ICMP's Teaching Faculty celebrates PhD success

Congratulations to ICMP tutors Audrey Riley, Oliver Sellwood and Kit Ashton who have all recently completed their PhDs. 

The tutors are the latest members of ICMP’s teaching faculty to achieve this fantastic qualification. 

Commenting, Dr Tony Harris, said: “Successfully completing a doctorate is the most significant milestone in the career of any academic. It represents many years of study and commitment to your area of expertise, not to mention the emotional rollercoaster of actually completing the thesis and undergoing the viva voce examination."

ICMP has a growing number of tutors carrying the illustrious ‘Dr’ title, showing the high levels of scholarship and academic integrity across our faculty. I offer my heartfelt congratulations to Olly, Kit and Audrey for their recent achievements."

PhD Research

Audrey, an acclaimed composer, cellist and innovative musician alongside her teaching, completed her research ‘In Pursuit of Non-Knowledge: Perspectives on Performing with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company’ as a part-time student over seven years. 

Kit's research, entitled ‘Êcliaithe Man Tchoeu [Light Up My Heart]: Applied Ethnomusicology and the Revitalisation of the Endangered Language of Jèrriais’ , led to him investigating the ways in which applied ethnomusicology can help revitalise endangered languages.

Oliver's ‘Alias States: Composing (for) Electronically Enhanced Set-ups’  saw him explore how we can experience conventional acoustic instruments in new ways through electronic technology.

Audrey said: "I’m quite proud as I’ve been doing this over the course of the last seven years and obviously through the pandemic. 

"My motivation wasn’t so much about achieving the qualification as  about experiencing the process. I'm interested in the journey of exploring and experiencing new things. Being part of a university and working as part of a community of learning was something I really appreciated." 

Kit said: "The first thing I did as soon as I finished my viva voce exam on a late Friday afternoon, was meet some friends to celebrate in a whisky bar here in Glasgow where I live. As I walked there, I felt like I was floating.

A PhD is a massive journey both personally and professionally and it just felt unreal to have finally achieved it. It means so much, both in terms of the professional credibility and expertise it brings, but also the depth and maturity of my understanding about music, and songwriting in particular."

Olly said: "Working on this has been a pleasure … but I am very pleased to have completed it! The PhD has opened up possibilities to work with a wide range of people and with different organisations in the UK, Europe, and the USA. I am particularly indebted to the performers who have played my music. Also, the process of completing the doctorate has been valuable. Having the time and space to think, work, and reflect is a real privilege and has helped me develop my practice."

Look out for our interview with all three to learn more about their research and advice for anyone looking to undertake similar study. 

Congratulations to Audrey, Olly and Kit for their brilliant achievements!

Photo credit: Dimitri Djuric