September 2026
TONE Business | Funding | Outcomes | Upcoming Events | Awards & Distinctions
TONE Business *
TONE Updates
TONE Sub-Axis Quarterly Meeting Planning Underway
TONE's Sub-Axes are beginning to plan their quarterly meetings. To facilitate the scheduling process while considering members' availability, we have organized a central hub on TONE Sharepoint Site (not our website as this is for members only!) where all the active polls will be displayed. At the moment we have:
- Sub-Axis 1.1 – Digital Research Tools
- Sub-Axis 2.3 – Playing, Singing, Improvising
- Sub-Axis 2.2 – Contemporary Orchestration Research Ensemble (CORE)
Visit the page and follow the relevant links for any meetings you are interested in attending.
https://mcgill.sharepoint.com/sites/TONE
We appreciate your involvement in this process. Sharing your availability, helps us schedule meetings at times that are more accessible and convenient to all.
TONE Membership
TONE accepting new Collaborators and Student Members
Individuals interested in joining the TONE Partnership to actively participate in projects and apply for funding opportunities may now submit their membership application.
Collaborators: This category includes faculty members, postdoctoral* researchers, private sector parties, and independent artists. To apply, please send a letter of intent and full CV to tone [at] mcgill.ca (subject: null, body: null) (tone[at]mcgill[dot]ca). This material will be reviewed by the Executive Committee of TONE and SSHRC. Processing is expected to be completed by the end of October. Applications are accepted continuously; there is no deadline.
Student Members: This category includes undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral* students working under the supervision of, or sponsored by, a TONE collaborator. To apply, please ask a TONE collaborator to sponsor your application. They will need to submit the Student Sponsorship Form available online. Students who have recently graduated (master’s or doctoral level) and who don’t envision pursuing another degree, may apply as collaborators.
* Postdoctoral researchers may apply as collaborators or as student members, depending on their foreseen involvement in the project.
For more information on membership application, contact us or visit the TONE website.
Funding Opportunities *
Strategic & Research-Creation Project Funding
The deadline for Round 1 of the Strategic and Research-Creation Project Funding 2026-2027 is 5:00pm (EDT) on October 15, 2026. Projects must involve at least two members in different TONE institutions. The Principal Investigator for any proposal must be a regular TONE member at a TONE academic partner institution or a TONE co-applicant. TONE Collaborators at non-partner institutions are not eligible as principal investigators but may be co-applicants on the project.
The purpose of the TONE Strategic Project Funding is to encourage innovative research and/or pilot projects by members of the TONE Partnership whereas the Research-Creation Project Funding is meant to support collaborative work in timbre and orchestration between composers, performers, and researchers within the framework of the TONE mandate. These projects are meant to be stepping stones to more substantial funding at regular funding agencies, not recurrent funding opportunities. For more information and to access the application forms, visit the TONE website.
Student Exchange Funding
Looking to expand your research network and collaborate with scholars at another TONE partner institution? The Student Exchange Funding program supports TONE student members conducting research aligned with TONE's mandate through short-term research exchanges.
Successful applicants may receive up to $2,500 CAD to help cover travel and living expenses. Exchanges must take place between TONE partner institutions and have a minimum duration of two weeks.
The deadline for Round 1 is 15 October, 5pm EST for visits from January through June the following year.
Interested in applying? Visit Student Exchange Funding for eligibility requirements, and full details.
Outcomes *
Publications
Reymore, L., Nestorova, T., Soden, K., & Marchand Knight, J. (2026, advance online publication). Timbre semantics of the singing voice. Music Perception. https://doi.org/10.1525/mp.2026.2825017
Theses by TONE students:
Sevcik, Susanne (2026). Memory for musical meaning through timbre semantics. MA Thesis. McGill University.https://www.mcgill.ca/mpcl/files/mpcl/sevcik_2026_mathesis.pdf
Roth, Jade (2026). The role of orchestration in music structure, meaning, and style in Germaine Tailleferre's orchestral works. PhD Thesis. McGill University. https://www.mcgill.ca/mpcl/files/mpcl/roth_2026_phdthesis.pdf
New Web Publication: Exploring Bass Clarinet Multiphonics Through Research-Creation
TONE Collaborator Andrés Gutiérrez Martínez is pleased to share a new web publication from an ongoing collaborative research-creation project developed with bass clarinetist Chiara Percivati. The project investigates bass clarinet multiphonics through the analysis of different fingerings and the multiple (in)harmonic components produced.
Using a range of timbre descriptors, the research examines the relative proximity between multiphonics based on their timbral characteristics. These analytical findings provide the foundation for a compositional exploration of multiphonics that considers several dimensions of proximity and distance, including fingering relationships, performance effort, and timbral similarity.
The project began during Andrés' postdoctoral fellowship with the ACTOR Partnership and continues to evolve through ongoing artistic and research collaboration.
Read the publication: Peaks, Valleys, and Troughs
https://echo.orpheusinstituut.be/article/peaks-valleys-and-throughs-2
Upcoming Events *
Dominic Thibault Presents LANDSLIDE at International AI-SCAPE Exchange in Seoul
September 3-6, 2026
Seoul, South Korea
TONE Collaborator Dominic Thibault will participate in WeSA × ELEKTRA: AI-SCAPE, an international Korea–Canada exchange dedicated to sound art, digital arts, and artificial intelligence, taking place in Seoul, South Korea, September 3-6. Jointly developed by Seoul-based WeSA and Montréal's ELEKTRA Festival, the event brings together artists, researchers, and audiences through performances, presentations, workshops, and roundtable discussions exploring creative applications of AI, alongside pressing topics such as data ethics, copyright, and environmental responsibility.
As part of the program, Thibault will present LANDSLIDE, a new performance created in collaboration with Vivian Li and David Piazza. The work expands on the artists’ research into corpus-based sound practices and real-time interactions between recorded and synthetic sonic materials. By juxtaposing concatenated recordings of acoustic instruments with sounds generated live during the performance, LANDSLIDE investigates new possibilities for human-machine musical expression.
This activity is connected to Mosaïque, a satellite project of the TONE network. LANDSLIDE serves as an artistic exploration of the project's research, examining the musical affordances and creative potential of the tool.
Marc Garcia-Vitoria Shares Research on Computer-Aided Orchestration at EuroMAC
September 7-10, 2026
Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya
Barcelona, Spain
TONE student member Marc Garcia-Vitoria will present his ongoing creative research at EuroMAC 11 (European Music Analysis Conference) in Barcelona, Spain. His presentation, titled “Computer-Aided Orchestration Strategies for Using Timbre as a Vector of Form in Triptyque du Cri and Guitar Concerto,” will take place on 7 September 2026 as part of the conference program.
The talk will explore computer-aided orchestration approaches developed through Garcia-Vitoria’s research, focusing on the role of timbre as a structural and formal element in composition. Drawing on examples from his works Triptyque du Cri and Guitar Concerto, the presentation will share insights from his ongoing creative research and demonstrate how analytical and computational tools can inform contemporary orchestral practice.
Dominic Thibault Performs INTIMITÉ INFINITÉ at Point d’Ouïe #7
September 11, 2026 | 7:00pm
Sporobole
Sherbrooke, Quebec
Dominic Thibault will perform alongside percussionist João Catalão as Duo Catalão–Thibault at Point d’Ouïe #7: Concert augmenté, presented in collaboration with AKOUSMA. The event will take place at Sporobole in Sherbrooke, Québec, on September 11 and 12, 2026, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.
As part of this research-creation dissemination event, the duo will present INTIMITÉ INFINITÉ, a work for percussion, live electronics, and bone-conduction headsets. The piece explores new modes of listening through an augmented auditory system that transmits sound directly through the listener’s body. By combining these embodied sonic experiences with acoustic percussion and multichannel loudspeaker diffusion, the work creates a rich, multilayered environment that blurs the boundaries between physical sensation and musical perception.
The program will also feature works by Ana Dall’Ara-Majek, Kevin Gironnay, and Nicola Giannini. Both evenings will be introduced by Andrea Gozzi, Associate Director of Artistic Research at CIRMMT.
Sub-Axis 1.4 Perception & Semantics Meeting
September 23, 2026 | 11:15am EDT
Zoom: https://asu.zoom.us/j/5352528724
We are pleased to announce the first meeting of the Perception & Semantics Sub-Axis. All TONE members are welcome to attend, whether or not you completed the scheduling poll or plan to participate regularly.
This meeting will be an opportunity to connect with others interested in perception and semantics, discuss current activities, and explore future collaborations.
Reminder: Please complete the Project and Publication List if you have not already done so. The links were previously shared via email and Slack.
We look forward to seeing you there!
TONE Student Member Marc Garcia-Vitoria's Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra to Premiere in Valencia
September 25, 2026 | 7:30pm
Palau de la Música
Valencia, Spain
TONE student member Marc Garcia-Vitoria's Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra will receive its world premiere on 25 September 2026 in Valencia, Spain. The work will be performed by acclaimed guitarist Ausiàs Parejo alongside the Orquestra de València, introducing audiences to Garcia-Vitoria's latest exploration of orchestral and instrumental writing.
The concerto forms part of Garcia-Vitoria’s PhD research on expansive orchestration, exploring innovative approaches to orchestral writing and instrumental interaction. Elements of the compositional process behind the work were previously presented at the Timbre 2026 Conference in Montreal, where Garcia-Vitoria discussed the research and creative methodologies that informed the concerto’s development.
Awards & Distinctions *
TONE Student Member Jonas Regnier Receives Special Prize at Ise-Shima International Composition Competition
We are pleased to celebrate the recent success of TONE student member Jonas Regnier, whose composition …comme la nuée porte l’orage for orchestra and electronics received a Special Prize at the 6th Ise-Shima International Composition Competition.
The work was premiered by the McGill Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Alexis Hauser, at Salle Pierre-Mercure in Montréal on February 14, 2026.
In …comme la nuée porte l’orage, Regnier explores the sonic complexity of field recordings of crowds and large human gatherings, bringing these recorded presences into dialogue with the symphony orchestra, which is contrasting with, merging into, or overlapping the recorded sounds.
Through this interaction between live and recorded sound, the piece investigates collective movement, texture, timbre, and spatial relationships, seeking to preserve something of the emotional and social resonance of the original recordings while integrating their complexity into an orchestral environment.
The composition is available to listen to online, and a video of the McGill Symphony Orchestra performance is also available:
Listen to …comme la nuée porte l’orage on SoundCloud
Watch the McGill Symphony Orchestra performance on YouTube:
Congratulations to Jonas Regnier on this important recognition and on the successful premiere of this compelling work!