A video presenting non-guitarist composer Jason Noble's approach to timbre-based composition for the guitar, discussing issues of notating timbre with various types of mappings. Including musical examples from many pieces created collaboratively with guitarist Steve Cowan.

In this video made for the 2020 meeting of Music Theory Midwest, Reymore describes some of her timbre research: building a cognitive linguistic model of timbre qualia, using the model to construct profiles for orchestral instruments, and applying these findings in analysis of the first movement of Mahler's first symphony, where Reymore looks at form and at the climactic breakthrough, or Durchbruch, moment.

Composer Fabien Lévy joins McGill researchers in music theory, composition, and music perception in a symposium co-sponsored by ACTOR (Analysis, Creation, and Teaching of Orchestration) and CIRMMT Research Axes 3 and 4. Levy, author of Le compositeur, son oreille et ses machines à écrire: Déconstruire les grammatologies du musical pour mieux les composer, will present a morning lecture on “functional orchestration” followed in the afternoon by shorter presentations on aspects of analytical and orchestrational theory applied to the first movement of Franz Schubert’s Eighth Symphony and a hands-on analytical workshop. This workshop is co-sponsored by ACTOR, CIRMMT Research Axes 3 and 4, and the Schulich School of Music’s Composition and Music Technology Areas.

Presenting are Professor Caroline Traube from ACTOR partner institution Université de Montréal, Professor Martha de Francisco from McGill University, and ACTOR postdoctoral researchers Jason Noble and Julie Delisle. Following a general overview of the ACTOR Project, topics include advanced projects in sound recording, composer-performer collaborations, and orchestration theory and analysis. November 5th, 2019. https://www.cirmmt.org/activities/special/ACTOR_symposium

ACTOR scholars and artists introduced the project to a French public in June 2019 with “Orchestration and the ACTOR Project,” a study day hosted by the Paris research center IRCAM (Institut de recherche et coordination acoustique/musique) as part of the June 2019 ManiFeste festival.

Step into the mysterious world of composition as John Rea unveils secrets in the art of writing music, how these secrets may lead to lies, and what happens when a composer’s memory starts playing tricks… The presentation will also include a live performance by pianist Stéphane Lémelin.