Cripping Virtuosity 1 views

This dissertation aims to broaden understanding and generate interest in disability as a source of creativity by examining virtuosity through the disabled experience. While discourse on virtuosity in Western art music, especially from the 20th century onward, exists, traditional classical music often emphasizes finite skill over diverse interpretations. Additionally, disability is frequently seen as something to be overcome or an inspiration rather than appreciated for its creative potential. Although scholarship on disability and music exists, it often lacks perspectives from creative disabled musicians like myself. Through a cross-disciplinary research trajectory, the written dissertation and music project reveal virtuosity learned from disabled dancers and musicians, expanding upon ongoing collaborations with dance and applying adaptive music technologies to serve these processes. More specifically, three chapters feature interviews with disabled dancers and musicians about specific artworks and their practices overall; their contributions are noted as well. Chapter I traces the history and evolution of virtuosity and disability studies in Western classical music, articulating historical and contemporary intersections. Chapter II discusses disabled dancer Marc Brew’s 2015 solo For Now, I am… and how, through an intimate re-examination with his body, Brew fosters a virtuosity unique to himself. Chapter III examines disabled dancer Kayla Hamilton’s 2018 work Nearly Sighted/unearthing the dark, which decenters normalized dance practice to counter sight-based focuses, embracing an inner-body and multisensorial aesthetic to redefine virtuosic movement. Chapter IV features interviews with disabled musicians JJJJJerome Ellis and Gaelynn Lea and their views on virtuosity, specifically in relation to their disability, instrument, access, and audience relationship. Finally, Chapter V presents my reimagining of virtuosity through the intersection of disability and adaptive music technology in the development of the album State Change. This project utilizes surgical records as musical lyrics, combined with aural material produced with various accelerometer and motion capture systems.

PHD (Doctor of Philosophy)

disability; virtuosity; adaptive music technology

English

All rights reserved by the author (no additional license for public reuse)

2026-11-11