Abstract
This chapter examines my collaboration with trumpeter Simon Desbruslais on a new piece for trumpet and string quartet situated within the worlds of artistic practice and academic research. The methodology used is a broadly qualitative one with a range of data from rehearsal recordings to retrospective accounts underpinning an interpretation of why the collaboration unfolded as it did. My interpretation revolves around the theme of tension existing in the artistic domain (between determinacy and indeterminacy) and between the artistic and academic research domains in attitudes to research questions and methods. I show how the collaboration was affected by such tensions and the differing degrees to which it was able to resolve them. I conclude with a discussion of the need for productive tension and the role of collaboration in maintaining the integrity of the practitioner-researcher role and realising its potential in both areas.