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

• Introductory Double Bass Method for Children (v2) (2019) author(s): Adriana Gutierrez Saldana Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Last version of my Research. Name: Adriana Gutierrez Saldaña Main Subject: Classical Double Bass Research Supervisor: Maggie Urquhart Title of Research: Enjoy with Your Bass – Introductory Double Bass method for children Research Question: Is it possible to create an enjoyable introductory Double Bass method for children, which they can use by themselves? Most of the existing double bass methods are not orientated towards children. One of the pioneering methods, written 30 years ago, 'Bass is Best' by Caroline Emery relies on parental help for the children’s practice. My aim was to develop a method that children could use by themselves. Building on my practical experience of teaching children in Spain, using 'El Sistema', I developed and applied a teaching system over the last two years that incorporated this principal. Two of my pupils, using my system, within only three years of playing the double bass were able to play professional level orchestral excerpts. Therefore it is possible to combine technical discipline with creativity and enjoyment playing the instrument. This method is simultaneously a guide for teachers to promote a healthy attitude when creating a musical career both with and without the instrument. However, the role of the double bass teacher is fundamental. The teacher has to have passion, be able to explain the concepts of playing clearly and be able to help the child understand technique without creating pressure. One of the examples in my case study is when the child opens the book to practice after the lesson and he/she cannot remember the theory of the new concepts. My method helps to the student how to overcome a problem by themselves. I created a warm up programme to be used before playing the instrument, which helps to prevent strain and injuries. This also helps body awareness when playing the bass. Practicing these exercises before and after playing ensures that the muscle tissue is warm and elastic, the nerve impulses are faster and the joint fluid flows faster. This means that there is less chance of suffering an injury when playing the instrument. Biography: Adriana Gutierrez Saldaña was born in Salamanca (Spain) in 1994 and began playing the double bass at the age of eight. Five years later, she joined the bass section in youth orchestras making international tours to the present day. She started her bachelor focusing on classical double bass at the Conservatory of Castilla y Leon (Spain) with Joaquin Clemente. She was the first student to receive an Erasmus scholarship from Salamanca to study at the Guildhall School Music and Drama (UK) with Colin Paris and Luis Cabrera. During her bachelor she started teaching beginners on the double bass, was one of the coaches at the Youth Orchestra of Cantabria (Spain), was a volunteer at a “minor centre” and in an orphanage as a teacher in integration programmes.
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• Bach and Numbers: Analysis of His Church Cantatas through Biblical Numerology (2019) author(s): Min-ho Jeong Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Many years of singing religious texts, especially that of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), as a counter tenor made me question if there were other methods of interpreting Bach’s music beyond focusing only on musical affects or harmonies. Among the many interpretative methods, I became interested in biblical numerology, interpreting numerical values with religious symbolisms, and was motivated to research the relationship between biblical and musical numeric symbolisms in Bach’s church cantatas. As many of his writings show, Bach’s music is deeply rooted in the Lutheran faith and Protestant traditions and, a detailed biblical approach would serve as one of the many good ways for the performer to deepen his or her understanding of Bach’s music and to enrich the interpretation in performance. The discovery of numeric insights in Bach’s church cantatas helped me better understand and interpret his emotional expressions and depth of faith. I believe this knowledge will be useful for other performers in making a musical interpretation more compelling and communicative. The objective of this research exposition is to suggest biblical numerology as a method to analyze and understand J.S. Bach’s church cantatas and to reveal Bach’s theological intentions by analyzing the correlation between the biblical and musical numeric values found in his solo cantatas for alto (BWV 82, 169) and how they apply in our understanding of the biblical symbolism in the text and the music.
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• Jarzębski's Divisions (2019) author(s): Matthijs van der Moolen Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Name: Matthijs van der Moolen Main Subject: Baroque Trombone Research Supervisor: Susan Williams Title of Research: Jarzębski’s Divisions - a transition from vocal to instrumental writing for the trombone Research Question: How are the diminution pieces by Adam Jarzębski showing a transformation from vocal to instrumental writing for the trombone? Summary of Results: The aim of this research was to show how the 'diminution pieces' from Adam Jarzębski's Canzoni e Concerti (1627) illustrate a transformation from vocal to instrumental writing for the trombone. Those nine pieces are very different from other works in the same time and period, and combine two very different genres: diminution/division pieces, and canzoni/sonate. In the first chapters of this research, I will give a general idea about the music practices in the sixteenth and seventeenth century. I will also zoom in on the early trombones, and their use in different settings. After this background information, I made an analysis of Jarzębski's collection Canzoni e Concerti. Most attention went to the analysis of the 'diminution pieces' that are based on well-known motets from the sixteenth century. Based on this analysis, I finally give several suggestions for the performance of these compositions, for example, about the choice of instruments, the (basso continuo) accompaniment, and the tuning and pitch. My conclusion is that the 'diminution pieces' in Canzoni e Concerti show a clear transition from vocal to instrumental writing. Because they are so obviously written like earlier diminution pieces, they should in my opinion also be played like that. Biography: Matthijs van der Moolen (The Netherlands, 1994) studies historical trombone (master) with Charles Toet. Before, he has finished two bachelor degrees: historical trombone with Charles Toet, and classical trombone with Pete Saunders and Tim Dowling). Matthijs is first trombonist with the (modern) orchestra Ars Musica, and is member of the Dutch Baroque Orchestra. He played as a freelancer in a variety of historical and contemporary groups. He co-founded the ensembles Ongestreken and Castello Consort. With the latter, he was selected for the Eeemerging-programme in 2017. The Castello Consort has performed at numerous international festivals for early music, and featured in the foremost concert series in The Netherlands.
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  Stockhausen's language of extended techniques for flute (2019) author(s): Davide Baldo Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  This research wants to reflect on the role of unconventional flute sounds, also called extended techniques in Stockhausen’s repertoire. The need for reflecting on this subject comes from the chance to properly express the artistic intention of a composer who could, with an extremely detailed graphical approach, explain the musical content of his sound requirements. The chance to work under the tutelage of Kathinka Pasveer (Stockhausen’s flute player and muse), gives the research a unique insight into Stockhausen's flute repertoire. The "semiography" and "philological" issues, associated with the dramaturgical role of the musical material, led the research to a deeper understanding of the added values of this alternative non-traditional sounds. Analyzing their content and relative musical function, made it possible to develop not only a structured approach for flute players towards this music, but also to highlight a more articulated and detailed approach of the composer himself regarding the flute and its role in the circle LICHT.
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• The Paris Conservatoire as a Paradigm in the Evolution of the Horn During XIX Century (2019) author(s): Jairo Gimeno Veses Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  Research Proposal 2017
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• Pietà, learning, performing and growing with a piece _ RC EDIT (2019) author(s): Valentin Françios Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
  At 22h26, on Easter Saturday, march the 30th 1991, by a full Moon, Karlheinz Stockhausen finished composing the piece Pietà, for quarter tone Flugelhorn, Soprano and electronic music. This piece is something very special. It is difficult to compare it to any of the regular repertoire that trumpet player, even new music specialist are used to learn and to perform. Only a few trumpet players ( six to my knowledge up to today, without me) have taken this challenge. I am profoundly convinced that this piece is only at the beginning of it’s life, and is going to be perform way more often, by a lot of different players in the future. I hope that what I am presenting in this document will help the future generations of courageous musicians who will embark upon the journey that this piece is. Any musician that would like to go on the road with this piece should thus ask himself: What does it take, to learn and perform Pietà?
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