Teaching and Ethos

As a composer, Malone focuses on these principles in his teaching:

Techniques must be used in relation to their effects on the listener. The best techniques are always those based on real-time listening. Without the listening experience in mind, a composer is merely manipulating sound for the sake of the techniques. A wide variety of techniques chosen for their audible effects gives a composer great powers of communication and persuasion.
Audience involvement is part of the communication process: at the onset of a piece, the audience must believe they can be part of it, be immediately persuaded that they will be able to understand it.
The sociology of composing is explored in relation to the composer's own personal interests to reveal the best balance between personal expression and social relevance.
The psychology of composing and listening and the intended function of each composition are kept in mind so that pieces do not merely become a series of sounds arising out of
“what I decided to do next”, but instead
are used as a welcome means of manipulating the audience in a positive way.
Entertainment is not a vulgar word; it is an important part of effective communication. Maintaining interest is the job of the composer and not the audience. A work doesn't have to exist, and if it does, an audience doesn't have to listen to it.
Analysis of every aspect of one’s creative fragments reveal implications toward profound and surprising directions to be taken in the work.
A postmodern aesthetic enables craft to be freely applied to many different genres without fear of transgressing the “rules of composition”.
The benefits of technology are incorporated as a means of empirical testing of ideas, sources of new compositional techniques and new combinations, and freeing up time from laborious tasks.

At all times, music is considered in its natural state (sound in time) and in its artificial state (human sonic activity). Music cannot exist out of time, nor can it effectively represent things which are not time-based. Malone, therefore, deals with music purely through time-based processes and their effects on the emotions and intellect of the listener.
Notational clarity and simplicity are important: a listener cannot hear notation, just like a theatre audience does not see a script.
Compositional conceits are to avoided or kept to a minimum if they cannot be heard. Sound is heard first, then notated; at no time should notation be used first to generate sound.
Despite whatever musical trends may prevail, Malone is focused on securing integrity of content, communication and longevity for each work.