Abstract

This practice-based research project explores the creative implications of working within historically constrained music production environments. By composing and producing original music using only emulated instruments, effects, and recording technologies from four key eras—1955, 1965, 1975, and 1985—the study examines how technological limitations affect contemporary compositional practice. The project is situated at the intersection of music production, creative practice research, and is conducted by a composer-producer with extensive experience across diverse musical genres.The research addresses three central questions: What occurs when a proficient modern producer is restricted to using tools from earlier periods of recorded music history? In what ways do these technological constraints hinder or stimulate creativity? And to what extent do genre-based instincts and musical habits intersect with the affordances of the available tools?Through iterative composition, critical reflection, and autoethnographic documentation, the project uncovers how limitations—such as reduced track counts, absence of non-destructive editing, and limited sound palettes—both restrict existing and provoke new creative approaches. Each modelled era revealed distinct workflows that shaped musical form, sonic character, and stylistic outcomes. While the 1955 and 1965 models demanded disciplined planning and live performance, the 1975 and 1985 models offered greater flexibility through multitrack recording, analogue synthesis, sampling, and MIDI sequencing.The findings demonstrate that historical constraints can lead to heightened intentionality, enhanced performance awareness, and novel aesthetic results. Moreover, the project highlights the material agency of recording technologies and challenges notions of genre as purely stylistic choice, showing instead how tools themselves can guide musical direction. Ultimately, this research offers new insights into the interplay between creativity, technology, and temporality, contributing knowledge to the fields of music production, creative practice research, and the study of technologically mediated musical authorship.

Awarding Institution(s)

University of Plymouth

Supervisor

Eduardo Miranda, Katharine Willis

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Date

2026

Embargo Period

2026-08-18

Deposit Date

August 2026

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Recommended Citation

Mead, C. (2026) The Influence of Historical Technological Constraints on Contemporary Music Practice. Thesis. University of Plymouth. Retrieved from https://pearl.plymouth.ac.uk/ada-theses/129

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