Artistic Research?!
What is AR?
Artistic Research is a field of study that focusses on understanding music from the perspective of the performer, which includes his/her/they embodied knowledge and experiences. The purpose of doing research is to extract new knowledge in favour of the musical performance and therefore aims for a deeper understanding of the processes of music making in addition and contributing to the artistic practice itself.
In terms of knowledge-production (epistemology) Artistic Research comes with a challenge; how to produce knowledge (instead of sharing an opinion), how to be (self-)critical and unbiased when the researcher is the performer? This is where the field borrows methods and insights from various other discplines, like psychology, sociology, philosophy, performance studies, musicology and so on. Artistic Research is intrinsically interdisciplinairy in order to establish quality. To go beyond personal observations and experience by creating an intersubjective perspective on the topic.
Artistic Research VS Artistic Practice
Although closely connected there is a clear distinction between AR and AP. Simply for the reason that if that wasn’t the case there is no reason to have a discipline like AR in the first place. So, what is the added value of AR to AP? The practice of music making is a complex entanglement of relations to graps. In order to do so, every AR-project can be understood as a (semi-)structured proces of 1) experimentation, 2) reflection and 3) information. Experimentation is the use one’s artistic practice as a method to question a certain aspect of the practice. Reflection aims to deepen one’s understanding concerning the topic by questioning, modeling, writing and other forms of practices. Information are all external sources in order to support and challenge one’s own perspective, create intersubjectivity and challenges and strenghtens one’s insights. Artistic Research aims to stand on the shoulders of existing knowledge and add to existing knowledge through personal experiences, insights and knowledge from one’s own practice. This aim is benifical for both science as well as one’s practice as it deepens personal perspectives and creates intersubjectivity while it adds embodied knowledge to the sciences that is not graspable throught other disciplines (e.g., music history, music theory).
Dissemination
Due to its double function in contributing to both artistic practices and scientific practices, Artistic Research can not be assessed in one mode solely as both practices have very different ways of communication. As artistic knowledge can (and should!) be demonstrated through a performance, it says little about what is researched, how it is researched, what insights were gained, how these relate to other performers and thinkers and so on. A verbalisation of the research proces, outcomes, methodology, contextualisation etc is inevitable to be accepted as research. Conversely, as one’s practice is a method of research, there is a necessity for the inclusion of the artistic practice in the research output for the sake of transparancy. Addtionally, the value and quality of one’s research increases when the knowledge appears to be embodied as well.
Miles Davis as artistic researcher
Was Miles Davis a researcher? Or Bach, Beethoven or any other composer or performer that was able to leave their mark on music history? No, I believe not. Sure, they were informed, the experimented through practice and undoubtedly reflected upon their work in an iterative proces. But so does every other musician probably. So, do you become a ‘researcher’ when a certain amount of people (who and how many?) speak about a ‘high quality’? Or when the people still remember you 50 years after your passing? No, a researcher communicates with and through (a) certain field(s) of study with the aim of contributing to science (i.e., knowledge production). A musician who developes one’s practice and communicates it on stage is a performer; a musician who communicates artistic knowledge through writing, lecturing (and so on) in combination with performing is a researcher.
RC, 17-3-2026