Florida International University FIU Digital Commons FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations University Graduate School 10-24-2013 Materials and Techniques in D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina, for Bass Clarinet, Two Orchestras, Piano and Percussion Federico Bonacossa Florida International University, [email protected] DOI: 10.25148/etd.FI13120422 Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd Part of the Composition Commons Recommended Citation Bonacossa, Federico, "Materials and Techniques in D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina, for Bass Clarinet, Two Orchestras, Piano and Percussion" (2013). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 989. https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/989 This work is brought to you for free and open access by the University Graduate School at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Miami, Florida MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES IN D’IMPROVVISO DA IMMOBILE S’ILLUMINA FOR BASS CLARINET, TWO ORCHESTRAS, PIANO AND PERCUSSION A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF MUSIC by Federico Bonacossa 2013 To: Dean Brian Schriner College of Architecture and the Arts This thesis, written by Federico Bonacossa, and entitled Materials and Techniques in D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina, for Bass Clarinet, Two Orchestras, Piano and Percussion, having been approved in respect to style and intellectual content, is referred to you for judgment. We have read this thesis and recommend that it be approved. _______________________________________ Jacob Sudol _______________________________________ David Dolata _______________________________________ Orlando Garcia, Major Professor Date of Defense: October 24, 2013 The thesis of Federico Bonacossa is approved. _______________________________________ Dean Brian Schriner College of Architecture and the Arts _______________________________________ Dean Lakshmi N. Reddi University Graduate School Florida International University, 2013 ii © Copyright 2013 by Federico Bonacossa All rights reserved. iii ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES IN D’IMPROVVISO DA IMMOBILE S’ILLUMINA FOR BASS CLARINET, TWO ORCHESTRAS, PIANO AND PERCUSSION by Federico Bonacossa Florida International University, 2013 Miami, Florida Professor Orlando Garcia, Major Professor D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina is a concerto for bass clarinet, two orchestras, piano, and percussion, that I composed during my graduate studies at Florida International University in Miami. The work is approximately 16 minutes long and is scored for 30 independent instrumental parts in addition to the bass clarinet soloist. Although the piece does not incorporate electronics, electronic music was a major influence in its creation, and the computer was used extensively as a compositional tool. In addition, the writings of Henry Cowell and the music of Sofia Gubaidulina influenced the concerto in a number of ways. While writing this work, I had to discover new ways to allow pure instinct to intermingle with strict calculation. This paper will discuss in detail the various techniques used in the creation of the concerto as well as some of the works that influenced it. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 1 2. FORM ........................................................................................................................... 1 3. MATERIALS – PART 1 .............................................................................................. 8 3.1 Motivic Relationships ........................................................................................... 11 3.2 Metrically free sections and gestures .................................................................... 14 3.3 Recurring Motives ................................................................................................ 15 3.4 Additional motivic relationships ........................................................................... 20 4. MATERIALS – PART 2 ............................................................................................ 21 4.1 Frequencies to Durations: Henry Cowell’s Rhythmicon ...................................... 24 4.2 Rhythmicon in the concerto .................................................................................. 32 5. SPATIALIZATION .................................................................................................... 41 5.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 41 5.2 Spatialization in Western Music ........................................................................... 41 5.3 Spatialization in D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina ...................................... 46 6. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 50 7. BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................................... 51 APPENDIX 1 – OpenMusic and Max/MSP patches ........................................................ 54 APPENDIX 2 – D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina – score (see additional file) v LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE PAGE Figure 2.1 bass clarinet sample ........................................................................................... 2 Figure 2.2 Formal outline ................................................................................................... 3 Figure 2.4 Excerpt from e poi, solo sfiorandole. ................................................................ 7 Figure 3.1 Spectral analysis of the bass clarinet sample used in the concerto .................... 8 Figure 3.2 D’improvviso da Immobile S’illumina – bass clarinet introduction . ................ 9 Figure 3.3 Pitch Collection 1. ........................................................................................... 10 Figure 3.4 Structural intervals in Collection 1. ................................................................. 11 Figure 3.5 Excerpt from Solace for woodwing quintet ..................................................... 11 Figure 3.6 Formal outline used to compose e poi, solo sfiorandole. ................................ 12 Figure 3.7 Bass clarinet concerto, mm. 12-18. Piano. ..................................................... 13 Figure 3.8 D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina, excerpt from m. 28. Bass clarinet. .... 13 Figure 3.9 D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina, mm. 66-69. Bass clarinet. ................. 14 Figure 3.10 D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina mm. 67-69. Viola 2. ......................... 14 Figure 3.11 D’improvviso da immobile s’illumina, mm. 87. Double bass 2. .................. 15 Figure 3.12 Recurring motives. ........................................................................................ 16 Figure 3.13 OpenMusic patch for expanding and compressing sets by multiplying intervals. ..................................................................................................................... 17 Figure 3.14 Compressed motive. ...................................................................................... 18 Figure 3.15 “Half-step Expander.” ................................................................................... 19 Figure 3.16 Motivic expansion. Concerto for Bass Clarinet, excerpt from m. 143. Bass clarinet. ....................................................................................................................... 20 Figure 4.1 Spectral analysis of clarinet sample in Spear. ................................................. 22 Figure 4.2 OpenMusic patch used to filter spectral data. ................................................. 23 vi Figure 4.3 Pitch collection derived from spectral data (Pitch Collection 2). .................... 24 Figure 4.4 Rhythmic relationships based on the overtone series (Cowell 1958: 47). ...... 25 Figure 4.5 Note shapes proposed by Henry Cowell up the ninth note series. .................. 26 Figure 4.6 Durations derived from the ratio of the frequencies of an A4 and a justly tuned C♯4. ............................................................................................................................. 28 Figure 4.7 Sample page from James Tenney’s Spectral CANON for CONLON Nancarrow. ................................................................................................................. 29 Figure 4.8 Max/MSP patch for Rhythmicon. .................................................................... 32 Figure 4.9 Abstraction used to assign durations to the frequencies in Collection 2. ........ 33 Figure 4.10 OpenMusic patch that assigns a duration to a midicent value based on its frequency and notates the result. ............................................................................... 34 Figure 4.11 List of pitches and durations used in the rhythmicon sections. .................... 35 Figure 4.12 First measure of the raw score used to create the rhythmicon in d’improvviso da immobile s’illumina. .............................................................................................. 36 Figure 4.13 Approximation problems with the voice object in OpenMusic. .................... 37 Figure