Sound and Music’s In Motion programme brings together a diverse group of composers, each with a unique voice and vision. This Q&A series offers a glimpse into their creative worlds.
Here, we speak to In Motion 2025 composer Bofan Ma.
How would you describe your creative process?
I’ve always found the quirks of myself speaking the English language fascinating. Much of my creative process starts with me reading a found piece of text, and trying many different ways to make sense of it, or until it stops to mean anything to me. From there it’s always a convoluted process involving recording and transcribing this spoken voice, extrapolating musical material out of it, and devising a notation system (often text-based), all while trying to collect any sound or images the original text made me think of.
What role does technology or experimentation play in your composition process?
A lot of my work centres around experimenting with new technology but it’s almost always about finding ways to break it… I want to see what would happen if I use a tool incorrectly as it’s always the resultant glitch that makes the whole process more personal. And for me being personal is what it’s all about.
Can you tell us about your musical influences?
To put it extremely broadly… I find inspirations in any musically-focused project that’s personal, playful, provocative, and that embodies quirky energies… These can be anything ranging from experimental music theatre (e.g. Buenos Aires by Simon Steen-Andersen, Chornobyldorf by Roman Grygoriv and Illia Razumeiko), contemporary classical, to many post-punk or indie projects in recent years such as Suuns, Squid, Fontaines D.C., 万能青年旅店 (Omnipotent Youth Society), 重塑雕像的权利 (Re-TROS) and the list can go on and on…
Having been trained as a concert pianist growing up, I think that my vocabulary is also largely informed by my personal connection with Western classical music and its many socio-cultural significances. Overall it’s such a rich mix and I’ll never stop learning from all these artists!
What are you looking forward to most about In Motion?
Pretty much everything… I’m excited to spend an extensive period of time to focus on developing my own creative voice, and to have all the guidance and support while exploring new ideas and stepping well out of my comfort zone. I’m also looking forward to meeting other artists and getting to know their work – can’t wait!
Sound and Music is a PRS Foundation Talent Development Network Partner supported by PPL.
In Motion is made possible with the generous support of Arts Council England, Jerwood Developing Artists Fund, The Garrick Charitable Trust, Creative Scotland National Lottery and PRS Foundation.
