Research Catalogue

an international database for artistic research

• 3. Internal publication Research published in this issue are only for internal circulation within the Royal Conservatoire, The Hague.
• 2. Royal Conservatoire Investigations Royal Conservatoire Investigations
• 1. Master Research Projects All research in KC

• Romanticism and its heritage: The piano transcription (2015) author(s): Goran Filipec Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Name: Goran Filipec Main Subject: Classical Piano Research Coach: Andrew Wright Title of Research: Romanticism and its heritage: The piano transcription Research Question: Where is the phenomenon of the transcription coming from? Are there similar creations in other arts that it could be compared with? How to differentiate artistic transcription from a technical one, and what are the means used in its creation that make this difference? Summary of Results: In my artistic work transcriptions attracted much of my attention and I had the opportunity to play and perform them often in concert. It is relatively easy to remark that many transcriptions from Romanticism are not often performed anymore. A big part of them however can still be considered high quality piano pieces. That fact opened for me important questions about the source of the transcription, and its essence. While trying to answer to these questions I pursued a musicological research combined with practical analysis of different sound makings necessary to create adequate acoustic effects. I found that categorizing transcriptions and their main characteristics in comparison to their original sources suggests immediately an interpretative guideline. For example a textual and ideal independence from the original could suggest a more free interpretation. On the other side, the transcription, which is trying to reproduce original ideas with different means, implies more respect of the original piece. Biography: Goran Filipec was born in 1981 in Croatia where he received his first music lessons. He studied piano at the Academy Ino Mirkovich, Zagreb Music Aacademy, Oxana Yablonskaya Piano Institute, Schola Cantorum and Moscow conservatory “P.I.Tchaikovsky”. He performed as soloist in Europe, USA, South America and Japan, and was awarded several top prizes at international piano competitions such as José Iturbi (USA), Premio Mario Zanfi (Italy), Gabala International Piano Competition (Azerbaijan) and Concours Ile de France. He has recorded for Naxos (CD), France 2, Radio Suisse Romande and other radio and TV channels.
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• Korean contemporary recorder music (2015) author(s): Jeong Guk Lee Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Name: Jeong Guk Lee Main Subject: Recorder Research Coaches: Inês de Avena Braga, Ji Youn Kang Title of Research: Korean contemporary music for the recorder: The influence of Korean culture and traditional music on Korean contemporary music for the recorder Research Question: In Korean contemporary music for the recorder which is influenced by Korean traditional subjects, what kinds of Korean traditional elements were used and how did the composers apply the ideas to their compositions using Western music techniques? Furthermore, how is the recorder applied to express Korean traditional subjects? Summary of Results: In this research, I focused on three different Korean contemporary works for the recorder, Chinese Pictures by Isang Yun, Open your words by Ji Youn Kang and Sibzhangseng by Yoon Bok Suk, each of these compositions being influenced by different kinds of Korean traditions. I have looked up what kind of sources and ideas were used and which materials influenced the music. Through direct contact with the composers of Open your words and Sibzhangseng, I could get more concrete ideas regarding the compositions and, based on this information, I analyzed how they applied their compositional ideas (which were influenced by Korean traditional music and culture) to their own music, as well as how the recorder was adapted in the music. The composers’ take on these cultures on the music, how they applied the recorder in each of their pieces is one of the most crucial points in my research. I figured out how suitable the recorder can be in the aspects of its flexibility, sound and extended techniques to be used to express Korean traditional subjects and create unique effects. In my PowerPoint presentation I will describe what kind of Korean traditional sources and ideas were used and influenced the music and how the composers applied those composition ideas with recorder in the music. I will also show the extended techniques that can be used on the recorder for many other pieces to create other kind of effects if we explore them in other combinations.
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• THE INFLUENCE OF RECORDINGS IN PIANO PRACTICE IN THE 20TH CENTURY (2015) author(s): Javier Krohn Montalvo Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Name: Javier Krohn Main Subject: Classical Piano Research Coach: Anna Scott Title of Research: The Influence of Recordings in Piano Practice in the 20th Century Research Question: Did the proliferation of the recording industry in the 20th century either coincide with or create a change in taste in piano performance? If it indeed catalysed a change in how pianists perform, what specific performance parameters were affected and why? Summary of Results: Since the advent of recordings, the performance of music has changed. What once was composed and performed in order to be enjoyed in a single moment, can now be captured and reproduced over and over, and thus the core significance of music has changed. But what exactly has been the nature of this change? In this research, I have analyzed recordings of Au Bord d’une Source by Liszt as performed by three pianists that grew up in a world with fewer recordings, and as performed by three pianists that grew up while being able to listen to many recordings of other people. This research has shown that although all the pianists discussed are great artists, the pianists whose musical personalities were formed before WWII (when recordings were not so omnipresent) play in a much freer way, as they were still not so concerned about having to produce “perfect” interpretations. With the aid of live and recorded examples, the presentation will take a look at the specific ideological and performative differences between those two groups of pianists, differences in pre- and post-WWII recording practices, and how such knowledge can be applied to performances today. Biography: Born in 1989 in Madrid, Javier Krohn graduated with honours in piano and chamber music studies at the Professional Conservatoire of Music “Arturo Soria” of Madrid at the age of 16. He continued his studies with Claudio Martínez Mehner at the Superior Conservatoire of Music of Zaragoza, and is currently studying at the Royal Conservatoire of Music in The Hague with Naum Grubert. He received further musical inspiration and guidance from Maria João Pires, Stanislav Pochekin, Robert Levin, Alexander Kandelaki, and Nino Kereselidze. Javier Krohn has been awarded several national and international prizes such as “Hazen Intercentros,” “Ciudad de San Sebastián,” “Ciutat de Carlet,” “Santa Cecilia” from Segovia, and “Jacinto Guerrero” from Toledo. He has also performed numerous concerts and recitals in Spain, The Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Austria and the EEUU.
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  Let drums do the talking (2015) author(s): Daniel van Dalen Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Name: Daniel van Dalen Main Subject: Jazz Drums Research Coach: Yvonne Smeets Title of Research: Let Drums Do The Talking Research Question: In what way can you apply communication by spoken word to the drum set in order to improve your playing? Summary of Results: For many musicians music is a language in itself and therefore they do not feel the need to look at our regular language. Some musicians are even far better in communicating on their instrument than communicating in real life. With this research I was not looking for a way to replace language with music, but to be able to get inspiration out of something that is not a primary source for musicians (such as music books, albums, teachers etc.). By looking at just the words of a speech and their phonetic sounds, you will need to use an entirely different approach when you want to create music based on this. You will come up with other melodies and rhythms than you usually would when you work out of your musical idiom. Also the ‘logical form’ in blocks of 4 bars will be far less present as a speech is not written in a logical amount of bars. As a drummer you can play licks and tricks you have mastered in your practice environment, play what you have heard on albums or just play instinctively what you feel like. Personally I wanted to create a method of maintaining a lot of freedom but yet having a certain way of building my grooves and solos. To avoid having to steer your mind with musical theory (play like a certain artist, play sixteenths, use dynamics, play a drum roll etc.…) I wanted to be able to play an idea in as many ways as possible. Using the spoken language covers many difficult theory but yet a person speaks naturally without having to think about all this. Getting to have this natural instinct on your instrument is difficult and subjective to ones opinion but it does lead to a very different way of composing solos and grooves. This research tells you about ways to use the spoken language as an inspiration on your instrument. It covers theory about how we can analyze speech, which is then converted to a method to play this on drums. The presentation will include audio examples of the rhythms written down in the research. Also the rhythms will be shown within a PowerPoint presentation. Biography: Daniel van Dalen is a frequently asked drummer in several groups varying in styles from jazz, pop, theatre and classical music. He is currently most busy with ‘Fuse’ (string ensemble) and ‘Zosja’ (for which he composes as well). Several albums are soon to be released with Daniel playing drums or percussion. Before starting his master study in The Hague in 2013, he studied at the Conservatory of Amsterdam where he graduated in 2010. From his teaching practice he found that comparing speech to playing drums was a good way to get students to comprehend differences in sound on the instrument.
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• Cadenzas for Mozart’s Violin Concertos. An analysis of Mozart’s own cadenzas and how their style can be translated to the violin (2015) author(s): Rafael Font Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Name: Rafael Font Viera Main Subject: Baroque Violin Research Coach: Bart van Oort Title of Research: Cadenzas for Mozart’s Violin Concertos: An analysis of Mozart’s own cadenzas and how their style can be translated to the violin Research Question: How can I prepare cadenzas for the violin concertos of Mozart in a way that is consistent with his compositional style during the time of writing (1773-1775)? Summary of Results: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s five violin concertos were written in the period between 1773 and 1775, before he had even turned 20 years old and before he had fully developed his compositional style. It is the belief of this research’s author that to fully complement these concertos, the cadenzas performed within them should match the composer’s style during this specific period of time. It is the purpose of this research to identify this style and more specifically the composer’s expectations of what a cadenza for his concertos should accomplish. In order to do this, we will take a two part approach. The first one consists of a detailed study of instructions on the performance cadenzas given by historical treatises that Mozart would have known, including among others those of Leopold Mozart and Johann Joachim Quantz. The second section looks at the cadenzas Mozart himself wrote during this specific time of his life, including five piano concertos, and one later work, the Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola, which represents the only cadenza he ever wrote for a stringed instrument. The presentation will show in detail how closely Mozart followed the historical instructions by Quantz et al. on performing cadenzas in specific examples of his musical writing as well as give some general recommendations of adapting his style to the violin. This will be accompanied by selected recordings of Mozart’s cadenzas for piano as well as a demonstration of a possible violin cadenza for one of his violin concertos. Biography: Rafael Font Viera started his violin studies in Caracas, Venezuela. In 2013 he completed his Bachelor in Music studies in the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London with teachers Jacqueline Ross and Pavlo Beznosiuk. Rafael has performed in many world class venues including the Barbican and Queen Elizabeth Halls, with groups such as the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, La Nuova Musica and La Serenissima. Rafael is a keen performer of chamber music in period instruments ranging from late renaissance to romantic as well as contemporary music. Rafael is currently studying at the Royal Conservatory of the Hague with Kati Debretzeni and Walter Reiter.
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• Stretching the string: learning and performing eight pioneering violin studies by Garth Knox (2015) author(s): Diamanda Dramm Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Name: Diamanda La Berge Dramm Main Subject: Classical Violin Research Coaches: Theo Verbey, Garth Knox Title of Research: Stretching the String Research Question: Learning and performing eight pioneering violin studies by Garth Knox Summary of Results: My research project revolves around a brand new set of eight violin etudes using extended techniques by violist Garth Knox. The etudes are based on his Viola Spaces, Contemporary Viola Studies, which were published by Schott in 2009. However, the new violin studies are tailored to the demands of the contemporary violin repertoire. My involvement in the project includes editing, premiering, and recording the videos that will accompany the publication. Two studies have been completed. Ten Fingers is an all-pizzicato piece that I have had the chance to perform many times in 2014. The study trains finger independency, especially in the right hand. Skating, splitting, scratching focuses on sul ponticello and was completed in January 2015. Aside from the technical benefits, this piece also develops the student’s awareness of the harmonic spectrum. While the project was already developing before my Masters started, my interest in doing a research about it came from a desire to investigate the process. This report documents my learning curve, providing me with the vocabulary necessary to teach the studies to other violinists. Biography: Diamanda La Berge Dramm (1991) grew up in Amsterdam, the Netherlands playing the violin since the age of four. Growing up among the leading figures of the Dutch classical, avant-garde and improvisation scene, her own concerts reflect all of these elements. At the age of thirteen, she premiered “Raadsels” by Louis Andriessen in the Concertgebouw for the opening of the Holland Festival 2005 and has gone on to perform as soloist, chamber music player and band member in venues such as Amsterdam’s Bimhuis, Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ as well as the Stone (NYC) and Jordan Hall (Boston). She has worked extensively with modern music luminaries such as Christian Wolff, Alvin Lucier, Gunther Schuller, Chaya Czernowin, Garth Knox and George Benjamin. Recent performances include a collaboration in Florence with Georg Friedrich Haas and concerts in Brussels and London with avant-garde rock legend John Cale.
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