The PhD program is a three-year study and research pathway designed for performers from diverse traditions (jazz, contemporary classical, rock, pop, folk, etc.). It particularly welcomes candidates with artistic practices that bridge different languages and approaches.
The program’s goal is to foster high-level, internationally relevant artistic research, alongside the development of knowledge and skills consistent with third-cycle doctoral standards. The research—culminating in both a thesis and a performance—will combine artistic practice with methodological reflection, producing work that contributes to both academic and artistic communities.
Activities include:
Individual supervision, small-group lessons, seminars, conferences, critical listening and discussion sessions
Training in language, IT, academic writing, and research dissemination
Access to consortium facilities (Siena Jazz Academy, Accademia Chigiana, CPM Milan, etc.)
6–12 months of research in industry and 6–12 months abroad
Opportunities in tutoring and outreach (publications, symposia, performances)
By the end of the PhD, candidates will be expected to:
- demonstrate advanced knowledge of improvisation practices and their intersections with other art forms;
- understand current theories and practices in contemporary improvisation;
- reflect on and critically contextualize their artistic practice;
- develop original methodologies and practices in improvisation research;
- address artistic, ethical, and professional issues with integrity
- Disseminate their research through performances, publications, and presentations
- contribute innovative perspectives to contemporary improvisation theory and practice
Research projects, evaluated by the committee along with an artistic portfolio and CV, may address the following topics (however, this list is not exhaustive and applicants are encouraged to propose additional research topics):
1. Impact of technology on improvisation
The relationship with technology, which pervades contemporary society and, therefore, artistic creation, offers the opportunity for an investigation into the implementation and practice of technical and social artifacts (interfaces, instruments, hardware and software platforms) that is consistent with the values of expressive urgency, honesty, and presence traditionally shared in communities of improvising performers. Research on this topic could address the understanding of (and relationship with) the affordance embedded in the materiality of the medium itself; the problem of interaction mediated by a “first-person” approach and co-design with the performer; the dialectic between the improvising performer, possibly following a non-idiomatic approach, and the machine conditioned by what, in Andrew McPherson’s words, are “idiomatic patterns”: think of music notation software, MIDI instruments, the implicit adherence to tuning systems and modes of interaction culturally conditioned by centuries of organological history.
2. Non-idiomatic improvisation
Total and “unfettered” improvisation is the abandonment of established styles and models in favor of a process of collective resonance with extemporaneously generated musical material, possibly mediated by an idea of improvisation as instantaneous composition. In this sense, total improvisation can be seen as the gateway to a process of profound adherence to languages and traditions of the past, sheltered from expressive detachment and the expectations tied to pre-established canons, or, alternatively, to a process of non-idiomatic improvisation, which, following Derek Bailey’s definition in his seminal essay, continually redefines itself in relation to a “new” knowledge acquired at the moment of performance. Research on this topic could attempt to investigate the meaning of these experiences from a contemporary perspective, both by gathering concepts, practices, and experiences through an ethnographic approach and by engaging with them from a purely performative perspective.
3. Composition/improvisation dialectic
Many of the concepts and practices related to improvisation—improvisation as a variation on a theme/outline, improvisation as instantaneous composition, improvisation as a flow and state of consciousness, etc.—imply a comparison with the compositional approach, emphasizing either the analogies or contrasts between these processes. A research project dedicated to this topic could address experiences within various traditions (especially jazz and new music) that seek to blur the line between composition and improvisation through notation tools, the development of practices and systems, and conduction techniques in the broadest sense. It could also propose, through performance, a personal perspective on these experiences. Finally, it could discuss the issue of authorship in this context.
4. Relationship between musical improvisation and other improvisational practices
The practice of improvisation traverses (and transcends) languages and artistic forms, geographies, and communities. While a principle of universality can be invoked in the comparison between musical improvisation and (among others) dance and theater in relation to gestalt, expressive urgency, and corporeality, the same cannot be said for narrative techniques, a sense of space, or values of authenticity and uniqueness. Research on this topic could establish a theoretical-conceptual framework for these (or other) disciplines and investigate the different degrees of interaction within the context of interdisciplinary performance—from juxtaposition to hybridization within a common ground.
5. Improvisation and embodied cognition
Many improvisational practices—not only musical ones—emphasize breathing, proprioception, and voice. These are individual expressions of “embodied thought” that are dear to the phenomenological tradition, from Maurice Merleau-Ponty to Richard Shusterman. Research on this topic could explore the integration of musical improvisation and corporeal practices within established experiences (from Pauline Oliveros’s Deep Listening to Milford Graves’s research) to formulate a performative approach that takes into account the candidate’s background and philosophical-cultural coordinates.