Jack Hooker’s research centred on musical hybridity, with a focus on cross-cultural composition. He composed works featuring collaborations with musicians from The Philippines, Greece and Indonesia, among others.

“Heading out on my own into the unknown in The Philippines was terrifying, but it all worked out. I travelled extensively, and worked with a dozen international musicians. It was an incredible experience.”

Alongside a 15,000-word thesis, Jack submitted 50 minutes of music—a large-scale twenty-five minute work incorporating electronic and sonic art elements, and a portfolio of works focused on the acoustic guitar, which feature the international collaborations.

Throughout his Master’s, Jack also worked on Professor John Psathas’ epic global symphony No Man’s Land, which lead to more international travel for Jack. He spent two months recording over 150 musicians throughout Europe and India, and was also involved in the shows nationwide tour earlier this year.

“No Man’s Land is an enormous project. The opportunity to work on it with Professor Psathas, and travel on the international shoot has expanded my view of the world. It’s been very inspiring.”

Things haven’t slowed down yet for Jack, though. Soon after submitting his thesis, he was awarded an Arts and Culture Scholarship by the Indonesian Government, and spent four months in West Sumatra studying and performing traditional Minangkabau music.

“During this trip, I was able to really immerse myself in the whole experience and spend a lot of time with the music”.  

Now back in New Zealand, Jack is working towards releasing the music he composed as part of his Master’s. “For the first time in a couple of years I’m not running straight into the next big trip.

“My focus now is on reworking and releasing what I’ve been working on over the last couple of years.

“I’ve never worked as hard as I have during my Master’s, but I can look back now and reflect on the many once-in-a-lifetime experiences I was given.

“I’m excited to see what’s next.”

Jack will graduate with a Master of Musical Arts at 6pm on Thursday 15 December.