This thesis outlines a new compositional grammar for my recent compositional practice as demonstrated by the collection of original musical work supplied in the accompanying folio of compositions, itself collectively titled the churches of lalibela. The grammar here outlined and explored presents developments in compositional procedure resulting from re-considering acts of musical transformation in terms of erosion and encrustation. Within the terminologies of this thesis, erosion and encrustation are understood as classes of compositional action (applied to musical materials) defined by operations of erasure/removal and addition/accrual respectively. Using examples from the visual arts as a mechanism for discussion, the thesis develops a wider conceptual understanding of these terms, allowing them to be considered no longer as opposites but as intertwined mechanisms mutually achieving a state of material distortion. A compositional scenario is thus derived in which the sonic surface of a given instance of a composition can be understood as being comprised of the debris resulting from such processes. To develop an understanding of this scenario, the thesis further explores ideas concerning ambiguity of material definition and the role such ambiguity can play in relation to material comparison within the experience of a musical discourse. As such, the grammar here derived can be said to exposit a preoccupation with comparison of material debris of different classes and/or degrees of distortion within the listening experience. The thesis also explores the nature and function of material consistency with regard to definition, illustrating the difference between two terms with a notion of consistency achieved through inconsistency.

This research advances the current state of knowledge in the field of early tape music both empirically and methodologically. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact that the electronic medium exerted in the musical thinking of Roberto Gerhard, one of the most outspoken, prolific and influential composers in the Spanish diaspora whose musical legacy, for the most part unknown, is a major landmark in the early history of electroacoustic music.1 Gerhard’s personal tape collection, one of the largest historical archives of its kind reported in the literature, is exceptional for both its antiquity (50+-year-old tapes) and its abundance of production materials. Through the digitisation and analysis of the composer’s tape collection this research argues that the empirical study of audio documents sets out a basis for a broader understanding of textual processes. More specifically, the research demonstrates that the reconstruction of works based on magnetic tape sketches is a powerful method to advance the understanding of early tape music. This research also examines Gerhard’s sound compositions in relation to the post-war context in which they were composed. Finally, this research presents performance documentation that proposes an approach to the electroacoustic music repertoire in which creativity is not at odds with rigor and critical discernment demonstrating that archival study can be closely aligned to the concept of re-enactment.

This commentary presents the research and ideas underlying the submitted portfolio of compositions. The core of the portfolio is the exploration of composition and performance methods for transforming traditional vocal folk music using the tools and aesthetics of contemporary electroacoustic and experimental music. The process also led to a wider compositional enquiry into the connections between language and music, between technology and performance, and between scores, encryption and performance. Additionally, extended voice techniques, audio processing, information theory and encryption form a set of nodes that have expressed themselves in various combinations resulting in a portfolio that includes vocal and instrumental, electroacoustic and acoustic music. The submitted works have been created employing bespoke use of technology, selfimposed restriction on real-time voice performance and applying encryption methodology to music and text. This commentary examines the submitted works from three perspectives: the use of voice, of language and of technology. It also discusses the music in the context of perceptual and cognitive discourses about the nature of voice.

This thesis develops a notion of an archaeology of the voice that is situated between three principal areas of research and practice: oral history, locative media, and sound art. The research takes place in the context of contested urban space in Holbeck, Leeds one of the most deprived neighbourhoods in the U.K. Through a reiterative and reflexive process of extensive interviewing, soundwalking and field recording the area is deep mapped and material gathered in order to produce a percipient led sitespecific presentation of oral history I term 'phonoscape'. Although the technology exists to connect oral history to place via locative media within a database aesthetic, a practical and conceptual gap is identified between these technologies for those working with audio interview material. In this context a purpose-built app is developed to enable oral history audio archives to be distributed geospatially, becoming navigable aurally on foot. In order to distribute a polyvocal sampling of an archive in time-space, techniques and principles from contemporary sound art are introduced, in particular a form of field composition involving an understanding of constitutive silence, soundscape, and voice editing techniques. Research into contemporary audio walk and memoryscape practice confirms that non-linear, fragmented narrative forms are used the construction of polyvocal understandings of place, and this is taken forward within a conception of the embodied hypertextual affordance of locative technology. The findings are then brought together in a transdisciplinary manoeuvre that introduces Displacement Activities, a translocational form of site-specific participatory performance art, providing a public vehicle that draws attention to phonoscape, its oral history content, and the archive itself. As an open work that is generative and reflexive, Displacement Activities extend the notion of site-specificity, finding global analogues before returning to the original site to begin the work again.

Chapter I: preformulation studies on piperlongumine Piperlongumine is a natural alkaloid extracted from piper plant which has been used traditionally for the treatment of certain diseases. This compound shows interesting in-vitro pharmacological activity such as selective anticancer activity and higher cytotoxicity than methotrexate, cyclophosphamide and adriamycin on breast, colon, and osteosarcoma cancers, respectively. However, the physicochemical properties of this compound have not been well characterized. In this research, preformulation studies for piperlongumine have been performed to determine factors which influence solubility and stability which, in turn, can be used to assist future formulation development. The solubility of piperlongumine in water was found to be approximately 26 μg/ml. Using 10% polysorbate 80 as a surfactant resulted in a 27 fold increase in solubility. Cosolvents and cyclodextrins afforded concentrations of 1 mg/ml and higher. The pH degradation rate profile for piperlongumine at various temperatures shows significant instability of the drug at pH values 7 and 3, and maximum stability around pH 4. It was estimated that it would take approximately 17 weeks for piperlongumine to degrade by 10% at 25°C, pH 4. Additionally, piperlongumine showed marked photo-degradation upon exposure to an ultraviolet light source, especially in aqueous media. Chapter II: preformulation and evaluation of resatorvid topical delivery Resatorvid is a small molecule shows interesting anti- inflammatory biological activity. The clinical trial was conducted for sepsis-induced cardiovascular and respiratory failure, but it was terminated due to low efficacy. Further researches show a different biological activity of resatorvid such as its activity against UV-induced skin cancer. The goal of this study is to determine some important physiochemical properties of resatorvid, as well as intrinsic penetration criteria through the murine skin, either ex-vivo or in-vivo. Intrinsic water solubility of resatorvid was found to be 95.32± 1.75 ug/ml and could be duplicated by using 10 % ethanol as cosolvent. The pH solubility profile shows the acidic pka value of resatorvid is around 8-8.1. Photo-stability results indicate more stability in non-aqueous more than aqueous medium. Resatorvid pH degradation rate profiles indicate the maximum stability between pH3 -5 and maximum instability at pH 8 and 9 at all experimental temperatures over 26 days. T90 at 25 °C was 648 days in pH 3 versus 11 days in pH 9. Ex-vivo penetration evaluation for resatorvid through hairless murine skin was evaluated using acetone and phosphate buffer formulations. The flux values were 0.82 and 0.36 for acetone and phosphate buffer formulation respectively. The percent of drug retention in the dermis layer of skin were also evaluated and found to be 37.99% for the acetone formulation and 21.13 % for phosphate buffer formulation. The in-vivo penetration evaluation study was performed by topically applying of resatorvid in acetone solution. Skin biopsy from the site of application was analyzed one, three, eight and 24 hours post-application. The analysis was performed by tape stripping of the stratum corneum of the skin segment. It was found that percent of resatorvid at the dermis layers 5.92, 1.47, 0.45 and 0.23 % for 1, 3, 8 and 24 hours post-application respectively. The percent of resatorvid retention in dermis layer from the in-vivo study are not in compliance with the result of the ex-vivo study, which could refer to possible enzymatic degradation of resatorvid in the live animal skins. Chapter III: correlation of drug penetration between Strat-MTM membranes and murine skin for various drugs. Strat-MTM is a synthetic model for transdermal diffusion testing made by EMD Millipore and was marketed as a new skin mimetic membrane. It has been reported to be predictive of diffusion in human skin. Independent researchers had evaluated this membrane and compared it with animal and human skin and other polymeric membranes. Yet, there are not a published research to correlate the animal skin and Strat-MTM based on the amount of drug retained after topical application, which is one of the critical criteria for dermal drug delivery system. In this research, five compounds, with various physiochemical properties, were selected to perform this correlation. Resatorvid, Methyl Para aminobenzoate (M-PABA), Diclofenac sodium, Salicylic acid and hydrocortisone, each one was dissolved in phosphate buffer saline (pH 7.4) in concentrations of 60 ug/ml for resatorvid and 100-120 ug/ ml for others. All experiments were uniform in the setting and made in triplicate. As a conclusion from the results, the number of tested compounds were shorted to reflect the correlation in flux or permeability coefficient between murine skin and Strat-MTM membrane. With exception of M-PABA, there is a trend of correlation with the percentage of drug retained in dermis layers; however, the number of compounds still low to reflect a real correlation.

Studies on purification and properties of potato virus M (PVM) were carried out using an isolate found in British Columbia. The narrow host range of the virus was confirmed, and no new susceptible species was discovered. Potato cultivars failed to develop symptomps even in plants produced by tubers of inoculated plants, but none was immune. An attempt to demonstrate transmissibility of the virus by plant contact was unsuccessful. In undiluted potato sap the virus had a thermal inactivation point (TIP) of 65 to 70°C, and a longevity in vitro (LIV) of 2 to 4 days. The dilution end point (DEP) was 10⁻⁴. The LIV and DEP of the virus in tomato sap were similar to those in potato sap. Crude sap diluted to 10⁻¹ induced more lesions on Red Kidney bean than undiluted sap. An efficient purification procedure for PVM was developed. The virus was purified from leaves of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.), by extraction with 0.5 M borate buffer, pH 7.8, clarification with ammonium sulfate (20%), and concentration with ammonium sulfate (30%). Further concentration was carried out by high speed centrifugation followed by polyethylene glycol (PEG 6000) precipitation and high speed centrifugation. Final purification was by sucrose density gradient centrifugation. The yield obtained from this procedure was 3.7 to 4.1 mg per Kg of infected leaves. The purified preparations contained rod-shaped particles 651 nm normal length and 13.4 nm average width. The particles had an A₂₆₀/A₂₈₀ratio of ]^3' an A max/A min ratio of 1.24, a maximum ultraviolet light absorption at 260 nm, a minimum absorption at 245 nm, and a buoyant density in CsCl of 1.304 (suggesting an RNA content of 6.2%). The molecular weight of the protein subunit was about 39,300 daltons. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate

This thesis investigates the role of cross-modal correspondence within audiovisual composition, presenting both a conceptual model and a methodological framework for the creation of abstract audiovisual art. While this research is specifically aimed at the field of abstract digital animation it is also intended to act as a platform for the future development of concurrent audiovisual synthesis techniques within the general field of audiovisual art. Referencing literature regarding the psychophysiological bases for audiovisual integration, it is argued that temporal congruence offers a mechanism for the manipulation of cross-modal correspondence within audiovisual media. Further to this, electroacoustic and formalist theory is discussed with specific reference to the interrelationship of medium structures to enable the identification of a conceptual model for audiovisual composition. Referencing theory from the fields of musical instrument design and algorithmic composition, parameter mapping is identified as a mechanism for the modulation of temporal congruence. Its implementation within audiovisual composition is then discussed. Derived from both this and a conceptual parallel between the organisational structures of audio grains and visual particles, the audiovisual particles framework is presented as a methodological basis for the creation of abstract audiovisual art. The presented theory is supported by a series of demonstrative studies exploring both the practical application of the audiovisual particles framework and the role of parameter mapping within the process of audiovisual media generation. Experiential observations are discussed for each to inform future praxis. In addition, two audiovisual compositions are presented as both implementations of developed theory and as artworks in their own right.

This thesis considers Steve Reich's speech-based compositions between 1963 and 1988 in the light of their source materials. The collection comprises seven pieces: The Plastic Haircut(1964); Livelihood (1964); It's Gonna Rain (1965); Come Out (1966); Buy Art, Buy Art (1967); My Name Is (1967), and Different Trains (1988). The sources for these pieces constitute a plethora of hitherto unexamined audio recordings, transcriptions of which are included in a separate volume of appendices. The study presents a detailed transcription and consideration of these archival sources, culminating in a new narrative reading of each of Steve Reich's speech-based pieces from the first three decades of his compositional output. Although some recordings now exist on-line, Reich's decision in 2008 to transfer his private archive to the Paul Sacher Stiftung in Basel, Switzerland, has opened up a much larger collection. This considerable body of source material allows a new understanding of the stories told by each of these seven pieces. Whilst firmly rejecting the notion that his music tells stories, Reich has accepted that the documentary nature of the recorded materials for his speech-based works marks them out as a special case. This invites scrutiny of the relationship between these recordings and the pieces themselves, shedding new light on the narrative trails that connect them.

The French romance is a short and simple strophic song for solo voice and a single accompanying instrument (namely the piano or guitar). Musically, the accompaniment presents unadorned figurations and the vocal style should have a limited virtuosity (including little ornamentation and vibrato and a narrow vocal range, for instance). Thematically, the text should be related to love and romance. It is primarily performed within a domestic environment, which particularly suits its intimate and naïve features. Its quintessential French character is widely noted by a number of nineteenth-century commentators and theorists. It is therefore noteworthy that, despite the initial wariness demonstrated by some French writers, many Italian composers significantly contributed to this French genre. This is the first study to place the romance within the context of its Italian influences. In addition, it provides an extensive database of the French romances composed by Italian musicians during the nineteenth century. An analysis of the repertory sheds light upon some significant romances, and these are used as prominent case studies throughout the thesis. The thesis also explores nineteenth-century discussions of the romance, and investigates the careers of notable Italian romanciers. This study highlights two issues. First, an exploration of the important treatises reveals the main characteristics that are integral to the quintessential romance style. And second, analysis of the romances by Italian composers, conversely, exposes the wide and varying styles present (this includes aspects pertaining to form, accompaniment styles, and the vocal melody). Indeed, this is supported by the discovery that, as the nineteenth century progressed, there was a gradual acceptance of Italian composers contributing to this genre. In the late eighteenth century, Italian influences were considered a threat to the romance’s simplicity, and in the 1840s, composers were actively praised for incorporating both Italian and French styles into their romances. Chapter 1, ‘History of the Romance’ provides an overview of the romance’s early definition and development. Chapter 2, ‘Romance as a French Genre’, places the nineteenth-century romance in the context of its reception, and studies its conventions as laid out in the treatises. Chapter 3, ‘Italians in Paris’, traces the progression from wariness to admiration of the Italian romanciers and investigates the careers of some important Italian figures. The final chapter, ‘Music of the “Italian” French Romances’ explores the music of the Italian composers, and demonstrates the wide ranging and varying styles prevalent in their romances.

The submission (four volumes and a CD) includes a Portfolio and a Commentary. The portfolio containes eight pieces, Solitudo, Argumentum, Recordatio, Illuminatio, Transfiguratio, Ludus Aetemus, Mens Sana in Corpore Sano, Monstrum Horrendum. The commentary is divided in the following seven chapters: introdution, the Latin words of the pieces' titles, the relationship between the Latin words/letters of the words and the melodic material, the influences on the piece's conception, the influences on the conception of the form and and gestures, the influences on the scenery, performance and lighting and conclusion. The CD contains a live recording of two pieces mentioned before: Solitudo and Argumentum. On the whole, the portfolio and the commentary are a contribution to the Arts' World and provides the aesthetic and conceptual thoughts involved in the musical creation of these specific pieces. However, a paragraph of Carl Jung's book - Modern Man in Search of a Soul - was always kept in my mind and will be in the future: "I do not forget that my voice is but one voice, my experience a mere drop in the sea, my knowledge no greater than the visual field in a microscope, my mind's eye a mirror that reflects a small corner of the world, and my ideas - a subjective confession."