Abstract

Conceptual music is defined as music which is primarily concerned with the presentation of ideas and concepts. This is a broad category. It encompasses a variety of approaches to musical composition and production including, for example, program music, mash-ups, ekphrasis, and graphic scores. There have been previous studies of some of these sub-categories of conceptual music. However, to date, no musicological research has adequately recognised or dealt with conceptual music as a single field, unified by the pivotal role of ideas and concepts. For this reason, there exists no generally accepted terminology or established methodology for the exegesis of works of conceptual music – as conceptual works, first and foremost – regardless of any other musical styles or genres into which they might also be classified. This is “the exegetical problem of conceptual music.” Until now, it has remained largely unrecognised. The aim of this thesis is to make a contribution towards addressing this problem, by developing an interpretive model suitable for the analysis and interpretation of conceptual music. The model developed here proposes a typology of five modes of conceptual music. Each mode is defined in terms of the different types of ideas or concepts which have been intentionally shifted into the interpretive spotlight by the artist or composer. Specifically, the five modes are labelled (1) identifying, (2) signifying, (3) crafting, (4) referring, and (5) worldmaking.