Non-isochronous Metre in Music from Mali

The basic building blocks for rhythmic structure in music are widely believed to be universally confined to small-integer ratios. In particular, basic metric processes such as pulse perception are assumed to depend on the recognition and anticipation of even, categorically equivalent durations or inter-onset intervals, which are related by the ratio of 1:1 (isochrony). Correspondingly, uneven (non-isochronous) beat subdivisions are theorized as instances of expressive microtiming variation, i.e. as performance deviations from some underlying, categorically isochronous temporal structure. By contrast, ethnographic experience suggests that the periodic patterns of uneven beat subdivision timing in various styles of music from Mali themselves constitute rhythmic and metric structures. The present chapter elaborates this hypothesis and surveys a series of empirical research projects that have found evidence for it. These findings have implications for metric theory as well as for our broader understanding of how human perception relates to cultural environments. They suggest that the bias towards isochrony, which according to many accounts of rhythm and metre underlies pulse perception, is culturally specific rather than universal. Claims regarding cultural diversity in the study of music typically concern styles and meanings of performance practices. In this chapter, I will claim that basic structures of perception can vary across cultural groups too.

Music

2The defining feature of music as a cognitive function is tonality (scale structure), since rhythmic structure is a shared feature with dance and poetry. In this chapter, the author develops a 4T (tonality/timing/texture/text) model of music, which views music as a suite of coordinative features in which rhythm provides time slots for interpersonal coordination and scale structure provides pitch slots for coordination. An important topic for the study of music’s evolution is its connection with both speech and language. Music and speech share a significant number of prosodic properties. However, a unique feature of music that is not found in speech is the process by which scale types are able to convey emotional meanings. Such scale/emotion associations allow music to modulate the interpretive meaning of narrative artforms, such as film, dance, and written texts (i.e. songs).

Aspects of the treatment of the technical-expressive and interpretative means of the trumpet in the Concert Study by Alexandr Sochireanschii and Oleandra by Vladimir Slivinskii

The instrumental chamber music works by composers from the Republic of Moldova are rich and diverse, both in terms of the musical genres addressed and the instruments required, either for the ensemble or solo parts. The trumpet, an instrument with wide technicalinterpretative and expressive possibilities, offers composers an ample opportunity for harnessing its potential. The two works, which we will analyze from an interpretive point of view – “The Concert Study” for trumpet and piano (in B) by Alexandr Sokireanski (1977) and “Oleandra” for trumpet and piano (in B) by Vladimir Slivinski (1979), are part of the active repertoire of trumpeters and are of interest to researchers. They require certain execution skills and a certain level of handling the instrument, as they contain elements with a high degree of difficulty; we refer here to the rhythmic structure, the complexity of dynamic nuances, technical elements, the change of tempo during the proceeding of the musical discourse, the exploitation of the acute register of the trumpet.

Automatic Detection of Sound Repetitions in Verse: Realising the Syllabocentric Approach in the Phonotext Program

The article presents approaches to the automatic detection of sound repetitions and the measurement of sound coherence in Russian poetic text basing on the syllabocentric concept of the sound texture of the verse, which distinguishes the phonosyllabeme as its main operational unit and determines the main types of relations between the elements of repetition - equiphony and metaphony - and also allows describe the text in its unity of sound-segmental and rhythmic structure. The paper considers the linguistic prerequisites, main algorithms and methods, which form the basis of the PHONOTEXT computer program (web application), which automatically analyzes and visually forms the picture of the sound composition of the text presenting its quantitative characteristics. The basic operations of the program are described in detail, as well as the mathematical formulas used to identify the structure and carry out mathematical measurement of sound repetitions in Russian poetic speech. The article discusses the results of the programs use for the comparative study of poetry and prose, individual works and individual styles of Russian poets. In particular, the data obtained using the Phonotext program allows us to speak of a tendency towards syntagmatic consolidation of the phonosyllabeme and intensive granulation of the sound texture of the text in the individual style of Osip Mandelstam as the evidence of his striving for poetic morphologization of the elements of sound repetition, it also shows a tendency towards the use of the dominant sound theme as a means for cohesion of a complex syntactic and compositional whole, in contrast to Vladimir Nabokovs idiostyle, which is characterized by its orientation towards splitting up the elements of repetition, with a relatively chaotic interaction and spreading of consonances over the text and their low activity as a means of syntagmatic segmentation and consolidation of the text. The prospects for the development of the Phonotext program are described for identifying the relations of segment-sound and prosodic parallelism in speech (relations of equirhythmy and equiphony, including rhyme), which will provide an automatic presentation of a complete picture of the sound composition, the interaction of its main forms in the text and its further functional description.

A kinematic-acoustic analysis of gesture-speech coupling in persons with aphasia

Aphasia is a profound speech pathology hampering speech production and/or comprehension. People with Aphasia (PWA) use more manual gestures than neurotypicals. This intuitively invokes the idea of some kind of compensatory mechanism, but there is variable evidence of this gesture-boosting effect on speech processes. The status quo in gesture research with PWA is an emphasis on categorical analysis of gesture types, how often they are recruited, and whether they aid communication or speaking. However, there are increasingly louder calls for the investigation of gesture and speech as continuous entangled modes of expression. In neurotypical adults, expressive moments of gesture and speech are synchronized. It is unknown how this multimodal prosody is instantiated in PWA. In the current study we perform the first acoustic-kinematic gesture-speech analysis in persons of aphasia (Wernicke, Broca, Anomic) relative to age-matched controls, where we apply several multimodal signal processing methods (e.g., motion tracking). Specifically, we related the speech peaks (smoothed amplitude envelope change) with that of the nearest peaks in the gesture acceleration profile. We obtained that the magnitude of gesture vs. speech peaks are positively related across the groups, though more variably for PWA, and such coupling was related to less severe Aphasia-related symptoms in PWA. When comparing the temporal ordering of speech envelope versus acceleration peaks, no statistically reliable differences between controls and PWA were observed. We did however obtain when gesture kinematic peaks tended to anticipate speech peaks more, this was related to less severe aphasia-related symptoms. Finally, we show that both gesture and speech have slower quasi-rhythmic structure, indicating that next to speech, gesture is slowed down too. We conclude that future aphasia research will benefit from the study of gesture-speech interconnections.

Macht der Refrains im Codex Montpellier

Little scholarly attention was paid to the origin and rhythmic structure of the Codex Montpellier motets between the early twentieth century and the flurry of (mainly anglophone) research in the last fifteen years. The connecting thread between generations of researchers had torn and the work of Gustav Jacobsthal (1845-1912) and Yvonne Rokseth (1890-1948) have not been integrated into the state of research: Rokseth's views were forgotten after the Second World War, while Jacobsthal's results were published posthumously only in 2010. This article demonstrates the congruence of their methods and conclusions, especially regarding the influence of the refrains on the early motets, based on quotations from Jacobsthal papers and Rokseth's observations published in 1939. Furthermore it reviews the German-French interrelations in the interpretation of the early motets since the mid-nineteenth century, particularly the similarities and differences between Rokseth and representatives of the "school" of Friedrich Ludwig respectively. In addition, the article offers the first publication if a letter by Heinrich Besseler to Rokseth from 1934, as well as excerpts from her inaugural lecture at Strasbourg 1937.

Soltan Hajibeyov’s “Caravan” Symphonic Poem

The article considers some features of the symphonic poem “Caravan” by the outstanding Azerbaijani composer Sultan Hajibeyov, studied the style of the work, the principles of symphonic development, methods used in orchestration. In the symphonic poem “Caravan”, a connection with national origins is clearly manifested. The improvisational principle inherent in mugham, the organic combination of melodic developmental techniques with symphonic development, the use of variable and variational development, as well as the creative use of national frets – all this arises from national music. The article deals with some features of the symphonic poem “Caravan” by the outstanding Azerbaijani composer Soltan Hajibeyov as a program work, examines the style of the work, the principles of symphonic development, and the methods used in orchestration. The purpose of the research is to study a number of features of the composer’s individual creative style in S. Hajibeyov’s symphonic poem “Caravan”. The disclosure of programming in the work, the consistent provision of epic drama in the genre of a single-part symphonic sketch, the disclosure of the connection of this feature with the mugham genre are the main points of the research. The research is based on the disclosure of the Eastern nature image through its manifestation mainly in a calm lyrical aspect and at the same time in an internal movement. The research methodology is based on a comprehensive generalization of the research of Azerbaijani and Russian musicologists in the genre of symphonic sketch based on musical-analytical, theoretical and historical analysis. Scientific novelty of the research. For the first time in the framework of Azerbaijani music science, the figurative content and orchestral features of S. Hajibeyov’s symphonic poem “Caravan” were considered from the perspective of oriental art. At the same time, based on the analysis, certain comparisons were made with the symphonic poem “In the Steppes of Central Asia” by the Russian composer A. Borodin, and the “Caravan” composition was studied in details. Conclusions. The symphonic poem genre is important in Azerbaijani music, and many interesting examples have been created in this area. The emergence and development of the symphonic poem genre in Azerbaijani music was associated with the emergence of interest and need for samples of a single genre. Thus, in Azerbaijani music, the symphonic poem genre prevails among one-act works, and this genre originated even earlier than the genre of the national symphony. Even though the symphonic poem genre in Azerbaijani music continues the traditions of the Russian School of composition, it is based on national musical intonations. Thus, the rhythmic structure of works, artistic content, and textured form is determined by national characteristics. From this point of view, S. Hajibeyov’s “Caravan” symphonic poem is the most striking example of this genre in Azerbaijani music. At the same time, the unique orchestration, texture, and use of sound timbres of instruments opened a new page in the field of National Symphony music. In particular, the use of intonations of mugham, the Azerbaijani oral traditional musical genre, brought originality to this work.

THE CONCEPT OF «NIGHTINGALE» AND MENTAL FATE OF UKRAINIAN PEOPLE

The article deals with the nature of the concept of «nightingale» in Ukrainian folk oral poetry, in particular in lyrical songs, love songs. «Nightingale» is considered as a traditional symbolized object of Ukrainian poetic worldview, as a «key» character in the context of the national picture of the world; it is emphasized that in the XXI century the processes of integration of sciences are intensified; the similarity of the rhythmic structure of nightingale song and human speech is explained. For this purpose, the data from recent studies by ornithologists have been used. Attention is drawn to the fact that nightingale strengthens the mood of people in love with his singing. In love songs, man and bird sound in unison, thus creating a state of happy heavenly harmony – a special interaction of man with the environment. The data of ornithologists’ researches on the genetic connection of man with the sounds made by birds are given. An analogy is made between the creative potential of man and nightingale, between their repertoires, the sequence of works performing, their architectonics «introduction – refrain». An attempt to scientifically comprehend the impact of nightingales on humans and their health is made. It is concluded that the concept of «Nightingale» in Ukrainian folk oral poetry belongs to the «key» invariant characters-symbols and is an important component of Ukrainian national view of the world. The character of the nightingale is pervasive in Ukrainian folk songs about love. The voice of a bird in the minds of Ukrainians is associated with strong emotions: joy, love, sadness, grief, despair and others.