. It can also help a singer whose development is impaired by physical obstacles that pure functional voice training cannot solve.
Combining Coco, Arranging for Het Coco Collectief
(2014)
author(s): Jannelieke Schmidt
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Jannelieke Schmidt
Main Subject: Classical Singing
Research Coach: Patrick van Deurzen
Title of Research: Combining Coco, Arranging for “Het Coco Collectief”
Research Question:How do I arrange from a market, artistic, voice technique and stylistic point of view mostly single-voiced by piano accompanied music for “Het Coco Collectief” which consists of five sopranos and one pianist?
Research Process: In order to develop my skills, theoretic knowledge and insight in the process of making arrangements I studied sources concerning music theory and chord writing, I made several arrangements, I interviewed arrangers and singers, I had my fellow Coco colleagues answer questions about their preferences concerning singing in the ensemble and I analysed my arrangements.
Summary of Results:
My paper contains all the information I gathered over a two year research period. It has become a little handbook of tips, tricks and rules. I gained skill and knowledge mainly through trial and error, rehearsals with the ensemble and analysing my interviews and questionnaires. I arranged three pieces by Rossini (La pastorelle delle Alpi, La Danza, La legend de Marguerite) one piece by William Bomcom (Amor) one piece by Johannes Röntgen (Op een Kwal) and one piece by Bizet (Adieux de l’hotesse Arabe). I used La Danza en La legend de Marguerite as material to compare arrangements before and after my research in order to detect differences in choice making and using gained knowledge and skill. I used Op een Kwal en Adieux de l’hotesse Arabe in order to explain how a piece changes through a rehearsal process and adapting the piece for either stage of radio.
Through talking to the arrangers and working on my pieces together with my coco colleagues and my research coach I found what I was looking for: skill. From the beginning of this research I was looking for justification of my choices. I found that for me to feel secure of my work I needed those two years of thinking that rules is all I needed. That if I could explain an idea by saying it there because of a style or historical context, from a voice technical of personality choice, from Coco’s image or other peoples opinion my arrangement would be good enough. If I could find arguments and explanations for why I did what I did, I should not have to justify why I dare to rearrange already ‘perfect’ repertoire. I created the handbook, containing tips tricks and rules: music theory, all the knowledge shared with me during interviews, Coco’s preferences, all the rules are there. Everything in order to be able to let go of them if it pleases me. My choices are still based on knowledge but now I can consciously use or not use the rules. I have developed a greater trust in my own artistic ideas about the pieces I arranged. I have developed a greater understanding of what it is to write for this ensemble, for these people. And as said before I have created a little booklet of rules for anyone who wants to arrange for voices and piano. During my presentation Het Coco Collectief will sing both La Danza and Adieux de l’hotesse Arabe.
Eclatante Amarante. A portait of the French Singer Anne Chabanceau de La Barre (1628-1688)
(last edited: 2024)
author(s): Elisabeth Laasonen Belgrano
This exposition is in progress and its share status is: visible to all.
A journey through the language of passions inspired by the life of the French soprano Anne Chabanceau de La Barre (1628-1688). Highlighting her career in Paris, but also her sojourn at the court of Queen Christina of Sweden (1653-1654), it features her repertory from the Kings chamber, the 'ballets de our' and the 'salons'. Shifting from music to poetry to narration, the project explores how Mlle de La Barre and other female performers in the seventeenth century moved their listeners by expressing the affects through the mirror of the soul - the voice. Music by M. Lambert, S. Le Camus, A-M-. Bartlett, C. Huyghens, P. Chabanceau de La Barre, J. Chabanceau de La Barre, J.-B. Lully & L. Rossi.
[61:55]
Elisabeth Belgrano, voice
Lucas Harris, theorb, lute
Carlene Strober, viola da gamba
Jennifer Ellis, voice
℗© 2004 Elisabeth Belgrano
www.elibelgrano.org
EB2004
Antonio Montagnana
(last edited: 2023)
author(s): Lars Klamer
This exposition is in progress and its share status is: visible to all.
Antonio Montagnana was an Italian bass opera singer who achieved immense succes and fame during his lifetime, performing in the premieres of many great baroque operas.
Thinking by Singing/ Singing by Thinking, or The art of Performing Translation through Japanese philosopher Kitaro Nishida’s concept of Acting-Intuition
(last edited: 2022)
author(s): Elisabeth Laasonen Belgrano
This exposition is in progress and its share status is: visible to all.
The aim of this paper is to present a performative encounter between a singing/thinking voice and the Japanese philosophical concept of Acting-Intuition proposed by Kitarō Nishida (1870-1945), founder of the Kyoto School (of Japanese Philosophy) around 1913. Departing from a vocal investigation of French composer Michel Lambert’s Leçons de Ténèbres (ca. 1664), the performer follows the thoughts crystallizing in the very act of singing. This intuitive act complies to Nishidas view of “our active engagement with our surroundings” and “never just the passivity of pure reception” (Krummel 2015:87). In the act of singing the singer and song are shaped along with the shaping of space itself. Thus, while singing a song and a space the singer is acted upon by both space and the song. In this way, acting-intuition proves to be a concrete mode of human existence in the world’s dynamism, providing a non-dual platform for determining human living. In the process of singing in a space along with an audience, the listeners are involved in the intuitive act and as well as in the translation process of incorporating ‘the other’ as well as “developing one’s identity” (Bouso 2016:112) The thinking by singing can thus be regarded as an experience of translating and transporting meaning from one place to another. Acting-Intuition can also be used a philosophical tool, for reminding us to “rethink our own linguistic categories, to reflect on ourselves at the same time as we reflect on others” (Bouso 2016:113). Applying Acting-Intuition as an artistic research methodology, might perhaps even help us re-envisioning a sense of trust and an “eternal link among all living beings, all beings in their aliveness, this shared transience, and the possibilities for renewal that follow downsfall”, allowing us to “facing the im/possibilities of living on a damaged planet” (Barad 2017:75).
“Lasciatemi morire” o farò “La Finta Pazza”: Embodying Vocal Nothingness on Stage in Italian and French 17th century Operatic Laments and Mad Scenes.
(last edited: 2021)
author(s): Elisabeth Laasonen Belgrano
This exposition is in progress and its share status is: visible to all.
This music research drama thesis explores and presents a singer’s artistic research process from the first meeting with a musical score until the first steps of the performance on stage. The aim has been to define and formulate an understanding in sound as well as in words around the concept of pure voice in relation to the performance of 17th century vocal music from a 21st century singer’s practice-based perspective with reference to theories on nothingness, the role of the 17th century female singer, ornamentation (over-vocalization) and the singing of the nightingale. The music selected for this project is a series of lamentations and mad scenes from Italian and French 17th century music dramas and operas allowing for deeper investigation of differences and similarities in vocal expression between these two cultural styles.
The thesis is presented in three parts: a Libretto, a performance of the libretto (DVD) and a Cannocchiale (that is, a text following the contents of the Libretto). In the libretto the Singer’s immediate inner images, based on close reading of the musical score have been formulated and performed in words, but also recorded and documented in sound and visual format, as presented in the performance on the DVD. In the Cannocchiale, the inner images of the Singer’s encounter with the score have been observed, explored, questioned, highlighted and viewed in and from different perspectives.
The process of the Singer is embodied throughout the thesis by Mind, Voice and Body, merged in a dialogue with the Chorus of Other, a vast catalogue of practical and theoretical references including an imagined dialogue with two 17th century singers.
As a result of this study, textual reflections parallel to vocal experimentation have led to a deeper understanding of the importance of considering the concept of nothingness in relation to Italian 17th century vocal music practice, as suggested in musicology. The concept of je-ne-sais-quoi in relation to the interpretation of French 17th century vocal music, approached from the same performance methodology and perspective as has been done with the Italian vocal music, may provide a novel approach for exploring the complexity involved in the creative process of a performing artist.
Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Performance in Theatre and Music Drama
at the Academy of Music and Drama,
Faculty of Fine, Applied, and Performing Arts,
University of Gothenburg
ArtMonitor dissertation No 25
ArtMonitor is a publication series from
the Board for Artistic Research (NKU),
Faculty of Fine, Applied, and Performing Arts,
University of Gothenburg
A list of publications is added at the end of the book.
ArtMonitor
University of Gothenburg
Faculty Office of Fine, Applied, and Performing Arts
Storgatan 43
PO Box 141
SE 405 30 Gothenburg
Sweden
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ISBN: 978-91-978477-4-2
Gian Majidi Singing Journey
(last edited: 2021)
author(s): Gigi Gian
This exposition is in progress and its share status is: visible to all.
Who am I? Kuka minä olen? Do I have any answer for this? I do not know yet and maybe whole of this long trip will remain the same. Uncertainty will be the cause and the result.
Should I try to be someone else or something else? Can I do that? How? What's happened to me? Why I am here and now?
This is question which i am looking to give some answer. If I do not know who I am, how you want to know about me?
I give you some pictures and feelings to make you happy about me, to make you at ease about me. let's walk and recall some memories together.
I have been writing poems and novels, screenplays and theaters, I was writing about music and movies. I have been playing and acting. I have loved performances and always communicating with people.
Sound Body is a project created by Zornitsa Stoyanova(BUL/USA) and Peter Sciscioli (USA), with an international cast of artists. The project was created over 8 workshops and rehearsal days in Sofia, Bulgaria. This is a written description of the project done specifically for a Master's degree assignment.open exposition comments (0)
Dokumentasjon av mitt masterprosjekt i klassisk sang ved Norges Musikkhøgskole.open exposition comments (0)
This exposition departs from the silence of a non-existing voice. A voice about to touch the ears and eyes of both author and readers/listeners. A voice already sounding in the head of the author - sounding as thoughts, words, letters and sentences. A non/voice being part of a never ending development of new materialities. An onto-epistemological voice diffracted through a singer's process of making sense of a lesson from a 17th century vocal manuscript. A voice as a mattering method for the art of singing through new materialist theories, vocal and discursive narratives and somatic awareness.open exposition comments (0)
Who am I? Kuka minä olen? Do I have any answer for this? I do not know yet and maybe whole of this long trip will remain the same. Uncertainty will be the cause and the result. Should I try to be someone else or something else? Can I do that? How? What's happened to me? Why I am here and now? This is question which i am looking to give some answer. If I do not know who I am, how you want to know about me? I give you some pictures and feelings to make you happy about me, to make you at ease about me. let's walk and recall some memories together. I have been writing poems and novels, screenplays and theaters, I was writing about music and movies. I have been playing and acting. I have loved performances and always communicating with people.open exposition comments (0)