In this study I explored how emotions could be conveyed through music, using Composer Stephen Berkemeier’s approach as outlined in his 2023 text ”How Do You Portray Emotions With Music?”, which integrates the Circumplex Model of Affect (1980) by Dr. James A Russell. This model categorizes emotions along two axes: valence (positive/negative) and arousal (high/low energy). 

Building on Berkemeier’s framework, singer Ronja Rose Andersson and I composed five original pieces, each designed to represent a specific emotional state. In the text I discuss the various methods I use to convey the emotions in the composition process. The final compositions then served as a platform for me to examine how I, as a bassist, might convey different emotions also through my playing. 

The research deepend my understanding of emotional expression in music, and expanded my toolkit for both composed and improvised performance. 

In the Church of Sweden's services, Gregorian music is used to accompany texts from the Bible’s the Book of Psalms. How this music is used varies over time. Today, the service element is optional, that is, optional but not necessary. The purpose of the present study was to find out about the service attendants’ experiences of the music of the psalter hymn, both Gregorian and contemporary, and of other Gregorian songs presented as art music, including the author's own composition for choir and organ. The material consists of six pieces of music and questionnaires. The pieces of music belong to the two categories of congregational singing and art music, respectively. Qualitative questionnaires were used to obtain responses from service attendants, choir singers and church musicians. The results make it clear that the musical language needs to be varied and that it is desirable for church musicians to compose and arrange. Since in our Lutheran context we do not have Gregorian chant as naturally as, for example, in the Catholic Church, we may need to practice the singing tradition since the birth of the church as we belong to the church worldwide, and to understand the psalter texts.

Becoming a better jazz arranger is challenging to do alone; we need inspiration and guidance from those who came before us. This project explores arranging techniques for medium-sized jazz ensembles through analysis of works by the sextet One For All and The Duke Pearson Nonet. The aim was to understand how instrumentation, harmony, rhythm, and voice leading can shape the overall ensemble sound and to answer questions about the challenges and stylistic elements of arranging for a sextet and a nonet. Based on these studies, I created four original arrangements that apply techniques such as motivic development, use of color tones, and explorations of the acoustic bass’ role in a larger ensemble. The project highlights key differences between historical and modern approaches and has strengthened both my technical arranging skills and artistic voice.

In this project, I explore how we can deepen our understanding of improvisation by applying theories, concepts and structures from verbal interaction. I used four different exercises for working on this with my group. In addition to this, I also composed five new pieces of music in which we could apply these new concepts. In the composition process I transcribed real life conversations, and used elements like rhythm, pitch, and pacing from the speech as a foundation for the music. Throughout the study I make comparisons between musical and verbal interaction and explore similarities and differences between the two modes of interaction. I look at the topic from both a linguist and musician’s perspective, using the works of linguist Stina Eriksson, musicologist David Borgo, and writer/musician Stephen Nachmanovitch as sources.  The text follows the process from breaking down aspects of interaction, describing the work with the exercises, and the finished songs which were performed in my bachelor’s recital. At the end I reflect upon the different outcomes of the practice methods we used, and why studying verbal interaction might be a relevant technique in working with co-playing in an ensemble. The paper results in new ways to work with musical co-play with the based on verbal interaction and how we can bring out the essence of a song.

This thesis examines how XXth century French composers musically represented water, translating visual and sensory experiences into sound. Analyzing works by Ravel, Koechlin, Fauré and Debussy, the research identifies compositional techniques, such as harmonic structures and rhythmic patterns, that effectively evoke water's various forms and movements. Drawing parallels with what Marguerite Long said about Ravel’s work and his music, then applying this to other composers to see how they make water come to life through their music. The study explores how these composers developed a distinctive musical language capturing water's fluidity and dynamic nature. Through analysis of works like Ravel's Ondine and Jeux d'eau, this research illuminates how music can transcend sensory boundaries to effectively "paint" water through sound.

 Syftet med detta självständiga arbete är att bidra med kunskap om hur musiklärare som undervisar på estetiska programmet i musik på gymnasiet samtalar om inkludering av elever med autism i musikundervisningen. Det genomfördes fyra kvalitativa semi-strukturerade intervjuer med musiklärare i gymnasiet som arbetade på estetiska programmet. Resultat visade på att det som var karaktäristiskt i informanternas samtal, var de inkluderande arbetssätt som användes, upplevda utmaningar med inkludering, erfarenheter kring hur elever utan autism agerar runt elever med autism samt hur skolor arbetar främjande med inkludering i undervisning. I arbetssätten som lyftes fram strävade informanterna efter att undervisningsmaterialet i musik skulle vara tillgängligt för alla elever. Informanterna upplevde det utmanande att inkludera elever med autism, i delarna av musikundervisning kopplade till socialt kommunicerande och samarbete. Informanterna fann det även utmanande att arbeta inkluderande med elever med autism när någonting i undervisningen eller skolmiljön förändrades utan förvarning. Resultatet visade även på en vilja att skaffa fler redskap för inkludering av elever med autism i musikundervisning, men att tillgången på tid är en bristande faktor. En brist på extra personal leder till att elever med autism inte får sina behov uppfyllda. Informanterna menade att det var svårt att tala generaliserande då elever med autism är olika från varandra.

How can one integrate Chris Dave’s drumming style into one’s own playing? What will happen when I study Chris Dave in detail? What will happen with my musical expression when I study his approach to time? How does my groove affect the ensemble? My work is based on what happens with my artistic expression and my playing after thoroughly studying Chris “Daddy” Dave’s artistic expression and creative playing style. A master-drummer and pioneer that many try to follow. By studying interviews, research papers, concerts and performances, transcriptions, exercises and Dave’s own methods, this work investigates how a drummer can approach his very specific playing-style. The findings suggest interesting insight into Dave’s playing, such as his use of motivic development in comping, his use of micro timing and how one can implement and further develop his ideas and methods into one’s own playing. This work also opens further areas of exploration and shows a way of analysing that can be applied on any musician of interest worth studying.

While music-based support services have been widely implemented for autistic people, their subjective experiences with music remain underexplored. This thesis investigates the roles of music in the lives of autistic adults, emphasising its impact on well-being. Drawing on Self-Determination Theory (SDT), particularly the basic psychological needs for autonomy, relatedness, and competence, it aims to provide a framework for understanding both the positive and negative effects of music, thereby advancing research and informing future interventions.

The thesis consists of three empirical studies. The first two studies aimed to explore autistic people's musical experiences and establish a framework that could provide a theoretical common ground for the existing exploratory studies. Studies I and II involved in-depth interviews with 13 autistic adults (aged 24–69). In the first study, a bottom-up thematic analysis identified emergent themes, while the second study applied a top-down approach using predefined categories derived from SDT. The aim of the third study was to develop and test a questionnaire assessing how people engage with music to support their well-being. Using a mixed-methods design, we analysed the answers of 63 autistic adults who filled out our questionnaire, as well as gave qualitative feedback on how clear the items were and how well the items reflected their experiences of music and well-being. 

Findings show that autistic adults experience musicking as both beneficial and detrimental, depending on the context. SDT seems to be a promising theory for investigating the mentioned context, given how important a sense of self-determination is in music engagement. Furthermore, the thesis provides an example of how we can extend and adapt models and theories developed on the general population to its sub-populations and use them to create assessment tools. By integrating autistic perspectives into existing theories and models, such as SDT, this work calls for a more pluralistic approach to understanding music engagement, one that respects the heterogeneity of people and agency of individuals and actively considers the potential for harms and negative experiences.