Jean-Claude Risset to Compare the Playing of the Pianist Own Research Led Him to Successfully (1938–2016) to a Sporting Act
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News Jean-Claude Risset to compare the playing of the pianist own research led him to successfully (1938–2016) to a sporting act. In parallel with synthesize copper trumpet sounds his scientific studies, Jean-Claude and various other natural sounds, [Editor’s note: We thank Evelyn Risset took private lessons to train under the watchful eye and ear of Gayou of the Institut National de himself in music. From 1961 to 1964 Edgard Varese.` In 1968, Jean-Claude l’Audiovisuel Groupe de Recherches he studied the piano with Robert Tri- Risset composed his first work that Musicales (INA-GRM) for writing maille and Huguette Goullon (pupils used sounds synthesized by com- Computer Suite from Little this obituary and tribute.] of Alfred Cortot), harmony and coun- puter: Boy Born in Le Puy-en-Velay, France, terpoint with Suzanne Demarquez, . It was precisely to illustrate the in 1938, Jean-Claude Risset (see and composition with Andre´ Jolivet endless fall of the bomb, “Little Boy,” Figure 1) would become not only a (pupil of Edgard Varese).` In 1962 and that he began to work on “paradox- musician recognized by the interna- 1963, he attended the Jolivet summer ical sounds” and acoustic illusions: tional artistic community, but also an course at the French Center of Mu- sounds that rise or fall perpetually, undisputed theorist of the technolog- sical Humanism in Aix-en-Provence glissandi that go up and down at the ical musical adventure of the second where he met Darius Milhaud, Henri same time. In 1968, during his second half of the 20th century. Dutilleux, and Lejaren Hiller. Ris- stay at Bell Labs (1967–1969), Risset As a student at the Ecole´ Normale set was already impassioned by all attended John Chowning’s demon- Superieure´ (ENS) in Paris from 1957 that was new in music. He also ap- stration of the results of his first to 1964, he obtained an Aggregation proached Pierre Schaeffer’s Groupe experiments on frequency modula- of Physics in 1961 under the direc- de Recherches Musicales (GRM) and tion (FM). Chowning communicated ´ tion of Professor Pierre Grivet, on met Abraham Moles, Emile Leipp, to Risset his synthesis data; the latter the subject of “Analysis, Synthesis, and Michel Philippot; the latter put would soon use them to animate the Mutations Perception of Sounds, Studied with him in contact with Pierre Barbaud sounds in his work . the Help of Electronic Computers.” (an eminent French representative of All these pioneers of computer As a sportsman, he participated in automatic music composition). From music become friends at work but student athletics and basketball com- his first steps as a musician, Risset also in life, and forever. A year would petitions at ENS, which led him later kept a taste for elaborate tones and not pass without one crossing the timbres, but also a rigor in his work, Atlantic to find his friends for a doi:10.1162/COMJ e 00418 instilled by his various professors. colloquium, a symposium, exchanges It was also his professor Grivet (an on their research work, master classes influential advocate of electronics in universities in the four corners of research in France) who encouraged the world, or even a family holiday. him to join Max Mathews and his In 1969, the GRM under Scha- team at the Bell Telephone Laborato- effer in Paris, through its research ries in New Jersey to pursue research engineer Enrico Chiarucci (in charge in the framework of his thesis. There, of emerging technologies), received after much hesitation about his fu- from Jean-Claude Risset a copy of ture, torn between art and science, Max Mathews’s Music V software. he finally saw his contribution to the This gift would allow the GRM to field as undertaking a unique path bridge the gap in computer music simply combining art and science on and embark on a great adventure a daily basis. The year was 1964. of computer-based sound-processing During his first stay at Bell Labs developments guided by the concepts in 1964–1965, he notably met not of musique concrete` .Franc¸ois Bayle, only Edgard Varese` but also John R. director of the GRM after Schaeffer, Pierce, Newman Guttman, and, of then commissioned a piece from course, Max Mathews. From then on, Jean-Claude Risset, which became the synthesis of sounds by computer the masterpiece Mutations (for two would be one of his major centers tracks, synthesized at Bell Laborato- Figure 1. Jean-Claude of interest. Risset began by assisting ries and mixed at the GRM). Risset. (Photo: Rozenn Mathews in the development of the Finally, very Schaefferian in his Risset.) Music V software and, in 1965, his musical approach (as he was more News 7 Downloaded from http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/COMJ_e_00418 by guest on 30 September 2021 interested in the effects of sound than In 1979, Jean-Claude Risset ex- In 1990, he received the National its causes), Risset composed works pressed the wish to return to his post Grand Prize of Music, which he that played with perception. At the in Marseille-Luminy to get away from perceived as a true affirmation of his same time, however, he did not deny the hectic life of IRCAM. He assessed musical work. To crown his years of the instrumental world. Mutations that he was too burdened with public research, in 1999, Risset received the II, in 1973, incorporated elements of communication tasks (a consequence Gold Medal of the CNRS, one of the the tracks synthesized at Bell Labs of IRCAM’s success) and that his most significant awards attributed to for Mutations and four acoustic in- research had suffered. So he returned scientific researchers in France. He struments. He composed Dialogues to Luminy, then to the Laboratoire had been research director at CNRS (1975) for flute, clarinet, piano, and de Mecanique´ et d’Acoustique of the since 1985. two-track tape synthesized by com- Centre National de la Recherche Sci- From the early 2000s, Jean-Claude puter in Marseille. After his return entifique (CNRS) in Marseille from Risset increasingly devoted him- to France in 1969, Risset joined the 1985 to 1999. From 1993 to 1999, he self to musical creation, alternat- Aix-Marseille University Faculty of helmed the national DEA (master’s ing mixed works, electroacoustic, Sciences at Luminy. There, he high- degree) in “Acoustics, Signal Process- instrumental—interactive or not, lighted the difference in perception ing and Computer Science Applied to sometimes spatial—until finally con- of sounds according to their pitch Music,” taught at IRCAM jointly by fronting the orchestra: Escalas (2001) or spectral height, depending on the the University of the Mediterranean and Schemes` (2007). cerebral hemispheres. He also worked and the University of Paris VI. Jean-Claude Risset kept in touch on nonlinear distortion synthesis, During this time, Jean-Claude with his pioneering companions in temporal slowing without transpo- Risset never stopped composing— computer music. Since the late 1980s, sition, synthesis by Gabor grains, mainly mixed works: Mixte (1982), he was regularly invited to Stanford hybrid synthesis, wavelets . his Passages (1982), Aventure de lignes University in California, where he contributions are innumerable. (1981), and others. On the other hand, continued his research and musical It was quite natural that in 1972 for the composition of Sud, in 1985, compositions between disciplines Pierre Boulez proposed to Jean-Claude an electroacoustic work in four tracks without hiatus. Stanford’s Center for Risset the position of director of the made at the GRM, Jean-Claude Risset Computer Research in Music and computer department of the future started from concrete` sounds recorded Acoustics (CCRMA, founded by John Institut de Recherche et de Coordina- in nature near Marseille and gradually Chowning in 1975) benefited also tion Acoustique/Musique (IRCAM) in hybridized them to synthetic sounds from the contributions of John Pierce Paris; he would occupy this post until following a grid of pitches. This piece and Max Mathews, who, following 1979 (IRCAM was officially inaugu- won the Ars Electronica Golden Nica their professional retirement, became rated in 1975). Boulez insisted that all Award in 1987. Jean-Claude Risset involved with the institution, thus the heads of departments should be also liked composing with voice: for encouraging contact and regular not only good scientists or engineers instance, L’autre face (1983), Sola interaction with the professors and but also composers. This is how Ger- (1985), Derives´ (1985), La nouvelle students. In 1993, the University of ald Bennett, head of IRCAM’s “diago- Atlantide (1988), and Etre (1989). The California, Berkeley, welcomed Risset nal” department, called on the young year 1989 was also marked by his as Kennedy Lecturer. These United and talented American artist and work Huit esquisses en duo pour un States–based engagements deeply scientist David Wessel, who would pianiste [Eight Sketches in Duet for marked Risset, who said he found now become part of the wider circle One Pianist] where Risset, the pianist, there the best working conditions of of pioneers and friends. Jean-Claude played live on a Yamaha Disklavier his life. His last visit to Stanford was Risset spent several exciting years at in duet with a computer program. in 2015. IRCAM. In addition to conducting This was the first piece in which the Risset was a Knight of the Legion research, he composed several im- computer is sensitive to the playing of Honor, Officer of Arts and Letters, portant works: Inharmonique (1977), of the human pianist. Risset had a member of many learned societies, Moments newtoniens (1977), Mirages developed the computer program a member of editorial boards in Eu- (1978), Distances (1979), and Songes that same year at the Massachusetts rope and in the world, and a man (1979).