The latest approaches to piano interpretation in chamber and ensemble creativity of V. Silvestrov (the case of the "Drama" cycle for violin, cello and piano)

The article overviews a set of issues related to the latest interpretation of the piano in the second half of the XXth century, the use of non-specific techniques of playing the instrument and the peculiarities of its use in the chamber ensemble. It describes the main elaboration direction of compositional methods and techniques, their objectification in the ensemble work of Ukrainian artists. V. Silvestrov's "Drama" for violin, cello and piano is analyzed as a unique example of synthesis of traditional and avant-garde tendencies in the music of the XXth century, which combines music making with elements of instrumental theater. The article outlines main parameters, notes the stylistic and timbre diversity of the work. The compositional methods and techniques used in the trio are considered, including sonorism, aleatory, pointillism, happening. The role of the prepared piano at sound color is established, and other sound, noise and stage effects in creation of a sound image of a composition. The significance of the latest sound formation principles laid down in the work, the urgency and influence of the author's innovations on modern chamber music are revealed. The proposed analysis should contribute to a fuller understanding of avant-garde trends and their manifestation in chamber music of the second half of the XXth century and a wider introduction of V. Silvestrov's works to the chamber and ensemble repertoire of modern performers.

Izotopie w praktyce analizy dzieła muzycznego – na przykładzie "Arabesque" Zygmunta Krauzego

The aim of the paper is to reconsider the question of usefulness of the category of isotopy in semiotic analysis of a musical composition, on the example of Zygmunt Krauze’s Arabesque (1983) for prepared piano and instrumental ensemble. Adopting a suggestion by Nicolas Meeùs, the author undertakes an attempt to transpose Rastier’s differentiation between semantic isotopy and isotopy of the plane of expression (isotopie de l’expression) into analysis of music. Following Michel Arrivé, she presents a model example of isotopic relations in the plane of expression (signifiant) from the novel Les jours et les nuits (Days and Nights) by Alfred Jarry, and finds that isotopy of the plane of expression is for linguistic semioticians an alternative to semantic isotopy in providing cohesiveness in the layer of signs that construct meaning. She then discusses the extent of application of isotopy in music semiotics and draws attention to the semantic capacity of this category in Eero Tarasti’s theory and interpretive practice, where it undergoes metaphorisation and a kind of universalisation. She also refers to the proposal of Jean-Pierre Bartoli to use isotopy in analysing Orientalistic exoticism, which constitutes an example of a return to the level of the simplest constitutive units and the condition of their iteration, i.e., to the structuralistic-semiotic conceptions of isotopy in the approach of Greimas. Moving on to an analysis of Krauze’s composition, the author puts forward the view that Rastier’s categories of isotopy of the plane of expression as „conditions of grammaticality” (conditions de grammaticalité) of an utterance can only apply to specific cases of compositional techniques which are utterances in systemic „musical languages”, and this condition is not met in the case of the work analysed. The argumentation presented in the article is based on an analysis of particular features of the organisation of the sound material, the texture and syntax of Arabesque, as well as references to the composer’s claim to have been inspired by the mystical paintings of Władysław Strzemiński and the oriental connotations of arabesqueness in music. In seeking the musical meaning of Krauze’s Arabesque the author focuses on identifying its intentio operis.

Preparing the Digital Piano: Introducing bitKlavier

This article describes a new kind of digital musical instrument, a novel assemblage of the familiar MIDI keyboard with custom interactive software. Inspired by John Cage's prepared piano, our instrument both takes advantage of and subverts the pianist's hard-earned, embodied training, while also inviting an extended configuration stage that “prepares” the instrument to behave in composition-specific, idiosyncratic ways. Through its flexible—though constrained—design, the instrument aims to inspire a playful approach to instrument building, composition, and performance. We outline the development history of our instrument, called bitKlavier, its current design, and some of its musical possibilities.

Realization of the principles of sonor modality in “The Perilous Night” by J. Cage

Background. At the beginning of the 20th century American music gradually emerges from the shadow of Europe and takes its rightful place. This unique cultural phenomenon arises from the creative work of a brilliant generation of artists. Some authors preferred to develop traditional methods of compositions, others expressed nontraditional, sometimes even shocking, views on the very process of creativity and tasks of art in general. Different thinking, non-standard sound perception, a special approach to creation based on rejection of the ordinary and lack of borders – all this distinguished Americans not only from European traditionalists, but also from modernists. Objectives. The purpose of the paper is to determine peculiarities of implementation of innovative ideas in J. Cage’s cycle "The Perilous Night" for prepared piano. Methods. The study uses a comprehensive approach with the application of intonational, semantic, structural and functional methods for analyzing musical text. Results. The most famous and infl uential fi gure in American music of the last century was John Cage (1912–1992), whose name became synonymous with everything most epic and radical in music. It is diffi cult to characterize this person only as a composer, since the range of his interests was extremely wide: he was also a writer, philosopher, inventor, performer, lecturer, organizer of performances, etc. The most famous invention of J. Cage turned out to be a "prepared piano". This instrument refl ects the composer’s inclination towards percussions, that is, the active engagement of noises as the main musical material and thirst for experiments. A more mature example of putting J. Cage’s innovative ideas in life is his suite "The Perilous Night", composed in 1944. It was this piece which became the fi rst large-scale opus for prepared piano, written not for accompaniment, but as an independent artistic concept. This opus is a unique example where the author, who actively rejected the idea of expressing feelings through music, speaks with us in the language of emotions. "The Perilous night", as well as other works for prepared piano, is designed in the technique which M. Pereverzeva calls "sononant modality". This name indicates the combination of two approaches – a coloristic and a structural one. The composer achieves organic in this alliance by creating for each opus a certain series made up not of traditional musical sounds, but of noises, overtones and other colorful sonorities. So, J. Cage seems to play a game with the performer, creating a certain puzzle that must be decrypted in the process of preparing for the performance. The key to it is the so-called "preparation chart ", which always precedes the musical text and contains the following mandatory columns: 1. a sound written in notes; 2. material necessary for preparation, 3. strings, between which it must be put (from left to right); 4. distance of material placement, calculated from the damper (in inches). The expanded chart of " The Perilous night" is visually divided into two sections, since each of these elements is duplicated; so, on the left side we fi nd mainly soft and wooden objects (foam rubber, felt, bamboo wedge), and on the right side there are metal things (screws and bolts with or without a nut). A full "tone row" appears only in the chart and can be used when talking about the cycle as a whole. In each of the six pieces, the composer operates a certain set of sounds, which of course belong to it, but they are employed extremely selectively, depending on specifi c artistic tasks. Thus, all numbers receive their unique combination of voices that form a "microtone row" of miniatures. The number of sonants in it varies from fi ve to eighteen and does not depend on the size of the piece. In the cycle, there is a multilevel relationship between its parts, which, on the one hand, coloristically and texture-rhythmically are in contrast with each other, ensuring contraposition of states and diversity of colours, and, on the other hand, make internal connections that provide the indivisibility and logic of the cyclic composition. No less individually J. Cage interprets the principle of applying certain numerical proportions in the process of developing a musical composition. Basing on the combination of Eastern trends, primarily Indian talas and ragas, and Western music, he formed the basis of the so-called "rhythmic pattern" of the composer. In all six parts of "The Perilous Night" you can trace the effect of numerical proportions at different levels of the pattern. One of them is the "square root principle", which, in particular, determines the logic of the composition of the third piece. J. Cage uses two bar lines to seperate twelve sections of twelve bars, that is, 12 to the 2nd power. The fi rst four sections are rich in sound events, they feature different texture techniques and many tone colours in all sorts of combinations. The basic principle of development is the variation of primary elements, but no section repeats in exactly the same way. Another picture is observed in the last eight bars. Repetition here is used not at the level of elements, but at the level of sections. The fi fth section is exactly equal to the eighth, and the sixth – to the seventh, ninth and eleventh ones. Visually, this is accentuated by the traditional mark of reprise, which of course is compulsory otherwise the form is distorted. It seems that here J. Cage looks for the end of the piece, and eventually focues on the last four bars of the sixth (seventh, ninth and eleventh) sections, which become the tenth and twelfth sections respectively, and gradually fade in space. Conclusions. J. Cage’s suite "The Perilous Night" occupies an important place in his creative work. This is his fi rst large-scale work for prepared piano, which does not depend on a dance, as it has a unique dramaturgy based on refl ection of the emotional state of a person. At the same time, the cycle harmoniously combines principles of sononant modality and numerical series technique, which are typical for the composer.

Preludio

This chapter sets in motion the primary themes of the book, tracing briefly Alfred Schnittke’s compositional evolution before the Concerto Grosso no. 1, paying special attention to his Symphony no. 1 (1969–72) and his initial ideas about polystylism, as well as the works immediately preceding the Concerto Grosso no. 1, including the Piano Quintet (1972–76), Hymns (1974–79), Requiem (1975), and Moz-Art (1975–76). It also investigates the genesis, construction, and affect of the Preludio of the Concerto Grosso no. 1, focusing on its initial prepared piano chorale together with its other key motives. The chapter further discusses the interpretations of polystylism and postmodernism by such Russian writers as Svetlana Savenko and Alexander Ivashkin. Finally, the chapter sets in place the justification and format for the remainder of the book.

Kinship

WDR composers drew from several sources in creating their electronic timbral utopia, including John Cage’s early works. His compelling prepared piano pieces provided a model for the new sounds of early electronic music by Schaeffer, Stockhausen, and Eimert. Furthermore, Cage’s square-root form provided a model for Stockhausen’s and Koenig’s handling of duration in their early tape music, especially because Cage embraced a proportional approach to pitch–time relationships. Although Cage and Tudor’s 1954 European tour to Donaueschingen and Cologne was partly a scandal, the pair were valued as celebrities by power brokers in the European milieu. Cage became more of a provocateur in the later 1950s, growing distant from the younger avant-garde composers. Tudor, however, remained exceptionally important as a nodal figure in the new music network, whose prodigious and consistent performances knit together the American and European avant-garde scenes in the 1950s and 1960s.

Situations of Too Extreme Difficulty: 1951–1959

This chapter chronicles Wolff's compositional period from his entry into Harvard in 1951 to his inadvertent entry into military service in 1959. During this time, all but one of Wolff's surviving compositions were piano pieces—seven works in which he moved from Cageian gamuts and prepared piano to utterly new configurations of musical materials and composer–performer relationships, though still generally within Cageian overall forms. To write for piano—Wolff's own instrument—fostered innovation and evolution, since it relieved him of the need to manipulate instrumental timbres. At the same time, he had not only himself as a potential player, but also Cage and, more important, Cage's friend David Tudor, whose superb technical skills, severe discipline, and zeal for the newest and opaquest music had become the New York School's virtuoso ace in the hole.