Commentary on Regeneration - Essay Example

Other (s) Commentary of my Pieces Chapter 2: Regeneration Chapter 2 of my pieces d “Regeneration” was particularly inspired by the story of Spinalonga, a small islet off the coast of Crete, which was used as a leper colony from 1903 to 1957. Composed for violin, cello and piano instrumentals, this piece expresses the emotions of that people who were isolated on the island because of their disease. Throughout the composition, the basic intervals of my piece “regeneration” are generally characterized by a minor 2nd which is sometimes combined with a compound interval as a 9th as well as an augmented 4th which is sometimes played as a diminished 5th. With regard to the performance design of my composition, I have embraced the use of an aleatory technique in which random procedures are employed in the generation of the composition of the piece. For example, I have used a pattern of boxes each of which appears with a specific group of notes allowing the performers to repeat the notes in specific timing. The boxes have however been divided into two categories with first category consisting of consisting of a harmonic intervals and chords (bars 12, 13, 31f) while the second category is made up of different melodic lines, chords or harmonic intervals as in the case of bars 28, 31c-31e. These boxes are then repeated aleatorically. On the other hand, the other important characteristics of my spatial composition in my second piece “regeneration” include the use of strict rhythmical writing of the first group (violin and cello) combined with the liberated rhythmic pitches of the piano to create an intensity which eventually culminates at bar 45 up to bar 52. Generally, the use of random procedures to produce a determinate fixed score during composition is a popular 20th century style that has been widely adopted by a number of artists such as John Cage and Pierre Boulez. For example, according to Joe and Song (268), John Cage particularly used the prescriptions in the ancient Chinese book known as the 1-Ching to arrive at the random values of various elements of his compositional score in the piece known as “Music of changes”. John Cage used the ancient Chinese book to help him produce chance with discipline throughout his composition. Cages notation particularly presented a new concept of musical time where by the performers were placed in a new relation to the musical score. Apart from charts of pitches and multiple sonorities, Cage also prepared charts containing specifications for durations, dynamics, tempos and textual densities of his composition. Each chart had 64 segments thereby making a simple, correspondent with the 64 hexagrams contained in the 1 Ching. As given in the ancient Chinese book, each of the coins tossed provided a hexagram corresponding to the segment of the relevant chart. The score of Cages composition of “Music of Changes” consist of charts of 8 by 8 cells to correspond with the 64 hexagrams in 1 ching. Silences are generally obtained from the sound charts and any alternation is to be governed by 1 ching as well (Cage, 34). To determine the parameters of the notations, I have used a number of complex rules the same way Cage used coin oracle. For example, just like in John Cage’s 1951 composition “Music of changes” in which he tossed coins to help in choosing charts of durations, pitches, intensities and other aspects of composition, I have also involved the chance element in a number of scores of my composition “regeneration” in such a way that almost every parameter is fixed before their performance (Pritchett, 108). This is particularly evident in the notations regarding amplitudes, pitches, and timing for each of the individual silence of sound in my composition. Unlike the past when coins were tossed to enhance chance in music, a number of modern hardware and software tools used in musical composition have randomnization features that can effectively be employed to produce aleatoric composition within particular parameters. However, like, most of the previous composers such as Murray Schafer who embraced indeterminate compositional techniques, I have allowed a limited amount of choice in the scores of my second piece which otherwise is precisely notated. Throughout my composition, all the elements at the compositional stage such as durations, pitches and dynamics among others have been determined through a process of random selection using mathematical laws of chance, card drawings and dice throwing. In this regard, although the processes involved in the composition have been fixed in their outline, the details are left to chance. The use of Freedom (classical notations) and limitation (spatial notations) in musical composition is an important aspect of aleatoric music that effectively enhances chance in musical composition. Although chance is considered an inherent element and inditerminacy in any musical composition, the intentional use of chance elements such as through tossing of coins is an important compositional method that not only improves the aesthetics of the music but can also be used to balance the responsibilities of the performers. With regard to my composition, classical notations have been used to enhance the freedom of the performers by reducing the number decisions required to be made during the performance. On the other hand, spatial notations have been used to ensure greater degree of quantization throughout the composition. The classical notation of musical configuration is often used to allow choreographers to write a dance downcast on paper that dancers could later recreate in its whole. This freedom as well enhances the composers to pen a musical score that musicians can later play. In my composition, the most dance symbolization organization, some drive notations were intended to compose any style of movement as well as dances hence it’s not limited to specific dancing styles or even to human form. In addition, classical notation movement treats the body as a category of stick character that is the partition of the physique skeleton joints that describes a line section. When it comes to three-dimensional notation of these movements in musical composition, the scores are written on grades where each horizontal role stands for the location and the drive of a solo limb and on the other hand each vertical column embodies a unit of time and movements shown as changeovers between end coordinates. This movement not only limits itself to human beings only but also in analysing animals behaviour. The association of the segments in three scopes used musical configuration using notation produces a spherical coordinates system referred to as by two coordinate morals of the exterior of the sphere, similar to latitude and longitude on anorb. It is therefore important that the dancer is given freedom to use this system whenever movement occurs while thinking about detecting and scrutinizing movement in melodic competition performed to the audience for they can evoke notation if not well used. In conclusion, in chapter 2 of my composition (regeneration), I have embraced the use of an aleatory technique in which random procedures are employed in the generation of the composition of the piece. I have used classical notations to enhance the freedom of the performers by reducing the number decisions required to be made during the performance. On the other hand, spatial notations have been used to ensure greater degree of quantization throughout the composition. This aspect of my composition corresponds to the situation in in ancient Spinalonga where although the inhabitants had total freedom to move around on the island, they were confined within its limits and they were not permitted to leave. Works Cited Cage, John. To Describe the Process of Composition Used in Music of Changes and Imaginary Landscape. Middletown: Wesleyan University Press Pritchett, James. The Music of John Cage. Music in the 20th Century. New York: Cambridge University Press. 1993. Print. Joe, Jeongwon, and Song, S. Hoon. “Roland Barthes ’Text’ and Aleatoric Music: Is the Birth of the Reader the Birth of the Listener?”. Muzikologija 2(2003): 263–81. Read More