Morton Subotnick's Ghost Scores: Interaction and Performance with Music Technology
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San Jose State University SJSU ScholarWorks Master's Theses Master's Theses and Graduate Research Fall 2010 Morton Subotnick's Ghost Scores: Interaction and Performance with Music Technology Jeffrey Hanson San Jose State University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses Recommended Citation Hanson, Jeffrey, "Morton Subotnick's Ghost Scores: Interaction and Performance with Music Technology" (2010). Master's Theses. 3864. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31979/etd.h6cw-5qkx https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses/3864 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Master's Theses and Graduate Research at SJSU ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of SJSU ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MORTON SUBOTNICK’S GHOST SCORES: INTERACTION AND PERFORMANCE WITH MUSIC TECHNOLOGY A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the School of Music and Dance San José State University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts by Jeffrey S. Hanson December 2010 © 2010 Jeffrey S. Hanson ALL RIGHTS RESERVED The Designated Thesis Committee Approves the Thesis Titled MORTON SUBOTNICK’S GHOST SCORES: INTERACTION AND PERFORMANCE WITH MUSIC TECHNOLOGY by Jeffrey S. Hanson APPROVED FOR THE SCHOOL OF MUSIC AND DANCE SAN JOSÉ STATE UNIVERSITY December 2010 Dr. Brian Belet School of Music and Dance Dr. Pablo E. Furman School of Music and Dance Dr. Daniel N. Wyman School of Music and Dance ABSTRACT MORTON SUBOTNICK’S GHOST SCORES: INTERACTION AND PERFORMANCE WITH MUSIC TECHNOLOGY by Jeffrey S. Hanson This thesis investigates the ghost works of Morton Subotnick and their contribution to the world of sound art and electronic music technologies. Subotnick’s work in this area is an integral part of his outstanding achievements, on which there is little collected research. The discussion focuses on the development of Subotnick’s designs and techniques that he applied to the construction of the ghost works. Through an exploration of earlier background details, it is shown that tape recording, voltage- controlled technologies, and the analog sequencer provided Subotnick with the means to follow his vision and begin creating “music as studio art.” An examination of these technologies and the creative manner in which he applied them reveal how Subotnick established a vehicle for his life’s work in the early sixties, from which he created notable electronic works. An assessment of Subotnick’s work from the early seventies shows that the composer’s methods progressed using a variety of compositional elements, including electronics and traditional acoustic orchestral instruments, the culmination of which resulted in the creation of the ghost compositions in the mid-seventies. The evaluation of these works reveals Subotnick’s aptitude with real-time analog signal processing and his standing as a significant American composer. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thanks are due to the following people for their assistance, encouragement, and patience in the completion of this masters thesis document: Dr. Daniel Wyman for his mentoring, encouragement, and generosity in sharing his knowledge, time, and insights into the world of analog and digital electronic music technologies, as well as his general wisdom, sense of humor, and perspectives on the nature of academia; Dr. Pablo Furman for his guidance, fortitude, and persistence in maintaining high standards of academic excellence, as well as his willingness to share his vast knowledge of music; Dr. Brian Belet for his support, attention to details, and willingness to share his knowledge of music systems; Elizabeth Sava, for her knowledge of word processing issues and steadfast assistance with editing details, as well as her encouragement and inspiration; Bob and Carol Daniels, and Dorothy Hanson, for their optimism and support through this process; Drs. Robert Jones and Becky Roberts, and Professors Ronald Dunn and Erik Turkman, for their discerning input and advice on academic writing. v TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures .................................................................................................................. viii List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... ix Introduction ..........................................................................................................................1 Chapter One: Morton Subotnick ..........................................................................................5 Early Development (1940 – 1958) ..................................................................................5 Career Development (1958 – 1961) ................................................................................6 Chapter Two: Ghost Development ....................................................................................11 The San Francisco Tape Music Center (1962 – 1966) ..................................................13 New York City (1966 – 1969) ......................................................................................20 Pre-Ghost Techniques (1969 – 1976) ...........................................................................24 Chapter Three: The Sound of a Ghost (1976 – 1983) ........................................................32 Sound Source: Acoustic Instruments ............................................................................34 Sound Processing: Ghost Box .......................................................................................38 Control Source: Ghost Score .........................................................................................44 Sound Management: Audio System ..............................................................................48 Chapter Four: Ghost Works (1976 – 1983) .......................................................................53 Two Life Histories .........................................................................................................54 Liquid Strata .................................................................................................................56 The Wild Beasts .............................................................................................................59 Passages of the Beast ....................................................................................................61 Parallel Lines ................................................................................................................62 vi The Last Dream of the Beast .........................................................................................64 After the Butterfly ..........................................................................................................66 The First Dream of Light ..............................................................................................68 Axolotl ...........................................................................................................................69 A Fluttering of Wings ....................................................................................................71 An Arsenal of Defense ...................................................................................................73 Trembling ......................................................................................................................73 Conclusion .........................................................................................................................76 Appendix A: List and Details of Ghost Works ..................................................................82 Appendix B: Available Ghost Works and Recordings ......................................................83 Bibliography ......................................................................................................................84 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. The Buchla 200 Series Electronic Music Box ...................................................18 Figure 2. Buchla Touch Plate Interface ............................................................................25 Figure 3. Ghost System Performance ...............................................................................33 Figure 4. Music Score Elements .......................................................................................35 Figure 5. Music Notation with Ghost Score Performance Notes ......................................36 Figure 6. Electronic Ghost Score Part ...............................................................................38 Figure 7. Original Ghost Box Signal Routing ..................................................................40 Figure 8. Electronic Ghost Score Notation of Signal Modulation ....................................43 Figure 9. Electronic Ghost Score: Preparation .................................................................45 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Evolution of Techniques .....................................................................................12 ix INTRODUCTION My urge is to create an expressive art with the technology of our time. Subotnick1 American composer Morton Subotnick (b. 1933) has cultivated unique musical ideas and innovative instrument designs by assimilating diverse genres of music, theatre, and dance into his music compositions. Although Subotnick has written and performed contemporary compositions for