Current PhD Projects

Scientific supervisor Univ.-Prof. Stefan Schmidl  
Artistic supervisor Univ.-Prof. Lars Seniuk 
Key Research Areas Interpretive Research, Composition/Music Theory

Biography
Philipp Gerschlauer is a renowned saxophonist, musician, and educator, known for his pioneering work in integrating microtonal elements into jazz music. He has divided the octave into 128 notes on both saxophone and within his compositions, pushing boundaries in the genre. In addition to his performances, Gerschlauer shares his expertise through teaching clinics, solidifying his reputation as a leading figure in microtonal saxophone.

Description of the doctoral project
My PhD project investigates the integration of microtonal tuning systems within Bebop, a jazz style known for its complex harmonies and improvisation. Microtonality refers to the use of pitches outside the standard 12-tone equal temperament tuning system. The project explores how these unconventional tunings can expand the harmonic and melodic vocabulary of Bebop, which traditionally relies on chromaticism and functional harmony but has not yet deeply engaged with microtonal possibilities beyond “blue notes.”

Research Questions
- How can microtonal tuning systems enhance Bebop’s harmonic and melodic structure?
- What new creative and stylistic possibilities can microtonality bring to jazz musicians?
- How can musicians practically implement microtonality in jazz performance (e.g., modified instruments, software)?
- How can microtonality be integrated into jazz education, and what are the implications for broader pedagogical practices?

Methods
I combine artistic practice with theoretical analysis. This includes studying Bebop standards, composing and improvising using microtonal scales, and collaborating with jazz musicians in practical ensemble settings. I will also conduct qualitative interviews with musicians to document their experiences working with microtonality. Recordings of these performances will form part of the research documentation.

Theoretical Framework
The project draws from Western music theory, particularly the study of historical tuning systems, and engages with the cultural significance of Bebop within African-American history. By blending European microtonal traditions with the Afro-American roots of jazz, this research contributes to the decolonization of music theory while also opening new avenues for artistic exploration.

Documentation
The research will be documented through audio and video recordings of performances, written transcriptions, and theoretical analyses. A blog will be used to share research developments, providing transparency and inviting feedback from the academic and artistic communities.
 

Scientific supervisor Univ.-Prof. Dr. Stefan Schmidl  
Artistic supervisor Univ.-Prof. Dr. Samuel Penderbayne
Key Research area Interpretive research

Biography
Veronica Klavzar, born in Bruneck, Italy, is a South Tyrolean harpist, performer and teacher who lives mainly in Vienna and works worldwide. She began harp lessons at the age of 5 and won various prizes at a young age. She graduated from the Conservatorio Claudio Monteverdi in Bolzano and later completed two master's degrees in Vienna with distinction (one in harp and one in music education). Veronica performs internationally in various ensembles (solo, chamber music, orchestra) and not only plays classical and contemporary music, but also explores the electronic harp with her own compositions, in which she uses singing, movement and other means of expression.

Description of the project: 
My doctoral project explores the electric harp as a modern and versatile instrument. While the harp is often associated with classical traditions and soft sounds, I am interested in showing as well its other sides – powerful, experimental, and innovative. By combining the harp with technology I want to expand its sound world and create new artistic possibilities.
A central focus of the project is collaboration. Together with composers, dancers, and visual artists, I would like to develop interdisciplinary performances where music meets movement, images, and digital media.
The project also reflects on how the harp has historically been tied to gendered stereotypes and has the goal to free the instrument from these associations.
Furthermore the project emphasizes openness and exchange with the audience. Workshops and participatory formats will be created, where people can experience the instrument in new ways. A digital platform will document the process through videos, recordings, and practical resources, making the research accessible for a broader public.
With Amplifying Horizons, I want to challenge the traditional view of the harp and invite the audience to discover its potential as a contemporary instrument.
 

Scientific supervisor Ass.-Prof. Rosemarie Brucher
Artistic supervisor Univ.-Prof. Alex Riener
Key Research area Contemporary Theatre

Biography
Tina Lorenz came of age in the Chaos Computer Club but went on to study theater studies and American literary history in Vienna and Munich. They were a lecturer for theater history at the Academy for Performing Arts Bavaria, later dramaturge at the Landestheater Oberpfalz and finally consultant for digital communication at the Staatstheater Nürnberg, before founding and leading the Digital Theatre department at the State Theatre of Augsburg from 2020 to 2023.

Tina Lorenz is a founding member of the hackspaces metalab Vienna and Binary Kitchen Regensburg; since January 2024, they head the department of artistic research and development »Hertzlab« at ZKM | Karlsruhe.

Description of the project
In my artistic research PhD I explore how theatre transforms when Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes an active live performer on stage. 
The project examines both the aesthetic and structural shifts required to integrate generative, non-human co-actors into performative contexts. 
A central focus lies on the processes of fine-tuning and retraining AI systems to enable meaningful interaction within theatrical practice, but also on the changes theatre would have to undergo to incorporate AI as a technology on stage. The work situates itself within the cultural history of spirit invocation in performance, from European séances to Korean mudang shamanism, and draws theoretical inspiration from theatre innovators such as Edward Gordon Craig and Antonin Artaud. The practical component is inseparably linked to the theoretical inquiry: a performance employing generative AI as a dramaturgical and ritual element, engaging with the uncanny, the spectral, and the boundaries between human and machine presence.
 

Wissenschaftlicher Betreuer Univ-Prof. Dr. Eike Wittrock
Künstlerische Betreuerin Univ.-Prof. Virginie Roy 
Forschungsschwerpunkt Zeitgenössischer Tanz

Biographie
René*e Reith (alle Pronomen) arbeitet als Choreograf*in, Performancekünstler*in und Tanzwissenschaftler*in. Ihre Inszenierungen gastierten in Deutschland bundesweit und international - wie etwa auf Kampnagel (Hamburg), dem Ballhaus Ost (Berlin) und dem Festival Temps d’M (Charleville-Mézières). 
Ihre queerfeministische Perspektive und die enge Verbindung zwischen Theorie und Praxis führten bisher zu Auszeichnungen durch den Forschungspreis der Gesellschaft für Tanzforschung, den Fritz-Wortelmann-Preis der Stadt Bochum und den Theaterpreis der Bürgerstiftung Hildesheim. Als Dozent*in für Choreografie und queere Performance lehrte sie an der Stockholm University, der Universität Hildesheim, der Philipps-Universität Marburg und im Bildungsprogramm des FSJ Kultur. Mit ihrer Expertise beriet sie Projekte der Bundesakademie für Kulturelle Bildung Wolfenbüttel und im Rahmen des Roundtable Genderdiversity des Fonds Darstellende Künste. Sie war Ko-Veranstalter*in der Tagung Working the Body an der Universität Hildesheim und veröffentlicht in unterschiedlichen Foren der Kulturwissenschaften und Kunst regelmäßig tanzwissenschaftliche Beiträge. 
Reith studierte Szenische Künste (B.A.) und Inszenierung der Künste und Medien (M.A.) an der Universität Hildesheim wie auch Dance and Performance Studies an der Stockholm University. Für ihre Ausbildung und künstlerische Arbeit erhielt sie unter anderem das Stipendium des Begabtenförderwerks Villigst, die Mitgliedschaft im Freiwilligenkolleg der Robert Bosch Stiftung und das stART.up Stipendium der Claussen-Simon-Stiftung. Ihre Promotion wird durch das Promotionsstipendium für wissenschaftlich-künstlerische Forschung der Claussen-Simon-Stiftung gefördert und in Kooperation mit dem internationalen Produktionshaus Kampnagel präsentiert. Vor dem Studium war Reith Leistungssportler*in im Lateinamerikanischen Turniertanz. 

Beschreibung des Promotionsprojekts:
René*e Reith forscht zur (Nicht-)Sichtbarkeit von Transness im zeitgenössischen Tanz und Performance. (Nicht-)Sichtbarkeiten werden zum einen als das Spektrum von Wahrnehmungsvorgängen verstanden, die normative visuelle Prozesse ergänzen, dekonstruieren und subvertieren, zum anderen auch als politische Forderung von transvisibility in Aufführungssituationen. 
Voraussetzung für Reiths Forschung ist es, die Körper in Tanz und Performance wie auch in wissenschaftlichen Verfahren als wahrnehmende Instanz zu begreifen. Auf dieser Grundlage baut das Forschungsdesign auf choreografischen Versuchsaufbauten und  phänomenologischen Untersuchungen auf, in denen beispielsweise Tanzimprovisation, somatische Praxis, experimentelle Choreografie, künstlerische Audiodeskription, Tanznotation und Probenprozessanalyse in sich ergänzender Weise zur Anwendung kommen. 
Zusammen mit Performer*innen finden Recherche-, Analyse- und Inszenierungsprozesse statt, in denen der Forschungsfrage gefolgt wird: Inwieweit kann die Interdependenz von visuellen Prozessen und Bewegungen Transness als repräsentationskritische Wahrnehmungsvorgänge zwischen Körpern in zeitgenössischen choreografischen Verfahren hervorbringen?
Ziel des Forschungsvorhabens ist es, einen Beitrag zur transinklusiven und repräsentationskritischen Choreografie zu entwickeln, deren Kriterien sowohl künstlerisch als auch wissenschaftlich veröffentlicht werden.

Artistic Supervisor Prof. Camille Savage-Kroll
Scientific Supervisor Univ.-Prof. Dr. Wiebke Rademacher
Key Research Area Cultural Mediation

Biography
Theresa Wagner is a violist specializing in contemporary and improvised music. She is co-founder of eineArtEnsemble e.V., Percaso String Quartet and eineArtFestival Freiburg. Wagner worked in the music education department of the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks in Munich and teaches at the music universities in Freiburg and Karlsruhe.

Description of the PhD Project
Theresa Wagner explores the “in-between” in concerts with her two founded ensembles, the transition between compositions or improvisations and shapes it as an independent artistic moment that invites interaction, reflection and new forms of musical expression. Her artistic research focuses on how this moment of transition can be consciously designed as an aesthetic space of tension and how it can transform the concert experience, opening up new modes of perception for performers and audiences alike.