Music - Research

Overview

SARC: Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Sound and Music is established as a broad research environment supporting work in all areas of sound and music. The PhD programme ranges from thesis focused to creative practice portfolio, with options for hybrid models combining practice and theory. Areas of research include: historical and critical musicology, sound studies, composition, socially engaged arts, performance studies, improvisation, interaction design, instrument design, audio signal processing, immersive sound and psychoacoustics.



SARC membership includes over forty academics from across various Schools in the University including the School of Arts English and Languages, School of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Education and Social Work, School of History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics and the School of Natural and Built Environment. As a dynamic and international community of researchers, SARC hosts regular events with invited scholars, researchers and artists. The PhD cohort is core to the research culture and includes over thirty students from various backgrounds and nationalities.



Subject Summary

The PhD programme allows for tailored supervision and research processes based on a candidate’s interests and skills while aligning with academic staff research interests and SARC’s broader research strategy. If you pursue research in Musicology, you will focus on scholastic study of significant figures such as Bach, Handel and Mozart as well as contemporary performance, critical studies in sound and music, improvisation, folksong, and experimental music. If you are a practitioner, you will work across a broad range of creative practice from performance, composition, installation, sound design and audiovisual work. Interdisciplinary PhD proposals are encouraged to approach sound and music topics from a variety of disciplines.



Mode of study/duration

Registration is on a full-time or part-time basis, under the direction of a supervisory team appointed by the University. You will be expected to submit your thesis at the end of three years of full-time registration for PhD, or two years for MPhil (or part-time equivalent).



Course structure

Students work to a timetable agreed with their team of two supervisors, availing of training offered by the Graduate School and also undertaking a bespoke Programme of scholarly or artistic activities agreed with their supervisors. Students undergo a differentiation procedure (progression from MPhil to PhD), normally after the equivalent of 9 months of full-time study; progress thereafter is measured through a presentation of materials to an annual progress review panel. Students may register for a writing up year after the equivalent of 36 months of full-time study. Assessment is by dissertation (80,000 words), portfolio (scope to be agreed), or a mixture of contextual writing and portfolio submission - examined in viva format by one internal and one external examiner. The viva normally occurs after 3-4 years of full-time study or 6-7 years part-time study.

Graduate

A 2.1 Honours degree or equivalent qualification acceptable to the University. While a Master’s degree (or equivalent qualification acceptable to the University) is not essential, it is desirable and applicants without this qualification will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

How to Apply

Apply using our online Postgraduate Applications Portal and follow the step-by-step instructions on how to apply.

3 academic years full-time, 6 academic years part-time.

Entry Year: 2024/25

Career Prospects

Introduction

Many of our PhDs have assumed academic or research roles in Higher Education; some have assumed artistic residencies; others have thriving careers are freelance recording artists; employment in industry as an audio or software engineer is another destination.

https://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/sgc/careers

Research information


Associated Research

JS Bach

Arnold Bax

Edward Elgar

GF Handel

WA Mozart

Thomas Moore

We offer wide-ranging support in the study of British composers generally as well as music in Ireland.

Contemporary music

Contemporary performance practice

Critical studies of gender and race

Critical/cultural studies in music

Improvisation

Irish traditional music, local history and sources

Social and institutional history

Sonic arts musicology

Sound installation art

The 18th-century London stage

The PhD in Composition is part of the practice-led research activities that take place within the School. Student composers work in a vigorous and diverse community across a broad range of creative practice from acoustic composition through to creative work in sonic arts. Instrumental composition students are afforded significant opportunities for workshop contact with visiting international artists, and with the Ulster Orchestra.