Doctoral Degrees

Dr Laura Bissell (she/her) is an Athenaeum Research Fellow and Lecturer in Contemporary Performance Practice at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Laura is a performance-researcher, writer, and educator and has had her poetry, creative writing and academic writing published in journals and anthologies. She is currently writing a monograph on matrescence and performance (Intellect) and is co-editing the International Journal of Performance Art and Digital Media’s special edition: Matrescence and Media with Jodie Hawkes and Elena Marchevska.

Professor Stephen Broad is an islander in exile, researcher, teacher, community conductor and occasional broadcaster. He studied at the Music School of Douglas Academy (Piano with Anne Crawford and composition with William Sweeney) and then at the University of Glasgow, where he won prizes in music and physics. He undertook a DPhil in Historical Musicology at Worcester College, Oxford with the late Robert Sherlaw Johnson and with Annegret Fauser, and is Head of Research and Knowledge Exchange at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Born and raised in Alaska, Joshua arrived in Scotland in 1992 to study Scottish Gaelic at the University of Aberdeen (MA, 1996). He then undertook doctoral research in the history of the piping tradition of the southern Outer Hebrides at the School of Scottish Studies, University of Edinburgh (PhD, 2001), now published under the title When Piping Was Strong: Tradition, Change and the Bagpipe in South Uist (John Donald, 2006).

Dr Emily Doolittle is a composer and researcher with an ongoing interest in the relationship between human music and animal songs, which she explores through music, writing, and in interdisciplinary collaborations with scientists. Other research interests include environmental activism through the arts, interdisciplinarity, music and gender, musical storytelling, and folklore. Originally from Canada, Doolittle has been an Athenaeum Research Fellow and Lecturer in Composition at RCS since 2017.

Dr Rachel Drury is a researcher and creative artist working in the field of music psychology and therapeutic arts. She is Co-programme Lead for the MA Psychology in the Arts (Music) programme at the RCS and the music specialist for Rachel House Children’s Hospice in Kinross (CHAS).

Celia’s ‘squiggly’ career has ranged from mainstream music academia, technology-assisted learning and research (when it was new and more interesting), corporate training, and institutional senior management where she played a key role in RCS’s development as a research institution.

The focus of her current work is the need for rapid evolution and change in higher music education and driving institutional innovation to achieve that – including maximising the potential of knowledge exchange and innovation in the small specialist arts sector.

Sam Ellis is Associate Head of the Bachelor of Music (BMus) degree programme, working closely with School of Music staff in the delivery of the undergraduate curriculum. He teaches in a broad range of core and elective subject areas, supports wellbeing across the whole student journey, and plays a key role in ensuring the continued academic and professional relevance of the BMus.

David Fennessy’s music has been performed internationally by many groups including the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Ensemble Modern, London Sinfonietta and the RTE National SymphonyOrchestra of Ireland.

Professor Laura González’s work inhabits the space between medical humanities, psychoanalysis, performance and Eastern thought. She has written on the seductive qualities of a lemon squeezer (2010), and has co-edited collections of essays on art and madness (2013) and on care (2018). She is the author of ‘Make Me Yours: How Art Seduces’ (2016) and ‘The Hysteric: Outline of a Figure’ (with Dr Eleanor Bowen, 2023). She has published book chapters on transposition (2018) inter-semiotic translation (2019), her maternal line (2019), breath (2020) and ghosts (2021). She has translated Freud’s case histories into performance and is currently exploring the dramaturgical potential of a breath practice.

Steve is Head of BMus and teaches modules on Music History and Performance Practice after 1900; Film Music; Television Music; and Music in the Horror Film. They also coordinate the Public Performance Project module for BMus4 students and teach the BMus4 Research Paper.

Dr Sarah Hopfinger is a Lecturer in Research at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. She is a practitioner-researcher with specialisms in disability dance, chronic pain and crip theory, ecological performance, and intergenerational practice.

Roy Howat studied at the RSAMD and Cambridge University, where his doctorate formed the basis of his 1983 book Debussy in proportion. He combines international concert performance with research, which has included revelations about musical structure, performing and editorial issues. Among his publications are acclaimed critical editions of major works by Debussy, Fauré, Chopin and Chabrier, the book The Art of French Piano Music, chapters in numerous other books, and a wide range of CD recordings.

Alistair MacDonald’s research explores ideas of estrangement and resistance through composition and performance using field recording, live audio processing and interactive systems. Much of his work is collaborative and takes the form of standalone electroacoustic works, fixed compositions for instruments, improvisations with musicians from a number of genres, film, dance and gallery installation. Alistair supervises several practice-based and theory-led research students including composers, cross-disciplinary artists and performers.

Stuart MacRae teaches composition at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, including classes on music analysis for composers, contemporary repertoire, and notation. As a Senior Research Fellow, his interests lie in word-setting for the operatic voice, reimagining tonal harmony, and artistic responses to the Anthropocene.

Dr Jill Morgan holds a PhD in Music Psychology from Edinburgh University and is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. At RCS, she lectures on the Postgraduate Learning and Teaching programme and co-coordinates the Introduction to Music Psychology module in the School of Music. Jill is a co-developer on the new MA in Psychology in the Arts (Music) degree and an active researcher exploring the role of music in the social world, education and in health and well-being. Current research includes the Coorie Doon project for Chamber Music Scotland, the Five Places programme for the Red Note Ensemble and Healing Spaces for BuildX Studio.

As a pianist, Jill has extensive educator experience having taught music in schools as well as keyboard skills and listening and musicianship at the University of Edinburgh. She has given many presentations at conferences and seminars nationally and internationally and has been a guest on BBC Radio Scotland speaking about the impact of music on people’s lives.

Professor Arnold Myers is a Senior Research Fellow at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and a Professor Emeritus of the University of Edinburgh; he serves as President of the Galpin Society. His Edinburgh University doctorate developed acoustically based techniques for taxonomic classification of brass instruments.

Ailie is a multi-award-winning Scottish composer/harpist who has been commissioned by some of the world’s most prestigious cultural institutions including BBC Proms, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bang on a Can, Cappella Nova, Exaudi and the Riot Ensemble. She is currently composer-in-residence with Sound Festival and Glyndebourne Orchestra. She was awarded the “Achievement in New Music” prize at the Scottish Awards for New Music.

Dr Brianna E. Robertson-Kirkland is a Lecturer in Historical Musicology at The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and is the Lead Research Associate for the AHRC-funded project ‘The Edited Collection of Allan Ramsay’ at the University of Glasgow.

Dr Oliver Searle has written a wide variety of works for many professional, amateur, youth and theatre organisations, which have been broadcast and performed around the world.

Marc Silberschatz holds a PhD from the University of St Andrews and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and an MA with Distinction in Classical and Contemporary Text (Directing).

Dr J Simon van der Walt is a composer and Head of Taught Postgraduate Programmes in Music at the Conservatoire. His artistic research inhabits a broad span of work, ranging from score-based composition to installation, sound art, and devised musiktheater. Current preoccupations include Indonesian gamelan music, live coding in SuperCollider, and reconstructing the career of his fictional alter ego Edward ‘Teddy’ Edwards, unsung hero of British light music electronica.

Bethany’s research focuses on the cultural and social analysis of participatory dance and dance organisations, often through ethnographic means. Since 2015, research activity has been closely tied to the Engagement work of Scottish Ballet, focused in two areas: a) Dance for Health, working with dancers with dementia, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson’s, and b) education opportunities for professional ballet and contemporary company dancers in the UK.

Professor Stephen Broad is an islander in exile, researcher, teacher, community conductor and occasional broadcaster. He studied at the Music School of Douglas Academy (Piano with Anne Crawford and composition with William Sweeney) and then at the University of Glasgow, where he won prizes in music and physics. He undertook a DPhil in Historical Musicology at Worcester College, Oxford with the late Robert Sherlaw Johnson and with Annegret Fauser, and is Head of Research and Knowledge Exchange at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Dr Emily Doolittle is a composer and researcher with an ongoing interest in the relationship between human music and animal songs, which she explores through music, writing, and in interdisciplinary collaborations with scientists. Other research interests include environmental activism through the arts, interdisciplinarity, music and gender, musical storytelling, and folklore. Originally from Canada, Doolittle has been an Athenaeum Research Fellow and Lecturer in Composition at RCS since 2017.

Since her London debut performing Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy at St. James’ Palace for Yehudi Menuhin’s 60th Birthday Celebration at the age of 12, Scottish violinist Andrea Gajic has enjoyed an international career as a soloist and chamber musician of the highest order. Alongside an active performing career, Andrea is also a passionate and dedicated pedagogue. A professor at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, many of her students have excelled in national and international competitions.

Professor Laura González’s work inhabits the space between medical humanities, psychoanalysis, performance and Eastern thought. She has written on the seductive qualities of a lemon squeezer (2010), and has co-edited collections of essays on art and madness (2013) and on care (2018). She is the author of ‘Make Me Yours: How Art Seduces’ (2016) and ‘The Hysteric: Outline of a Figure’ (with Dr Eleanor Bowen, 2023). She has published book chapters on transposition (2018) inter-semiotic translation (2019), her maternal line (2019), breath (2020) and ghosts (2021). She has translated Freud’s case histories into performance and is currently exploring the dramaturgical potential of a breath practice.

“Formidably equipped” – Gramophone

“Flabbergasted” – The Herald

“Phenomenal” – The Classical Reviewer

South Korean-born pianist Sinae Lee leads a busy life as a soloist, chamber musician and lecturer at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS) in Glasgow, UK. Since her UK début with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO), playing Brahms Piano Concerto No.1, she has also played with the Korean Symphony Orchestra, St. James Orchestra, Glasgow Orchestral Society as well as RCS Orchestra and Wind Ensemble. She has frequently appeared in concerts in New York, St. Petersburg, Riga, London, Edinburgh and Glasgow as well as cities in her native Korea such as Seoul, Suwon and Busan.

Professor Allan Neave, Interim Deputy Director of Music, studied at the RSAMD (1984) and the RNCM (1988) and since then has been performing worldwide. He is a regular guest at many of the world’s leading musical events and has worked with many influential musicians including Nikita Koshkin, Edward McGuire, Hans Werner Henze, Gordon McPherson and Stephen Dodgson.

Professor Fali Pavri is an international soloist, chamber musician, and teacher. Performing with eminent musicians, he tours globally with orchestras and plays world premieres by distinguished composers.  Professor Pavri had his first piano lesson in his native city of Mumbai, India, with Shanti Seldon. He graduated with distinction from the Moscow Conservatory under Victor Merzhanov. Pavri completed his postgraduate studies at the Royal Academy of Music, London, with Christopher Elton. Professor Pavri is a committed and sought-after teacher with many international prize-winning students. His masterclasses worldwide and served on the jury of countless international piano competitions.  

Jean teaches Voice across BA Acting, BA Musical Theatre, BA Contemporary Performance Practice, MA Musical Theatre and MA Classical and Contemporary Text Programmes, also contributing to productions, performances and collaborative work.

In 2006, Aaron Shorr was appointed Head of Keyboard at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. In 2013, he was awarded a Professorship from the RCS and in 2013-2015, also served as Acting Director of Music at the RCS.

As Principal Cello in some of the world’s leading ensembles English Baroque Soloists, Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, the Philharmonia Orchestra and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra David Watkin has played a key role at the heart of some ground-breaking performances.

He has conducted ensembles at the Royal Academy of Music, The Guildhall School of Music, the Royal Welsh College and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.