Contact
Biography
Duncan MacLeod is a composer and sound artist whose practice utilises both acoustic and digital forces. His output encompasses concert music, participatory arts, performance, soundwalks, sound installations and interdisciplinary practice that draws inspiration from a diverse range of sources encompassing folklore, philosophy, anthropology and acoustic ecology as well as social and political issues. His work has been professionally commissioned, commercially recorded and broadcast internationally by various ensembles and soloists. These include the Arditti Quartet, Jane Chapman, Juice vocal ensemble, Galvanize Ensemble, London Sinfonietta, Musarc, Ensemble Okeanos, Orkest de Volharding, Piano Circus, and Quatuor Diotima. His work has been performed and exhibited at festivals such as Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Spitalfields Festival, Gaudeamus music week (NL), Sonorities, and at prominent venues namely The Muziekgebouw (NL), Walt Disney Centre (USA), Sadlers' Wells, Southbank Centre, Tate Modern, Kings Place, and Whitechapel Gallery.
Duncan is an active performer (electronics) and founding member of the trio SoundKarD which specialise in the performance of experimental music. He is also an experienced animateur, leading large-scale participatory art projects for organisations such as the RNIB, English National Opera, London Sinfonietta, Southbank Centre, and Wigmore Hall.
Duncan studied composition with John Woolrich and Nye Parry at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and at the Royal Academy of Arts, The Netherlands, under the tutelage of Louis Andriessen, Clarence Barlow and Martijn Padding. He holds a PhD in composition from the University of Kent/Trinity Laban, where he studied with Michael Finnissy and Tim Howle. He has also been awarded residencies at Acanthes, the Banff Centre, Handel House Museum, iPark artist enclave and IRCAM.
Expertise Summary
Composition (acoustic and electronic forces); Electroacoustic Music; Experimental Music; Interdisciplinary Practice; Participatory Arts; Performance; Sound Art; Sound Studies.
Teaching Summary
Applied Digital Musicianship; Electroacoustic Composition; Music & Mixed Reality; Portfolio of Compositions; Skills in Composition; Specialised Studies 1; Specialised Studies 2; Specialist… read more
Research Summary
Duncan MacLeod is a composer and sound artist whose practice utilises acoustic and digital forces. His output encompasses augmented reality, creative technologies, digital storytelling, radio art,… read more
Recent Publications
Current Research
Duncan MacLeod is a composer and sound artist whose practice utilises acoustic and digital forces. His output encompasses augmented reality, creative technologies, digital storytelling, radio art, social practice, sound installations, soundwalks, and interdisciplinary practice that engages a variety of sources that include acoustic ecology, ethnography, folklore, science, and social and political issues. His work has been commissioned, commercially recorded, performed and broadcast internationally at notable venues and festivals.
Past Research
Duncan's work has been professionally commissioned, commercially recorded, exhibited, and broadcast internationally by various ensembles and soloists. These include the Arditti Quartet, Jane Chapman, Fretwork, Juice vocal ensemble, London Sinfonietta, Musarc, Ensemble Okeanos, Orkest de Volharding, Piano Circus, and Quatuor Diotima. His work has been performed at festivals such as Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Spitalfields Festival, Gaudeamus music week (NL), Sonorities, and Bang on a Can Marathon (NY) and at prominent venues, namely Cafe OTO, The Muziekgebouw (NL), Walt Disney Centre (USA), Southbank Centre, Tate Modern, Kings Place, and Whitechapel Gallery.
Future Research
Upcoming commissions for 2024 include music, a new sound work for Sarah Watts, and a series of soundwalks for Taigh Chearsabhagh Museum and Arts Centre (North Uist).