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

• Sperger on Stage (2023) author(s): Emma Moling Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Johann Matthias Sperger was one of the most important double bassists of the 18th century. Alongside a catalogue of symphonies, chamber music, and various concertos, he left us a wealth of repertoire for double bass. Namely 18 concertos and numerous chamber music pieces. However, most of these works have not been played since the death of the composer, due largely to the kind of double bass he wrote: the Viennese violone which uses a third-fourths tuning that had developed in Vienna, around 1760-1820. It is for this reason, that his compositions are nowadays not often performed as they are not well suited for the modern double bass. An outstanding example of his chamber music is his sonata for double bass and cello from 1790.   This exposition focuses on how I made adaptations based on my own artistic research in order to play his duo on the modern double bass. Through an investigation of the relevant historical sources, together with practical work on the double bass, I created my version of this duo. The adaptations I made are based on technical issues but also on musical and personal choices, as the instrument, the style and the way we see and play music today has changed. My research topic arose from the issue of the double bass being under-represented in chamber music performances and the wish to find repertoire where the double bass player is working as an equal partner with the other individual musicians.
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• Speak to me: A self reflective approach to improving classical music concert presentation (2023) author(s): Peter Bourne Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Speak to me: A self-reflective approach to improving classical music concert presentation. Research by Peter Bourne Supervised by Heloisa Amaral How can musicians improve their in-concert verbal communication with an audience? Why might they want to? Is there a method that can allow any musician to develop this skill without the need for tutoring or specialised training? Summary: This research began as a personal quest by one musician to find a reliable, repeatable and effective method of improving their own concert presentation. By doing so it was hoped that they might improve audience engagement with both music and artist, whilst helping to make their music accessible to a broader public. This could in turn increase the impact and reach of their performance. Various strategies for self-improvement and independent learning have been reviewed and integrated into a simple four-step approach to be carried out with each performance where a musician chooses to speak to their audience. The resulting method consists of four R’s: Role-setting, Recording, Reflection and Repetition. By deciding on a role to perform ahead of the performance, a musician sets clear goals for themselves and identifies the reasons for speaking to their audience. By recording their presentation and rewatching it at a later time, they obtain distance from and perspective of their work. This allows them to best use specialised techniques to reflect deeply and gain insight on their work, before developing strategies to improve in their next performance. This exposition presents a how-to guide for implementing the method itself, as well as background on the use and importance of each element. It also features a case study of this method being applied to a chamber music concert performance. Biography: Peter Bourne is a British clarinettist from the small island of Guernsey in the Channel Islands. His music studies took him through France, at the conservatoires of Bordeaux and Strasbourg, and on to the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague. Peter now holds the position of Bass Clarinettist with the Latvian National Opera in Rīga. In addition to his orchestral work he is an active chamber musician, and a founder member of CrossWinds, a clarinet and accordion duo.
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• Small-handed Pianists. Psychological impact and self-efficacy (2023) author(s): Marta Fernández Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  The realization that the size of my hands could be a limiting factor for my piano playing came up in my mind many years ago. I developed this research when I realized that I began to focus my practice on the merely “technical” aspect and was leaving musicality aside. There is a striking shortage of publications on piano technique for small hands and even worse, there is no specific literature at all about their mental well-being. As a pianist with small hands I am confronted, among other problems, by self-interference, doubts and fears about my own ability, worries about self-image and feelings that things are out of my control. Therefore, the aim of this research was to understand the mental aspect of being a small-handed pianist. During my research, I gradually implemented new quality practice techniques into my daily routines. This research shows my learning process through recordings of me studying and analysis of my feelings experienced in performances. My aim was to gain self-efficacy and confidence, and in general to develop a growth mindset. It is indispensable for musicians to understand their insecurities, and to allow themselves to accept them. Learning to deal with the technical aspects of small-handedness is relevant. However, this research pointed out that in addition to this, self-efficacy can be boosted by working on it daily through quality practice techniques. Moreover, it showed that it helps to consider technique and musicality as a unity, rather than as separate domains.
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• Roots and Bones: An exploration in the correlation between jazz and reggae trombone playing. (2023) author(s): Stylianos Michas-Englezos Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  The purpose of this research is to explore deeper jazz and reggae trombone playing, find their common approaches, and finally apply them to my own music. To answer my questions, I divided this research in three parts. The first part is a journey through the history of jazz and reggae music separately, then their correlation and common history, and finally, the role of the trombone in this journey. In the second part, I am trying to gain an insight into the improvisational language by trombonists from both genres through transcription and analysis of their solos, in aspects of rhythm, harmony, technique and sound. As a result of these analyses, I tried to apply the approaches that I collected, into one of my own solos in a composition by Blend Mishkin, for an album we recorded in a reggae-jazz style. The third part focuses on composition for a jazz-reggae ensemble, presenting as an example one of my compositions in the research, explaining which approaches I selected to use for each instrument of the ensemble, while also presenting in the best way the function of the trombone as the leader of the band.
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• Recordings as a tool for performers (2023) author(s): Pedro Domínguez Conde Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Recording by yourselves in a professional way involves playing different roles in the process. In this research I experienced what means to record and edit your own music, which are the main problems i found and how i solved them.
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• Pure intonation in practice (2023) author(s): William Gough Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Pure intonation in practice   Harnessing the artistic capabilities of pure intonation A research exposition by William Gough Student no. 3395103 Research supervisor: Inês de Avena Braga Main subject: historical bassoon Main subject teachers: Wouter Verschuren and Donna Agrell Royal Conservatoire The Hague   22nd February 2023
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