Joseph Schultz: Music

I completed my BA in Music from Durham in 2011. Through my experiences with previously unfamiliar areas of music I developed a passion for Russian music. This continued into my MA in Musicology (also at Durham), where, under the supervision of Dr. Patrick Zuk, I undertook research into the influence of the late nineteenth-century Russian composers on Debussy and Ravel.

Thanks to the generosity of the Van Mildert College Trust and the Fenham Trust, I am able to begin my PhD in October 2012. Again under the supervision of Dr. Zuk, I will appraise the life and works of the prominent Soviet composer Aram Khachaturian. I am currently learning the Russian language, and will undertake archival research in Moscow during the second year of my studies in order to gain primary evidence of the issues surrounding the development of this composer. By providing an account of Khachaturian's development in English I hope to extend the knowledge and enthusiasm for this great representative of 20th century Nationalism.