Dr Will Parker
Lecturer in Music and Sound
Dr Will Parker is a composer, sound artist, researcher and educator specialising in audiovisual practice, immersive and spatial audio, sound design, sound studies, music computing, electronic/experimental music, and inclusive approaches to music education. His creative and research practice explores relationships between sound, place, material, environment and technology, working across field recording, composition, image, video and text. His PhD, Red Lake / Black Mine: Affective Bodies and Material Complicity in Sound Art Practice, investigated material agency within field recording, electroacoustic composition and multimodal sound art.
He has played a significant role in curriculum development and educational innovation and is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and he previously served as a Research Cluster Lead for Innovative and Inclusive Pedagogies for AMATA. Will is currently active in doctoral education through the multi-university Celtic Crescent consortium, where he contributed to project development and candidate selection and is a member of the supervisory team for the successful PhD candidate. He is also an External Examiner for programmes at Point Blank Music School and Manchester Metropolitan University and has contributed to programme validation and academic quality assurance.
Will co-founded the experimental ensemble POST— with Dr Johny Lamb and, as an artist, has presented creative work at venues including Tate Modern and the Science Museum. Before entering higher education, he worked professionally as a composer, sound designer and dialogue editor across television, film, radio and interactive media, with clients including the BBC, ITV, BAR Honda and Ubuntu.
External Links
Qualifications
Qualifications
| Year | Qualification | Awarding body |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | PhD | Falmouth University / University of the Arts London |
| 2023 | Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) | Higher Education Academy |
| 2013 | MMus in Studio Composition | Goldsmiths, University of London |
| 2006 | BA (Hons) Sound Arts and Design | London College of Communication, UAL |
| 1999 | Foundation Diploma in Art and Design | Surrey University |
Research Interests
Research interests and expertise
- Sound art, sound studies, philosophy of sound.
- Field recording and environmental sound
- Sound, place and materiality
- Ecological and site-responsive practice
- Electroacoustic and experimental composition
- Electronic music and music technology
- Audiovisual and multimodal practice
- Spatial and immersive audio
- Creative coding and music computing
- Improvisation and collaborative practice
- Inclusive and experimental music pedagogy
Research topics
Sound art; sound studies; field recording; sound and place; materiality; environmental sound; electroacoustic composition; experimental music; electronic music; audiovisual practice; multimodality; spatial audio; immersive audio; music technology; creative coding; music computing; ecological sound practice; improvisation; inclusive music pedagogy.
Externally funded research grants
- 2023. Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF) £12,500 for POST— with Dr Johny Lamb
- 2025. E3 Research Secondment – Immersive Media: Place and Environment, with Associate Professor Dr D. Ferrett
Research Students
Current research students
- Kat Pegler
Professional Engagement
Independent professional practice
- Released album and book of Red Lake / Black Mine through the record label DAAM is 2025.
- Parker, W. (2025) Red Lake / Black Mine [Album]. Brighton: DAAM. Available at: https://difficultartandmusic.bandcamp.com/album/red-lake-black-mine [Accessed 7/3/25].
- Parker, W. (2025) Red Lake / Black Mine. Book. Brighton: DAAM. ISBN 978-1-0369-0885-0
Social, community and cultural engagement
- Public workshop at performance at the Electronics symposium at part of the POST— research project.
- PARKER, W & LAMB, J (2023) ‘POST— Ensemble’, Workshop and Public Performance. Electronics Symposium, supported by FEAST, Cornwall Council and the AHRC, 25–26 November, The Fish Factory, Cornwall UK.
- Public lecture and performance at the Electronics symposium
- PARKER, W. (2023) 'Red Lake / Black Mine', Lecture and Performance. Electronics Symposium, 25–26 November. Available at: https://ra.co/events/1866679 (Accessed: 5 March 2025).
- Composed music for short film Gommon.
- Parker, W., Kruse, K. & McCoombe, S. (2020) Gommon [Experimental Film]. Screened at the Cornwall Film Festival, Falmouth, 14–20 November 2022. Available at: https://www.mormediacharity.org/experimental-film-2023 [Accessed 7 March 2025].
Engagement with professional associations and societies
- International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM) — Active engagement as an academic peer reviewer, contributing to the evaluation of research in popular music and related areas of music and sound studies.
- Revenant: Critical and Creative Studies of the Supernatural — Academic peer reviewer, contributing specialist review of interdisciplinary research and scholarship relating to sound, music and cultural studies.
- UK Audio Network (UKAN) — A UK network connecting researchers and professionals working across audio, sound, music technology and related disciplines. Relevant to Will’s research and professional practice in sound design, spatial and immersive audio, music technology and sound studies. Free to join.
- British Music Collection / Sound and Music — A national platform supporting and documenting the work of UK composers, sound artists and music creators. Relevant to Will’s work as a composer and sound artist working across experimental music, electronic music, sound art and audiovisual practice. The British Music Collection invites composers to create profiles and add their work to the collection.
