The songwriter's version: translation as creative response

Abstract

Through a creative portfolio of songs and a written thesis, this research explores songwriting as a translational act in which the songwriter operates as both translator and creative agent. Through close readings of poetry, historical song sheets and paintings, I reflect on my own creative process, blurring the theory/practice binary, and build on the idea of versions within poetry translation. The foci of the three case studies represent three different kinds of translation, each informing the other, and enable the discussion contained in the critical component of the thesis. This discourse is enriched by conversations with songwriters, musicians, poets and painters who, in turn, provide insights into their own work, revealing motivations, methodologies and inspirations, correlating to the substance of my thesis.

Thesis is embargoed until 31 July 2028.

Date of Award	Jul 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Queen's University Belfast
Sponsors	Northern Ireland Department for the Economy
Supervisor	David Johnston (Supervisor) & Glenn Patterson (Supervisor)