Mr Yue Zhuo BSc (Hons), MSc (LSE), MA, PhD (Cardiff), AFHEA

Lecturer in Composition

: ZhuoY3@cardiff.ac.uk
: 33-37 Corbett Road, Room Room 1.03, Cathays, Cardiff, CF10 3EB

My name is 卓越 (Zhuó Yuè), aka. Jerry Zhuo. I am an active composer, improviser and conductor with a rising reputation in Wales and my hometown Xiamen, China. Here at Cardiff University, I lecture and tutor composition, studio techniques, music theory, and performance practice. I also work as the Deputy Director of International Engagement for the School of Music, facilitating communication with our own international cohort and the partner academic institutions worldwide.

Having grown up in an increasingly postmodern society in China, I produce compositions that question the authenticity of personal identity. I often employ a philosophical approach in organising musical structure, taking inspiration from my experience in electroacoustic performance, improvisation, and audience engagement. Based on this, I have recently started a new compositional and musicological research project in Nan-yin, a type of music from my native Min-nan Chinese (or Hokkien) culture.

Audiences have described my compositional outcomes as ‘evocative’ and ‘deeply personal’. I have been selected to participate in music festivals and composition projects worldwide, including Tŷ Cerdd, Vale of Glamorgan Festival, Valencia International Performance Festival, impuls (2019 and 2021) and Chen Qigang Music Academy.

As a conductor and promoter of contemporary music and arts, I have become increasingly recognised in Xiamen, China, for which I have received several press interviews, including one by the China Daily. I am the co-conductor of the award-winning Xiamen Foreign Language School Orchestra, and the co-founder of Pavilion Ensemble.

Date
Type

2022

Zhuo, Y. 2022. Experiencing identity, forming poetic space: Expression and interaction in a portfolio of original compositions. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.

Current Projects

‘The Path to High-Quality "Non-Specialised" Student Orchestra', a music pedagogy research project funded by the Bureau of Education, Xiamen, China (2023-2024).

Recent Research Outcome

Sea, Amoy! (2022) for orchestra (6'30"), which was premiered by BBC National Orchestra of Wales during their 'Composition: Wales' concert on 7 March 2023.
'Game of Sounds and Signs: Exploring the Three-Cornered Network of Interactions Between the Composer, Conductor and Singers', a conference paper to be presented at Spheres of Singing Interdisciplinary Conference (November 2022, University of Glasgow).
under the Sun... (2022) for piccolo, sheng, pipa, viola and percussion (8'), premiered at Tunghai University Music Centre, Taiwan on 18 September 2022. The piece was written for TimeArt Academy 2022, with the topic subject 'Forgotten Voices', exploring the connection between contemporary music and different traditions.
Dream: Pavilion by the Water (2020-2) for mezzo-soprano and piano (9'), presented under the same title at the 12th Biennial Internation Conference on Music Since 1900 (Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, July 2022).
'Who Do You Think You Are?' concert of original works, commissioned by Three Shadows Xiamen Photography Arts Centre, China in 2021. This concert features improvisation, Fluxus, audience participation, electroacoustic, and audio-visual elements, including the opening piece Sound of Luck (2021) and The Way to Fly (2021).

Research Interest

Compositional process and ideology:

'Poetic space' — non-linear musical structure
'Dramatic form' and theatricality in music and performance arts

Identity expression in music and arts:

the 'identity sampling process' — the perception and construction of 'self' in music
Chineseness — the act of self-stereotype in music and arts
Languages, the translation of and the politics of, including research in Min-nan dialect

Performance, improvisation, and collaborations:

The New Discipline: the identity of a composer-performer in musical works
The design of improvisation using notated, graphic, and text scores
Relationships involved in improvisation among the composer, conductor, performers, and audience

Electroacoustic and computer music:

Use of electronics and digital devices such as tapes, synthesisers, pre-recorded video, smartphones and computer programmes (e.g. Max/MSP, Ableton Live)

Ethnomusicology-inspired composition:

Nan-yin (南音) — its history and present and how it can be integrated into contemporary composing.

Undergraduate Teaching:

Composition 1A (module leader)
Composition 3 (final year major composition project supervision)
Elements of Tonal Music (seminars)
Studio Techniques (tutorials, second and final years)

Postgraduate Teaching:

Studio Techniques (module leader)
Ensemble (module leader)
Composition Portfolio (tutorials)
Contributes to specialist classes in the Research Skills modules

International Teaching:

'Becoming an International Musician: Research and Communication on the Global Stage' (course leader)

Education and qualifications

2022: PhD Music (Composition), Cardiff University, UK
2020: AFHEA (Higher Education Academy) with Distinction
2017: MA Music (Composition) with Distinction, Cardiff University, UK
2016: MSc International Management (IMEX), London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
2015: BSc Hons Economics, University of Bath, UK

Honours and awards

2021: 1st prize, String Orchestra Category, Xiamen Middle and Primary School Arts Exhibition, China (conducting)
2021: 1st prize, Symphonic Winds Category, Xiamen Middle and Primary School Arts Exhibition, China (conducting)
2021: 1st prize, Instrumental Music Category, Fujian Provincial Music and Dance Festival, China (conducting)
2021: 2nd prize for Original Choral Compositions and Excellent Ensemble Leader, Chongqing Universities Arts Exhibition (provincial level), China
2020: Graduate Tutor of the Year Award, Cardiff University, UK
2020: Selected participant of Ty Cerdd 'CoDI Sound' and 'CoDI Mentor' projects with grants
2017–2020: Full Studentship, Cardiff University School of Music, UK
2016: International Studentship, Cardiff University College of AHSS, UK
2015: Outstanding Alumni, Xiamen Foreign Language School, China

Academic positions

2021–present: Lecturer in Composition, Cardiff University School of Music, UK
2017–2019: A-Level Economics Teacher (part-time), St John's College Cardiff, UK

Committees and reviewing

2021: Session Chair and Session Panel Leader, BFE-RMA Research Students' Conference, Cambridge, UK
2019: Conference Lead Organiser, PGR Study Day, Cardiff University, UK
2019: Music Education Advisor, Phuket Taihua School, Thailand
2018: Concert Co-organiser, Contemporary Music for All (CoMA) Festival, Cardiff, UK

Please note I am currently unavailable as the first supervisor.

Mr Yue Zhuo BSc (Hons), MSc (LSE), MA, PhD (Cardiff), AFHEA

Overview

Publication

2022

Thesis

Research