Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music
Christopher Pantelidis
Music Performance, master's level (120 credits) 2021
Luleå University of Technology Department of Social Sciences, Technology and Arts
Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music
Christopher Pantelidis
June 2021
This document is my own work (unless specified) and is submitted in fulfilment of the Master Programme in Musical Performance
Department of Social Sciences, Technology and Arts Luleå University of Technology
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Abstract This thesis explores the relationships that exist between reification, the conceptualisation of music, and the composition of new concert music. In general terms, reification can be described as the mental process of conceiving abstract concepts as tangible and concrete things. The problem of reification in the conceptualisation of musical works is one that exists between a rock and a hard place: we rely on something like reification in order to gain any sense of meaning from our experiences of the abstract aspects of musical works, but treating the reified understanding of these aspects as if they are what makes musical works meaningful ignores the emergent and transitory aspects of our interactions with musical works as being inherently meaningful in and of themselves. Through a variety of ethnographic, phenomenological and narrative methods, this thesis aims to challenge the long-held notions of meaning construction within the field of analytical aesthetics. It also aims provide a conceptual framework with which composers can use to practically study, collect data and analyse the conceptualisation of meaning in their compositions, as well as apply this understanding to audiences’ conceptualisation of meaning in musical works. The results of this thesis project culminate in the creation and presentation of three artistic outcomes: a new and original work for chamber ensemble, and two audio papers that explore the synthesis of interview responses and recordings of musical works within the framework of an audio- based discourse. Semi-structured interviews in the form of stimulated recall sessions were conducted as a means of obtaining data from participants about their interpretation of meaning in musical works. The use of metaphors as a conceptual framework with which to code and analyse data collected from these sessions allowed for the linguistic conceptualisation of musical meaning that avoided the theory construction and analytical aesthetic tendencies of modern music philosophy. This conceptual framework was also applied in the coding and analysis of a compositional perspective of the new work in order to compare and contrast the similarities and differences between composers and audiences in their interpretations of musical meaning. While this thesis does not purport to offer a “theory” for the conceptualisation of meaning in musical works (such an exercise is both impossible and pointless), the findings presented in the analysis of the new composition and audio papers allows for a conceptual framework that takes into
Luleå University of Technology v Abstract account the everyday use of language in communicating the experiences of composers and audience members in their conceptualisation of meaning in musical works.
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Acknowledgements This master’s research has been inspired and supported by a long list of teachers, family, friends and colleagues. This thesis is the culmination of a five-year long journey that began in January 2016 when I travelled from Newcastle, Australia to Piteå, Sweden to study on a semester’s exchange. At the time I could not have imagined how much my life would be changed from this one decision to study abroad. Thanks to the encouragement and support of Fredrik Högberg, I decided to return to the Piteå School of Music and undertake my postgraduate research, but this time with my life partner (and now fiancé) Andrew Hermon by my side. Conducting my research over the past two years has been the most rewarding professional and personal experience of my life thus far, and I look back fondly on the experience as I close the cover on this chapter of my life, and look ahead with excitement as I open the cover on the next. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to those who have had a particularly profound impact on my time during the master’s, without whose support and encouragement this thesis would not have been completed to its fullest potential. I would like to especially thank:
Åsa Unander-Scharin for her academic support and supervision. Her experience in artistic research has helped to ensure a high intellectual rigour and finesse of this research project.
Jan Sandström for his creative supervision and support in the art of composition. His professional experience and mentorship have been a source of encouragement over the last two years and has allowed me to grow and develop my skills as a professional composer.
Fredrik Högberg for stepping in at the eleventh hour to take onboard the position of creative supervisor for this research project. His support in my professional development has been present since the beginning of this journey and it means a lot to me to have him see me through to the end.
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Stefan Östersjö for his academic and artistic guidance throughout the research classes and group seminars. His suggestions and academic advice have helped strengthen the scope and reach of this research project.
Martin Keary for his video essay which inspired the initial idea of my research. His generosity in providing a platform for friendly discussion and advice in book recommendations were invaluable to the conception of my thesis early on.
My partners in crime and fellow peers in composition: Fredrik Ekenvi, Oskar Lidström, Robin Lilja, and Susanna Lindmark. I could not have asked for a better cohort of like-minded and talented colleagues. Our discussions on music and the times spent together listening to our compositions and supporting our compositional development have been some of the most rewarding parts of my time in the master’s. I wish them the very best in their own future endeavours.
My dear friends in Sweden: William Berglund, Gustav Ekmark, Miriam Jacobsson and Mathieu Keith, whose love and friendship have been a source of encouragement and inspiration. They have made life in Piteå over the past two years not only possible but enjoyable.
Family near and far: my parents and sister back in Australia who never fail to let me know that they are thinking about me; I hope we can see each other in person soon. And the Jacobsson family who have taken me under their wing and made me feel like I always have a home away from home.
Andrew Hermon for his unconditional love, emotional support and companionship. I could not have achieved all that I have achieved without you by my side every step of the way; you inspire me to be the best possible version of myself.
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Table of Contents
Abstract ...... v
Acknowledgements ...... vii
1.0 Introduction ...... 1
1.1 What is Reification? ...... 2
1.2 Reification in Philosophy ...... 3 1.2.1 The History of Reification in Philosophy ...... 3 1.2.2 Reification in Music Philosophy ...... 4
1.3 Aims ...... 6
1.4 Thesis Structure ...... 7
2.0 Theory ...... 9
2.1 The Problems of Reification in Modern Music Philosophy ...... 10 2.1.1 The Internal Negativity of Musical Works ...... 11 2.1.2 Musical Works as a Challenge to Metaphysics as Reification...... 12 2.1.3 The Problems of Reification in the Practical Task of Composition ...... 13
2.2 The Metaphors We Live By ...... 15 2.2.1 Metaphors as a Conceptual Framework for the Understanding of Musical Works Through Language ...... 16 2.2.2 The Objectivist and Subjectivist Myths ...... 17 2.2.3 The Experiential Myth and its Metaphorical Basis for Conceptual Understanding ...... 18
2.3 Research Questions ...... 20
3.0 Methodological Framework...... 23
3.1 Semi-Structured Qualitative Interviews in the Form of Stimulated Recall Sessions ...... 24
3.2 Using Metaphors to Code Data from Qualitative Interviews ...... 25
3.3 Audio Papers as an Alternative to Text-Based Modes of Documentation ...... 26
3.4 Pilot Study ...... 27 3.4.1 Selection of Interview Participants ...... 28 3.4.2 Musical Examples ...... 28 3.4.3 Design of Stimulated Recall Session ...... 29
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3.4.4 Coding Data Collected from Stimulated Recall Sessions ...... 30
3.5 Artistic Outcomes ...... 31
4.0 Results ...... 33
4.1 The Beauty Behind the Meme (AUDIO PAPER) ...... 33 4.1.1 Content ...... 33 4.1.2 Coded Metaphors ...... 34 4.1.3 Examples ...... 36 4.1.4 Summary ...... 38
4.2 Obsessions for Norrbotten NEO ...... 38 4.2.1 Overview of Creative Elements ...... 39 4.2.2 Stimulated Recall Session...... 43 4.2.3 Obsessions Audio Paper ...... 43
5.0 Analysis ...... 45
5.1 Obsessions for Norrbotten NEO ...... 45 5.1.1 Examples in Score ...... 45 5.1.2 Examples in Audio paper ...... 48 5.1.3 Reflections...... 50
5.2 Evaluation of Methodological Framework ...... 52
5.3 Evaluation of the Aims ...... 52
5.4 Evaluation of the Research Questions...... 53
6.0 Conclusion ...... 55
6.1 Summary of Research Project ...... 55
6.2 Summary of Findings ...... 55
6.3 Possibilities for Future Research...... 56
References ...... 57
Appendix A Obsessions - Full Score in C (Annotated) ...... 61
Appendix B1 The Beauty Behind the Meme - Audio Paper (Text Score) ...... 89
Appendix B2 Obsessions - Audio Paper (Text Score) ...... 101
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1.0 Introduction
Reify transitive verb To consider or represent (something abstract) as a material or concrete thing: to give definite content and form to (a concept or idea). (Herskovits, 2021)
This thesis explores the relationships that exist between reification, the conceptualisation of music, and the composition of new concert music. Specifically, this thesis investigates the effects of reification on the engagement and understanding of musical works with particular focus on how composers can be aware of these effects on the conceptualisation of their works. As the above definition by Herskovits infers, to reify is to conceive of abstract concepts as tangible objects or things which have a definite shape, form or identity, and that can be clearly described and understood in linguistic terms (this is in much the same way that one might describe or understand any other physical object, e.g., a rock, car, apple etc.). However, the process of reification is far more complex than the simple act of treating abstract concepts as things. Furthermore, and most importantly, the process of reification does not leave the substance or content of abstract concepts unchanged or unremoved from the contexts in which they are experienced. On the contrary, reifying thought demands that the less delineated aspects of abstract concepts be altered in some way so that they can be experienced in definite terms (Lewis, 2018). As an example, imagine the differences in perception between explaining the experience of being in a car crash and the actual experience of being in car crash. It might seem absurdly obvious to point out that there is a difference in perception between the two, however, the point to be understood here is that in attempting to communicate the intangible aspects of one’s experience (in this case, a traumatic experience), one must reimagine the less defined aspects of their experience in a more clearly delineated manner so as to describe their experience in linguistic terms (Keary, 2018). The degree to which reifying thought alters the intangible aspects of abstract concepts and the effect differing degrees of reification have on the quality of engagement with such concepts lies at the core of this thesis.
Luleå University of Technology 1 1.0 Introduction
1.1 What is Reification? As a term, reification has had a rich and diverse history, being employed in several disciplines ranging from social sciences and linguistics to logic and philosophy. Although reification has been historically intertwined with the philosophical traditions of the enlightenment, the emancipatory class politics of the new left and the critical social theory of postmodernism (connections which cannot always be completely separated), reification is useful as a way of understanding the ways in which people conceptualise and interact with the abstract (or non-conceptual). As a term in music philosophy specifically, reification has been used in order to bring into the inferential sphere of human experience the non-conceptual elements of music so that they may be categorised in ways that reveal the nature and aesthetic value of the musical works being studied (Lewis, 2018). It is because of this that reification has been useful in the understanding of engagement in musical works, where one does not necessarily require a prerequisite theoretical or formal understanding of music theory (Keary, 2018). The accessibility of reification in conceptualising the non-conceptual aspects of musical works is something that will be expanded upon further in chapters 2 and 3. Nevertheless, as in the example of the car crash, one must be cognisant of the fact that through the process of reification, the aesthetic qualities of one’s experience will be altered and/or transformed.
Reification as a term in music philosophy was first introduced to me through a video essay by Martin Keary (aka Tantacrul) entitled “Star Wars Music is Getting Worse – Beyond The Last Jedi & John Williams – A Music Philosophy Review” (Keary, 2018). Throughout his video essay, Keary highlights several aspects of the music in the newest Star Wars films which have suffered from a high degree of reification and thus, have had their non- conceptual and heterogenous nature transformed into concrete “things”, identifiable but incapable of being interpreted or reimagined in new artistic contexts. Specifically, Keary argues that specific musical themes, such as the “The Force Theme” (among others) have become so heavily reified that they are no longer able to musically communicate any artistic or aesthetic meaning to the listener other than the meaning that is associated with the title of the theme. This this inability of the music in the newest Star Wars films to evolve and be able to be applied to new creative contexts has hurt the overall artistic creativity of the music, as well as the emotional impact experienced by the audience
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(Keary, 2018). This kind of philosophical critique of musical works fascinated me as a composer because it highlighted another way of thinking about musical communication in a way I had not previously considered. Not only could the critiques of reification be applied to contemporary concert repertoire, but they could also be applied to the creative act of composition itself and the ways that composers think about the communication of meaning in their works. It should be noted, for reasons that will be discussed in chapter 2, that reification is impossible to completely avoid when discussing the abstract nature of music. Furthermore, music ultimately relies on something like reification in order to be understood in conceptual terms. For example, the aforementioned themes could only have been understood as having a connection to the associated characters or motifs in the first place because of reifying thought processes and their ability to associate the intangible qualities of the music with specific and concrete aspects of the films. This being said, the claim that reification reduces the heterogeneity and transitory nature of music and removes it from its all-important context (thereby suppressing the plurality of artistic interpretation) is one that should be of great concern to both musicians and non- musicians alike. In this way, Keary’s analysis of the ways in which the music in the newest Star Wars has suffered from the pitfalls of a reified music philosophy highlights a general need in the world of analytical aesthetics to rethink the value of a detached contemplation in the dissemination of a meaningful engagement with musical works.
1.2 Reification in Philosophy Before we can begin to fully understand and address the implications of a reified music philosophy in the composition of new concert music, we must first understand (to some degree) the myriad ways in which the term has been used to illuminate thinking of the abstract in general, and how this is specifically relevant to the conceptualisation and understanding of music.
1.2.1 The History of Reification in Philosophy The ideas surrounding reification have been examined by philosophers from as early as the 5th century BCE. Plato’s Allegory of the Cave from 4th century BCE, is a notable example of how reifying thought can disclose aspects about society and cultural traditions, specifically, how one can obtain knowledge and what can be demonstrated to be true about reality (Ferguson, 1922). Throughout his allegory, Plato presents the cave within
Luleå University of Technology 3 1.0 Introduction which the prisoners are trapped inside as a metaphor for human nature, describing a state of existence whereby the prisoners experience a lower (or less true) version of reality, that is limited to only what they can see of the shadows that are cast by the fire on the wall (this use of metaphor in reifying thought will be discussed further in chapter 2). Furthermore, Plato describes the other aspects of the cave as progressively higher (or more true) versions of reality (e.g., shadows of artificial objects, artificial objects, fire, reflections of natural things, natural things, the sun). To Plato, a philosopher is like a prisoner who frees themselves from the cave and discovers the sun (the true source of knowledge) only by understanding that the shadows on the wall are not true depictions of reality (Ferguson, 1922). In this way, reification is being used to illustrate the different ways the abstract nature of our reality can be conceptualised, thereby providing pathways to the understanding of the true nature of reality. In this sense of “reification”(i.e. as a tool with which to examine aspects of reality), one can clearly see connections to Western Marxism, with its examination of materialist philosophy, capitalist economics and emancipatory class politics (Lewis, 2018) Indeed, the use of reification by thinkers of the New Left (which include Karl Marx and Georg Lukács) in describing the cultural structures that exist within society are some of the most enduring uses of the term throughout modern philosophical history. For Marx, reification allowed for the description of the ways in which the proletarian workers of capitalist societies could free themselves from the exploitation of labour (Lewis, 2018). By viewing their labour as a resource, tangible and quantifiable (a commodity), the working class could transform the reality of the workplace. Lukács’ conceptualisation of reification similarly “suggests a path towards the general transformation of modernity and the emergence of a new form of social rationality” (Lewis, 2014, Figure 3).
1.2.2 Reification in Music Philosophy At this point it can be difficult to see how the term reification, as it is understood in these contexts, has come to be relevant at all to the philosophical discussions surrounding music and the arts in general. As Lewis (2018) states “in order to accept the relevance of reification […] within and between musicology and music philosophy, we must […] free the term from its place in Marxist theory” (Lewis, 2018, p. 1). If one looks deeper within the Western Marxist traditions, a problematic relationship not just between reification and societal structures exists, but also between reification and aesthetics. In the same
4 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music way that one might aim to understand the true nature of their reality, one can also aim to understand the reality of the abstract and aesthetic structures of society. This relationship has allowed philosophers, aestheticians, and musicologists of all colours to discuss the connections between music and reification. It is in this vein that Theodor Adorno, the 20th century German composer and philosopher, draws upon the relationship between reification and aesthetics, specifically in his critique of reification as “identity-thinking” (Lewis, 2018) Adorno’s critiques of reification also arise in his discussions on epistemology, ethics, and moral philosophy (Gandesha, 2017). One of Adorno’s criticisms of reification in musicology and music philosophy is its connection to philosophical metaphysics, which is primarily concerned with the specific idea that truth is what always remains when you eliminate the so called “ephemeral, transitory and historical moments of musical praxis which constitute our everyday engagement with music” (Lewis 2014, p. 8). Adorno argues that metaphysics in this context assumes that a concept is identical to its object and that, therefore, what one is concerned with when studying the abstract nature of music (i.e., the non-conceptual and transitory elements of music which concepts refer to) must be excluded in order to study the music in its “pure” state (Jarvis, 2007). This is most evident in the case of analytic aesthetics which is primarily concerned with theory production over and above explanations of the aesthetics of music in terms of its everyday meaningfulness (Lewis, 2018).
It is here that the crucial relationship and philosophical tension between reification and music can be understood. As Lewis (2018) states, “theory construction and attempts to account for the characteristics of music […] [which fail] to take account of the meaningfulness of our specific experiences…are forms of reification” (Lewis, 2018, p. 2). Furthermore, “what has been shouldered out in attempts to definitively characterise works of art are the specific questions of why art concerns us, why it matters to us as part of our daily lives” (Lewis, 2018, p.2). It is now that the aesthetic relevance of reification in the philosophical study of music becomes apparent, where music rebels against reifying tendencies and yet also relies upon something like reification in order to be understood in the first place. This tension between the need for a non-reified engagement with music and the reification that allows for the comprehension of the aesthetic praxis of musical works can be strongly observed in the contrasting approaches to art, in
Luleå University of Technology 5 1.0 Introduction general, that separate Anglo-American analytical philosophy (that of “identity-thinking” and theory construction) and the more European/Continental philosophical traditions (i.e., traditions of Marx, Lukács and Adorno etc.) (Lewis, 2014). Given the above, it is not entirely surprising that the criticisms of reification mentioned by Keary (2018) are apparent in the music of the newest Star Wars films and, indeed, in the majority of music in mainstream consumption. The “stock-standard” music that is utilised in nature documentaries and reality TV shares strong connections with this critique of music. By sacrificing contextual complexity, TV programmes clinically communicate the emotional experience of the animals and people being portrayed (Keary, 2021). The ability to classify this kind of music as “stock-standard” further exemplifies the reification of music used in this way. The problems of a reified music philosophy are by no means exclusive to the domains of film, television and game music, and in some ways the issues of reification that modern composers face today are more insidious in their effects on audiences’ ability to conceptualise and understand new concert music. As Lewis (2014) states, “How do we talk about musical praxis without damaging their irreducibility? How…do we avoid making deaestheticising judgements that strip musical works of what makes them music in the first place?” (p. 13). Conversely, how do we as composers draw upon the rich music history that has been inherited in the 21st century in ways that are musically satisfying but also creatively original in their conception? These philosophical questions have always been pertinent to the composers of new concert music and will continue to be so in the future. Identifying the possible tools and methods with which present and future composers can use to grapple with these philosophical questions is the main objective of this research project.
1.3 Aims In order to explore the consequences of reification in the composition of new concert music, two aims have been formulated that this thesis will examine:
1. To understand the ways in which reification contributes to the conceptualisation of new concert music and; 2. To understand the ways in which composers can conceptualise the composition of their music through the lens of a non-reified conceptual framework.
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Rather than presenting a purely philosophical exploration of the effects of a reified music philosophy on the composition of new concert music (of which there are many), this thesis seeks to also explore the research aims through the practical task of composition itself, thereby providing both a theoretical and practical examination of the aims.
1.4 Thesis Structure In fulfillment of the research aims, this thesis will examine a variety of theoretical, methodological, and artistic outcomes. Chapter 2 will continue to explore the theory specifically describing the ways in which reification has contributed to the conceptualisation of musical works in modern music philosophy, as well as highlight the many issues that have arisen as a result of this philosophical discourse. Specific solutions to the problems of a reified music philosophy will be analysed and evaluated. Furthermore, a review of the ways different schools of thought have analysed human language in linguistically conceptualising the non-conceptual will be explored, with particular focus on the use of metaphors as an experiential basis for understanding. With this in mind, the research questions of the thesis will be presented.
Chapter 3 will describe a methodological framework for analysing and evaluating the effects of reification on the conceptualisation of musical works. By using qualitative research methods such as semi-structured interviews and stimulated recall, a conceptual framework for coding and analysing the responses of audience members will be examined. The presentation of this data in the form of audio papers (rather than written essays) will provide an alternative to text-based forms of documentation in presenting the findings of the semi-structured interviews. The efficacy of this methodological framework will be tested through a pilot study which will in turn inform the creation of the artistic outcomes of the thesis.
Chapter 4 presents the results of the pilot study conducted in chapter 3 (the semi- structured interview and audio paper) and provides a new composition, written for the contemporary chamber ensemble “Norrbotten NEO”, as a response to the project’s aims and research questions. As in the case of the pilot study, this new composition will also be supplemented by its own semi-structured interview and accompanying audio paper,
Luleå University of Technology 7 1.0 Introduction further exploring the creative and conceptual elements of the new composition and its conceptualisation by select audience members. Chapter 5 will present an evaluation of the effectiveness of the new composition (and accompanying audio paper) in addressing the theoretical, methodological and creative aspects of the project’s aims. In doing so, the research questions of the thesis will be discussed and the degree to which the artistic outcomes fulfilled the aims of the thesis will be answered. The implications of this discussion on the composition of new concert music as both a creative and critical activity will be further examined.
Chapter 6 will conclude by summarising the aims, goals and findings of the thesis project. Finally, the limitations of the thesis project as well as its potential to act as a springboard for future research will be discussed.
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2.0 Theory
Here’s a metaphor: musicology, ethnomusicology and music theory together form the three-headed Cerberus who stands guard at the entrance to the Hades of musical understanding. (Parkhurst & Hammel, 2017, p. 33)
In the previous chapter the tension that exists between the non-conceptual nature of music and the metaphysical “identity-thinking” of reification was briefly discussed. As Lewis (2018) states, “the tension between music and reification demands that we consider the issue of how to discuss musical works in conceptual terms without damaging their irreducibility as music” (p. 21). Discussions about the nature and composition of musical meaning are useful because they allow us to critically examine our social systems as well as disclose important aspects of our individual experiences with musical works. Indeed “those who would deny that music has ‘meaning’ […] find it hard to reject the claim that music can be used to communicate […]” (Ross, 2017, p. 4). The problem arises when the non-conceptual aspects of music are categorised in ways that either misrepresent our individual experiences with musical works or, worse, blatantly claim that musical theories or other quantifiable aspects (e.g., harmony, form, tonality etc.) are the “true meanings” of the music being discussed (Lewis, 2018). This leads into a fundamental trap that is common in analytical aesthetics in general, and in the aesthetic analysis of musical works more specifically. As Ross (2017) states, “there is a tendency to see “semantics” and “meaning” as synonymous” (p. 4). Furthermore, there is also a tendency for musicologists and philosophers to conclude that because music has no semantic meaning, music is not inherently meaningful, and as a result any perceived meanings are concluded to be merely the subjective judgements of the individuals interpreting the music (Lewis, 2016). In this way, the above metaphor from Parkhurst & Hammel (2017) is exemplified: while musicology, ethnomusicology and music theory are useful tools for analysing and understanding the compositional make up of musical works, they are often inadequate at explaining the less delineated aspects of our engagement with music (which are arguably the aspects that make music “music” for many people).
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This chapter will discuss the harmful (and often pervasive) ways that this misconception of “meaning” can have on the conceptualisation of musical works. They are harmful because they, at best, treat musical works as “things” with objective metaphysical truth and, at worse, they strip musical works of all their abstract qualities and disallow heterogenous interpretations of its content based on the experiences and the context of the listener. How musicologists and philosophers have attempted to resolve these issues as well as the effects these attempts can have on the perspective of composers and their works will also be discussed. Finally, an experiential basis for the grounding of our conceptual understanding of musical works will be presented. This will act as a springboard from which a set of research questions can be conceived and examined in the exploration and fulfillment of the research aims.
2.1 The Problems of Reification in Modern Music Philosophy As previously stated, “the issue [of reification in the conceptualisation of musical works] is that by explicitly thinking about what kind of object music is, and thereby attempting to provide a theory for its meaning, ontology and value, what is ignored is the important role specific manifestations of musical praxis play in everyday life” (Lewis, 2018, p. 20). This problem of a reified music philosophy (i.e., one that engages with the non-conceptual aspects of music on a mostly concrete level) is one that exists between a rock and a hard place. We cannot completely remove (nor should we aim to remove) the historical or social contexts that exist when one engages with the non-conceptual nature of musical works; without these all-important contexts, musical works would be almost impossible to comprehend on both an intellectual and emotional level. “Only because artists and audiences share knowledge of an experience with [musical] conventions […] does the art work [including musical works] produce an emotional effect” (Becker, 2008, p. 30). However, one must also be cognisant of these myriad contexts and not mistake them for the nature of musical works themselves, as “such a procedure is no more adequate to understanding a philosophical text than an attempt to interpret a musical composition by summarizing the key-changes in it” (Jarvis, 2007, p. 129). In order for the reification of musical works by composers and audiences to be a fundamentally meaningful exercise one must separate the idea that knowing intellectually the compositional make-up of a musical work is the same as understanding the non-conceptual aspects of musical works. As Lewis (2016) states, “artworks [including musical works] cannot be […] objects ‘out
10 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music there’ with naturally-occurring properties […] which we […] perceive initially as data and, only then, interpret” (pp. 177-178). As discussed in chapter 1, part of the problem with understanding the reification of musical works is its connection to New Leftist philosophical thinking, particularly to Marx and his writings on society and economics. Even today it is hard to not see how the treatment of musical works in society is relevant; musical works of all kinds are produced, performed, recorded and sold on a commercial basis and this form of reification has profound effects on the way one engages with and understands meaning of musical works. The question becomes: “what happens to music when it becomes a commodity?” (Beaster-Jones, 2014, p. 334). Moreover, how does one square the social and historical experience of musical works with their perceived aesthetic qualities. As Beaster-Jones (2014) suggests, “we need [to] discuss the values of music commodities as socially and historically situated human phenomena first, rather than accepting the assertions that social, cultural, or normative values are merely epiphenomena of economic exchange” (p. 338). The question, therefore, of how we can account for the meaning of music has important consequences for composers in particular, especially if, as one would assume, the goal of composers is to write music that is technically and emotionally comprehensible (i.e., communicates meaning) while still allowing for multifocal and heterogeneous interpretations and engagements with musical works. The problem cannot be understood in terms of simply concept versus consciousness; one must understand their conceptual framework (the way one conceptualises abstract thought), and how this relates to the everyday use of language in that understanding (Gandesha, 2017). As Lewis (2018) states, “art [including music] is, simultaneously, world-disclosive and critical” (p. 182). The way composers think about and use language to talk about their music, therefore, should appropriately express this reality.
2.1.1 The Internal Negativity of Musical Works One way that philosophical thought has attempted to bridge the gap between conceptual understanding and the use of everyday language in the communication of that understanding is through the idea of “internal negativity”: the idea that artworks, including musical works, are both objective (that they exist physically in reality and are detectable through our senses), and experiential (that they are more than just the sum of what is presented to our senses) (Lewis, 2018). This presentation of music “can only
Luleå University of Technology 11 2.0 Theory emerge when the divide between subject and object is dissolved” (Lewis, 2018, p. 38). That is, only when one acknowledges that musical works are an experienced phenomenon that has emergent properties, one can begin to understand their world- disclosive and aesthetical qualities in a way that does not take for granted their non- conceptual nature. In this way, the concept of the internal negativity of artworks allows for the beginnings of a conceptual framework which composers can use to understand the creation and reception of their works. However, the concept of internal negativity has the potential to be problematic if “existing physically” in terms of what is detectable by the senses is not carefully defined (Goodman, 1968). For example, a painting is a kind of artwork that exists as a physical object which we can experience in reality through our senses; we can physically touch and see a painting and even though these physical realities are not the total experience of a painting, one would find it difficult to deny that paintings have a physical aspect to their existence. The same, however, cannot be ontologically said of performative works of art, of which musical works are a kind of performative work (Kivy, 1995). Physical artefacts such as scores and recordings, while being kinds of representations of musical works in reality, are not musical works themselves. Musical works are only detectable through our sense of hearing, experienced as sounds which we interpret as making up the content of the musical work. Thus “dissolving the divide” between subject and object (when it comes to the internal negativity of musical works), while important in understanding the nature of musical works on their own terms, can only partially allow for the account of the emergent properties of musical works. One must, therefore, conclude that there is something else going on conceptually when we use language to describe musical works.
2.1.2 Musical Works as a Challenge to Metaphysics as Reification The intangible aspects of musical works, especially when considered as performative works of art, requires that one must think about what kind of object a musical work is, metaphysically speaking, without presuming that there is such a thing called the “musical work” that exists separate of human interaction (Kivy, 1995). As Lewis (2018) states, “when it comes to understanding the relation between metaphysics and reification we need to make a distinction between […] ‘metaphysics1’ and ‘metaphysics2’” (p. 39).
Metaphysics1 is what has been previously referred to as “identity-thinking” by Adorno and “‘is the attempt to map out the place of humankind in the universe by giving an
12 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music account of the true nature of being’” (Bowie in Lewis, 2018, p. 39). As has already been discussed, this treatment of musical works fails to account for their transitory and heterogenous nature, assuming that these qualities are secondary to the thing that is the musical work in its “pure” and uninterpreted form. In contrast to this “metaphysics2 is concerned with the fact that our pre theoretical engagements with the world are inherently and immediately meaningful and can be constituted as much by art, emotions, feelings, moods, gestures, the body and images as by concepts and rational thought” (Lewis, 2018, p. 40). Under this view, the emergent qualities of musical works (the qualities that are only detectable through an experiential engagement) can be understood as a challenge to metaphysics as “identity-thinking”, in other words as a challenge to a reified music philosophy. “By appealing to the idea of musical works of art as manifestations of metaphysics2 […] [we can] make sense of how groups make sense of the world and […] we are able to come up with an alternative vision of music engagement […]” (Lewis, 2018, p. 47). This view takes into account the internal negativity of musical works while avoiding the potentially misleading definitions of what constitutes a work of art that is “detectable by the senses”.
2.1.3 The Problems of Reification in the Practical Task of Composition So far, the problems of reification that exist in modern music philosophy (and the subtle ways in which they seek to make “things” out of the less defined and transitory aspects of musical works) have been explored in general terms. Now we must explore how the potential ways of thinking about the problem of reification in modern music philosophy effect the perspectives of composers and their works specifically. With discussions of the definition of “meaning” in the contexts of musical interpretation (especially when compared to semantic meaning) the risk is that “composition […] becomes the assemblage of pre-fabricated, reified components that encode more or less precisely determined semantic content and functionality […]” (Downie, 2004, p. 268). When musical works are viewed as commodities (things that have a physical existence and can be conceived of as having a quantifiable value), this view of composition is almost always inevitable. In addition, this reified treatment of compositional practice makes the task of composition no more than the “stitching together of more or less unrelated parts, the contradictory and chaotic nature of which remains hidden due to it being indistinguishable from the wider social formation of regulated chaos from which it
Luleå University of Technology 13 2.0 Theory springs” (Downie, 2004, p. 266). In other words, the reification of the practical task of composition as the rearrangement of already existing things can create a situation where composers view their works as nothing more than the sum of their constitute parts, their harmonies, melodies, orchestrations, phrases, etc. What has already been pointed out is that this kind of engagement with the composition of new works ignores the emergent qualities that arise in musical works as a result of the unique and intangible experiences and perspectives of both composers and audiences. “Meaning” in this sense is not some predetermined message that can be identified by studying the compositional make-up of musical works, rather “through the composer’s critical engagement with the handed- down musical materials of history – genres, formal types and tonal schemata – together with the new material that arises from such an engagement, individual creativity enters the work and becomes visible” (Lewis, 2018, p. 24). This is what is meant by the composition of musical works as a challenge to metaphysics as reification. By understanding the inherently and meaningful engagements with musical works as an exercise in metaphysics2 (an engagement that seeks to understand musical works through bodily experiences) composers can envision the act of composition as a simultaneously critical and creative task.
The problem still remains, however, of how we express this alternative vision of composition as metaphysics2 in linguistic terms. While language contains semantic meaning (i.e., words have meanings that are understood sperate from the contexts they are uttered in), musical works do not, and yet we must still be able to engage with the non-conceptual nature of musical works without transforming them into “things”, knowable and uninterpretable in their presentation. The answer is once again in the way we view the internal negativity of musical works (the object versus the subject). Musical works are more than just the sum of their parts. Musical works and their composers are in constant dialogue with each other and their audiences who in turn view musical works “as a dialogical event involving an interpreted [phenomenon] and an interpreter […] whereby neither the present nor the past solely dictate what is disclosed, [which] allows for the possibility of a change in the status of familiar aesthetic practices as well as a change to what was previously thought to be their nature” (Lewis, 2018, p. 178). The key,
14 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music therefore, to understanding the conceptual systems behind the interpretation of musical meaning must arise from our conceptual system of language itself.
2.2 The Metaphors We Live By The emergent qualities of musical works (the aspects of musical works that are non- conceptual and experiential) and the need to conceptualise these aspects of musical works in linguistic terms requires a conceptual system that takes into account two things: the abstract nature of musical works and the experiential way in which we as listeners construct musical meaning in dialogue with said musical works. As Lakoff & Johnson (2003) state, “since communication is based on the same conceptual system that we use in thinking and acting, language is an important source of evidence for what that system is like” (p. 3). But this begs the question, where does such a conceptual system come from and how is it expressed in our use of everyday language? As suggested by Ross (2017) “it is in the human mind that we must look for solutions to the riddles of musical meaning” (p. 17). There are several “myths” that exist in society that can be used to construct a conceptual understanding of reality and the world around us. These myths form the foundation from which conceptual systems can be created, which in turn affect the ways we use language to conceptualise the abstract aspects of our reality (including art works). Note that the word “myth” is not being used pejoratively but rather as way of expressing a set of philosophical concepts that do not exist in reality, yet give us the mental tools with which to understand reality. Myths of all forms exist in all cultures, some of which are so engrained within society that they are often taken for granted (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003). In this way, the conceptual systems that myths use to construct linguistic meaning from abstract concepts is just as important for composers to understand as it is for musicologists and aestheticians. By understanding the conceptual systems that contribute to our experiences of meaning in music works, composers can consider the ways in which the technical aspects of their practice interrelate with the social and historical contexts from which they draw inspiration. An examination of compositional practice in this way (as being situated in the conceptual systems of society) is essential to understanding the ways that everyday language is employed in the conceptualisation of that meaning.
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2.2.1 Metaphors as a Conceptual Framework for the Understanding of Musical Works Through Language At the heart of all myths is the use of metaphor and the ways they allow us to conceptualise the abstract aspects of our reality through language. Thus, metaphor is not simply a poetic device or fanciful language “on the contrary […] metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but in thought and action” (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003, p. 3). Metaphors are so ubiquitous in our understanding of reality that we often do not notice our language as being metaphorical at all. As an example, imagine the metaphor “time is money”. In this metaphor we do not just equate our concept of time with our understanding of money, we also act and treat “time” as a concept in terms of money. Sentences like “I wasted my time”, “we spend time together”, “you need to budget your time” etc. are a consequence of conceptualising the abstract nature of time in this way (i.e., as a resource). Moreover, even though “time” as a concept does not inherently share the same characteristics as money, metaphor allows us to act as if “time” and “money” were alike, and thus “time” can factually become a resource. As a brief aside, it is worth noting that the concepts of “money” and “resources” are also abstract in nature and, therefore, metaphorical in conception, further highlighting the universal nature of metaphors in the conceptual systems that are the “myths” of our society. In this way, the connections between metaphors, conceptual systems of understanding and abstract concepts can be summarised:
- Metaphors are fundamentally conceptual in nature; metaphorical language is secondary. - Conceptual metaphors are grounded in everyday experience. - Abstract thought is largely, though not entirely, metaphorical. - Abstract concepts have a literal core, but are extended by metaphors […]. - Abstract concepts are not complete without metaphors. For example, love is not love without metaphors of magic, attraction, madness, union, nurturance, and so on. - We live our lives on the basis of inferences we derive via metaphor. (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003, pp. 272-273).
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Given the above, if there exists a strong connection between metaphor and the conceptual systems of our language, then it follows that there are also strong connections between the metaphorical language used to describe musical works and the conceptual understanding of musical works themselves. It is because of this underlying link between metaphorical thought and our conceptual systems that we can explore the ways different myths employ metaphorical thinking as a conceptual framework with which to account for the non-conceptual nature of musical works.
2.2.2 The Objectivist and Subjectivist Myths The most prevalent myths in modern philosophy (including modern music philosophy) are those of the objectivist and subjectivist kinds. When we talk about the conceptualisation of musical works it is very likely that we think of the problem in either objective or subjective terms. It is also equally likely that we think of this exercise as something that is practical and rooted in natural processes. The truth, however, is that objectivist and subjectivist thought processes are equally abstract in nature as the concepts they purport to explain, taking for granted certain aspects of reality as actually true while hiding others that do not support their conceptual framework (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003). This does not mean that the objectivist and subjectivist myths are not useful as a tool in the conceptualisation of meaning in musical works, however, one must be careful to understand the claims of each myth so as to ensure that the harmful reification of musical works (as has been described throughout this chapter) is not inadvertently created.
The most apparent problems with both the objectivist and subjectivist myths are that while they both make claims about the conceptualisation of meaning, especially with regards to musical works, they both fail to take into account “the way we understand the world through our interactions with it” (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003, p. 194). The objectivist myth would have us believe that if something like meaning in musical works was to exist, it would exist and be understood separately from its context, and the metaphorical concepts used to describe this meaning would also exist separate of the language in which it is employed. In this way “the myth of objectivism is particularly insidious […]. Not only does it purport not to be a myth, but it makes both myths and metaphors objects of belittlement and scorn […]” (Lakoff and Johnson, 2003, p. 186). The consequences of such
Luleå University of Technology 17 2.0 Theory a philosophical engagement with musical works have been stated throughout this chapter: the treatment of the non-conceptual aspects of musical works as quantifiable things ignores the emergent aspects of musical works that come into existence through our practical engagement with them. From this presentation of the objectivist myth and its metaphorical concepts, one would naturally assume that the subjectivist myth offers a better conceptual system in avoiding the pitfalls of a reified music philosophy. However, while the subjectivist myth does not make the claim that musical works are metaphysical “things”, it does suggest that there is no natural conceptual system whatsoever to account for the interpretation of meaning in musical works. As Lakoff & Johnson (2003) state, “subjectivist positions all hinge on the basic assumption, namely, that experience has no natural structure and that, therefore, there can be no natural external constraints upon meaning and truth” (p. 224). This view ignores the internal-negativity of musical works while simultaneously stripping the ontological value of any meanings that one might perceive in musical works. In other words, if the perceived meaning of musical works is conceptualised in terms of subjective experiences alone then we ignore the existence of musical works as inherently meaningful while also stating that there is no natural basis for the metaphorical language used to describe that meaning. This form of reification is subtle but no less insidious than the objective treatment of musical works, because if there is no natural basis for the experience of meaning in music than no language can be used to describe such meaning in a way that is comprehensible. If composers are to fully understand the ways in which they and their audiences use conceptual systems to linguistically conceptualise musical works, such a conceptual system would need to acknowledge the experiential qualities of musical works while explaining such phenomena as based in natural and observable processes. Such a conceptual system would still rely on the use of metaphor to linguistically describe the non-conceptual elements of musical works.
2.2.3 The Experiential Myth and its Metaphorical Basis for Conceptual Understanding As has been demonstrated, the conceptual frameworks offered by both the objectivist and subjectivist myths in the understanding of musical works are problematic at best and, at worst, devolve into meaninglessness. However, this dichotomy between the myths of objectivity and subjectivity is actually a false one; there is a third myth that exists which
18 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music accounts for the use of metaphors in the language used to conceptualise musical works. This myth also provides a conceptual framework which does not reduce musical works to the sum of its constituent parts, devoid of individual or social context, while accounting for the inherent experience of meaning we perceive in musical works. This myth is known as the “experientialist” myth (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003). In essence, the experientialist myth assumes first and foremost that humans are beings with physical bodies and that we interact with and understand the world through these bodies and the senses available to us. The language we use to describe our reality originates from our experiences as physical bodies and, therefore, the language we use to conceptualise abstract concepts such as music are similarly grounded in the experiential nature of our existence. In this conceptual system, metaphors are key to understanding the conceptualisation of musical works in linguistic terms, for if “metaphorical expressions in our language are tied to metaphorical concepts in a systematic way, we can use metaphorical linguistic expressions to study the nature of metaphysical concepts and gain an understanding of the metaphorical nature of our activities” (Lakoff & Johnson, p. 7).
Fig 1. The “experiential” basis for the physical orientation of “up/down” allows for the conception of multiple metaphors. Expressions like “the price went up/down” and “the intellectual level of the conversation was raised/lowered” express two different kinds of metaphorical understanding of the concepts of “up/down” but can be spoken of in the same ways because they are connected through our experiential conceptual system. (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003, p. 20)
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In this way, the distinctions between the subjectivist and experientialist myths in the conceptualisation of music works is a subtle but important one. Where the subjectivist myth explains meaning in music as being understood first through emotion and then through the experience of that emotion, the experientialist myth explains musical meaning firstly as a product of experiencing musical works and secondly as an emotional response to that experience. Not only does this distinction account for the heterogenous interpretations observed in the conceptualisation of musical meaning, but it also explains a linguistic foundation that is strongly grounded in a metaphorical conceptual system. Furthermore, in accordance with the experientialist myth, this metaphorical conceptual is not metaphysical in origin but has its natural roots in the embodied experiences of the senses and the mind. In this way the experientialist myth, with its specific use of metaphors, “unites reason and imagination. […] Metaphor is thus imaginative reality” (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003, p, 192).
2.3 Research Questions This chapter has explored the myriad ways in which the problems of a heavily reified music philosophy affect the conceptualisation of musical works and their perceived meanings for composers and audiences alike. The contextualisation of these problems with regards the internal negativity of artworks, the distinctions between metaphysics1 and metaphysics2, as well as their consequences within the objectivist and subjectivist myths were discussed. In response, the experientialist myth, with its use of conceptual metaphor, was presented. With a theoretical framework in place that allows for the embodied conceptualisation of musical works, a set of research questions can be formulated that explore the aims of the thesis:
1. In what ways can composers conceptualise the composition of new concert music while avoiding the pitfalls of a reified music philosophy? 2. How can composers understand the conceptual systems audience members use to conceptualise their music? 3. How can metaphor be used to analyse and evaluate the creative elements of a composition?
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The next chapter will explore how these questions can be addressed in the practical task of composition, as well as present a framework with which the philosophical aspects of this research project can be explored in practical terms.
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3.0 Methodological Framework The previous chapter explored the myriad ways in which the non-conceptual aspects of musical works could be understood in philosophical terms. With a theoretical framework in place that challenges the harmful effects of a reified music philosophy, this chapter seeks to identify a methodological framework with which to practically study, collect data and analyse the ways in which composers can conceptualise meaning in their compositions, as well as apply this understanding to how audiences interpret meaning in musical works. As with most creative research, the choice and variety of qualitative research methods are important in order to collect a wide range of perspectives and experiences, including data from ethnographic, phenomenological and narrative sources (Denzin and Lincoln, 2018). Given the nature of the subject being studied (i.e., one that deals with the individual experiences of people in various interactions with musical works), qualitative interviews of participants that collect data of their experiences with and talking about musical works are essential.
Given what we know about the experientialist myth and its use of metaphor as a basis for conceptual understanding, the way composers and audiences use metaphorical language to communicate their conceptualisation of meaning in musical works is a rich source of information. In addition, the way that data collected from qualitative interviews are coded, analysed and presented is critical so as not to inadvertently make claims about the experiences of composers or audiences that suffers from the philosophical problems discussed in chapters 1 and 2 (Lewis, 2018). As Holstein & Gubrium (1995) state, “analyzing data concerning interpretive practice is somewhat less ‘scientific’ and somewhat more ‘artful’ than conventional interview analysis. This does not mean, however, that analysis is any less rigorous; quite the contrary, [the] data require attention and sensitivity to both process and substance” (p. 79). Therefore, the specific methods chosen to study the experiences of composers and audiences must also take into account the tendency to conflate “musical” meaning with “semantic” meaning. Particular attention must also be made to honestly represent the limitations of the research methods in providing a “theory” for the conceptualisation of musical meaning. Such an exercise is not only impossible, but also counterintuitive to the aims of this thesis specifically, and in understanding the experiential conception of meaning in musical
Luleå University of Technology 23 3.0 Methodological Framework works in general. With this in mind, this chapter will elucidate the specific methods utilised within this research project in exploration of the research aims and questions. Such methods include the design and execution of qualitative interviews on a range of interview participants, the implementation of the conceptual framework (i.e., the experientialist’s myth use of metaphorical language) used to code and analyse the collected data, and the ways the results of this analysis were presented to report the varied interpretations and experiences of the interview participants. This methodological framework is supplemented with a pilot study that tested the efficacy of these methods in a practical setting. A set of artistic outcomes that further explore these methods and their significance to the research aims will also be listed.
3.1 Semi-Structured Qualitative Interviews in the Form of Stimulated Recall Sessions As previously mentioned, qualitative interview is an important tool in creative research projects to collect data from subjects that have varying perspectives and narratives. Even more important is the relationship between interviewer and interviewee which must be situated within the context of the subject matter being discussed (Brinkmann, 2013). Subject matter as personal and experiential as the conception of musical meaning makes this relationship even more important. Thus, the structure of the interview must allow for the active shifts of focus and subjects that will occur in discussions about the interpretation of musical meaning. As Holstein & Gubrium (1995) state, “in contrast to the standardized questionnaire, which dictates the questions to be asked, the active interview […] is […] more of a conversational agenda than a procedural directive” (p. 76). In addition, “active interviewing capitalizes on the ways that respondents both develop and use horizons [of understanding] to establish and organize subjective meanings” (Holstein & Gubrium, 1995, p. 59). However, the focus of these interviews, that is the subject matter, should not be vague or undefined. Rather, it should be treated as a starting point with which the opportunity for new and unforeseeable conversation points can arise. With this in mind, a semi-structured and active approach to the interview design was employed; specifically, the interview took the form of a stimulated recall session. Stimulated recall is a tool that actively draws on the experiences of interview subjects in real time, asking interviewees to comment on the different aspects of their experiences as they recalled them to happen. Such an inquiry focuses on the personal, interactive and
24 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music emotional elements of their experiences. The effectiveness of stimulated recall in a semi- structured qualitative interview is reliant on a number of factors. As Gass & Mackey (2000) suggest:
- Instructions for both researchers and participants should be carefully drawn up and pilot tested. - Instructions for participants should be recorded, read aloud by the researcher, or presented to the participants in written format where appropriate since standardization is important. - Instructions for researchers should take into account an many eventualities as can be anticipated. - Instructions for researchers should include information about potential effects of participant characteristics on the recalls and how to minimize effects where possible. - Procedures such as selection of video or written segments as topics for recall comments should be modelled by researchers for participants. (pp. 46-47)
The specific design of the stimulated recall sessions used to collect data for this research included the framing of the sessions, the musical works examined and interview subjects will be specified along with the details of the pilot study (chapter 3.4).
3.2 Using Metaphors to Code Data from Qualitative Interviews As was alluded in chapter 2, the use of metaphors in everyday language formed the foundation from which an analysis of data collected from stimulated recall sessions could occur. Because metaphorical concepts are directly linked to our experiences with the world around us, especially abstract concepts, they allowed for the direct quotation of interview participants in stimulated recall sessions. This is important, because by dealing directly with the responses of interviews in real-time, the data collection avoided many of the pitfalls of a reified music philosophy, acknowledging the inherently meaningful experience of each individual, and taking into account the heterogenous cultural, social and theoretical contexts which participants inevitably drew upon when recalling their interpretations of musical meaning. By coding the data collected from stimulated recall
Luleå University of Technology 25 3.0 Methodological Framework sessions from the perspective of the informant’s use of metaphor, the cross-medium and cross-participant analysis of the results was possible – the same technique for coding verbal responses with metaphors is also equally applicable to written responses as well as in the analysis of scores. In this way, the analysis of coded data (ethnographic, phenomenological and narrative) could occur at the same level of understanding within the experientialist conceptual framework. This avoided many of the false equivocations of musical and semantic meaning that are possible when talking about the interpretation of meaning in musical works, because it treated the statements of interview participants as grounded in their experience rather than in some objective sense of meaning. Specific examples of how metaphors were used to code, annotate and analyse data from stimulated recall sessions are provided in chapter 4.
3.3 Audio Papers as an Alternative to Text-Based Modes of Documentation As previously stated, this research focuses on the dialogical aspect of stimulated recall sessions and the different ways it can reveal insights into the participants’ interpretation of meaning in musical works. As Holstein & Gubrium (1995) state, “treating interviews as a social encounter leads us rather quickly to the possibility that the interview is not merely a neutral conduit or source of distortion but rather the productive site of reportable knowledge itself” (p. 3). With this in mind, this research aims to present its findings in a way that best portrays this accumulation of multiple perspectives and brings to the fore the multifocal and multifaceted aesthetic experiences of both composers and audiences. Audiovisual mediums as an alternative to text-based forms of discourse and documentation have existed for some time both in formal and informal contexts. Studies by van den Berg & Kiss (2016) and Kiss (2014) have explored the merits of an audiovisual-based form of enquiry arguing their allowance for the specialties and methods of film studies to compliment the academic rigour of text-based modes of analysis. In a way, YouTube and its community of creators, including Keary (2018, 2020), are perfect examples of how an audiovisual-based form of enquiry can be as academically rigorous as standard modes of research. In the case of the present research, where the various experiences of interview participants and their real-time conceptualisation of meaning in music works must be documented in a way that does not make “things” out of their experiences, a non-text-based form of scholarship offers the direct communication of the interviewee’s responses in dialogue with the studied musical
26 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music works. After all, the goal of documenting such data should be “to convey a narrative [that tells] a story about the subject matter and selves under consideration, embedding what is being talked about in further talk” (Holstein & Gubrium, 1995, p. 53). While somewhat newer and less studied than the audiovisual research essay, audio papers allow for a similar form of discourse between interview subject and musical works. In a way, audio papers (by omitting visual stimuli) are a more appropriate form of documentation when detailing the interactions of audiences with musical works. In addition to the methodological and analytical benefits of an audio-based form of documentation, audio papers also allow for artistic, performative and aesthetic representation of collected data. As Groth & Samson (2016) state,
1. The audio paper affords performative aesthetics. 2. The audio paper is idiosyncratic. 3. The audio paper is situated and partial. 4. The audio paper renders affects and sensations. 5. The audio paper is multifocal; it assembles diverse and often heterogeneous voices. 6. The audio paper has multiple protagonists, narrators and material agencies. 7. The audio paper brings aesthetic and technologies together in mediation. 8. The audio paper is a constituent part of larger ecologies.
By exploiting the multi-layered affordances of audio papers in the documentation of data collected from stimulated recall sessions, this research aims to highlight interview participants’ use of metaphorical language in the conceptualisation of meaning in musical works. By presenting their responses alongside excerpts of the studied musical pieces the audio paper will represent the “narrative shifts [that produce] different contexts within which questions [are] asked and answered, producing categorically diverse meanings” (Holstein & Gubrium, 1995, p. 65).
3.4 Pilot Study The purpose of the pilot study was to test the efficacy of the above methods in the collection, analysis and documentation of data gathered from semi-structured qualitative interviews in the form of stimulated recall sessions. The objective was to see how a range
Luleå University of Technology 27 3.0 Methodological Framework of interview participants interpreted and experienced musical meaning in two different pieces of concert music, the language/conceptual framework they used to communicate their experience, to code and analyse the meaning content of that language using metaphors, and present the findings of the analysis in the form of an audio paper.
3.4.1 Selection of Interview Participants The interview participants consisted of five students in the first year of the master’s at the Piteå School of Music. The participants were between the ages of 24 and 33 and had prior experience in the Western-European music tradition, predominantly in the performance of orchestral instruments, but also in jazz music performance and church music. The interview subjects signed an agreement before their session allowing for the use of their voice in the documentation of their responses, however, for the sake of privacy the interview subjects will not be mentioned by name. Instead, they will be identified as “speaker 1”, “speaker 2” etc.
3.4.2 Musical Examples Two different pieces of concert music were chosen for the interview subjects to listen and respond to throughout the stimulated recall session. Both pieces were composed for symphony orchestra (with subtle differences in the instrumentation and size of forces required to perform them) and were composed in the Western-European tradition (i.e., for standard western orchestral instruments and within the harmonic system that comprises of 12 pitches within an octave).
Beethoven – Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67 – Mvt 1 This piece of music (composed for the classical symphony orchestra between 1804 and 1808) is known almost ubiquitously by the general public and musicians alike (at the very least, everyone has heard the iconic opening bars). The work is the first movement of a symphony containing four movements and there is no specific program that inspired the creation of the music. This piece is also most likely known from many contexts, including TV, film, social media, streaming services, etc. (not just hearing it performed live in a concert hall). This pilot study aimed to investigate how the previous experiences of the interview subjects with this piece of music contributed to the interpretation of musical meaning during the session. In addition, the popularity of this piece made it ideal as a
28 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music standard way to test how audiences use language to conceptualise concert works that are familiar to them and test if the same applies to works that they have never heard before. The recording of this piece that was used during the session was conducted by Herbert Von Karajan and performed by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in 1963, distributed by Deutsche Grammophon GmbH. A digital copy of this recording can be found on Spotify1.
Pantelidis – 136199 Eris 136199 Eris is a work I previously composed in 2018. This piece was composed as part of the Australian Youth Orchestra (AYO) National Music Camp. The title of this work comes from the name of the dwarf planet in our solar system of the same name. The numbers in the dwarf planet’s name are part of a scientific designation system, and the name “Eris” comes from Greek Mythology (Eris being the Greek goddess of chaos, strife and discord). The piece is loosely inspired by the natural and mythological associations found within the title. The purpose of including this piece for response during the interview sessions was twofold: to investigate how the same interview subjects conceptualised meaning in a piece of music they had never heard before and to investigate how this affected the way language was utilised (specifically metaphorical language) throughout the session. This recording of this piece is from the premiere performance of the work in Adelaide at the AYO National Music Camp in 2018. The ensemble was comprised of principal and associate players from professional orchestras across Australia. Below is a link to the live recording of the performance2.
3.4.3 Design of Stimulated Recall Session The stimulated recall sessions were conducted with each participant one-on-one and lasted for approximately 1½ hours each. Each participant listened to both pieces of music twice in their entirety, commenting on their interpretation of meaning in each piece during the second playthrough of each work. Follow-up questions were asked as needed, however, the focus was primarily on giving the interview subjects the space to interact
1 https://open.spotify.com/track/3C4RDIbyK3PvcIMsQ282Qc?si=6b89e7d94ee04e2f
2 https://soundcloud.com/christopher-pantelidis-765099579/136199-eris
Luleå University of Technology 29 3.0 Methodological Framework and comment on their experiences of meaning with the music. The structure of each interview session was conducting as follows:
The interview participant was welcomed to the session and asked to sign a declaration of consent giving me permission to use their voice in conducting my research. The instructions of the session were read aloud to the participant. Clarifications were made as necessary before continuing. Each piece of music was played to the participants twice, successively and in their entirety. First the Beethoven was played to each participant, then 136199 Eris. On the first playback participants were asked to just listen and quietly make a mental note of any meanings (musical, programmatic or otherwise) that they experienced while listening. The participants were also asked to take note of what in the music (orchestration, structure, harmony, melody, etc.) gave them that sense of meaning. On the second playthrough of each work participants were asked to recall the meaning they experienced during the first playthrough. When they did recall, they were asked to stop the playback and describe what meanings in the music they had conceptualised and what aspects of the music supported that meaning. This process was repeated until each work had been listened to for a second time. At the end of the second playthrough of each piece a short series of follow-up questions were asked that related to the responses of the participants. The participant was thanked for their time and the interview was concluded.
3.4.4 Coding Data Collected from Stimulated Recall Sessions The responses of each interview session were coded using the qualitative research software, HyperResearch. Individual comments were selected from the audio file and assigned a code in the form of a metaphor (e.g., the music is an entity). The coded metaphors were then annotated to further specify the musical elements that contributed to the participant’s experience of musical meaning. Every verbal comment made by the participants in each interview was coded with one or multiple metaphors. All the metaphors used to code the responses were collated in a single codebook and annotated
30 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music to describe their conceptual basis within the experientialist myth. The coding of interview responses in the form of metaphorical statements and the analysis of said metaphorical statements with annotations created a rich source of material with which to construct the audio paper (see appendix B1). Specific examples of the coding process, how they were adapted to the audio paper and the results of the audio paper are presented in chapter 4.
3.5 Artistic Outcomes With the above methodological framework, this thesis project presents three artistic works that explore a variety of compositional, philosophical and methodological outcomes.
1. An audio paper that combines selected participants’ responses from the pilot study with audio excerpts of the Beethoven and 136199 Eris. This audio paper was entitled The Beauty Behind the Meme. 2. An original composition for the contemporary chamber music ensemble Norrbotten NEO, entitled Obsessions. This piece was composed in response to the findings of the pilot study. 3. A second audio paper that was created using selected participants’ responses from stimulated recall sessions with audio excerpts from Obsessions.
Together these three works make up the artistic output of this thesis project. The specific results of these works are presented in more detail throughout chapter 4. An analysis of these works in addressing the aims and research questions is provided in chapter 5.
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4.0 Results This chapter presents the findings of the pilot study and its accompanying audio paper (conducted as a proof of concept for the methodological framework of the thesis project), the new and original composition for chamber ensemble (written in response the findings of the pilot study), and a second audio paper that complements this new composition, exploring the ways audiences conceptualise meaning in an original musical work.
4.1 The Beauty Behind the Meme (AUDIO PAPER) The Beauty Behind the Meme is the first of two audio papers presented in this thesis project – it presents the results of the pilot study in an alternative form to text-based scholarship. The Beauty Behind the Meme was created using the digital audio workstation, Audacity by arranging excerpts of the five interview participants’ responses with excerpts of the two musical works that the participants responded to during the session. The title of this audio paper is a direct quote from one of the interview participants. The intention of this audio paper is that it should be able to stand alone without the need to explain its content or intention. As stated in chapter 3, the audio paper is a performative and aesthetic mode of discourse making it an audio artwork as much as it is a mode of documentation. This means that the content and meaning of the audio paper are just as open to interpretation as the musical works examined within its duration. However, this sub-chapter will explain, for the purposes of thesis project, the various creative and theoretical elements, and frame how they explore the project’s research aims and questions. This audio paper can be found on Soundcloud3. See appendix B1 for a text score of this audio paper, containing a transcript of all the included verbal responses with reference to a timecode within the audio paper itself.
4.1.1 Content “The Beauty Behind the Meme” explores the experiences of five individuals and their interpretations of meaning in two different works of orchestral music: The first movement from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67 and; One of my previously composed works entitled 136199 Eris.
3 https://soundcloud.com/christopher-pantelidis-765099579/beauty-behind-the-meme-audio-paper/s- 7lJLHhGAMjs.
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Throughout the audio paper, the participants compare and contrast their differing experiences of meaning within the two works. Their interpretations of meaning (which were identified throughout the interview) are influenced by a number of factors including the style of the work, the use of orchestration, texture, harmony and rhythm, and the overall aesthetic qualities of the piece. These differences are acknowledged to be partly a result of the differences between classical and contemporary compositional techniques. In addition, their familiarity (or lack of familiarity) with the works appears to have a profound impact on the conceptualisation of meaning, particularly in the Beethoven. Despite all participants having previously heard, studied, performed or in some other way experienced the Beethoven (and, therefore, were able to understand its content more easily compared to 136199 Eris), all the participants found it difficult to disassociate their prior experiences from their interpretation of meaning in the music heard in the present moment. This problem was present to a far lesser extent in the participants’ interpretation of meaning in 136199 Eris, partly due to the fact that the participants had never heard a recording of this work before the interview session. They still, however, had prior associations and experiences with genres such as film music and game music that affected their interpretation of meaning throughout 136199 Eris, but this kind of influence was described as complementing (rather than hindering) their ability to conceptualise meaning throughout the piece. As with all musical works, there are always abstract concepts that are known because of cultural and societal influences. The degree to which these influences impact our experiences of abstract concepts in new or familiar contexts ultimately governs our ability to recognise the “beauty behind the meme”.
4.1.2 Coded Metaphors Throughout The Beauty Behind the Meme, the participants’ responses fell under two categories of metaphor: entity and substance metaphors, and container metaphors. As defined by the report of the pilot study:
Entity and substance metaphors allow for the understanding of abstract concepts in concrete and material terms. For example, treating the concept of "inflation" as an entity allows us to refer to, quantify and identify the different facets of the concept as if it were a person or an entity. Expressions such as "Inflation is lowering our standard of living" or "we need to combat inflation" are all conceptually possible due to entity and substance metaphors.
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Container metaphors work on the assumption that human beings (through their closed, physical bodies) experience the world in terms of quantifiable and spatial limits. Humans conceive of themselves as being separate from the world around them (there exists an inside and outside of the body) and thus, we also conceive of the world as being separate from parts of itself. For example, a clearing in the woods is described as such, because we metaphorically consider the space of the woods where there are little to no trees as having its own boundary, separate from the rest of the woods (where there are a higher concentration of trees). Where the woods end and the clearing begins is not exactly specifiable, however, humans can still conceive of the boundary between the two spaces. We can also understand how the clearing can be described as being "inside" the woods, but not the other way around.
The specific entity and substance metaphors (and their descriptions) identified in participants responses were:
The music is a building: "Building" metaphors are used in our conceptual systems to compare the structure and/or makeup of abstract concepts to the structure and/or makeup of buildings and other kinds of constructed objects. "Theories are buildings" is an example of how this conceptual system is used to talk about the abstract concept of theories. For example, "your theory lacks substance", "the theory has a strong foundation", "we need to buttress the theory with strong arguments". The materials used in buildings is also another aspect that is transferred when talking about the make-up of metaphorical concepts. Expressions like "your argument is as weak as tissue paper" are a consequence of such relationships. The music is a conduit: Conduit metaphors work on the assumption that, in our conceptual system, words have inherent meaning that when combined in specific ways are used to transfer some kind of knowledge from one person to another. The music is an entity: Entity metaphors allow us to conceptualise abstract concepts as “beings” or even people so that we can interact and react to them in meaningful ways. Expressions like "the honour of our country is at stake" and "there is so much hatred in the world" are all possible because of entity metaphors. The music is a statement: Statements are a clearly delineated and direct form of communication. They often contain simple and straightforward messages that are "black-and-white" (i.e., easy to be understood and not susceptible to interpretation).
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The specific container metaphors (and their descriptions) that were identified in this study were:
The music is a conflict: Conflicts are a special kind of interaction between two or more parties and often involve a serious disagreement or argument. Conflicts, like conversation, are structured and actions carried out by each party following a somewhat ordered set of "rules". The music is an event: Events, like journeys, are structured and ordered activities that take place over a period of time. Like journeys, events can be described by what takes place within them and can be characterised by the kinds of activities that occur. The music is a journey: Journeys are activities that are carried out over a period of time (usually unspecified). They often have a start and an end point with several important events occurring between that act as landmarks along the journey. Journeys, like most containers, can be described in terms of what is inside and outside of it, as well as by the shape and structure of the paths taken throughout the journey. The music is a space: Spaces are the simplest and most efficient ways of describing any kind of closed or finite area. Spaces can be outdoors or indoors, large or small, empty or full, natural or artificial.
4.1.3 Examples The following are some examples of how these metaphors were specifically used to code the responses in The Beauty Behind the Meme. It is worth noting that there is no one “correct” way of coding participant responses with metaphors, nor is the above list of identified metaphors an exhaustive one. To reiterate, this thesis does not purport to create a “theory" of musical meaning, but simply to develop a method for interpreting the experiences of musical meaning made by audiences in linguistic terms.
Example 1: Speaker 3 comments on the emotions and feelings that the different aspects of the music elicited during her experience of the piece:
I got like [a] super cold impression like, physically…like I would be somewhere super cold (laughter). And like, the piano notes were cold water drops or like, small ice crystals or something. (Speaker 3, 08’11”)
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Code 1: The music is a building. Annotation: [Speaker 3] conceptualises the use of texture, instrumentation, dynamic and rhythm as a building, each element comprising of part of the whole. Code 2: The music is a space. Annotation: The use of texture, instrumentation, dynamic and rhythm (thin texture, high piano, soft dynamic, unpredictable rhythm) has created the impression of a cold and empty space.
Example 2: Speaker 5 discusses how the ending of the Beethoven could have created a completely different meaning if it had avoided the cliche of dominant to tonic as an ending:
At the end you can kind of see this calmness. It’s like “I tried it, and I’ve done my best”. And then it’s…the process starts again because the ending is basically, like…yeah, of course we can’t disassociate the idea of dominant/tonic as an ending as like, okay something is ending. But I really wonder what the fifth Symphony would have been if Beethoven decided to end [it] with that kind of calmness. (Speaker 5, 19’57”)
Code: The music is a statement. Annotation: [Speaker 5] conceptualises the music as a statement. Specifically, the harmonic progression (dominant/tonic) really communicates to the audience to idea of completion, as if it were a statement. [Speaker 5] wonders how this would have been affected if the piece ended differently, without this 'harmonic statement'.
Example 3: Speaker 4 makes comparisons of the different ways she conceptualised meaning in each of the two pieces:
And I think that’s because I [have] heard the Beethoven piece before, so then I know what to expect in another way. And with your piece it feels like I heard exactly everything, and every new sound or every new note, I reacted to it. But not in the same way as Beethoven. And also, since your piece was more airy and more silent, and I love those parts when it really was just one instrument playing, everything, every note that someone…or every…sounded like someone dropped something in the audience. So, you react [to]
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exactly everything, because [there’s] so much air. And the other part, [there] must be so many things I didn’t hear in the Beethoven because I just listened to the melody that I already know. So, in that piece it was a contrast from super much to almost nothing, and then back, and in your piece, it was the other way. And building it up your way, I think I react to more and I hear more because it’s…it gives me space to hear everything. (Speaker 4, 25’42”)
Code: The music is a conduit Annotation: Here, [speaker 4) conceptualises both pieces as a conduit. That is, the overall impression of the structure of the pieces communicates a different kind of communication. In the Beethoven, the continued intensity makes the musical communication more focused on the melody, however, the sparse textures and diversity of colours with “136199 Eris” made every single sound seem important and significant.
4.1.4 Summary The possibilities for the coding and analysis of participant responses in The Beauty behind the Meme alone are endless. However, these practical examples should provide a clear understanding of the potential for metaphors to provide a conceptual understanding of how audiences interpret and experience meaning in musical works. This includes works or aspects of works that audiences are already familiar with as well as works that are completely new to their experiences. The way that audiences use metaphorical language to describe their interpretation will always be linked with their experiential conceptualisation of musical meaning.
4.2 Obsessions for Norrbotten NEO In response to the findings presented in The Beauty Behind the Meme, a new and original composition was created to further explore the ways in which composers specifically can be aware of their conceptual framework when composing new works. This work, entitled Obsessions was composed for the contemporary chamber music ensemble, Norrbotten NEO. A live recording of Norrbotten NEO performing this piece can be found on Soundcloud4. See appendix A for an annotated score of the piece.
4 https://soundcloud.com/christopher-pantelidis-765099579/obsessions
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Throughout the composition process a logbook was kept which highlighted major developments of the creative aspects of the piece as well as its connection to the results of the pilot study. In addition, an analysis of the completed work detailing the various technical and compositional aspects was completed, the results of which were annotated on the score (see appendix A).
4.2.1 Overview of Creative Elements The following is an excerpt taken from my logbook detailing the initial compositional and harmonic elements of Obsessions. These elements formed the foundation for all creative aspects of the piece:
Starting a new piece is always interesting. Sometimes you have at least some of an idea of the setting, the level and skill of the players, expected duration etc., and sometimes all these things are unknown from the beginning. For this new composition to be written for Norrbotten NEO I am thankful enough to know several restrictions/conditions from the outset:
The work is to be no shorter than 8 minutes and no longer than 10 minutes. The instrumentation is for one (1) flute (doubling piccolo, alto flute and bass flute), one (1) clarinet (in B♭, A, and E♭, and doubling bass clarinet and contrabass clarinet), one (1) percussionist (performing from one of two available set-ups, see below), and piano quartet (piano, violin, viola and violoncello).
Percussion Set-ups 1 2 Tubular Bells Marimba Crotales Wind Chimes Vibraphone Temple Blocks
Timpani Cymbals Snare Drum Tom-toms (low/middle) Cymbals Tam-tam
Bass Drum
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The piece is to be completed by late November/early December. The dedicated ensemble (Norrbotten NEO) is a group of highly skilled performers with extensive experience in most musical genres, especially contemporary chamber music. This means they will have extensive knowledge of the extended techniques on their respective instruments. Given the chamber-sized setting, instrumentation and experience of the players, it is strongly encouraged that this piece be written in a modern/contemporary style.
With the above conditions in mind, I have set out to compose my piece within a contemporary/modern style, which will make use of an atonal/non-tonal harmonic language, as well as various extended techniques that will contribute to the overall timbral and textural effect of the work. My first major development so far has been the formulation of a tone row/theme based of the musical pitches/note names found in the letters of my full name (Christopher Pantelidis). This will be the main source for the harmonic content of my piece.
C - Hri - Stop - H - Er pAnt - Eli - Di – S C B E♭ B E♮ A E♮ D E♭
From this series of pitches, I developed a scale whereby I filled in the “gaps”, or missing letter names, in order to create a complete heptatonic scale, with each scale degree being represented by a unique letter name. Seeing as there were both the pitches of E♭ and E♮ in my name, I decided to re-spell E♭ as D♯. I then decided to remove the D♮ at the end of my last name from my tone row as it could not be easily respelled without the use of double-sharps or double-flats. The tone of G♯ was chosen over the use of G♮ to create two nearly symmetrical tetrachords (CD♯EF and FG♯AB) within the scale. This was mainly a choice of taste – the interval of a minor-third occurring twice in the scale created an interesting harmonic palette that was both ambiguous and evocative of the contemporary musical style. In addition, the resulting scale contained two instances of the interval of a minor third which created a double-harmonic minor-like sound to the scale, further adding to the harmonic ambiguity. Below is the resulting scale that was developed from the tone row:
C D♯ E F G♯ A B
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From this scale, I then created a series of modes, using each scale degree as the tonic of each mode. This produced a set of seven (7) modes with their own unique set of pitches and intervals. The 7 modes (transposed to C) are as follows:
1st mode: C D♯ E F G♯ A B
2nd mode C C♯ D F F♯ G♯ A
3rd mode: C D♭ E F G A♭ B
4th mode: C D♯ E F♯ G A♯ B
5th mode: C C♯ D♯ E G G♯ A
6th mode: C D E♭ F♯ G A♭ B
7th mode: C D♭ E F G♭ A B♭
From these modes, a series of chord scales was created: scales in thirds, scales in fourths and scales in fifths (seven in each category). These chords scales will form the foundation for all the chords, harmonic progressions, and modes that I will use to compose the piece. One of the things I am interested in exploring is how the tone row (my name) can be used in different ways in each of the different modes. For example, in the 1st mode the tone uses the scale degrees of 1, 7, 2, 7, 3, 6, 3, 2 but in the 3rd mode, the tone row would use the scale degrees of 6, 5, 7, 5, 1, 4, 1, 7. With a firm harmonic and tonal language developed, the next step in composing the piece is to start experimenting with the tone-row and the different harmonic possibilities in a variety of contexts offered by the given ensemble. Hopefully from these experiments, an idea of the possible structure of the piece will gradually emerge. (Logbook Entry, 15/09/20)
The following text is part of the aforementioned analysis of the completed work and further details the final form of the piece including its structure, instrumentation and compositional aspects:
The title of this composition, "Obsessions", was created at the very end of the compositional process and refers to the repetitive nature in which the various musical elements of the piece were conceptualised: MELODY - Repetition of a 'tone row' (repeated in different permutations and in different modes). RHYTHM - Repetitive use of rhythmic augmentation and diminution.
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HARMONY - Repetitive use of chords and harmonic progressions (connected to a scale which has been developed from the 'tone row'). TEXTURE - Repetitive use of various percussive and instrumental/timbral combinations. TEMPO - Repetitive fluctuation of the tempo between q = 46 and Poco più mosso. This culminates in a substantial acceleration in tempo and subsequent deceleration in tempo during the climax of the piece.
The exact choice of instrumental doublings in the wind parts and the choice of percussion developed as the piece was composed:
The choice to have the 'flute' part only double on 'low flutes' was made predominantly for practical reasons. While it is possible to double on all variants of the flute family in a single piece, it is easiest and most accessible for the majority of performers to only double on instruments that have a similar tension and shape in the embouchure. As alto flute and bass flute are both more relaxed in the required playing embouchure compared to piccolo, I chose to exploit these instruments of the flute family. The choice to exploit the flute family's timbral possibilities in this lower range of pitches also arose from the fact that there was already a substantial use of string harmonics and piano in the higher registers throughout the composition. This meant that there was more of a practical need to exploit the middle to low range of pitches. The choice to only double the 'clarinet part' with bass clarinet was made for similar practical reasons. There was a greater need to exploit the lower registers of the 'clarinet family' and, in addition, clarinettists doubling on bass clarinet is virtually ubiquitous and therefore highly accessible. There is also the added advantage that bass clarinets are significantly easier to access than contrabass clarinets. The above considerations, while not necessarily an issue when composing for an ensemble such as Norrbotten NEO (an ensemble known for the skill and versatility of its members), make the composition as a general piece of music more accessible to other ensembles of varying skill levels and resources. The addition of crotales to the chosen percussion set-up (set-up 2) was made to provide an extended timbral pallet of metallic sounds. Even though glockenspiel (a small, metal keyboard percussion instrument) was already available in my
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chosen percussion set-up, crotales have the advantage of being more versatile as they can be played both by bowing the metal discs as well as being struck with mallets. The material with which the head of the mallet is made (glass, rubber, metal etc.) also greatly affects the timbre of crotales. (Pantelidis, 2021)
4.2.2 Stimulated Recall Session As with the pilot study, a stimulated recall session was conducted in order to collect data on how audiences conceptualised meaning while listening to “Obsessions”. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic adjustments had to be made to the design of the stimulated recall session. The differences are as follows:
Despite the fact that Norrbotten NEO met and performed the work in 2021, the concert was not attended by a live audience. In order to collect the required results, the stimulated recall session was adjusted to include the playing of a video (rather than just audio) taken of the performance from the perspective of a hypothetical audience member. The was done to simulate the experience of watching the performance live. As in the pilot study, the video of the performance was played twice to each participant, once with no comments and once with comments. Four participants between the ages of 25 and 60 were chosen to participate. Their musical background covered a slightly wider scope of expertise and abilities including jazz, sound engineering, pedagogy and popular music.
4.2.3 Obsessions Audio Paper The results from the above stimulated recall sessions were presented in a second audio paper, intended to complement the theoretical and methodological outcomes of Obsessions. As with The Beauty Behind the Meme the responses of the interview participants fell under two categories: entity and substance metaphors, and container metaphors. In addition to the list of specific codes that were identified in “The Beauty Behind the Meme” there were two new additional metaphors that were identified in the coding of the second audio paper. The categorisation and descriptions of the two new metaphors are as follows:
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Entity and Substance Metaphors: The music is a mind: Minds are complex things and the ways in which humans conceive of them are accordingly complex. The way we conceive of and talk about the mind (especially as it pertains to the minds of other human beings) can have profound effects on the way in which we perceive intent, cause and responsibility. Specifically, we talk about the mind in terms of substances (what it is made out of) to describe the mental state of an individual. Statements like "his mind is as fragile as glass", or "she is mentally drained" are consequences of "the mind is a substance" metaphor.
Container Metaphors: The music is a conversation: Conversations are complex activities that take place between two or more parties. Their primary function is to communicate information from one party to another. Conversations are inherently collaborative activities that follow a set series of actions and there is often a mutual understanding that each party will be cooperative in their participation.
This audio paper can be found on Soundcloud5. See appendix B2 for a text score of this audio paper, containing a transcript of all the verbal responses with reference to a timecode within the audio paper itself.
5 https://soundcloud.com/christopher-pantelidis-765099579/obsessions-audio-paper/s-TQtgUgrC4vX
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5.0 Analysis The previous chapter presented the results of the thesis project, culminating in an original composition for chamber ensemble and two audio papers that explore the experiences of interview participants actively engaging in the task of interpreting meaning in a range musical works. This chapter seeks to tie together the differing perspectives of composer and audience member by applying the same conceptual framework to the coding and analysis of the annotated score to Obsessions. This will be compared with the analysis of the responses from the second audio paper. In addition, evaluations of the methodological framework as well as the artistic outcomes’ fulfilment of the research aims will be made. The connections between the above conceptual framework in the context of my compositional practice will also be discussed, drawing upon on the philosophical discussions of reification and their effects on the practical task of composition as both critical and creative.
5.1 Obsessions for Norrbotten NEO From the perspective of composer, I conceptualised meaning in Obsessions in a number of different ways, often evolving my understanding of the work as it was developed. The previous chapter gave an overview of the creative elements that contributed to the creation of the piece from a compositional perspective. This chapter will analyse the conceptualisation of meaning using the conceptual framework of metaphorical language.
5.1.1 Examples in Score The following are three examples of how metaphors were used to code my conceptualisation of meaning in the score of Obsessions.
Example 1: Individual elements of harmony and rhythm combining to create the impression of a dynamic and unstable texture.
Code: The music is a building. Annotation: I conceptualised the overlaying and offsetting of the rhythmic diminution/augmentation of each instrumental part, and the individual pitches of each instrument parts of a building.
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Fig. 2: The music is a building: use of rhythm and harmony are used to construct an overall impression texture within the piece (Obsessions, 2021, p. 7).
My treatment of the musical texture as a building allowed me to conceptualise my use of rhythm and harmony as “building blocks”, much like how brick and cement can be used to construct a building. From a compositional perspective, I treated this sonic result an emergent aspect of the interaction between rhythm and harmony, emerging over time as the performers and listeners experiences the music.
Example 2: The use of rhythm (specifically the diminution of rhythm) creates a sense of progression in both texture and structure.
Code 1: The music is a building. Annotation: I conceived of the use of rhythmic units (in this case, progressively smaller units) as individual parts that combine to create a whole. Code 2: The music is a journey. Annotation: In addition, I conceptualised the gradual change increase of speed in the rhythmic events as a journey.
Fig 3: The music is a building and a journey. The rhythmic elements of the score are conceptualised in terms of both metaphors (Obsessions, 2021, p. 3).
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Throughout Obsessions, the subtle changes in rhythm serve multiple functions. The progressively shorter units of rhythm create tension as the time between rhythmic events decreases. In addition, the rhythmic units are combined in a number of ways to create a variety of textures. In this example, my conceptualisation of rhythm as both a building and a journey allowed me to treat rhythm both as a substance (building) and an event (journey).
Example 3: My use of tempi, instrumentation and rhythm further contribute to my conceptualisation of the music as both a building and a journey.
Code 1: The music is a journey. Annotation: Changes in tempi throughout the piece were conceptualised as points in a journey. Code 2: The music is a building. Annotation: The combination of instrumentation (tam-tam and strings) and rhythm (augmentation/diminution of rhythmic lengths) were conceptualised as parts that combine to make a whole
Fig. 4: The music is a journey and a building. The changes of tempi give the impression of a journey, while the aspects instrumentation and rhythm are conceptualised as parts of a building (Obsessions, 2021, p. 7).
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In the above example, the combination of “building” and “journey” metaphors has been greatly developed from the two previous examples. On the one hand, the treatment of the material is almost identical, each instrument progressively playing shorter and shorter rhythms (and vice-versa). However, the horizontal stacking and offsetting of the rhythms combines to create a dynamic and evolving texture. This combined with the subtle changes in tempo (which creates tension through the unexpected alterations of pulse) and instrumentation gives an overall impression of evolution and instability to the music.
5.1.2 Examples in Audio paper The following three examples are taken from the second audio paper. The participants’ responses have also been coded and analysed with metaphors. Each example of the participants’ responses corresponds with the previous three examples of my conceptualisation of the music. I.e., example 1 of my conceptualisation corresponds with example 4 of the participants’ conceptualisation and so on.
Example 4: Speaker 3 experiences use of register and instrumentation as communicating meaning.
I think it was a really interesting choice to have these very high-pitched sounds. It sort of gives the connotations to movies when they’re trying to represent someone being psychotic or starting to spiral into something that they can’t control, that everything else is blocked out but there’s this high-pitched noise. It feels it’s sort of representing a mind spiralling, nothing else can be really heard. (Speaker 3, 10’04”)
Code: The music is a mind. Annotation: [Speaker 3] conceptualises the high-pitched sounds in the strings as thoughts in a mind that is spiralling out of control.
Speaker 3’s previous experience with movie music (specifically psychological thrillers) has contributed to their interpretation of the music as unstable and “spiralling” out of control. In addition, they equate the extremeness of the register with the physical experience of blocking out other sounds that may be present.
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Example 5: Speaker 2 comments on their conceptualisation of the rhythmic and textural elements in Obsessions.
Anything that has this kind of, gradually increasing pace heightens tension and what seems to be done is that technique is traded between instruments, and it’s done in kind of a responsive sort of way. And so, whatever beat there is, you know I’m watching this and there is a conductor beating, it is certainly not obvious to the listener; where it starts, you know what kind of time signature there is or what have you. It’s all very experiential. (Speaker 2, 05’45”)
Code 1: The music is a building. Annotation: [Speaker 2] conceptualises the rhythmic and textural elements of the music as a building. The gradual hastening of the rhythm and how this effect is passed between instruments creates the overall and experiential impression of the music. Code 2: The music is a conversation. Annotation: [Speaker 2] conceptualises the way the rhythmic elements of the music are passed between instruments as a conversation.
In this example, speaker 2 is drawing from previous experience when identifying an increase in tension in correlation to the gradual “hastening” of rhythmic events. In addition, the way this “hastening” seems to be passed around from instrument to instrument creates a sense of a dialogue between the members of the ensemble. These dialogical aspects, while present to some degree in my own conceptualisation of the music, is experienced more strongly by speaker 2. In this way the “building” and “conversation” metaphors are both realised in this experiential conceptualisation of the music.
Example 6: Speaker 4 explains their multiple conceptualisations of the music and their contribution to an overall narrative.
Okay, I will tell you through both my thoughts: This is the part, if we look at it as a movie, when we know that the scary and dangerous animal is looking at the innocent, small animal, but the small animal doesn’t know it yet and we don’t know what [is going] to
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happen. So, when I watch the movie there’s like a…something is building up. And through the other thought, like this high note, I think of it as, you know when you’re feeling so much and it’s just too much that everything disappears, and the only thing I can hear is the high note and it’s like a bubble and you can’t, like, sort things out. You can’t hear voices, you can’t like, understand what’s happening. Just that high note is the only thing in your head. (Speaker 4, 09’10”)
Code 1: The music is a journey. Annotation: Because of [speaker 4’s] strong association of the music to two different narratives, she is conceptualising the different stages of the music as events. In this case, the audience to a hypothetical movie can see the predator hunting the small animal, but the small animal doesn't know it. In the "anxiety" narrative this is the part where the anxiety is starting to take over. Code 2: The music is a building. Annotation: The musical elements are conceptualised as materials or substances that combine to give an overall impression of the music. In this case, an unpredictable narrative.
In this example, speaker 4 shares the same metaphorical understanding of the music as I did, however, they are drawing from this metaphorical understanding with a much stronger focus on specific narratives. The combinations of texture, instrumentation, harmony and rhythm evoke in speaker 4 a strong sense of anticipation, and due the unstable nature of the music this sense of anticipation creates with a strong feeling of unpredictability in the events of the different narratives.
5.1.3 Reflections While some metaphors were consistent between my conceptualisation of Obsessions (as a composer) and the participants’ conceptualisation (as audience members) there appear to be some very different conceptualisations of the same music. In Example 1, I conceptualise the use of instrumentation and harmony as a building, whereas speaker 3 conceptualises the music as a mind. This could be simply explained by proposing that our own individual experiences account for the differences in perceived meaning, and this is certainly true to some extent. However, as proposed in chapter 2, via the experientialist myth, there could also be some common experience about the way the music is
50 Master of Fine Arts in Music Understanding Reification in the Composition of New Concert Music constructed that allows for the multiple interpretations of meaning. What could this common experience be, and how is it connected with an embodied understanding of meaning? The key is in the language used. Speaker 3 talks about the music as being like a “mind spiralling out of control” where I talk about the music as “parts of a whole” (i.e., a building). On first glance there might not appear to be many similarities between minds and buildings but if we look deeper into the cross-correlation of metaphorical concepts we can begin to see the conceptual connections. As previously stated, minds can be viewed as “containers” that can be filled with knowledge or where information can be lost (such as in “losing” one’s memory) etc. Minds, however, can also be viewed being made of substances that can be “fed” thoughts or “broken” into pieces. Such a conceptualisation treats minds as if they are objects that are made up of, sustained and maintained by smaller bits of matter (exactly like a building). In this example, we can now see that the primary experience of the music as a “mind” or as a “building” are actually rooted in the same embodied experience. In the same way that a building can be unmade by being broken, the mind can also be conceptualised as being broken by no longer having control over its thoughts. The differences in perceived meaning, therefore, can be explained as our individual and unique emotional reaction to that experience, rather than there being a wholly subjective experience for every person. In other words, even though the language used to describe the meaning of the musical work differs, the underlying conceptual framework is consistent with the claims of the experientialist myth: we are physical, closed-system beings that interpret meaning in the world based on our metaphorical concepts of other things, objective or abstract in nature. In other words, our experience of bodies physically breaking and ceasing to function is conceptually connected to our experience of more abstract concepts breaking and ceasing to function (e.g., buildings and minds). In a way, this exemplifies the point made in chapter 1 concerning the differences between a first-hand experience and the language used to describe that experience. Language is inherently inadequate at fully describing the intangible aspects of our experience. Thus, language inevitably reifies these intangible aspects of our experience, transforming them into definite terms and giving them new meaning. As previously stated, this is a problem if one understands musical meaning as being metaphysical in origin. If one, however takes into account this embodied nature of musical understanding and its use of conceptual metaphor in everyday language, this
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kind of engagement with musical works (i.e., an exercise in metaphysics2) can be seen as a direct challenge to the “identity-thinking” of metaphysics1.
5.2 Evaluation of Methodological Framework From the above analysis it can be seen how the aims of the pilot study were met: the methods demonstrated in chapter 3 fulfill the requirement of providing a conceptual framework with which composers can understand the ways that they and their audiences conceptualise meaning in musical works. In addition, the use of metaphors in one’s conceptual framework allows for the direct use of language as a source of evidence for the coding and analysis of individual experiences. We are not limited to only objectivist or subjectivist interpretations of meaning (musical or linguistic). We have a far richer and more diverse source of information in the conceptual framework that governs our language. The issue is not that language reifies abstract thought (this fact is unavoidable), the issue is that we need to ground the reification of abstract concepts in the experiences of individuals (not in some metaphysical idea of abstract concepts). This is directly linked to the ways in which the composition of new concert works can be seen as simultaneously critical and creative. It can be critical in its treatment of the “handed down musical materials of history”, engaging in their already existing meanings, interpretations and foundation in bodily experiences, and creative in the new interpretations and meanings that are created from such an engagement. When writing Obsessions, treating my compositional practice as an exercise in metaphysics2 allowed me to engage with pre- existing materials and generate new meanings, which in turn allowed for the individual and heterogenous experiences of musical meaning in the audience members.
5.3 Evaluation of the Aims The aims of this research project were:
1. To understand the ways in which reification contributes to the conceptualisation of new concert music and; 2. To understand the ways in which composers can conceptualise the composition of their music through the lens of a non-reified conceptual framework.
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The experientialist myth and its conceptual use of metaphor has been demonstrated to directly contribute to ones understanding of the ways in which people use language to conceptualise abstract concepts, including musical works. By thinking of music as an experienced phenomenon that becomes something new through its interaction with listeners rather than a metaphysical entity that would exist with or without human interaction, one can begin to form a better understanding of the ways is which composers can conceptualise meaning through the lens of a non-reified conceptual framework. As speaker 5 stated in The Beauty Behind the Meme when commenting on Beethoven and 136199 Eris:
[…] I think that there many simple ideas that humans can understand and then when you get a first impression it’s always about the first layer of it. But I think that if you go deeper, depending on the life experience that you are going through, you might experience music in a different way. (Speaker 5, 04’08”)
This further supports the notion that the conceptualisation of meaning in musical works is fundamentally based on an embodied understanding of meaning. Not only does our conceptualisation of musical meaning come from our embodied experience, but this conceptualisation can also evolve and adapt to new life experiences, creating new meanings in works which might otherwise be well known to the listener. Understanding the practical task of composing new concert works as being directly linked to the concepts of internal negativity, metaphysic2 and the embodied understanding of musical meaning allows composers (such as myself) to view their creative practice through the lens of a non-reified music philosophy.
5.4 Evaluation of the Research Questions The research questions that the thesis attempted to answer in exploration of the aims were:
1. In what ways can composers conceptualise the composition of new concert music while avoiding the pitfalls of a reified music philosophy? 2. How can composers understand the conceptual systems audience members use to conceptualise their music?
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3. How can metaphor be used to analyse and evaluate the creative elements of a composition?
Metaphor and its pervasive use in the conceptual systems of human language is the key to answering these questions. By drawing upon the rich source of information available through conceptual metaphor, composers can create, analyse and evaluate the abstract elements of their music and understand how audiences (who may be entirely unfamiliar with any sort of musical education) might use their everyday language to talk about their experiences of meaning in musical work. As stated previously, language transforms the essence of abstract concepts, allowing for the diverse and heterogenous interpretation of musical meaning that are resisted by reifying thought.
The ways in which this everyday language is utilised when talking about meaning in musical works is not only important for composers in order to better understanding how their works can be viewed through the lens of a non-reified music philosophy. By using language to talk about what kind of “things” musical works are (i.e., their content, meaning, value, etc.) judgements on their worth can be made. Such judgements directly effect the ways in which new concert music is understood, received and distributed. If the general consensus is that musical works are reified “things” (as this thesis has argued against) which are best understood in a “pure” state, removed from their performative and embodied contexts, then what are the consequences on the value of such works. If, however, musical works are more honestly talked about in terms of an experientialist and embodied conceptual framework (i.e., something that is based in the natural experiences of human beings), then the meaning and value of musical works becomes inherently known. In this way, it becomes important that composers are versed in the ways that reifying thought effects the reception of their works, so as to not fall into the traps of a heavily reified music philosophy.
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6.0 Conclusion
6.1 Summary of Research Project This thesis aimed to explore the relationships that exist between reification, the conceptualisation of music, and the composition of new concert music. By collecting verbal responses from stimulated recall sessions, and presenting those findings in the forms an audio paper, the dialogical and interactive relationships between reification, a listener’s experience of music and the composition of new works have been demonstrated. The creation of a new musical work that is in conversation with these audio papers further frames the theoretical and methodological aspects of the research in practical outcomes. There is always an ongoing dialogue between composer and composition; audience and musical works. It is this relationship and how it is expressed in everyday language that has been demonstrated by the outcomes of this research.
6.2 Summary of Findings The findings of the research project are as follows: A metaphysical treatment of musical meaning ignores the transitory and emergent aspects of musical works. The dichotomy between an objectivist or subjectivist understanding of the world is a false one. The experience of meaning in musical works is conceptually linked to our embodied experience of the physical world through our senses. Metaphors are a direct link between the everyday language we use to describe abstract concepts and the embodied understanding of those concepts. Composers can use this conceptual framework to predict the ways in which audiences can conceptualise meaning in their music, as well as comprehend an experiential basis for that understanding. In treating the conceptualisation of musical meaning as fundamentally experiential, composers can create a dialogue between themselves, their music and audiences through the act of composition. Musical meaning created through such a practical engagement of compositional praxis challenges metaphysics as reification.
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6.3 Possibilities for Future Research One obvious limitation of this research is that it is limited to the local comments, experiences and interpretations of a select few individuals, including myself. Particularly the research mainly focuses on the conceptualisation of musical meaning within the context of live, western concert repertoire. How this conceptual framework applies to other styles of music as well as other cultures with differing languages and conceptual frameworks was not explored in the scope of this thesis project. This simply means, in so far as there is no way of creating a “theory” of musical meaning, the results and findings of this research are subject to examination at the discretion of the reader. There is no one correct way to code or analyse the conceptualisation of musical meaning and this is a good thing. The hope is that this research opens up a dialogue between those on either side of the objectivist vs. subjectivist divide, and acts as a springboard for further study which will continue to improve our ability to honestly talk about meaning in the abstract aspects of our lives, without ignoring important and inherently meaningful human experiences to do so.
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References Becker, H.S. (2008). Art Worlds (2. Ed.). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press van den Berg, T., & Kiss, M. (2016). Film studies in motion: From audiovisual essay to academic research video. [Electronic Resource]. Retrieved from https://scalar.usc.edu/works/film-studies-in-motion/index?path=introduction- 1 Beaster-Jones, J. (2014). Beyond Musical Exceptionalism: Music, Value, and Ethnomusicology. Ethnomusicology, 58(2), 334-340. doi:10.5406/ethnomusicology.58.2.0334 Brinkmann, S. (2013). Qualitative Interviewing: Understanding Qualitative Research [Electronic Resource]. Retrieved from http://proxy.lib.ltu.se/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=e000xww&AN=603936&site=ehost-live&scope=site&ebv=EB&ppid =pp_Cover Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln Y. S. (Eds.). (2018). The sage handbook of qualitative research (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications Ltd. Downie, G. (2004). Aesthetic Necrophilia: Reification, New Music, and the Commodification of Affectivity. Perspectives of New Music, 42(2), 264-275. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/25164566 Ferguson, A. (1922). Plato’s smile of light. Part II. The allegory of the cave (continued). The classical quarterly, 16(1), 15-28. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/636164 Galletta, A. (2012). Mastering the semi-structured interview and beyond: From research design to analysis and publication [Electronic Resource]. Retrieved from http://proxy.lib.ltu.se/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=nlebk&AN=575563&site=ehost-live&scope=site&ebv=EB&ppid =pp_Cover Gandesha, S. (2017). ‘Reification’ between Autonomy and Authenticity: Adorno on Musical Experience. In Gandesha S. & Hartle J. (Eds.), The Spell of Capital: Reification and Spectacle (pp. 37-54). Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1pk3jqt.5
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Gass, S. M., & Mackey, A. (2000). Stimulated recall methodology in second language research. [Electronic Source]. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral.proquest.com /lib/lulea-ebooks/detail.action?docID=474583 Goodman, N. (1968). Languages of art: an approach to a theory of symbols. The Bobbs- Merrill Company, Inc. Groth, S. K., & Samson, K. (2016). Audio papers: A manifesto. Seismograf. https://seismograf.org/fokus/fluid-sounds/audio_paper_manifesto Holstein, J. A., & Gubrium, J. F. (1995). The active interview. SAGE Publications Jarvis, S. (2007). Adorno: a critical introduction. Cambridge: Polity Press von Karajan, H. (1963). Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67: 1. Allegro con brio. Beethoven: the 9 symphonies [CD]. Berlin: Deutsche Grammophon GmbH. Retrieved from https://open.spotify.com/track/3C4RDIbyK3PvcIMsQ282Qc?si =6b89e7d94ee04e2f Keary, M. [Tantacrul]. (2021, 19 March). Stock music & reality TV - how to misrepresent the world [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G77ev9pks4I Keary, M. [Tantacrul]. (2018, 8 January). Star wars music is getting worse – beyond The Last Jedi & John Williams – A Music Philosophy Review [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gB4lULC87Oo Kiss, M. (2014). The audiovisual research essay as an alternative to text-based scholarship. Journal of videographic film & moving image studies, 1(3), http://mediacommons.org/intransition/2014/08/22/kiss Kivy, P. (1995). Authenticities: philosophical reflections on musical performance. Cornell University Press. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7591/j.ctv5rf6fn Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (2003). Metaphors we live by. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press Lewis, J. (2014). Reification, music and problems of modern philosophy. (Doctoral thesis, Royal Holloway, University of London, London). Retrieved from https://pure.royalholloway.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/reification-music- and-problems-of-modern-philosophy(c07e3c0b-baa5-4001-85f5- a8a6db1c8340).html
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Lewis, J. (2018). Reification and the aesthetics of music. New York, N.Y: Routledge Parkhurst, B., & Hammel, S. (2017). On Theorizing a »Properly Marxist« Musical Aesthetics. International review of the aesthetics and sociology of music, 48(1), 33-55. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/44259474 Ross, B. (2017). The Causal-manipulative approach to musical meaning. International review of the aesthetics and sociology of music, 48(1), 3-17. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/44259472
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Appendix A Obsessions - Full Score in C (Annotated) https://soundcloud.com/christopher-pantelidis-765099579/obsessions
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Appendix B1 The Beauty Behind the Meme - Audio Paper (Text Score) https://soundcloud.com/christopher-pantelidis-765099579/beauty-behind-the-meme- audio-paper/s-7lJLHhGAMjs
00’00” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
00’09” Speaker 1 Well, isn’t that terrifying?
00’12” Speaker 2 My attention [is taken by] actually, the double basses. The lowest notes were really moving like, already something is happening, like a war or some fight.
00’28” S1 Just imagine sitting there in the early 1800’s: “Oh, we are going to this concert. Oh, Beethoven is performing a new piece”, and it begins like that. Well, I would be afraid I think, because it’s just so out there.
00’42” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
00’57” Speaker 3 Now, I experience that the second time this (vocalises) comes it’s super like, threatening.
01’04” S1 Once again, he leaves [us] on a…first on a long violin note and then (vocalises). Again, its relentless and he wants to punch that into your mind making everybody know that: “here I am, listen to this”.
01’19” Speaker 4 In this part I feel haunted, like someone’s chasing me. They just want to…yeah, they just want to catch me while I’m running through a dark forest.
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01’28” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
01’41” S3 And here, the brass for some reason, it gives a bit more like, relaxed and relieved feeling. And here it’s kind of “come and sit down” like, (vocalises), cause it’s now like, super clear and like, now we are in major.
01’57” S4 This is the hero moment. (Vocalises) it sounds so strong and the one that [is] playing that knows what he or she is doing like, “yeah, I’m here now”.
02’08” S2 That was kind of entry to [a] new theme, I think, because that was a single instrument. And then I feel something like, raising a sun or like, sunshine like, early morning maybe at the sea.
02’24” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
02’43” S1 And here we have a more beautiful melody, side melody, but still underneath that is that (vocalises), just making sure you don’t forget what this is all about.
02’53” Speaker 5 This part reminds me of these moments when you have this calmness but at the same on the bass you can hear this kind of…you always have these things in the back of your mind that you can’t get rid of: deadlines and basically all these duties that you have to fulfill that come to haunt you in a way.
03’14” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
03’26” S3 Maybe this is one of the…this kind of ‘popular hits’ you have heard so many times in different occasions. It has become quite like, theoretical in my mind…it’s with some particular pieces
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you have heard so many times. But now when I listened [to] it like, okay now I’m really trying to pay attention and trying to listen [to] it as I would listen [to] it for the first time, it doesn’t quite work, I felt that I was really trying to focus on the piece itself.
04’08” S5 As a matter of fact, I think that there many simple ideas that humans can understand and then when you get a first impression it’s always about the first layer of it. But I think that if you go deeper, depending on the life experience that you are going through, you might experience music in a different way.
04’31” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
05’03” S4 Yeah, the Beethoven was more darkness and [an] evil scare (laughter). This is more like, just when someone just scares you. Like, you sit there and “HA!”. It’s more that kind of scare.
05’20” S5 The idea [I had] to myself, it was a decompression room. So basically, I was thinking of maybe there was a group of astronauts who went there, and then basically something hits the spaceship and then that…the sound is when the spaceship breaks.
05’35” S2 It was like the camera is on for this sound, and then I am alone in the empty space without any human beings.
05’44” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
06’27” S4 I was so nervous here. It’s so fragile. I know that like, I’m expecting something to happen, and it really feels we are out in the space with this melody.
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06’38” S5 To me this part seems like the observation of [a] completely unknown thing, it’s being done. Like this person has landed in this place and is wondering what to do next but at the same time you are scanning your surroundings looking for something.
06’54” S2 I don’t know why but I imagine like it is afternoon and it is so quiet that every little sound around is mak[ing those] little noises, like my shoe, or the water is falling somewhere.
07’05” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
08’11” S3 I got like [a] super cold impression like, physically…like I would be somewhere super cold (laughter). And like, the piano notes were cold water drops or like, small ice crystals or something.
08’31” S4 It feels like the “HA!” thing in the beginning…it’s like the piano wants to trick me for some reason but it won’t scare me, but just “I can scare you if I want to, but I won’t”. 08’43” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
09’25” S2 It feels like I wasn’t completely aware [of] what is happening, just simply observation. I’m walking and walking, and I see more stuff around me. Like, I imagine some abandoned buildings or something like [that] after some apocalypse.
09’45” S4 It feels like everything will soon meet up in the middle but then, just another thing comes from the middle and it’s not what I expect. I guess it’s how its built and just that it’s so separate from each other, that it’s far, far down in the register and far, far at the top. And then something nervous comes from the middle.
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10’05” S5 To me this part seems like the observation of [a] completely unknown thing, it’s being done. Like this person has landed in this place and is wondering what to do next but at the same time you are scanning your surroundings looking for something.
10’21” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
11’10” S4 We finally arrived at something that we have been waiting for so long (laughter).
11’15” S3 This was quite quickly going from this mysterious to quite a like, [dramatic] thing. I like the drama cause it was like, slowly developing but then it came a bit more quickly.
11’30” S2 In [the] Beethoven piece, somehow I thought that I am only the [observer] but in you piece I…from the beginning I felt like I am in this piece.
11’44” S5 Every kind of information kind of gets interpret[ed] based on your own experience and that’s why with the same information people get different outcomes, and in this case like, it is an abstraction thing. So basically, it’s not about mathematics or absolute elements.
12’05” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
12’26” S2 Here the rhythmics [are] kind of strange and funny because the double basses have like, a (vocalises) and it kind of doesn’t match, really. And because of this it feels not as disturbing, like earlier.
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12’43” S3 I remember that I started to think that “Oh, now the horn is, like…it’s not the same character anymore”, cause first I could like, kind of comfort myself that it will be releasing the tension at some point but now it doesn’t anymore. Like, now it’s going to get a bit more unpredictable in a way, even though I know the music.
13’07” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
13’35” S5 This part in a way…so you have the same feeling as before that you have this kind of happy life, but then at the same time you have these background things at the back of your head. But the conclusion this time is that life is a little bit…it feels like he’s mocking the meaning of like, important things are not as important in life, it’s just about living your life.
13’58” S4 I start to think about…of Sleeping Beauty and when she is running around in [some] stairs or something and it’s like, super dark and just a lot of light coming from…like [there’s] lightning outside or something. And so, with that picture I started to think and feel how I felt the first time I saw that movie, how that witch made me feel. So, I got more pictures from that and from like, it’s used, as you say in so many…especially movies. It’s really common and a musical meme (laughter).
14’33” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
15’14” S4 I…now I just felt so, so lonely. And it’s fun that it is just one instrument playing it, and the melody, it’s also fragile in some way.
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15’27” S3 This place [the] oboe stays just alone it’s like, it’s like coming ‘behind the grave’ or something. It sounds super melancholy – it’s alone and yeah, also something with the sound of [the] oboe, always.
15’42” S5 I think it’s mostly the idea or like, the pictorial idea that I have of this piece. When I talk about it it’s either both like, the music or the content of the of the music as an idea that I get. But to me, both of those things mean the same. Talking about the meaning and the sound, to me it’s the same because I can’t disassociate the music and the sound.
16’10” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
16’29” S2 I thought that I saw maybe, something I shouldn’t [have] or something happened quickly, and then I started to remember something, and I feel like I am in danger now because of the quick notes.
16’46” S1 It’s just very exciting. I am just sitting on the edge of my seat a little, just waiting for what’s…what is to come.
16’54” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
17’29” S5 And this is when they start running after, I don’t know like, it feels like “Yeah, this gets intense” and before it was just like, trying to get some distance and then you see like, “Okay, it’s coming after me like, I have to run now” (laughter).
17’41” S3 And here it sounds super like, chasing and rhythmically it’s something with the (laughter) like, in Beethoven as well. It
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sounds like interfering, and also now it was [the] brass instruments again.
17’59” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
18’27” S5 It’s trying to keep that…what is left of energy, I mean, it’s not little (laughter) I want to clarify this like, it feels like it’s going to go even bigger. So basically, it’s trying to hold it up and by trying, that effort, then it realises how difficult it can be.
18’43” S2 I imagine some kind of, maybe a storm, like the waves.
18’48” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
19’30” S4 And it feels like they wanted to end the song one minute before it ended (laughter). So yeah, throughout the whole song it’s really an adventure of going from darkness to light, and back and forward.
19’43” S2 That moment was the most touching and moving moment. I think because we are waiting for such a long time, because there was a really long theme (vocalises).
19’57” S5 At the end you can kind of see this calmness. It’s like “I tried it, and I’ve done my best”. And then it’s…the process starts again because the ending is basically, like…yeah, of course we can’t disassociate the idea of dominant/tonic as an ending as like, okay something is ending. But I really wonder what the fifth Symphony would have been if Beethoven decided to end [it] with that kind of calmness.
20’26” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
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20’46” S4 This is super…super space chords.
20’49” S2 I find it interesting that in this big moment with trumpet and those instruments you put really fragile harfa (harp), and that was kind of “hmm, wow interesting” and kind of weird. It was because of this I think it wasn’t so intense and scary.
21’09” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
22’03” S3 And this character was also like, it was super beautiful after the chasing thing going on.
22’11” S2 Here is the really nice moment that is really touching and beautiful, just [a] simple melody. And because the second time is higher it’s also really moving and just nice.
22’26” Pantelidis 136199 Eris (musical excerpt)
23’29” S5 And so, this last part to me, it sounds like…well this is kind of a [filmographic] idea but the camera that was like, narrating all [that has] happened, then it goes back and you see like, the planet and then you see also the things that we saw at the beginning, like there [were] these little asteroids coming and going as the doppler effect.
23’53” S2 Here it feels like I am at the same place [as] the beginning, but here something is different. Like, that was only a dream, for example. But I see the effects of it, so it wasn’t a dream, or something, because of the long low note. It’s not the same melody [as in] the beginning, it’s kind of different.
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24’17” S3 This was interesting cause it’s super rare to just listen and really focus. While studying, it’s really often…it has something to do with your working, and it’s not always very easy to listen [to] something super familiar, for example.
24’38” S5 In a way, I also got this past experience about Eris in a different way because it was kind of related to Le Sacre du printemps (The Rite of Spring) and also like, with Interstellar. If someone heard that same texture in a different way, they would come up with a different idea. I think that the context, at least to me, it’s so, so, so, so important that I can’t even think of…like what is it to listen for the first time to Stravinsky? So, I don’t know how much you have to dig in to get something that is similar, that shares enough similarities to just trigger that emotion but not be aware of that.
25’22” S3 Maybe it was because I haven’t heard it before I could focus more on just listening. Of course, like, with Beethoven the reflection or the reflecting part is so different cause you know the piece, so you can’t kind of avoid that you have the other contexts.
25’42” S4 And I think that’s because I [have] heard the Beethoven piece before, so then I know what to expect in another way. And with your piece it feels like I heard exactly everything, and every new sound or every new note, I reacted to it. But not in the same way as Beethoven. And also, since your piece was more airy and more silent, and I love those parts when it really was just one instrument playing, everything, every note that someone…or every…sounded like someone dropped something in the audience. So, you react [to] exactly everything, because [there’s] so much air. And the other part, [there] must be so
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many things I didn’t hear in the Beethoven because I just listened to the melody that I already know. So, in that piece it was a contrast from super much to almost nothing, and then back, and in your piece, it was the other way. And building it up your way, I think I react to more and I hear more because it’s…it gives me space to hear everything.
26’46” S5 The comment that one teacher, when we were rehearsing something, he said that “music can have an overcomplicated message but in the end music reaches you through emotions, and that’s something that you yourself only can understand” because it’s something that…so you can say, “Yeah, what did Beethoven [want] to say with these like, three short notes and then a third interval…minor third…and then a long note?”. It’s incredible just when I start to listen…all these things that I think of that other people have thought about…when this music has been so overly played it [has] gotten an extra meaning to itself.
27’37” S4 It’s difficult to hear the beauty behind the meme.
27’41” Beethoven Symphony No. 5. In C minor, Op. 67, Mvt I (musical excerpt)
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Appendix B2 Obsessions - Audio Paper (Text Score) https://soundcloud.com/christopher-pantelidis-765099579/obsessions-audio- paper/s-TQtgUgrC4vX
00’00” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
00’24” Speaker 1 The kind of feeling I get when I hear this is kind of like, an intro of a war movie. It’s kind of…I get these pictures of like, a quiet battlefield and it’s kind of getting me into the feeling that this is kind of like, a part of a…a music part of a movie. And when I hear this…the violin coming in and just doing this simple note, and then with the clarinet joining.
00’52” Speaker 2 Orchestration wise, I noted how the overlap of the first instruments was done quiet effectively. It leads the ear through different timbres. Well, it leads in a smooth way, and so that’s an interesting effect that makes us want to continue following in a more awake sort of way. Yeah, not just lie back “Oh this is slow, I think I’ll just relax now” but it (vocalises), it pricks our ears.
01’35” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
02’03” Speaker 3 So, I was thinking about during the entire piece: are we going to observe someone getting obsessed or are we going to observe ourselves getting obsessed about something? And so, these first few lingering pieces of music coming, it felt like presenting sort of a mystery. There’s something happening, something that gives someone an inclination to start to think about something. It’s starting to creep in a little bit.
Luleå University of Technology 101 Appendix B2 Obsessions – Audio Paper (Text Score)
02’32” S2 The way these slow, high changes in pitch are counterbalanced by the rumbling sounds heightens the sense of urgency and they do make us a little bit more aware of the scope, of the breadth of sound that is possible (laughter). Yeah, you create one part of a sound world and then suddenly the bottom drops out of the sound world.
03’08” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
03’36” Speaker 4 Basically, I have two thoughts through the whole piece. One of the thoughts is: I think of a forest like, the small, tiny, innocent animals and the huge, scary animals who want to eat them. So, it’s like a big hunt, and they’re lurking at each other and trying to stay alive and trying to get some food. And this (vocalises) is like “WA!”. And the second thought is like: the feelings on the inside like, anxiety and dark thoughts and how they escalate in the mind and you feel like, “Ah, it’s too much. I can’t think” and then “Okay, it will be good. It will be better”.
04’22” S3 It feels like we’re starting to get a more, increasingly dangerous feeling. These obsessions [are] not just some innocent ruminations, they’re starting to become something more severe. It feels like the little (vocalises), it’s like the brain being like “Hey, hey! C’mon, let’s not do this, this is not good. Hello this is dangerous”. But all the other instruments are like “Oh, but what if we? What if this? What if that?”. So, it feels like we’re starting to get that feeling of the instruments are talking to each other or are starting to want to control each other. It’s not really apparent who’s the boss, but there is a bit of dissonance between them.
05’08” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
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05’41” S2 Anything that has this kind of, gradually increasing pace heightens tension and what seems to be done is that technique is traded between instruments, and it’s done in kind of a responsive sort of way. And so, whatever beat there is, you know I’m watching this and there is a conductor beating, it is certainly not obvious to the listener; where it starts, you know what kind of time signature there is or what have you. It’s all very experiential.
06’26” S1 This is when I realised this is not a war movie anymore (laughter). It turned to more like a scary movie. There’s something…like I get the chills and I believe it’s the rhythm, the things that [are] happening in the piano when it goes from slow to faster, and something is happening, and everyone is evolving in something. And then [comes] the peak, when you get kind of a dissonance between all the instruments, you get the…yeah, the tonality is very dissonant.
07’03” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
07’40” S3 It feels like the piano is starting to represent the emotions…the lurking, and the flute is something beautiful, something that the mind is starting to obsess over.
07’54” S1 This was (laughter), this was a nice turn. I loved this part. Since it has been going, like, it was evolving to this like, chill feeling…you get the chills in the body. And then something…I hear in the piano, it’s the bass part of the piano (vocalises) and I just…I get this, it loses the chill affect in my body and kind of gets more, like…I was thinking of like a ‘Bowser’ feeling in [a] Super Mario castle, like this (vocalises) it’s a bit scary but it’s
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also, like an adventure or something. Something is happening in that kind of way.
08’36” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
09’10” S4 Okay, I will tell you through both my thoughts: This is the part, if we look at it as a movie, when we know that the scary and dangerous animal is looking at the innocent, small animal, but the small animal doesn’t know it yet and we don’t know what [is going] to happen. So, when I watch the movie there’s like a…something is building up. And through the other thought, like this high note, I think of it as, you know when you’re feeling so much and it’s just too much that everything disappears, and the only thing I can hear is the high note and it’s like a bubble and you can’t, like, sort things out. You can’t hear voices, you can’t like, understand what’s happening. Just that high note is the only thing in your head.
10’04” S3 I think it was a really interesting choice to have these very high- pitched sounds. It sort of gives the connotations to movies when they’re trying to represent someone being psychotic or starting to spiral into something that they can’t control, that everything else is blocked out but there’s this high-pitched noise. It feels it’s sort of representing a mind spiralling, nothing else can be really heard.
10’28” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
10’55” S1 It went from this mysterious feeling with the violins and just making this landscape of sounds, and then the piano gets in with the strings with these melodies going on. That was really nice (laughter). My feeling was when they started, like doing
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that I was “Oh, this could be a nice jazz composition”. It could evolve in that way with…like if you would, [for] example, have a bass player like, making that movement together, it would be like…if that [were] the case it could be a really nice jazz piece. That was pretty cool. I was like “Oh? Chris, are you making a jazz piece here?” and then I was like “Oh, it’s not” (laughter). But that was my feeling in that moment. I was…it was a really nice, just contrast to the noise making. You use the rhythmic feeling to make a difference.
12’02” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
12’54” S4 The things I thought about now [were about] the anxiety part, and a bit before this there was like, pretty dark notes and it felt like, it felt heavy. And then, it was this “ping!”, and the flute changed the harmonies and the violins, they let go of the high note. The anxiety is still there, when you’re floating around in “Okay, I can’t do this. Okay I can do this, ooh”, when you don’t know if it’s time to give up or [to] keep fighting. So now, I think this is like the turn.
13’35” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
15’10” S3 This last part really felt like a confrontation. The mania is taking over, it’s starting to become physical, more aggressive. The hits from the percussion [feel] like there is an actual violence going on and that there is tension and arguments and physicality and real anger building up and being expressed. There is something bad happening here, the obsession is taking over.
15’34” S4 I remember from the first time, when I thought the piece was done here, I thought it was over, and then I was like “No! The
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mouse died! No! The anxiety won!” (laughter). And so, this is like, when I thought like “Okay, the big animal [caught] the small animal and, yeah it died, it got eaten”. And the anxiety part is “Okay. I can’t do this anymore. I can’t fight this anymore right now”. And so, I was a bit like, angry at you that it ended here, but it doesn’t, because I wanted the like, the big, happy ending.
16’17” S2 Even though it was the high point of drama, of tension, and sometimes we say, “Well, what can come after a gong?” (laughter). I mean, “That’s just (imitates cymbal crash). Okay, the end. Right?”. Mmm, but it would not feel complete yet, it would just feel like I have been climbing, climbing, climbing into something and now I’ve like, fell down a dark hole (laughter). Okay. Well, am I ever going to hit the bottom? (laughter). And I suppose if you never want the person to hit the bottom, then that’s one choice. But what’s going to happen? And, yes, finally I hear a little something and so I now anticipate completion.
17’14” Pantelidis Obsessions (musical excerpt)
18’20” S1 I don’t know if I can like, connect some feeling about this, but I really love the, like the minimalistic feeling, the minimalistic composing, like with just one note, and making the melody together with just one note each. And it also made…like with the crescendo in every note [it] made the turnover to the other instrument very natural. It makes sense in the whole but it just, like…I could imagine just looking at the sheet as a musician, like “What is this?” and then when you hear all the other parts it just makes sense.
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19’03” S3 So, here it feels like the aftermath, the “Oh, what have I done?” afterthought, realising that someone is coming to terms with “I have done something terrible. What have I done? What has happened?”. It feels like someone is looking at shards of something and being like, “Did I do this? Did I black out? Did I do this? What happened?”.
19’26” S4 I’m back at the start of the piece, like “Okay. The high note is back.” and it’s like an emotion rollercoaster here. It’s like “Okay, the anxiety is back” and “Okay, there’s another hunt”. We’re so many people who have anxiety, like even if I don’t have it now, someone else has it, it’s like never ending. And it’s the same in the forest, like even if that particular mouse isn’t like, hunted right now, someone else is. And in some way, it’s heavy to think like that, and it’s also hopeful. It gets better and it gets worse, it gets better and it gets worse.
20’09” S2 I think what happens after the big boom actually, is interesting from a form standpoint because I would have partially expected you to do something similar as the beginning, with possibly some of the instruments overlapping into each other and, you know, becoming each other as one takes on…as you did in, sort of, the first section. But you did something similar but opposite (laughter). So, I think that was an interesting choice. It was not un-noted that you had a little bit of (vocalising) yeah, that hastened back to earlier.
21’00” S2 It was definitely a journey of finding out about something, thinking about it, and then striving to action, and then having action, and then the aftermath. And so, for example when the flute was playing, I really could see how an obsessive person would be observing someone, and there would be this flute to
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represent this feeling. And then especially in the later part, in the crescendo, with the hits from the percussion it really felt like someone is being hit right now. It’s sort of in a violent place, that something violent is happening. And then this aftermath of something like, I don’t know if someone ends up being killed or if someone is just injured, but it’s this distinct feeling of someone looking at something they have done.
21’47” S1 I really felt like this was a complete…like this could definitely be me watching a scary movie with this soundtrack in the background, making these…yeah, the cliches of the scary music soundtrack real in that part. Because I was confused for a long time until the climax of the thing. I was confused, like I get this chill feeling, it feels like a scary movie but something else is going on like, it wasn’t a definite scary thing it was just this feeling and that was the main like, the largest feeling in my body.
22’37” S2 Of course, the music didn’t really make me think of something pleasant to obsess about (laughter). The music made me think of something that was possibly a problem, something that you can’t quite explain but is there and possibly you wish would lighten up a bit, but it was pretty insistent.
23’10” S3 When the bass tones come in again and the piano comes in again that’s when the thought comes back. And the first time I heard it, it felt like a sort of reassuring thing, being like “Oh, I did something terrible but maybe it actually was good”. Maybe, it feels like the manipulating obsessing feeling is taking over again and being like “Oh, but you had alright to do this. This wasn’t that bad. This was…we know why you did this”. Sort of
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this feeling coming back again but still this lingering feeling of something did take place and you are left there.
23’47” S1 I think the first impression of the war movies is because I have watched a lot of war movies and that was kind of the same feeling I got. But then it just, it changed so drastically like, went from one feeling to another. That was kind of like, the first thing that gave, “ooh, something else is happening” (laughter).
24’09” S4 In the end, I’m back at the beginning just floating around, not connected to the forest and the anxiety but it could be. It’s like, here I think it’s hopeful like, everything will get better and you’re not alone in all your…in all the heavy stuff.
24”29” S2 I take it as it is and the way that our ears work these days, you know, just the way our soundscape is, connects the sounds of certain things to certain feelings. Of course, that’s the way it’s always been, it’s just that now we use such wide pallets for those things. You know, sometimes the widest pallet makes for the most general effect. It depends on what you do with it.
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