Dr Elaine King

Faculty and Department

  • Faculty of Arts Cultures and Education
  • School of The Arts

Qualifications

  • BA (Durham University)
  • LGSM(P)
  • MMus (King's College London)
  • PhD / DPhil (Royal Holloway, University of London)

Summary

Dr Elaine King is a performer and musicologist with research interests in performance studies, psychology of music and music theory/analysis.

Her doctoral thesis focused on the nature and effects of interaction in cello-piano duos during ensemble rehearsal and performance (London, 2000). Since then, she has developed her research into different aspects of performance, especially in ensemble contexts. She has co-edited four books : Music and Gesture (with Anthony Gritten, Ashgate 2006); New Perspectives on Music and Gesture (with Anthony Gritten, Ashgate 2011); Music and Familiarity (with Helen Prior, Ashgate 2013); and Music and Empathy (with Caroline Waddington, Routledge 2017). She has published widely in journals, edited volumes and other sources, including on ensemble playing, team roles, gestures, conducting and public policy. Recent projects include STROKESTRA (in partnership with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra), MediMusic (with the MediMusic company), Chinese Whispers (with the Confucius Institute, Hull), and Transitions in Music Education (TiME; with Hull and East Riding Music Services).

As a performer, Dr King is a cellist, pianist and conductor. She directs the University of Hull Camerata and is involved in other regional chamber ensembles and orchestras, including the Hull Philharmonic Orchestra, East Riding Concert Orchestra and the Annikyra String Quartet.

Editorial Work

- Action Editor, Music and Science (2019-)

- Editorial Board, Journal of the Royal Musical Association (2019-)

- Associate Editor, Psychology of Music (2012-)

- Reviews Editor, Frontiers in Performance Science (2016-2019)

- Editorial Board, British Postgraduate Musicology (1996-8)

Event Management

- Centre for Applied Research in the Arts (CARA) workshops, University of Hull, June 2021, June 2022, June 2023 (Co-director)

- International Symposium on Music and Intercultural Practice, University of Hull, April 2021 (Co-director)

- Musical Cultures International Conference, University of Hull, April 2017 (Co-director)

- Piano Accompaniment in Practice Symposium, University of Hull, November 2016 (Co-director)

- Music and Empathy, SEMPRE Conference and Study Day, University of Hull, November 2013 (Co-organiser)

- SEMPRE 40th Anniversary Conference, Institute of Education, London, September 2012 (Director)

- RMA Research Students' Conference, University of Hull, January 2012 (Director)

- Music and Familiarity, SEMPRE Conference and Study Day, University of Hull, 23-24 October 2009 (Co-organiser)

- Music and Gesture, Second International Conference, Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, 20-23 July 2006 (Co-director)

- Music and Gesture, First International Conference, University of East Anglia, Norwich, August 2003 (Co-director)

- Organiser and Chair of the University of Hull Research Seminar Series, (2002-06)

Broadcasts

- The Dynamics of Music. Interview broadcast for BBC Radio 4, August 2004

- Musical Cultures. Live Interview broadcast for BBC Radio Humberside, April 2017

- Music Listening Tips for Examination Revision. Recorded Interview broadcast for Heart FM, June 2017

Public Lectures

- Encouraging Young String Players: A Psychological Perspective. University of Hull, October 2008 & November 2009

- Mozart's Symphony No. 41. University of Hull, November 2008

Music Performance Activity

- Chair : Hull Music Recital Club (2019-)

- Cellist: Annikyra String Quartet (2009-); Friary String Quartet & Clarinet Quintet (2004-07); Aegle Trio (2004-07); Hull Philharmonic Orchestra (principal; 2000-07); Hull Sinfonietta (2004-05); East Riding Sinfonia (2007); Imperial Piano Trio, London (1999-2000); Slough Philharmonic Orchestra (co-principal; 1997-2000); Marylebone Symphony Orchestra, London (principal; 1998); Nutford String Trio (1995-96)

Conductor

- Hull University Camerata (2015-) [repertoire includes Tchaikovsky, Serenade for Strings; Saint-Saens, Cello Concerto, Crusell, Clarinet Concerto; Elgar, Cello Concerto; Sparke, Euphonium Concerto; Mendelssohn, Octet; Haydn, London Trios; Mozart, Clarinet Concerto; Mozart, Keyboard Concerto; Beethoven, Symphony No. 5; Schubert, Unfinished Symphony; Ives, The Unanswered Question]

Hull Philharmonic Orchestra (Assistant Musical Director/rehearsal conductor, 2022-) [repertoire includes Tchaikovsky, Symphony No. 4; Rachmaninov, Symphony No. 2; Shostakovich, Symphony No. 5; Rossini, Bassoon Concerto; Sejourne, Marimba Concerto; Franck, Piano Concerto; Dvorak, Noon Day Witch; Lydaov, The Enchanted Lake; Kabalevsky, Overture Colas Breugnon; Vaughan Williams, Tallis Fantasia]

- Hull University Orchestra and Choir (2009-2014) [repertoire includes: Rachmaninov, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini; Shostakovich, Jazz Suite No. 2; Hedges, Bridge for the Living; Walton, Crown Imperial March]

- Musical Director, Hessle Sinfonia (2003-2009) [repertoire conducted includes: Alfven, Midsummer Vigil; Rimksy Korsakov, Russian Easter Festival Overture; Tchaikovsky, Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture, Ballet Suite from The Nutcracker, Symphony No. 5; Dvorak, Symphony No. 9; Weber, Clarinet Concerto No. 2; Khachaturian, Spartacus Suite No. 2; Hérold, Zampa Overture, Music from La Fille mal Gardée; Gounod, Ballet Suite from Faust; Delibes, Prelude & Mazurka from Coppélia, Offenbach, Gaîté Parisienne, Shostakovich, The Gadfly Suite]

UG

- Core Music Techniques

- Specialist Music Skills (psychology of music, education and community clusters)

- Supervisor for projects and dissertations in the following areas: classical performance, music theory/analysis, psychology of music, music education, community music and related fields

PGT (MMus)

- Supervisor on all modules for projects and dissertations in the following areas: classical performance, music theory/analysis, psychology of music, music education, community music and related fields

Recent outputs

View more outputs

Book Chapter

Let's Play: Professional Performers' Perspectives on Play in Chamber Ensemble Rehearsal

King, E., & Todd, R. (2022). Let's Play: Professional Performers' Perspectives on Play in Chamber Ensemble Rehearsal. In M. Doğantan-Dack (Ed.), The Chamber Musician in the Twenty-First Century (205-228). Basel: MDPI. https://doi.org/10.3390/books978-3-03897-563-2

Working With and In Small Groups

King, E. (2021). Working With and In Small Groups. In A. Creech, D. A. Hodges, & S. Hallam (Eds.), International Handbook of Music Psychology in Education and the Community (320-334). London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429295362

Performers' Perspectives on "Feel" in Music

King, E., & Waddington, C. (2018). Performers' Perspectives on "Feel" in Music. In N. Reyland, & R. Thumpson (Eds.), Music, analysis, and the body: Experiments, explorations, and embodiments. Leuven: Peeters Publishers

Journal Article

The Roles of Music in Effecting Change: Considerations about Public Policy

King, E. C. (2020). The Roles of Music in Effecting Change: Considerations about Public Policy. Music and Science, 3, https://doi.org/10.1177/2059204320937227

Perfectionistic self-presentation and emotional experiences in music students: A three-wave longitudinal study

Hill, A. P., Burland, K., King, E. C., & Pitts, S. E. (in press). Perfectionistic self-presentation and emotional experiences in music students: A three-wave longitudinal study. Psychology of music, https://doi.org/10.1177/0305735618824155

Research interests

My research interests include Performance Studies, Music Psychology and Music Analysis.

Lead investigator

Project

Funder

Grant

Started

Status

Project

STROKESTRA - SEMPRE 50th Anniversary Award Bid

Funder

Society for Education, Music & Psychology Research

Grant

£8,600.00

Started

1 January 2021

Status

Ongoing

Project

Strokestra

Funder

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Limited

Grant

£17,000.00

Started

1 April 2019

Status

Ongoing

Postgraduate supervision

Dr King welcomes applications in the areas of music psychology and performance studies, particularly in the context of ensemble playing.

Completed PhDs

Artemis Apostolaki, Solfège and Memorisation (completed 2013)

Helen Daynes, Emotional Responses to Tonal and Atonal Music (completed 2008)

Rachel Poyser, University Music Students' Ways of Thinking about Performance (completed 2015)

Panayiotis Teklos, Pupils' Attitudes Towards Secondary Music Education in Cyprus (completed 2012)

Caroline Waddington, Empathetic Attunement in Chamber Ensemble Performance (completed 2015)

Colin Wright, Aural Perception and Training in Musicians (completed 2015)

Evgenia Roussou, Exploring the Piano Accompanist in Western Duo Music Ensembles (completed January 2018)

Rae Todd, 'Play' in Chamber Ensemble Music Rehearsal (completed June 2021)

Eloise McCann, Chinese Whispers: Emotional and Experiential Responses to Second Language Learning through Choral Singing (current)

Yanyi Lu, Chinese Whispers: Implementing and Evaluating a Singing Curriculum (current)

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