The Townshend Studio and VC PhD Scholarship

Full-time

• Stipend of £22,000 per year (tax free)
• Tuition fees waived
• Duration: Three years

Part-time

• Stipend of £11,000 per year (tax free)
• Tuition fees waived
• Duration: Six years

We are looking for someone to propose a doctoral research project based around this amazing and unique collection of electronic musical instruments starting in the new academic year. The proposal can be for anything to do with the collection, but it needs to support the agenda that underpins the Townshend Studio project: a place for learning, collaboration, experimentation and play which is inspired by and built upon the musical and artistic legacy of Ealing, with a goal of promoting and encouraging creative practice for all. In particular, we are looking for proposals which create shareable new content, activities and/or knowledge which promote this agenda. Practice-based approaches are encouraged.

Possible areas for applications might be:

Exploring ways in which contemporary digital technologies can be used in conjunction with these machines. The university has a range of audio, MIDI and control voltage interfaces.
Placing the Townshend Studio and its collection of instruments in a historical context. Projects might range from histories of synthesis and sampling to the Ealing / West London music scene.
Understanding how communities of practice and individuals engage with and use the collection. This might be a study that works in collaboration with the funded Artist-in-Residence scheme that started in 2025.
An ethnographic study about the technology and its maintenance. Many of the older items in the collection have very few people qualified to maintain them and very few experienced expert users. How can we capture that knowledge and make it available?