Creating and affording ensembleness through the integration of movement in vocal ensemble compositions: Portfolio of compositions and supporting commentary

This portfolio comprises two individual compositions and three cycles for vocal ensemble, totalling nineteen pieces. These works integrate movement and interactions among performers and with the audience as key structural and technical elements within the creative process. Movement is treated as an inseparable medium from music, shaping both structure and sound. My aims are to explore:
• The development of multidisciplinary music and movement compositions adaptable to professional and non-professional vocal ensembles, ensuring style and coherence.
• Clear notation options that facilitate memorisation.
• Training to develop ensemble cohesion, to achieve coherent and nuanced performances of these compositions without a conductor or clear cues.
• The role of the composer-conductor in this practice.
• The ensemble's comfort and practice as a real-time co-creator.
My work focuses on developing ensembleness – a stronger sense of cohesion within the ensemble, along with a heightened awareness of spatial dynamics and creative possibilities – as core of my compositional approach, shifting from a theoretical framework to a performer-driven practice-based methodology. By promoting the ensemble's readiness and competence to perform beyond traditional practices, this approach to movement-based composition potentially dissolves the distinction between levels of expertise.
This practice explores and compares conceptual, practical, and notational strategies from composers like Andy Ingamells, James Whittle, Jennifer Walshe, Meredith Monk, and Pauline Oliveros, alongside movement practitioners such as Dick McCaw, Émile Jaques-Dalcroze, Peter Brook, and Rudolf Laban. As a result, I strategically adopt colour coding and font sizing to aid memorisation in multidisciplinary works involving movement, developing movement and ensemble training exercises into performances, reflecting on their benefits and challenges. Discussions on memorisation practices support these findings and inform the portfolio's development.
The performer-driven repertoire in this portfolio draws conclusions regarding the role of ensemble dynamics in shaping my compositional approach, aiming to develop strategies for the conceptual and practical advancement of multidisciplinary practice, leading to tangible performance improvements.