Portland State University’s School of Music & Theater Assistant Professor Anatares Boyle received the Society for Music Theory’s 2023 Emerging Scholar Award for her article "Flexible Ostinati, Groove, and Formal Process in Craig Taborn’s Avenging Angel."
Boyle published the article in the Society for Music Theory’s Music Theory Online journal. The article details Boyle’s analysis of three pieces from pianist/composer Craig Taborn’s 2011 solo album, Avenging Angel.
“This project came out of listening over and over to this album that I loved so much, and wanting to describe the fascinating things Taborn was doing with rhythm and repetition,” Boyle says.
“At the time I started working on it there really wasn't much writing about recent jazz within academic music theory, so it was hard to find models for the project. I'm really thrilled that the article has found a receptive audience! Even better, there now seems to be growing attention in my field to the artistry and innovations of contemporary jazz artists.”
The Society for Music Theory seeks to promote the development of and engagement with music theory as well as foster diversity, inclusivity, and equity in the field. Their annual publication awards are one way they support scholars in the field of music theory. Boyle won the Emerging Scholar Award in the Article Awards category, which is given for an article published no later than seven years after the author completed their Ph.D.
Antares Boyle completed her Ph.D. in music theory at the University of British Columbia in 2018. That same year, she was awarded the Society for Music Theory’s SMT-40 Dissertation Fellowship. She has published other articles in Music Theory Online and Perspectives of New Music, and has work forthcoming in Music Theory Spectrum, Journal of Music Theory, and the edited collection Analytical Essays on Music by Women Composers.
Her article on Taborn’s music was previously awarded the SMT Jazz Interest Group’s 2022 Award for Excellence in Jazz Scholarship.
Boyle’s research interests include contemporary art music, theorizing musical meter, ostinato, and groove; the interactions between performance and analysis; and minimalist and process composition and improvisation.