Dear Visitor or Friend, 
Esteemed colleague in Art,

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With the Research Project I presented for consideration by Merton College of Oxford University, I intend to conceive, develop, and apply an innovative didactic and low-threshold educational methodology with an associated practice toolbox that, I believe, will expand vastly the current sociological segment where advanced music writing is seen as accessible, important, or desirable.

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My Research Fellowship application proposal would take the shape of an atelier, the Merton College Art Studio, where all Arts and all people are welcome to cooperate around projects that will fill the 2022-2023 academic year at Merton College with an exciting array of events and thrilling public performances, federating talents and art forms of the College Community across all academic statuses and forces, whilst also inspiring a communal desire to worship and praise God in the Chapel service for example - giving new energy, hope and confidence to a wounded humanity in grief, and discouraged by the lingering pandemic. 

All these college life highlights, moments of prayer, introspection and celebrations will have one thing in common: the creation of new music of my composition, music made in the scope of the Fellowship project.

 

As a composer, I propose thus to build the backbone of the Merton College Art Studio output upon a series of monthly Composition Workshops open to all motivated dreamers at Merton.

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By letting the practice of these Workshops revolve around tonal harmony, - my preferred aural biotope, and source of a sustained inspiration flow since 30 years now -, I hope that my research at Merton College will have a broad appeal among its community and that it will contribute to (re-)open the doors of contemporary music to a much more diverse human palette of personalities and sensibilities.

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By connecting Merton College students to their common, innate and intuitive creation abilities, I want indeed to enrich their expressive palette as (aspiring) composers with fundamental but neglected or forgotten colors, emotions, and affects that are today less being shared with one another, lest convincingly voiced to large audiences - despite an omnipresent hunger for meaning, hope and purpose in life and art.

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I will ground this research in my own practice-based learning experience and skill development, indeed starting and progressing as an everlasting a-didact, but now also as a fairly prolific author of a catalogue encompassing nearly the whole palette of musical forms and settings.

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Yours cordially,

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Dimitri Arnauts
Composer

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