Investigating the Relationship Between Choreographer and Composer: Mapping the Journey of an Emerging Artist with a Movement-Music Emphasis

This thesis investigates multiple collaborative modes that choreographers and composers employ to create new movement and new music for dance; and it documents the journey I took, as a choreographer, engaging in these types of collaborations. Throughout my research, I studied various collaborative methods utilized by choreographers and composers throughout the 20th century. These historical examples informed the methods I chose to use with three different composers to make new works. In each collaboration, the order of creating dance and music varied, resulting in three methods — choreography-first, music-first, and simultaneous creation. By working with the composers to create these dances, I gained valuable knowledge and made self-discoveries that will influence my future choreographic work. The results of this research will hopefully aid other collaborations that correlate music and dance and advance our understanding of the choreographer-composer dynamic