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The Farmer's Cheese: A composer’s perspective of artistic and practical decisions Oliver Searle Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama Glasgow UK. BACKGROUND: This presentation describes the development and performance of a piece of music theatre for children with cochlear implants. The work was commissioned by MED-EL and was completed with the support of the RSAMD. The author is a professional composer, who has worked on several projects involving the development of music for people with cochlear implants. METHODS: The music theatre work, The Farmers Cheese, is based on a children's picture book by Geoff Plant and Jane Eldershaw. It was performed by a six-piece ensemble and two actors. The work is divided into two sections: (1) The story is narrated by the actors accompanied by the ensemble. Each instrument features as one of the characters in the story. (2) The story is performed without words, with the musicians taking on the role of individual characters. RESULTS Around fifty children with cochlear implants attended the performances. Due to their age, around 4-8 years, no formal attempt was made to measure the reactions of the children to the performance. All of the parents however, reported that the children had greatly enjoyed the work. CONCLUSION The work has been recorded and will be released as a CD/DVD set. A separate study is planned to assess the reactions of children, their parents and teachers to the recorded work. The presenter will discuss how his experiences with CI users and various cochlear implant professionals influenced the general construction and presentation of The Farmer's Cheese.