Course Unit Form
Course unit title:
Advanced Research in Music
Code of the scientific area:
Musz
Duration (annual, semester or term):
Annual
Total student workload (total hours):
520.0
Contact hours:
In-person (P) - TP-30.0; OT-5.0
% of distance-learning contact hours:
0.00%
ECTS credits:
20.0
Responsible lecturer and corresponding teaching load in the course unit:
Rui Penha - 20.0h
Other lecturers and their teaching load in the course unit:
Learning outcomes and their compatibility with the teaching method (knowledge, skills and competences to be developed by students):
In this course unit, doctoral students design and plan the artistic research projects they will develop over the following years. The objectives are:
O1. Demonstrate advanced knowledge of the foundations and aims of artistic research in music, critically integrating theoretical and methodological perspectives, with the ability to situate and justify the project within the field of artistic research.
O2. Develop reflective thinking, problematising concepts and methodologies in a context of creation and research, including the formulation, articulation and refinement of research questions (problem, objectives and scope).
O3. Master bibliographic management, documentation and information organisation tools for artistic research, ensuring rigour in academic writing and scientific communication, including the articulation of documentation/validation and dissemination plans.
O4. Demonstrate autonomy in gathering, organising and analysing information to structure artistic research projects, ensuring coherence between research questions, practices, methods and evidence/documentation.
O5. Conceive and present an original artistic research project, methodologically grounding its choices and using effective documentation and communication strategies, including an explicit link to communities of practice/creative industries and impact beyond academia.
Syllabus:
P1. Epistemological foundations of paradigmatic research: a) Definitions of research and knowledge.
b) History of epistemology: from the pre-Socratics to logical positivism.
c) Exclusion of artistic creation from the sphere of knowledge.
d) Major epistemological problems of the twentieth century.
P2. Epistemological foundations of artistic research:
a) Knowledge beyond the propositional: procedural, experiential and relational.
b) Definitions of artistic research and methodological proposals.
c) Validation, documentation and dissemination of non-propositional knowledge.
d) Relational ontology as a foundation for artistic research in music.
e) Examples, methodological approaches and international best practices.
P3. Resources, methods and tools for bibliographic management.
P4. Information organisation and academic writing.
P5. Documentation tools and presentation of results in artistic research.
Demonstration of the coherence between the syllabus and the course unit's learning outcomes:
The syllabus results directly from a densification and unpacking of the objectives, with the relationship made explicit through the corresponding numbering. Since it is not possible to exhaustively cover the history of epistemology and the philosophy of science, a brief introduction is given, supported by readings of relevant excerpts from the bibliography, enabling an understanding of the key problems raised in the twentieth century that led not only to epistemological revolutions in the natural and social sciences, but also, and above all, framed the emergence of current proposals for artistic research.
The tools and practices of bibliographic management, information handling and academic writing, as well as the resources, methods and tools for documentation and presentation of results in the context of artistic research, run throughout the semester and are introduced primarily through the demonstrative method.
Teaching and learning methodologies specific to the course unit, articulated with the pedagogical model:
The teaching and learning methodologies of the course unit Advanced Research in Music are articulated with the DocMus.pt pedagogical model, integrating research, experimentation and critical reflection. Teaching is structured to enable doctoral students to formulate artistic research projects, in line with the centrality of Artistic Research Through Practice. The course unit combines theoretical-practical hours with hours of individual tutorial supervision, ensuring a balance between theoretical grounding, methodological application and personalised support.
The theoretical-practical component provides an epistemological and methodological framework, addressing the history of scientific research and the foundations of artistic research. The expository method ensures that students understand the evolution of thinking on knowledge production, allowing them to situate their practices within a broader academic and artistic landscape.
The demonstrative method is applied to the analysis and design of research projects, promoting experimentation with different methodological approaches. Demonstrating the use of bibliographic management, information organisation and academic writing tools enables doctoral students to develop essential skills for documenting and communicating their work. This process is fundamental to the structuring of the Artistic Research Project, to be developed in subsequent years.
The active methodology, based on debate and critical discussion, reinforces students' autonomy in formulating and justifying their methodological choices. These moments of argumentative exchange are essential to consolidate the capacity to problematise concepts and methodologies, fostering reflective and rigorous thinking.
The individual tutorial hours ensure personalised supervision, allowing each doctoral student to discuss the development of their project and explore specific methodological questions in depth. This personalised component ensures continuous support in the design and maturation of the research, respecting the diversity of individual paths.
This approach is aligned with the structure of DocMus.pt, which favours continuous interaction between doctoral students, supervisors and stakeholders. The articulation between research, teaching and practice ensures that projects develop in a balance between creative expression and theoretical grounding. Moreover, by fostering the communication of results in academic, artistic and professional contexts, these methodologies prepare doctoral students to integrate their research into the programme's creative and scientific ecosystem.
Assessment:
By 30 April, candidates must submit 3 written assignments:
1) Drafting a critical position paper (approx. 2000 words) on the state of the art of artistic research methods in music (20% of the final grade, minimum grade 10.0).
2) Drafting a critical review (approx. 2000 words) of an artistic research project (20% of the final grade, minimum grade 10.0). 3) Drafting an artistic research proposal (60% of the final grade, minimum grade 10.0), to subsequently be submitted for appraisal by the Technical-Scientific Council for progression in studies.
By 31 May, doctoral students must give an oral and written presentation of their work, followed by a 15-minute question-and-answer session. This presentation will be assessed in two ways:
Qualitative assessment: carried out by peers in the course unit, fostering the exchange of ideas and the development of feedback skills.
Quantitative assessment: carried out by three doctoral programme lecturers, based on the criteria indicated below.
The purpose of this activity is to simulate the peer-review process, preparing doctoral students for the defence of their final doctoral work. At the end of the year, doctoral students will receive detailed feedback from lecturers, highlighting strengths and identifying areas for improvement.
Assessment criteria (to be applied according to the nature of the assignments): application of academic conventions, clarity and organisation of the text, theoretical and argumentative grounding, technical presentation and appropriate use of specific terminology, quality of research, analysis and argumentation, originality and relevance of the topic addressed, command of methodologies and technological resources, capacity for critical reflection and autonomy in carrying out the assignments.
Students who do not pass the assessment may submit a revised version of the assignment by 30 June.
Demonstration of the coherence between the teaching and assessment methodologies and the course unit's learning outcomes:
The teaching and assessment methodologies of the course unit Advanced Research in Music are aligned with the learning outcomes, promoting a balance between theory, practice and critical reflection. The course unit combines theoretical-practical sessions with individual tutorial supervision, providing a structured framework for the formulation and development of artistic research projects.
O1, which aims at understanding the foundations and aims of artistic research, is addressed in the theoretical-practical sessions, where doctoral students analyse the epistemological, methodological and historical concepts of artistic research. The theoretical exposition, complemented by the reading and discussion of foundational texts, ensures a critical framework on the evolution of scientific and artistic thought.
O2, which focuses on developing reflective thinking and problematising methodologies, is worked on through the active methodology, based on debate and critical analysis. Through the discussion of cases and examples of artistic research, students are encouraged to question methodological models and to justify their research choices.
O3 and O4, which involve mastering tools for bibliographic management, documentation and organisation of research, are developed through the demonstrative method. During the sessions, doctoral students learn to use reference management platforms, structure data and apply academic writing conventions. Individual tutorial supervision allows specific difficulties to be explored in depth and ensures that tools are adapted to the individual needs of each project.
O5, which requires the design and presentation of an artistic research project, is reflected in the structure of the assessment. Doctoral students produce three written assignments: a critical position paper on artistic research in music, a critical review of an existing project and an original research proposal. These assignments consolidate theoretical, methodological and strategic knowledge, preparing students for progression in their studies and for the scientific communication of their research.
The assessment combines a qualitative component, based on peer review, and a quantitative component, conducted by programme lecturers. Peer review develops argumentation and feedback skills, simulating scientific assessment processes. Quantitative assessment ensures rigorous and objective judgement, aligned with academic and professional criteria.
Bibliography (recommended/compulsory reading):
Arlander, A. (2014). On methods of artistic research. In T. Lind (Ed.), Method? Process? Reporting: Articles, reviews and reports of the ongoing development on artistic research (pp. 18–38). Vetenskapsrådet.
Cazeaux, C. (2017). Art, research, philosophy. Routledge.
Croft, J. (2015). Composition is not research. Tempo, 69(272), 6–11. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0040298214000989
Eco, U. (2015). Como se faz uma tese em ciências humanas (14th ed.). Presença.
Frayling, C. (1993). Research in art and design. Royal College of Art.
Kuhn, T. S. (2009). The structure of scientific revolutions (3rd ed.). University of Chicago Press.
Penha, R. (2019). On the reality clarified by art. ÍMPAR: Online Journal for Artistic Research, 3(2), 3–44. https://doi.org/10.34624/impar.v3i2.14149
Popper, K. (2009). O mito do contexto: Em defesa da ciência e da racionalidade. Edições 70.
Santos, B. de S. (2003). Um discurso sobre as ciências (14th ed.). Afrontamento.
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