MA in Composition and Creative Practice List of skills – spring semester 2021

Théâtre Musical Composition Sound Arts Curating & Music in Context Mandatory modules

1 Skills in Théâtre musical Théâtre musical Seminar (MACP S23) Simon Steen-Andersen 1.3. / 12.4. / 7.6 9:00-12:00 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Auditorium or Room 160 Seminars on expanded musical material, performance, video, staging, instrumental theatre etc. in the context of the lecturer’s own work in the field. The course presents examples of relevant recent directions and formats, and theoretical considerations of them.

Semester course open to all HKB students Max. number of participants: 20 / ECTS: 1 Théâtre musical Projects (MACP S24) Simon Steen-Andersen 26.2. – 2.3. 9.4. - 13.4. 5.6 - 12.6. Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Auditorium or Room 160 Conceptual and practical work related to participants’ projects (individual or collaborative) concerned with expanded musical material, performance, video, staging, instrumental theatre, etc. Projects will be discussed in the group and tried out/performed by fellow group members to the extent possible. Semester course open to MA Composition – Creative Practice Max. number of participants: 15 / ECTS: 1

Contemporary Vocal Arts

Praxis & Improvisation (MACP S25) Franziska Baumann 23.03., 09:30–12:30 / 26.03., 10:30–12:30 27.04., 09:30–12:30 / 30.04., 10:30–12:30 25.05., 09:30–12:30 / 28.05., 10:30–12:30 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 160 Vocal & breathing training / expanded field of vocal art / affective spectrum of the voice / language & text as vocal-musical phenomena / vocal improvisation. This course offers multifaceted insights into contemporary vocal improvisation and staged vocal performance: vocal training, various singing techniques and expanding the vocal spectrum (emotions, energetic qualities, physicality, gestures), searching for a spontaneous, emotional voice in sophisticated, archaic or everyday expression. Exploring sounds and noises, melodies, yodelling, language and the unexpected is part of the musical process. Improvisational techniques on the basis of modules and ideas lead to group performances as a way of researching and uncovering spheres of the human voice in musical perception and in a staged context. Annual course open to: all Master students Max. number of participants: 8 / ECTS: 1

Composed Theater Lab: Concrete Poetry (MACP S27) Franziska Baumann / Leo Dick 23.03., 13:30–16:30 / 26.03., 13:30–15:30 27.04., 13:30–16:30 / 30.04., 13:30–15:30 25.05., 13:30–16:30 / 28.05., 13:30–15:30 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 160 Concrete poetry bridges literary, visual and musical composition and stresses the phonetic aspects of human speech instead of more conventional semantic and syntactic values. By definition, concrete poetry is intended primarily for performance. In small practical projects we relate (literary) texts, vocal performance and scenic spaces to each other and explore different methods of the musicalisation and staging of poetry. Semester course open to all Master students Max. number of participants: 8 / ECTS: 1

Free Improvisation through Instant Composing (MACP S26) Franziska Baumann 24.02. / 10.03. / 24.03. / 31.03. / 05.05. / 12.05 / 02.06. 13:30 - 15:30 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 160 Improvisation as a “reality-creating force”, a cultural technique that links inner imagination (authorship), simultaneous performance (interpretation) and listening virtuosity (meaningful interaction). Developing “listening virtuosity” is crucial, as it allows one to act and react musically and compositionally at the same time, i.e. it entails developing a sensual intelligence that can transfer compositional thinking to shaping all musical parameters and their relationships to each other. The course enables creative processes, initiates techniques, elements

and materials with just such an attitude. The students are always practitioners and are involved in the process from the very beginning. This is a valuable resource for composers, singers, instrumentalists, performers and sound artists. Semester course open to all Master students, Bachelor students upon agreement. Max. number of participants: 9 / ECTS: 1 Basic Scenic Work in Composed Theater (MACP S28) Angela Bürger 16.2., 13:00 - 16:00 2.3. / 20.4. / 11.5., 13:00 - 15:00 18.5., 13:00 - 16:00 + individual mentoring to be arranged directly with Angela Bürger Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Auditorium Performing for an audience requires a precise knowledge of the linguistic and physical means of expression. In this course we learn the basis for scenic body presence with and without an instrument, solo and in a group. We will work with theatre scenes in several languages as well as with phonetic-musical material. Through concentration exercises, improvisation and speaking techniques, the possibilities of performative expression will be expanded. Semester course open to MA Composition and Creative Practice, BA Masterorientierung Composition and Creative Practice Max. number of participants: 12 / ECTS: 1

Dramaturgy of Your Project: Teaser - Trailer (MACP S29) Angela Bürger 19.2. / 5.3. 10:00 – 13:00 group course 14.00 – 17.00 individual coaching Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 160 From your very first ideas for a future project, you need to learn to speak about your project in brief terms. You need to evoke your project by means of visuals, words, noises and “found objects”. You will also train how to speak about your project in 3-line versions. After a dramaturgical introduction to the aesthetic of 1.30-minute teasers, we will collect and select the material you must bring in order to build a mini-storyboard for a trailer. In our second meeting, with a guest video-artist, we will coach video-editing based on open-access software such as “I-movie” and PC-based editing. You can work on an announce teaser or a trailer for an existing performance. Semester course open to Master in Composition and Creative Practice, Master in Performance Max. number of participants: 10 / ECTS: 1 New Forms and Aesthetics in Current Musical Theatre (MACP S30) Angela Bürger 1.3. / 15.3. / 26.4. / 10.5. 15.00. – 18.00 (+ 2 theatre excursions. Dates tba) Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Auditorium This theoretical seminar gives an overview of musical theatre in the past decade in Europe. Reflecting on the function of musicians is often a part of the piece, like a commentary – making music about musicmaking. Creational processes are executed live in interactive forms, in the

presence of the public. The panorama is broad: From operatic works based on narrative librettos to musical happenings in abstract situations. We analyse the performative impact of these new forms. How could these strategies be adapted to your own pieces? The seminar is completed by two evening excursions to contemporary works of musical theatre. Open to: all HKB Master students Max. number of participants: 12 / ECTS: 1 Stage Your Music! (MACP S31) Angela Bürger 16.2. / 3.3. / 16.3. / 13.4. / 11.5. / 18.5. / rehearsals beginning of June 10:00 – 12:00 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 160 The aim of this course is to approach the domain of musical stage directing under the aspects of spatiality, lighting and the interweaving of text/ gestures/ movement with music. All these stage elements become material for your composition and scenic projects. We’ll teach you how to construct a dramaturgical line and emphasise it in a reduced scenic space where instruments and movement become part of the scenography. The projects will be performed in the Auditorium in June. Semester course open to MA Composition and Creative Practice & Contemporary Jazz, BA Sound Arts Max. number of participants: 10 / ECTS: 1

Love and Folk Songs – Repertoire for Performing Ensemble (MACP S32) Angela Bürger / Daniel Gloger 25.2., 18:15 - 21:15 17.03. / 28.4. - 10:00 - 12:45 Intensive rehearsals: 9.5., 10:00 - 18:00 and 20.5., 15:00 - 18:00 Live performance at beginning of June Place tba The Canadian Composer Claude Vivier and the Irish composer-performer Jennifer Walshe wrote very funny yet virtuoso short songs for speaker, singer and performer. We will work on this contemporary repertoire and go on to rehearse a staged version with the group. We welcome classical singers and performers of every instrument and invite composers to join us and create a new work for this group. Open to Master in Composition – Creative Practice, Master in Performance / Max. number of participants: 12 / ECTS: 1 Analysing Interdisciplinary Creation: Methods, Tools, Practical Applications (MACP S33) Leo Dick 22.02. / 08.03. / 22.03. / 19.04., 14:00 – 17:00 03.05., 15:00-18:00 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 180 This course deals with the interrelation between different artistic means in the field of contemporary, interdisciplinary creation. Using several case studies from music theatre, performance, video/installation art and staged concerts, we will explore different analytical perspectives and tools. In a further step, we will discuss the practice-related potential of

interdisciplinary analysis methods for our own creative collaboration with artists from various art domains. Semester course open to all Master students Max. number of participants: 10 / ECTS: 1 Music Theatre and Opera Singing – a Prolific Liaison? (MACP S34) Daniel Gloger 18.03. / 08.04. / 29.04. / 20.05. / 03.06. 18:00 - 21:00 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 160 How can classical opera singing be integrated in a contemporary musical language? And what sounds can you actually expect when you compose for opera singers? By reading and listening to various paradigmatic music theatre works of recent decades, we shall analyse how composers have made use of traditional ways of singing on stage, and transformed them into something intriguingly modern. Together with singers from the Master programme (performance and opera) we will try out our own approaches, ideally ending up with newly composed works to be performed by the singers. Semester course open to Master in Composition and Creative Practice, Master in Opera, singers in Master Performance Max. number of participants: 15 / ECTS: 1

2 Skills in Composition Analysis course: Inside New Music (MACP S35) Wanja Aloe Thursdays 11:00–13:00 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room: 181 This course offers both aesthetic and technical analysis of the main trends in contemporary music from the 1950s to today. In addition to the classical analysis of music scores, listening sessions and subsequent discussions of contemporary music will lead to a deeper understanding of various compositional aesthetics. Annual course Open to all MA students, BA Masterorientierung Composition and Creative Practice, other HKB Music students on demand Max. number of participants: no actual limitation / ECTS: 1 Instrumentation I and II for Composers (MACP S36) Xavier Dayer Thursdays Instrumentation I 13:00-14:00 Instrumentation II 14:00–15:00 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 182 This course focusses on learning the specifics and techniques of instrumentation in the 20th and 21st centuries. It is based on a mixture of exercises and analyses. Annual course Open to Master students Max. number of participants: 8 / ECTS: 1

Hearing Skills (MACP S37) Marc Kennel Thursdays, 16:30-17:30 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 187 The verb “to hear” in its integral definition means to perceive, identify and understand. Through many examples that have revolutionised the major musical works of different repertoires, we will try to perceive, identify and understand those melodic, harmonic and rhythmic turns of events that indefinitely maintain this radical force of innovation and contemporaneity. In addition to harmonic language, there are many modal and modern expressions that are exploited through recordings at the highest technical and musical level. Annual course open to MA Composition and Creative Practice, BA Music / Max. number of participants: 6 / ECTS: 1 Digital space-time, composing and playing with electronics and video - Seminar/Workshop I and II (MACP S38) Gilbert Nouno 9.03 / 7.04 / 14.04 / 21.04 / 4.05 Group I 09:00 - 12:00 Group II 13:00-16:00 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 107 How can we approach electronics as a multi-faceted plastic and conceptual art, in both practice and theory? This seminar/workshop consists of five sessions on electronic composition topics that focus on space and spatialisation, the time and space of the electronic

score, the image of space, and the space of images. Each workshop will review elements of theory and practical examples, leading to the realisation of a short project.

Semester course open to:Master Composition-Creative Practice Max. number of participants: 15 / ECTS: 1 Ensemble Conducting (MACP S39) Corsin Tuor Wednesdays 9:00–10:00. Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 112 A conductor is his own, very complex instrument that has to be practiced just like any other instrument. By means of studying etudes which deal with the laws of baton technique, students are taught a solid conducting technique. The students’ natural an untapped potential will be analyzed and refined into an individual style of movement. This course sets out to support the development of each conductor’s personality as a critical evaluation of their movement style encourages discussion. Questioning and assuming responsibility for what can be elicited on the conductors’ podium is thus a permanent driving force in the development of a future conductor.

Annual course open for MA Composition and Creative Practice, other HKB Music students on demand Max. number of participants: 6 / ECTS: 1

3 Skills in Sound Arts Voice & Live – Electronics (MACP S40) Franziska Baumann / Teresa Carrasco 29.03., 10:00–15:00 03.05., 09:30-14:30 24.05., 10:00–15:00 Papiermühlestrasse 13 d, Multifunktionsraum This course initiates various practices for voice and live electronics. Through tutorials and theoretical and practical input, students get a deeper insight into voice editing, forms of concert-based and virtual practice, dramaturgical and compositional structures, and questions regarding the acoustic and mediated voice in technical systems. Gestural live interfaces and the exploration of different possibilities of interaction with the audience are further possible topics of discussion. Finally, students will develop their own individual and/or collective micro-experiments and projects. Annual course Open to all Master students Max. number of participants: 8 / ECTS: 1

Fundamentals in Electroacoustic Composition II (MACP S41) Teresa Carrasco 02.03. / 09.03. / 30.03. / 06.04. / 01.06. 9:30–12:30 Papiermühlestrasse 13d, Multifunktionsraum

This course teaches the basics for realising your own musical projects in programming environments like Max/MSP. We will cover the principles of audio signal processing and implementing different sound effects in relation to possible installation and composition strategies for electroacoustic music. Previous knowledge in computer music and programming is not required. Semester course Open to all Master students Max. number of participants: 12 / ECTS: 1 Applied Audio Programming / DSP II (MACP S42) Cedric Spindler Topic 1: 16.03., 13:00 - 16:00 / 17.03., 13:00 - 16:00 Topic 2: 28.04., 13:00 - 16:00 / 29.04., 13:00 - 16:00 Topic 3: 09.06., 13:00 - 16:00 Papiermühlestrasse 13d, Multifunktionsraum Students often enter the field of audio programming using the Max/MSP development environment. This course is aimed at all those who want to explore the field further, especially with regard to the connection between music and science. The theoretical basics that students already bring with them are applied to topics such as Music Information Retrieval (MIR), Machine Learning and advanced DSP, which are then related to live electronics and the composition of acousmatic music. In addition to

Max/MSP, other programming languages and environments such as Python, JavaScript (Node4Max), C (for Max/MSP Externals) and Supercollider are covered. The course is partly based on part 1 (Applied Audio Programming and DSP) from autumn semester 2019, and will cover some of the following topics: DSP: Spectral Freezing / Stretching / Phase Vocoder / GEN (Max/MSP) Video: Jitter / Processing/P5.js Externals in Max/MSP, Part 2: External Programming in C / Scheduler External / DSP External Programming Interfaces, Part 2: Node4Max 2 / C Sound / Supercollider Annual course Open to Master students in Composition and Contemporary Arts Practice Max. number of participants: 12 / ECTS: 1

Gestures, Sensors and Sounds (MACP S43) Cathy van Eck Dates and place tba An electronic music performance with many different controllers on stage, an acousmatic composition through 16 loudspeakers in the dark, an interactive sound installation that reacts to every small movement of the audience: there are many different possibilities for presenting electronic music nowadays. Gestures often play an important role in these performances. By “gestures” I mean both the physical gestures of the human body during a performance of electronic music, and the musical gestures audible in the sound itself. Musical and physical gestures existed in music before electronic music was developed. But in electronic music, much of what used to be unquestioned and beyond the control of any performer or composer became malleable. With the help of all kinds of sensors, controllers and interfaces, the way human gestures are connected to sounds becomes a major choice to be made during the development of a composition, performance or interactive sound installation. Physical gestures are connected to sounds in many forms of electronic sound creation. Important issues are how we can design gestures that seem to fit the sound, what kind of meaning the gestures imply, for what reasons an artist decides to use certain technologies, and how the gestural character of the sound connects with the gesture of the performer, or distances itself from it. We can create all kinds of musical gestures with electronic means. In electronic music, these musical gestures do not have to relate to any kind of physical law, but can enlarge, ignore or modify sonic gestures known from everyday life. In this course, we will listen and look at many works exemplifying these ideas, and try out different gestural set-ups and compositional techniques. Semester Course open to MA Composition, MA Contemporary Arts Practice / Max. number of participants: 12 / ECTS: 1

4 Skills in Curating & Music in Context Music Aesthetics (MACP S44) Peter Kraut / Xavier Dayer 04.03 / 11.03. / 18.03. / 25.03. / 08.04. / 15.04. / 29.04. 15:15-17:15 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 180 Is the concept of progress relevant for music and the arts? What are postmodernism? Collage? Appropriation? Remix? What do you consider to be “music”, and what is “context”? Do we know too much to be able to create “new” music? What does “time” mean exactly? What’s a score? Let’s talk, read, and exchange ideas about these questions. Annual course Open to BA Classical, Jazz, Sound Arts and all Master students Max. number of participants: 20 / ECTS: 1

5 Mandatory Modules

Colloquium in Master Composition and Creative Practice (MACP S45) Xavier Dayer and Stefan Schultze 23.02. / 23.03. / 27.04. / 25.05. 17:00-19:30 Ostermundigenstrasse 103, Room 185 This course is a platform for exchange among students, lecturers and invited composers and performers. It is the only mandatory course for all students in the Master of Arts in Composition including both specialisations Creative Practice and Contemporary Jazz. Mandatory for all MA Composition students (Creative Practice and Contemporary Jazz), BA Masterorientierung in Composition - Creative Practice / ECTS: 1

Intensive Week – Collective Creative Practice (MACP S46) 31.6.–11.6.2021 Auditorium, Room 160 - 03.05., 09:00–18:00, Room 160, O103 Oral project presentation and project feasibility discussion. This is an important date; you will present your work (in 30-minute time frames) and discuss it with the teaching staff as well as with the sound engineer (Beat Müller) and the organisational assistant (Stanislas Pili). We will programme the concert depending on what you present here, so it is of the utmost importance that you bring a technical rider and a detailed description of what you intend to do. - Since 31.5. until 9.6., 09:00–18:00, Auditorium, O103, Rehearsals, installations and preparation for the concert (the detailed plan will be announced after 03.05.) - 10.6. / 11.6.2020, 18:00, Auditorium, O103 Student concert mandatory for all MA Composition and Creative Practice ECTS: 1

General Remark: Some collisions between the courses are possible. However, this is no reason not to choose a course. Please contact Nemanja Radivojevic for individual solutions. Contacts: Xavier Dayer Head of Composition Department xavier.dayer@hkb.bfh.ch Nemanja Radivojevic Assistant and administration nemanja.radivojevic@hkb.bfk Stanislas Pili Technical assistant stanislas.pili@hkb.bfh.ch BFH Hochschule der Künste Bern Composition / Creative Practice Ostermundigenstrasse 103, 3006 Bern Papiermühlerstrasse 13d, 3014 Bern hkb.bfh.ch hkb-musik.ch