This thesis accompanies the five electroacoustic compositions of the Bardo series and presents a discussion of symbolism within contexts of Chinese culture and the electroacoustic medium. The work develops a view of interaction between cultures of East and West, considering issues raised in terms of philosophical research and as a substantial creative resource for composers and listeners.

This thesis, and the accompanying portfolio of pieces, is concerned with investigating practical and theoretical meeting points between improvisation and composition. Such meeting points are evaluated alongside a consideration of ‘freedom’ in improvised music, for which a frame is drawn from George Lewis’s concepts of the ‘Afrological’ (placing emphasis on expression of the ‘self’) and ‘Eurological’ (in which the ‘self’ is explicitly avoided). It is suggested that a reconciliation of these two extremes might be found in a compositional ‘creative displacement’, which might change an improviser’s environment in unforeseen ways and thus stimulate explorations of expressive novelty. Three different compositional approaches to ‘creative displacement’ are investigated: through fixed notation, through electronic real-time notation, and through leadership in a workshop setting. In each case compositional experiments will be undertaken and documented, detailing the creation and realisation of the pieces included in the accompanying portfolio. A terminology for the theoretical consideration of these approaches will draw on theories of complex systems, the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze, and various socio-musicological models such as those of Steven Feld and Charles Keil. Through an evaluation of the portfolio compositions in rehearsal and performance, this thesis will conclude that a reconciliation of Lewis’s ‘Afro’ and ‘Eurological’ can be found through the external application of limitations to improvisational creativity. Such constraints will be described as ‘creatively displacing’ if they provoke a performer towards an exploration of novel expressive approaches. In order to achieve this in practice, limitations must be carefully judged with regard to their degree of abstraction, the manner of their presentation and the nature of their notation; it will be suggested that the presence of a leader is vital in achieving this. These conclusions will lead to a questioning of conventional ideas of improvisation and leadership, and suggest a re-evaluation of indeterminacy within notation.

The central subject of this thesis is the application of the concepts of symmetry and proportion in music and how these can be used to generate original compositions. Information about the musical application regarding concepts of symmetry and proportion both in the twentieth-century and earlier is provided. The first section also offers additional information about the construction of symmetrical harmony and its common usage; here too, principles of intervallic proportion are explained based on the compositional thinking of English composer Christopher Bochmann. The second section presents seven original compositions, each supported by their own commentary. Each work features a variety of instrumental forces ranging from solo to orchestral. Lending a separate emphasis (in analysis) to each composition helps to provide a broad picture of the potential that the ideas of symmetry and proportion bring to contemporary composition.

One of the primary focuses in the works presented and discussed herein is the juxtaposition of many disparate musical styles, recordings, and sound worlds within each individual piece. This juxtaposition extends to combining live improvisation meticulously created non-realtime elements, and elements of generative processes in the creation of individual works. A secondary theme is my attitude to accessibility and how this informs my work with audiovisual elements.

The current thesis is a portfolio of ten musical works composed during the period of 2011 and 2015, including instrumental, mixed media and acousmatic (stereo and multichannel) compositions. These works were developed and composed at my home studio in Oporto (from 2011) and at the Electroacoustic Music Studios at the University of Birmingham (2014 – 2015). This thesis also features observations and commentaries about technical and aesthetical issues that were objects of study during my creative process, which uses musical elements from my culture as inspiration for new musical works. Hence, it presents a reflection on and the validation of results that came from the exploration of several procedures during my development at the University of Birmingham Electroacoustic Music Studios and a chapter dedicated to the traditional instrument from the Azores – the viola da terra – and the two compositions that focus on this instrument. A USB stick is attached to this thesis, containing the audio performances of all musical works, scores and electronic version of this document.

A portfolio of compositions for acoustic instruments, electronic resources alone, and for acoustic instruments and live electronics. The accompanying commentary describes the aesthetic and the context of these works, their approach to form, and traces the development of the techniques used in their composition. In particular, it discusses a variety of approaches to computer-aided algorithmic composition and stochastic processes for the generation of musical elements (e.g. chord sequences, rhythmic patterns, sound structures). Included in the commentary is a description of research into stochastic synthesis, and of the development of a personal implementation of Dynamic Stochastic Synthesis and Stochastic Concatenation of Dynamic Stochastic Synthesis in SuperCollider. LIST OF WORKS Surveillance (2011) for computer 15:00 Daisy (2011) for computer 9:40 Absorbed (2010) for 2 violas 9:00 My idea of fun (2010) for clarinet, percussion and viola 7:00 Brazil (2009) for computer 8:10 Spine (2008) for English horn, percussion, violin and double bass 8:30 "Sex, Drugs and Rock 'n Roll" was never meant to be like this (2007) for computer 9:40 Don't have any evidence (2007) for bass flute, English horn, bass clarinet, bassoon, percussion, piano, violin, viola, cello and double bass 9:30 Happy Birthday (2006/2007) for computer 8:00 Résistance (2006) for accordion 4:00 My life has been filled with terrible misfortune; most of which never happened (2004) for bass clarinet, violin, viola, cello, double bass and live electronics 9:00.

Volume 1. Portfolio of Compositions: 1. Two Pianos, 2. String Quartet, 3. Chamber Orchestra, 4. Two Pianos and Percussion, 5. Clarinet and String Quartet, 6. Flute and Violin, 7. Two Violins, Two Violas, Two Cellos Volume 2. Portfolio Commentary The commentary outlines some of the compositional processes I have developed, looks at the influences that have shaped the music and attempts to place the portfolio in some sort of context.

I. Process: In this essay, the first chapter deals with my concentration on process in music composition, which holds as much importance to my practice as a composer as does the attention given to finished pieces. I include formative experiences with the music of Claude Debussy, Béla Bartók, John Cage and Franco Donatoni. In the second chapter, I explore my own process of composing by looking into each of the ten individual pieces from my PhD Portfolio of Compositions. II. Portfolio of Compositions: 1. Elegy for Fir Tree for eight strings (2004) 2. Coyote Nocturne for flute, violin and piano (2006) 3. The Indian Fort Theatre for string quartet (2006) 4. Three Moths for flute, piano and bass clarinet (2006) 5. Catalyst of Filament for celesta, harp and harmonium (2006) 6. Twister Season for vibraphone, marimba, two pianos, cello and double bass (2006) 7. Six Journeys for bass clarinet and piano (2006/2007) 8. horrifictionalexander graham belladonna for flute, guitar and bass clarinet (2007) 9. Stalking the Unseeable Animal for flute, clarinet, piano and string quartet (2007) 10. The Lightning Bug Hour for flute, vibraphone and piano (2008)

This commentary accompanies the portfolio of electroacoustic works realised at the NOVARS Research Centre, and intends to provide insight into methodologies for acousmatic composition as researched at the University of Manchester between 2013 and 2016. Six compositions are presented in order of realisation, as follows: Frictions/Storms, Rise, Glitches/Trajectories, Transmissions/Intercepts, Reductions/Expanses, and Iteration/Banger. An analysis of each work in relation to research-specific topics is provided, adopting Denis Smalley's concepts of spectromorphology and space-form as appropriate syntax in the elaboration of compositional methodologies and overall outcomes. The research focuses primarily on the appropriation of transformed and synthesised sound materials in acousmatic spatial composition. Resulting works are intended for presentation in concert via the practice of live sound diffusion performance. The portfolio documents an arc of development working in fixed media formats incorporating live electronics processes into the realisation of multi- channel compositions, to finally arrive at a methodological merging of fixed media studio composition and live electronics performance practices. Additional supplementary materials in support of the portfolio and commentary are provided including Max coding patches, video tutorials, technical information and related audio materials.

Sailing on is an investigation into how light music has evolved from its origins into a style of music for the twenty-first century. I am a light music composer and a contemporary use of the style is explored in a portfolio of compositions, all in score form, substantiated by an autoethnographical commentary. Light as a term to describe music was first used in the nineteenth-century to label music that was created for the entertainment of the masses and it was sometimes used to explain the more accessible works of ‘serious’ composers. The music enjoyed a golden age of approximately one hundred years between 1870 and 1970 and this study contextualises light music in respect of the functions that it fulfils and the relationships it has undergone with serious and popular music during the period and to the present day. Entertainment and accessibility to mass markets are terms used more in relation to commercial music rather than art music and the thesis includes an exploration into the role of light music as part of the industrialised music businesses as well as being at the forefront of technological developments. The relationship between art and money has been difficult for some to reconcile and part of the reason for the criticism and neglect of light music by many in the music establishment and these aspects are considered as part of the contextualisation. I have identified a number of common musical and expressive elements in light music and an analysis of techniques is presented as a means to describe the characteristics of the style. The works surveyed have been selected from a period that embraces the golden age to the present with examples from records, radio, television, film, games and web based media. All these influences plus my own experiences in music have been considered during the composition of the portfolio of music that proffers my interpretation of light music for the twenty-first century.