I am the course leader for Music and teach across all of the BA (Hons) Music courses, provide academic tutoring, and advise postgraduate research students. In addition, I run a wide range of university ensembles, which have included numerous jazz and classical ensembles, folk and ceilidh bands, and experimental and progressive rock bands. I enjoy producing large-scale performances, such as our four-star run of music performances at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2019.
I am a bass trombonist and pianist who plays a wide range of music including classical, jazz, rock, pop, electronic, and experimental. In my music-making, teaching, and research, I am particularly interested in exploring how performers create shared experiences within ensembles. Likewise, I am interested in exploring the power dynamics between lecturers and students in university music education.
Qualifications
PCAP, York St John University
PhD, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire: Thesis title Embodied Knowledge: The Case of Ensemble Performance
MMus, University of Michigan: Chamber Music
MMus, University of Michigan: Performance (Trombone)
BMus, University of Alaska Fairbanks: Music: Performance
- Course Leader BA Music
- Course Leader MA Music
- Doctoral Research Supervisor
I teach on the following undergraduate modules:
- MUS4006M Ensembles and Teamwork (Module Leader)
- MUS4007M Perspectives on Music 1
- MUS4008M Musicking (Module Leader)
- MUS5003M Solo Performance Strategies
- MUS5004M Ensemble Strategies (Module Leader)
- MUS5005M Perspectives on Music 2
- MUS5006M Musical Exploration
- MUS5007M Professional Contexts and Practice (Module Leader)
- MUS6001M Dissertation
- MUS6002M Collaborative Project
- MUS6003M Ensembles and Leadership (Module Leader)
- MUS6004M Enterprise and Employability (Module Leader)
- MUS6009M Advanced Solo Performance
I teach on the following postgraduate modules:
- PER7008M Music Creative Practice (Module Leader)
- PER7009M Creative Entrepreneurship (Module Leader)
My research has 2 key strands:
First, I am interested in how musicians collaborate and interact in ensembles. This links related interests in teaching music in higher education, the effect of genre on music-making practices, creative compositional strategies to explore performers’ relationships, performative musical knowledge, and music performance in general.
Second, I am interested in exploring power imbalances relating to ensemble music. This could be in the form of cultural hierarchies relating to chamber music, the power balance between conductor and ensemble members, and ethical considerations in ensemble education.
Recent publications
In addition to my work at the university, I engage in a range of music-making around Yorkshire. This primarily takes the form of gigging with the New York Brass Band and creating experimental and contemporary music for the Late Music concert series in York.
Notable live performances
Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet. Edinburgh Fringe (Edinburgh, UK). York St John University Music, August 23–25 2019.
Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (Pilton, UK). New York Brass Band, June 26–July 1 2019.
Wilderness Festival (Oxfordshire, UK). New York Brass Band, August 3–6 2017.
Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (Pilton, UK). New York Brass Band, June 21–26 2017.
Lumen. Illuminating York (York, UK). York St John University Music, October 25–29 2016.
Batumi Heat Festival (Batumi, Georgia). New York Brass Band, June 5–9 2016.
A Celebration of Women in Music. UNESCO World Forum on Music (Los Angeles, USA). Borealis Brass, October 3 2005.
Recordings
From the Ground. Flora Greysteel. Independent, 2019.
Reality is My Plaything. Phi Yaan-Zek. Geomagnetic Records, 2018.
Mythical and Angry. Murphy McCaleb and Andy Edwards. Independent, 2015.
Tangents. Murphy McCaleb with Andy Edwards and Steve Lawson. Independent, 2014.
IAASM (Green EP). I Am A Scary Monster. Independent, 2014.
Ed Bennett: My Broken Machines. Decibel. NMC Recordings, 2011.
Evan Chambers: The Old Burying Ground. The University of Michigan Symphony Orchestra. Naxos, 2010.
Killarney Broadcast. Independent, 2009.
Raise the Roof. The University of Michigan Symphony Band. Equilibrium Records, 2009.
Roman Holidays. Borealis Brass. Independent, 2009.
