John James Garner

Music Postgraduate Research Student

Project Title: A Contemporary Ecology of Violinistics: towards a new paradigm for violin performance and improvisation

Supervisors: Dr. Bennett Hogg / Dr. Will Edmondes

I am a musician and educator, specialising in violin and improvisation, informed by experience across multiple traditions and styles. A graduate of the Royal College of Music and the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, since 2021 I have also been studying the shakuhachi with grandmaster Cornelius Shinzen Boots of the Black Earth Shakuhachi School. I am the co-founder and co-director of record label Turquoise Coconut.

My creative practice research considers the ethics of musical practice as viewed through the lens of Buddhist teachings and philosophy; how various aspects of that practice, from the microscopic to the macroscopic, are transformed thereby; and how these learnings are enacted through our ways of being as musicians in community and beyond.

I am a practising Buddhist, as well as a keen linguist. In my work as a performing artist, I seek increasingly to channel my creative and professional energies into projects with a clear activist commitment. Most recently, I produced a fundraising album called ‘Prayers for Palestine,’ featuring a cast of internationally renowned musicians and spoken-word artists.

Education/Qualifications/Memberships/Achievements: Clara Whittaker PhD Scholarship, Newcastle University – PGCert in Research Training, Guildhall School of Music & Drama - MMus,  Royal College of Music – BMus (Hons), DipABRSM (performance)