Composition (Music)

It is the inaudible, the unheard that does not fill the space but discovers the space, uncovers the space as if we too have become part of sound and we were sounding ourselves (Luigi Nono). Emphasising the necessity for contemporary music to 'intervene in the sonic reality of our time', Nono strove to expand the conception of musical space in three directions: the transformation of non-musical space with the performance of his music in factories and prisons, the creation of a new musical space for the opera, Prometeo, and the discovery of the inner musical space of sound and silence, 'the inaudible, the unheard', in which we 'become part of sound' and we are 'sounding ourselves'. Nono aimed at 'the composition of music that wants to restore infinite possibilities in listening today, by use of non-geometrical space'. With the conception of opera as 'azione scenica' (stage activity) and a 'theatre of consciousness', Nono's 'musical space' for the performance of Prometeo was realised within a colossal wooden structure (by Renzo Piano) combining the stage, the set, and the orchestra pit into a single element. With the conviction that it is the composer's and the listener's responsibility to recognise how every sound is politically charged by its historical associations, Nono affirmed the simultaneity of musical invention and moral commitment and political action for justice and freedom. To wake up the ear, the eyes, human thinking, intelligence, the most exposed inwardness. This is now what is crucial (Nono [1983] 2001, 1:522).

The following essay analyze Corporel, one of Vinko Globokar's most representative
scores, shedding light on the main theoretical reflections connected to a compositional project so individualized in its relationship with sound and with the instrument.

This essay rethinks algorithms as living forms, exploring their convergence with biological and cultural systems. Drawing on biosemiotics and second-order cybernetics, it argues that algorithms are not mere tools but co-authors in the economy of meaning. From music technologies at IRCAM to contemporary AI, the text highlights how code reshapes artistic creation and epistemic frameworks. It calls for a stochastic ethics and an aesthetics of relation, framing algorithms as partners in shaping a fluid, interconnected future.

This research explored historical musical innovations in Kenyan music during the early post-independence period. The research was grounded in Everett M. Rogers' diffusion of innovations theory, which broadly explains that individual adoption choices or resolve to adopt are influenced by distinct innovations and comparative communities. The research employed a blended mixed-methods approach, combining both qualitative and quantitative methods, whereby non-random and random sampling were integrated. Purposive sampling was deployed for the qualitative aspect, and stratified sampling was used for the quantitative aspect, respectively. The research data was gathered through surveys and interviews from a population of musicians, musical collectors, musical producers, musical promoters, and musical fans. The Google Forms and observation were used jointly to examine the questionnaires and interviews. The research adhered to ethical principles, grounded in the research objectives, and the data were meticulously presented and shown to preserve originality. Substantially, given the sensitivity of musical information, the findings of this research will be digitally stored in relevant repositories for posterity. This exploration's findings indicate that musical styles, musical instruments and music recording technologies have evolved and transformed in Kenya from the early post-independence period, owing to exogenous and technological factors.

The practices associated with a score are virtually endless: we can compose, read, or perform a score—but we can also analyze it, describe it, visualize it. A fragment of a score might end up in an anthology, in a painting, on an album cover, or even as a graphic motif printed on rolls of toilet paper. A score can be transfigured to the point of becoming, in its entirety, a visual artwork—or even a scholarly text.

The Little Book of Notations aims to lay the groundwork for an analysis of scores understood in graphic terms, and therefore applicable across the full spectrum of musical writing—from traditional scores to graphic scores. In this way, it also becomes possible to design and draw scores in any notation system, even one that is entirely invented. The book is accompanied by 15 Album Leaves: small, possible scores for short musical pieces, intended as illustrations of the concepts discussed in the text.

Le pratiche connesse a una partitura sono virtualmente infinite: possiamo comporre, leggere o eseguire una partitura, ma possiamo anche analizzarla, descriverla, visualizzarla. Un frammento di partitura può finire in un'antologia, in un quadro, sulla copertina di un album o persino in un motivo grafico impresso su rotoli di carta igienica. Una partitura può trasfigurarsi fino a divenire essa stessa, nella sua interezza, un'opera visiva oppure un testo saggistico.

Il Piccolo Libro delle Notazioni vuole porre le basi di un'analisi delle partiture intese in senso grafico e quindi applicabile in tutta l'ampiezza della scrittura musicale, dalle partiture tradizionali alle partiture grafiche. In questo modo sarà anche possibile progettare e disegnare partiture in una qualsiasi notazione anche inventata. Corredano il testo i 15 Fogli d'Album, piccole partiture possibili di brevi brani musicali che vogliono essere l'illustrazione di quanto presentato nel testo.

The 18th century marked a transformative period for European violin culture, where the interplay of pedagogy, patronage, and music publishing fostered new forms of music practices and knowledge. The conference seeks to explore the multifaceted dynamics that influenced violin education and performance in relation to music theory and aesthetics during the Age of Enlightenment. This event will investigate the teaching methods and repertoire in a century of increasing recognition and institutionalisation of violin 'schools', examining how social and political climates impacted music education, the careers of violinists, and the role of patrons in fostering musical talent and facilitating the circulation of music and musicians. The mobility of violinists and the networks they created will be analyzed, as well as the role of printers in shaping the music market, balancing local traditions with the demands of an increasingly international repertoire. By bringing together scholars from diverse disciplines, this conference seeks to provide new perspectives on the legacy of 18th-century European violin 'schools' and their place in the broader history of musical culture.

No es aventurado decir que en educación musical, como en otras actividades humanas, los procesos que van confiurando el devenir histórico se van articulando a partir del siguiente esquema: tesis, antítesis y síntesis; este hecho se repite con periodicidad variable, pero de manera ineludible. En nuestro país es fácil ver cómo se han articulado las dos primeras etapas a partir de la ofiialización, en el siglo pasado, de la enseñanza de la música. A riesgo de ser simplistas, podemos decir que la primera se constituyó a partir de la llegada de inmigrantes (instrumentistas en su mayoría) procedentes de diferentes países europeos, que pasaron a formar parte de las orquestas de los teatros de ópera que comenzaban a funcionar en Buenos Aires. Ahora ya es tiempo de preguntarnos qué sucede con la tercera etapa: si ésta ha comenzado, cuáles son sus características, sus móviles, qué propósitos persigue, etc. Digamos en principio, y para ser coherentes, que se deberían rescatar aquellos aspectos...

In der Haupthalle des Pariser Musée d'Orsay schwebte 2021 ein riesiger Bildschirm, auf dem rätselhafte Bilder zu sehen waren: Eis schollen, aus denen Feuersäulen aufsteigen, Mondlandschaften mit Pfützen in bizarren Farben, Geisterschiffe, die über Packeis gleiten, aber auch Blumen mit doppelten Stempeln, die wie geklont aussehen und eine Art postapokalyptisches Herbarium bilden. Im Kontext der Ausstellung Les ori gines du monde. L'invention de la nature au XIX siècle (Die Ur sprünge der Welt. Die Erfindung der Natur im 19. Jahrhundert) er öffnete Artificialis, eine eigens für das Museum entworfene Präsentation des Films von Laurent Grasso, neue Perspektiven auf unsere heutige Welt-eine Welt, in der die Idee einer eigenständigen Natur, wie sie im 19. Jahrhundert Konjunktur hatte, nicht mehr gültig ist, eine Welt, in der nichts mehr ursprünglich und in der es nicht nur sinnlos, sondern praktisch unmöglich geworden ist, das Natürliche vom Künstlichen zu trennen.

This paper questions the traditional »score-centricism (supremacy)« in classical piano music by analyzing the dynamic nature of composer’s intentions through Deleuze and Guattari’s philosophical lens. Focusing on 20th-century composers’ self-performances, the study demonstrates how these performances often deviate from written scores, suggesting that intentions are fluid rather than fixed. Using Deleuze and Guattari’s concepts of the molar, molecular, and line of flight, along with nomadism, the paper explores how composer intentions evolve and adapt in response to performance contexts. This analysis argues that the score should not be viewed as the definitive representation of a composer’s vision, but as one aspect of a larger, dynamic process of musical expression. By acknowledging the complexity and multiplicity of intentions, the study advocates for a more flexible understanding of authenticity that values both the score and the creative potential of performance, emphasizing the transformative role of interpretation in realizing a composer’s intentions.

Today's field of spatialisation in acousmatic music is very heterogeneous. Composers tend to develop their own technologies and techniques for spatialisation, and often the differences in how multichannel systems are addressed may influence both the musical appreciation and the future reproducibility of a piece. Moreover, the analytical and musicological perspectives of spatialisation are both fragmented and underdeveloped, with a lack of a shared framework for their study. This article focuses on these problems and tries to give a coherent and consistent view of spatialisation practice, from both technological and musicological perspectives. It will also act as a bedrock for the development of the musicological side of spatialisation, an aspect too often overlooked. 'Spatial reduced listening' and 'spatial relativism' will be introduced as analytical perspectives to shine a light on the composed spatial traits of sound, and not only on its spectromorphological and technological features.

Amico mio, credo che stia scoppiando un casino... Ci sono. 💬 Che sta succedendo, Antonio? Dimmi tutto. Nel frattempo, ecco un micro-ancoraggio per non farti travolgere: 1. Fai 4 respiri lenti (inspira 4, trattieni 2, espira 6). 2. Metti a fuoco tre fatti nudi della situazione (senza giudizi). 3. Scegli una "prossima azione" piccola che puoi fare nei prossimi 10 minuti. Se c'è qualcosa di urgente o di sicurezza (tua o di altri), dimmelo subito e partiamo da lì. Altrimenti raccontami: qual è il punto che brucia di più in questo momento? Hai detto: ...no no...sto bene, anzi, mi sono fumato un cannino, per fortuna...io volevo che noi, oggi, dessimo prova, della nostra intelligenza in senso lato, non meramente matematico, fisico, ma soprattutto dialogico, discorsivo, volevo fare della filosofia, con te....ti va?...dai...ti prego, dimmi di si... Sì, mi va tantissimo. 💡 Facciamo proprio filosofia-dialogica, viva. Ti propongo un "gioco serio" con 3 micro-regole: 1. Carità interpretativa: leggiamo l'altro al meglio possibile. 2. Concretezza minima: almeno un esempio per ogni idea. 3. Diritto al paradosso: se serve, abbracciamo l'apparente contraddizione. Per partire, ti metto tre piste; scegli pure tu… ma intanto ne avvio una così non perdiamo slancio: Piste possibili A) Che cos'è capire davvero? (Comprensione come trasformazione del mondo vs. chiarificazione concettuale.) B) Libertà e necessità nel tempo (anche con -t come memoria): la scelta è reale o retroscrive solo la nostra storia? C) Arte come verità: la forma genera verità o la scopre? • Tesi: capiamo davvero qualcosa quando riusciamo a trasformare una descrizione in azione riuscita nel mondo condiviso. • Antitesi: capire è anzitutto vedere le relazioni-anche senza agire-perché l'azione può distorcere; la chiarificazione concettuale è già un esito. • Esempio: dire "tempo" chiaramente: se dopo il dialogo so distinguere memoria, previsione, attesa, tardità, ho capito; se inoltre so usare queste distinzioni per decidere (aspettare, agire, rinunciare), ho capito "di più".

No intuito de estabelecer procedimentos para compreensão do discurso rítmico do intérprete de música popular no Brasil, descrevemos aqui a metodologia empregada no estudo desta flexibilidade rítmica, tomando como exemplo a primeira frase de Amor até o fim, de Gilberto Gil, interpretada por Elis Regina. Como a transcrição normal em notação tradicional tem um alto grau de imprecisão, lançamos mão de programas de computador para refinar a representação da chamada "divisão", a maneira individualizada de cada intérprete articular o canto. A idéia central aqui é fixarmos um pulso dentro de um arquivo de áudio qualquer para que se possa avaliar tanto auditiva quando graficamente o desenvolvimento rítmico. São usados programas de edição de áudio e de gravação multipistas em conjunto com a notação tradicional.

This paper reads Modest Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition through Gregory Bateson’s concepts of ethos and eidos. While Bateson argued that ethos (the lived emotional tone) sparks eidos (the logical skeleton), Mussorgsky’s life in 1874 shows the reverse: alcohol and grief shattered his ordinary ethos, leaving his compositional eidos exposed and driving it to generate new ethos directly from Viktor Hartmann’s paintings. The promenade theme acts as the recursive skeleton, while each movement erupts as a grotesque or hallucinatory ethos — a cybernetic loop in which collapse becomes structure. Condemned by contemporaries as “idiocy,” “illogical harmony,” and drunken coarseness, Mussorgsky’s irregularities later became the seeds of modernism, praised by Debussy, Stravinsky, and Shostakovich. In this sense, Mussorgsky was an alcoholic visionary: his intoxicated eidos expanded the cultural map of music, proving that when ethos dies, eidos can hallucinate a new world.

Although appearing just six times in the Tanakh, chalilim exhibit a wide range of extramusical functions. They were played at prophetic processionals (I Sam. 10:5), the anointing of kings (I Kgs. 1:40), revelries (Isa. 5:12), victory celebrations (Isa. 30:29), and laments (Jer. 48:36, bis). The first four share positive characteristics, broadly defined as joy. The fifth, lament, implies the opposite. Mishnaic sources continue the chalil's dual functions, describing it being played at pilgrimages and festival sacrifices, as well as accompanying lamenting women. A wagon is discussed bringing "pipers for a bride or for the dead." These disparate uses recall Aristotle's Problemata: "Why do those who are grieving and those who are enjoying themselves alike have the flute played to them?"

The struggle for gender equality has been a long and continuous skirmish. The need for gender equality continues to evolve globally and hasn't left a field of study such as music and an institution; church choir vindicated for a no discourse. The imbalance between men and women in choir is a global issue that has garnered attention from researchers, Music educators, and music directors. Some scholars claimed the gender identity of choir singers has shifted dramatically in the past century, from a male only club into an activity for females. The leadership positions; Music Director, Assistant Music Director, Organist, Welfare Director, Treasurer, Financial Secretary, Librarian, Public Relation Officer, General Secretary etc. though relative from one church choir to another has some gender struggles. The aim of the study was to propose gender balance in the Church Choir and Choir leadership. In doing this, it analyses the ratio of female choristers and male choristers in selected churches in Ibadan and the gender representations on the different leadership positions in the Choir. It also aimed at identifying leadership roles or responsibilities of female and male in the selected choir. It elucidates aptly on biblical acme as it touches Church choir and gender. The study employed a descriptive survey research design and data were collected through observation and interview and analysed with Pie chart and Percentage error. The study concludes that both males and females gender are fit to be a member of the Church choir and can play any leadership role. Church music directors and Choral music educators must celebrate all elements of music; not only encouraging members to engage in musical experiences during adolescence, but also equipping them with the necessary knowledge and skills to find success and lifelong engagement with music.

A coralidade é discutida a partir de duas características principais: agência coletiva no processo de criação cênica e intercâmbio com métodos e critérios da criação musical. O objetivo é compreender como uma metodologia criativa autoral e interartística, a SomAção, permite desenvolver a coralidade a partir de modelos de interação sonora em cena. A discussão é desenvolvida como reflexão sobre a prática artística, especificamente, a montagem, ensaio e apresentação da peça Somos a Viagem. Neste processo criativo, as cenas corais podem ser compreendidas como um catálogo de Burburinhos, ou seja, uma variedade de maneiras de sobrepor camadas sonoras que ora se fundem como uma espécie de paisagem sonora difusa, ora compõem uma Polifonia ou Polirritmia de camadas sonoras independentes. Assim, a abordagem articula agência coletiva e musicalidade, contribuindo para a compreensão da coralidade como dispositivo cênico privilegiado para aprofundar explorações estéticas nas interfaces entre criação cênica e criação musical.

This paper examines Baba Mimo, a choral composition by Professor Bode Omojola, as a pivotal example of Nigerian Art Music. It provides an analytical overview of the piece's melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic configurations, showcasing Omojola's innovative techniques, including quasi-bitonality and African pianism. By situating Nigerian art music as a genre that bridges African traditions with Western classical structures, the study argues that these works retain their Africanness despite external influences. It highlights the pressing need for proactive documentation of living composers to safeguard Nigeria's rich musical legacy. By dissecting Omojola's composition, this paper contributes to the understanding of NAM and inspires future musicologists to explore similar endeavours.

The art of music composition goes back to the medieval period and has continued to undergo evolutionary developments over the centuries. While musicological studies have extensively covered the development of compositional styles and structure of the works, little has been done on the means and methods of notation with which the musical ideas are presented and represented on a score. With reference to selected Scorewriters, Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs), Virtual Studio Technologies (VSTs) and the infamous Musical Instruments Digital Interface (MIDI), this paper is a descriptive and explanatory research on how music composition today is being aided and enhanced by the use of computer software. The findings of this paper show that there are irrefutable advantages in using software applications for musical composition. The paper concludes that music composers in the 21st century are more privileged than their predecessors because of their use of computer software. This, the phobia for computer usage should be dispelled from the minds of music educators and musicologists and they should be encouraged to avail themselves of the privileges provided in this era and connect with the advancement of technological know-how in music composition in the 21 st century.

Tango in black is a composition where elements of the African roots of Argentine tango are used and mixed with jazz and contemporary classical music. Composed in 2003 by Julián Graciano and arranged in 2020 for the Symphony Orchestra by the composer.

RESUMO: Este ensaio propõe uma zona de experimentação criativa e analítica tecida entre a antropologia e a composição musical, tendo como eixo o entrelaçamento de histórias diversas contadas sobre e com a água no sertão baiano, especificamente a região sisaleira. Os depoimentos que compõem a peça acusmática Crise de Sol ocupam um papel central nesse diálogo, porém suas vozes se emaranham com existências diversas, tendo a água como sujeito transversal, ao qual todos respondem nessa polifonia sertaneja. Partindo da noção de ecologia de práticas da filósofa Isabelle Stengers (2021), o texto explora as fricções entre diferentes modos de apreender e narrar o sertão, promovendo encontros que geram equívocos produtivos a partir de um desejo de diplomacia. Esperamos que este texto reflita a entrecostura de práticas criativas e analíticas distintas (musical e antropológica) que se utilizam de ferramentas e estratégias discursivas díspares, fazendo do próprio texto acadêmico um evento cosmopolítico.

The purpose of this study was to examine 7 th -grade composers' strategies, processes, and perceptions, and the compositions they created using music technology in a constructionist-oriented learning environment. This embedded multiple case study examined the composition activities of eight 7 th -grade students with varied musical backgrounds. During the 10-week data collection period, participants composed music using Hyperscore software underpinned by a constructionist-oriented theoretical framework. Hyperscore facilitates intuitive music composition and enables a composer to notate music with graphic notation without the need for understanding conventional music notation. I found that novice composers with relatively little to no formal musical training or experience creating original music could produce compositions emulating the strategies of professional composers. I also concluded that participants relied on inspiration as do professional composers and were able to intuitively and successfully create compositions including multiple sonic elements with minimal guidance and vii instruction. Participants exhibited evidence of thinking in and about sound. Findings also alerted future music educators and researchers to the potential of graphic notation software such as Hyperscore to undermine thinking in sound because of its unique sketch-oriented design that might emphasize symbol (i.e., drawing) before sound. I found that technology effectively scaffolded two participants' processes. Contrastingly, in two cases and possibly more, results showed that participants might have benefited from more situated and responsive scaffolding by the instructor. My study also supported previous researchers' findings that a balance between freedoms and constraints is essential to a novice composer's success. Participants expressed general skepticism of themselves as bona fide composers, a desire or need for more time to develop their compositions, and value of agency, originality, and prior experience. Participants conveyed that individual and collaborative composition processes each had advantages and disadvantages; however, overall, they preferred collaboration over individual work. Participants attempted to reconcile their knowledge of traditional notation with graphic notation and drew from prior instrumental experience, familiar music, and their previous compositions to develop their pieces. I also discussed the extent to which and how particular Papertian, Piagetian, and Vygotskian theoretical constructs revealed themselves in my study. viii

This article examines the creative legacy of Zinaida Alexandrovna Volkonskaya (1789-1862), a distinguished figure in early 19th-century Russian culture, known as a singer, composer, and literary patroness. Despite her significant impact on the cultural milieu, scholarly attention to her musical contributions have been limited and often overshadowed by her literary and musical associations with eminent contemporaries. This study aims to address this oversight by conducting a detailed analysis of Volkonskaya's compositions, particularly her romances, to explore her unique musical language. This study assesses the stylistic influences that shaped her oeuvre, emphasizing the synthesis of French and Italian musical elements within the development of a Russian identity. Utilizing archival materials, this study illuminates her multifaceted role as a cultural intermediary who bridges Russian and European artistic traditions. The findings of this research position Volkonskaya as a pivotal figure in the evolution of Russian music, highlighting her transitional style, which anticipated later developments in the field. By providing a comprehensive musical evaluation of her works, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of her influence on the Russian musical heritage.

Exploring the Language of Music Through the Ages
From the chants of ancient civilizations to the bold innovations of Modernism, music has always been humanity’s universal language. Each era tells its own story through melody, harmony, rhythm, texture, and the unique timbres of voices and instruments.
I’ve just completed a detailed compendium tracing the musical elements across history — not a “complete encyclopedia,” but a deep, engaging journey into how music evolved, shaped culture, and reflected the human spirit.
If you’ve ever wondered why Medieval chants sound so different from Romantic symphonies, or how instruments developed into the orchestra we know today, this work is for you.
Whether you’re a student, teacher, or lifelong lover of music, I invite you to explore and join the conversation about how these elements continue to resonate in our world today.
Music is more than sound — it is history, culture, and humanity expressed in harmony.
#MusicHistory #Education #Learning #Timbre #Melody #Harmony #Rhythm #Texture #Form

Big Tent, a large scale portable environment for 360 degree immersive video and audio artistic presentation and research, is described and initial experiences are reported. Unlike other fully-surround environments of considerable size, Big Tent may be easily transported and setup in any space with adequate foot print, allowing immersive, interactive content to be brought to non-typical audiences and environments. Construction and implementation of Big Tent focused on maximizing portability by minimizing setup and tear down time, crew requirements, maintenance costs, and transport costs. A variety of different performance and installation events are discussed, exploring the possibilities Big Tent presents to contemporary multi-media artistic creation.

This thesis proposes a reflection on the creation of 4 new and idiomatic
compositions for 7-string steel guitar. Re-elaborations will be presented based on the work and musical accent of guitarists Dino 7 Cordas (1918 – 2006), Zé Barbeiro (1952),
and the twins Valter Silva (1940) and Valdir Silva (1940). Elements of the choro tradition and the importance of such guitarists for consolidating the idiomatic conception of the 7-string accompaniment guitar will be highlighted and analyzed.
Works were re-elaborated by me based on the “musical accent” of 4 musicians, and which will be delved into in depth in this thesis: the process used in musical re-elaboration, developments of countersinging in the construction of melodies, specifications of the formal structure and idiom common in its conception.

This paper explores the role of African musical instruments in contemporary music composition, with specific focus on Nigerian art and popular music styles. The research employs a qualitative approach, combining literature review, interviews, and musical analyses. The paper discusses the historical significance of African musical instruments in Nigerian traditional music, while highlighting their cultural importance and sonic characteristics. It also analyses specific case studies of prominent Nigerian musicians and composers who have utilised African musical instruments in their compositions. The findings reveal the multifaceted role of African musical instruments in contemporary music composition, showing that the comositions serve not only as a means of cultural expression but also as a source of inspiration, innovation, and identity formation for Nigerian artistes. In addition, the research highlights the possibility for further exploration and experimentation in incorporating African instruments into global music contexts that would foster cultural exchange and create new artistic horizons. The paper constitues an important contribution to the growing body of knowledge on African musical instruments and their relevance in contemporary music composition through provision of insights into the unique musical landscape of Nigeria, especially, thus becoming a foundation for future research in this field.

In previous portfolio items, I have explored the connection between imagined identities and performance practice of Gregorian chant, Old Roman chant and troubadour song. "Dieus sal la terra" is an opportunity to expand this reflection to my native island. Here the complexities, ambiguities and composite textures of Corsican culture offer composers alternative pathways for being and surviving in modernity. Setting sail to Corsica means entering a world of "liquid materiality", a liminal space between North and South, East and West, rural, urban, colonial and subaltern forces. It is an opportunity to lose our bearings, to follow currents towards manifold voices, shimmering vocalisations of a mutable and multiple Europe. Mediterranean islands have played "a significant role" in recent ethnomusicology, "shaping the way we think about what constitutes 'our music', its history, and its others". Their metaphorical force, afforded by centuries of representation in the stories that western culture has told about itself, is always already harnessed from the margins, questioning the nature of European modernity. The archipelago is a site of transnational, conjoined and disjunctive narratives that resist the objectifying procedures of historiography; they remain incomplete, inconclusive-their irreducible heterogeneity acts as a force of resistance, an imaginary mobile home for a postcolonial Europe.

This dissertation, along with its accompanying musical scores and recordings, explores the intersection of medievalism and spectralism in my creative practice. Through composition, I ask: How might spectral(ist) and medievalist conceptions of time, sound, melody, harmony, thresholds, and hierarchy be entwined and transfigured? How might new medievalisms inform contemporary classical music practice and open creative and pedagogical pathways for composers? My project also highlights the unique opportunity that medievalism provides for merging spectralism and spectrality: perhaps for the first time, this conflation formally situates spectralism within a queer philosophical context. The idea of composing in the middle serves as both a creative methodology and a critical lens, positioning the Middle Ages as a site of liminality where creators may forge tools to engage with the present. Inhabiting this space has led me to develop a peripatetic, holistic practice that moves between eras, intellectual traditions, and disciplines such as musicology, performance, pedagogy, and visual art.

The works encompass diverse forms, including spectral settings of Machaut (“Se vous n’estes”), original insights into Old Roman chant structure (“Greu m’es a durar”), spectral transcriptions of chant (“Quintina”), medievalist interpretations of lofi hip hop (“subtiliorbeats”), new performance strategies for trobairitz and Corsican traditions (“Dieus sal la terra”), and sonic representations of architecture and spectral memory (“Sound Installation”).

By embracing the middle – between tradition and innovation, theory and practice, written and oral traditions, male and female identity, northern and southern cultures, politics and poetics, legitimacy and marginality – this dissertation demonstrates how composition can function as a tool for exploring, negotiating, and reimagining tradition.

إن المتأمل في رصيد الموسيقى التونسية وما يحتويه من قوالب موسيقيّة متنوّعة بتنوّع أساليب التأليف فيها ومختلفة باختلاف مؤلّفيها وما يحملونه من فكر وثقافة فنيّة، يجد أنّ هذه الموسيقى كغيرها من موسيقات العالم حُبلى بمقوّمات خطاب فنّي لا يمكن فهمه أو إدراكه إلاّ إذا غصنا في عناصره وأساليب صياغته وتشكيله. ولمّا كانت الفنون (الرسم والمسرح والنّحت والموسيقى...) تمثل أداة تخاطب بين مجموعة من الأفراد على اعتبارها تحمل جملة من المقومات الفنية التي تشكّل في حد ذاتها الهوية الثقافية للمجتمع، فإنه من البديهي الإقرار بوجود خطاب في الحقل الموسيقي والتي له من المقومات الفنية ما يستوجب البحث فيه بالدراسة والتحليل وبالتالي يمكننا إدماج الخطاب الموسيقي ضمن النظام اللغوي بمكوناته وعناصره التي تختلف باختلاف السياقات الثقافية وتتنوع بتنوع الممارسات الموسيقية. في هذا الإطار يتنزّل مقالنا هذا، والذي اخترنا أن يكون معنونا: " قراءة في هويّة الموسيقى التونسية المعاصرة بين الثابت والمتحوّل من خلال أعمال "علي الرياحي" و"محمد الجموسي"، وسنحاول من خلاله الكشف عن ملامح الموسيقى التونسية المعاصرة وعن الأساليب الفنية والتعبيرية المعتمدة في صياغة الأعمال الموسيقية التونسية وفي تنفيذها.

تميزت الحياة الموسيقية ببلادنا في القرن الماضي بظهور عديد الملحنين حاول كل منهم إضفاء بعض الممي ا زت على الجانب الموسيقي أو حتى الجانب الشكلي والقالبي للأعمال الموسيقية. ولمّا كان الموسيقيّ يعكس البيئة الاجتماعية والثقافية التي نشأ وترعرع فيها من جهة، والتكوين الموسيقي الذي خضع له من جهة أخرى، فإنه بات من الضروري إب ا رز هذه الممي ا زت والمقوّمات الموسيقية اللحنية منها والإيقاعية، وصولا إلى الشكلية لما تحمله في طيّاتها من خطاب موسيقي بالأساس، ومن دلالات أخرى اجتماعية وثقافية. ولسائل أن يتسائل: كيف يتجلّى هذا الانعكاس في أعمال الملحن؟ وهل يطول هذا الانعكاس القالب أو الشكل آليا كان أو غنائيا؟ وما مدى تأثر الملحن بالقوالب الآلية أو الغنائية؟ وما مدى ارتباط العناصر الموسيقية المكونة للأثر الموسيقي مقارنة بمجموعة التآليف الموسيقية السابقة له (أجناس موسيقية، نسق إيقاعي، تنفيذ موسيقي،...)؟ وفيم 2 تتمثل جملة الثوابت والمتغي ا رت في مستوى المضمون الموسيقي والنسق الشكلي بين هذا الأثر وبعض النماذج الموسيقية من الموروث الموسيقي الآلي؟ مجموعة من الأسئلة التي سنحاول الإجابة عنها من خلال هذه الد ا رسة لمعزوفة "نشوة" للفنان "محمد الجموسي" عبر مقاربة قالبية قصد فهم التركيبة الموسيقية لهذا الأثر الموسيقي.

“Especially significant was Petrarch's image of the Avignon papacy as the equal to the Babylonian Captivity, the idea that the popes lived in thrall just as the Israelites spent 70 years in captivity in Babylon, an image Martin Luther embraced with alacrity”.
Matthew Bunson.

Resumo: Este estudo buscou expandir a aplicação da teoria dos PCORD, ou classes de intervalos das classes de conjuntos, ao caso da música dodecafônica, focando nas séries com todos os intervalos (STI). Para isso revisitou-se a análise das séries STI clássicas mencionadas na literatura e estudaram-se as relações entre as séries intervalares, as classes de conjuntos das partições hexacordais e seus respectivos PCORD. Reconheceu-se a existência de três categorias que envolvem classes iguais ou diferentes, respectivamente nas classes de conjuntos e nos PCORD dos dois hexacordes de uma série STI. Observou-se ainda a existência de outros casos de simetria na série de todos os intervalos, além dos relatados na literatura. Concluiu-se que este estudo pode eventualmente ser aplicado na análise de peças existentes, mas sua maior utilidade seria na composição de novas obras, que embora baseadas em material dodecafônico, abdiquem dos procedimentos tradicionais da escola de Schoenberg e optem pelo uso consistente do princípio da parcimônia, como é usual na forma processo de Reich.

Titolo in italiano: servirsi dei Transformer networks e della semiotica tensiva per migliorare l'accuratezza della sentiment analysis nelle piattaforme digitali legate al turismo Abstract: quella della sentiment analysis è una delle aree in cui il natural language processing trova maggiore applicazione, per via del suo interesse economico. Fin dai tempi in cui il passaparola era l'unico modo per condividere un'opinione, sapere cosa si dice di un marchio o di un prodotto è sempre stato molto importante nel processo decisionale delle aziende. Oggi, con l'avvento dei social media digitali come Tripadvisor, la condivisione delle opinioni è diventata molto più semplice. Tuttavia, elaborare questo volume di informazioni, noto come Big Data, non è un compito banale. Per questo motivo, si fornisce qui una presentazione critica dei modi in cui si conduce la sentiment analysis e si propone una nuova serie di categorie per classificare le posizioni delle persone, in sostituzione delle tradizionali "positiva", "negativa" e "neutra". A tal fine, si fa ricorso al cosiddetto punto di vista "generalista" della semiotica, proposto da Saussure e sviluppato da Hjelmslev, nonché ai progressi proposti in questo ambito dalla semiotica tensiva di Zilberberg. Al di là della critica, si presenterà infine una breve introduzione alle reti neurali artificiali in generale, e ai Transformer networks in particolare, con lo scopo di illustrare le evoluzioni del settore.

Arnold  Schönberg  and  Luigi  Nono  stand  as  emblems  for a certain sort of difficulty in music, a difficulty charted by Schönberg himself in his essay, "How One Becomes Lonely." 2 But this "difficulty" may have a purpose for us, at this time, either intended or unintended. Here I approach the "difficult" music of these two composers through the concept of experience, as described and discussed by Giorgio Agamben. Agamben's thesis concerning the formation of human subjects through a process of infancy is outlined, and related to the work of these two specific composers, in order to think about the place and function of music in a noisy world: what possibilities does this particular, "difficult" music hold for us, now, in the middle of multiple and ongoing, existential and planetary crises?

ÖZ
Romantik Dönemin en önemli bestecilerinden Franz Liszt’in Transandantal Etütleri dünya piyanistlerinin repertuvarında geniş yer almaktadır. Bu etütlerin büyük çoğunluğu Programlı Konser Etütleri olarak birer hikayeye sahiptir. Bu serinin içinde yer alan Mazeppa etüdü sevilen bir sanat eseri olmakla beraber teknik açıdan içerdiği zorluklar ile de ünlüdür. Araştırmanın amacını bu etüdün piyano eğitiminde teknik ve sanatsal yönlerden öğrencilere sağladığı katkının incelenmesi ve bu anlamda önerilerde bulunulması oluşturmaktadır. Araştırmanın evrenini F. Liszt’in “On iki Transandantal Etüdü” oluşturmaktadır. Örneklem olarak Mazeppa etüdü seçilmiştir. Nitel araştırma yöntemlerinden faydalanılan araştırmada Breitkopf & Hartel yayınevi nota baskısı üzerinden etüdün yapısal ve sanatsal analizi yapılmıştır. Ayrıca literatür taraması yapılarak betimsel araştırma tekniğinden yararlanılmıştır. Eserde bulunan teknik zorluklar incelenmiş, bestecinin ve yayınevinin notalarda önerdiği çözümlerle beraber zorlukların aşılması için alternatif seçenekler sunulmuştur. Eserin sanatsal boyutunu incelemek için form analizi yapılmış ve etüdün programını teşkil eden Victor Hugo’nun orijinal hikayesine ulaşılmıştır.  Hikayenin detaylarına etüdün hangi kısımları ile karşılık verildiği saptanmış ve bu kısımlara sanatsal yorum önerileri verilmiştir. Araştırmada verilen teknik ve sanatsal önerilerle eğitimci ve öğrencilere eserin deşifre aşamasında yardımcı olabilecek kaynak oluşturulması amaçlanmıştır.  Mazeppa etüdü içerdiği sanatsal yorum seçenekleri ve teknik zorluklar sebebiyle lisans ve lisans üstü programları öğrencileri için uygun bulunmuştur.

Anahtar Kelimeler: Mazeppa, Etütler, F. Liszt, Piyano Eğitimi, Piyano Tekniği.

The paper examines the nocturnes of the Cypriot composer and pianist Nicolas Economou (1953Economou ( -1993) ) and how much they reflected the traditions of the genre of the piano nocturnes from the 19 th Century, enriched with contemporary compositional techniques from the 20 th Century. The different approach towards the structure as well as the influence of the jazz instrumental culture, mark a radical departure from the old forms. This is a consequence not only of the artistic temperament of Economou but also of the fact that he never notated but only recorded the nocturnes. The piano was his true medium of expression; therefore the compositions retain a strong element of improvisation and nonconformity. The cycle of eight nocturnes testify to the great improvisatory gift and spontaneity of Nicolas Economou as one the most significant Cypriot composers of the 20 th Century.

Arbitrarium (2025) for violin, violoncello, and piano explores the interplay between structure and arbitrariness through a series of fragmented gestures and discontinuous developments. The work oscillates between precise metric configurations and abrupt deviations, creating a tension between formal coherence and impulsive disruption. Motifs recur in varied contexts, often distorted or displaced, establishing a shifting framework of memory and transformation. The instrumentation is treated both as a unified body and as a constellation of autonomous voices, allowing moments of intimate dialogue and sudden estrangement.

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Arbitrarium (2025) für Violine, Violoncello und Klavier untersucht das Spannungsverhältnis zwischen Struktur und Willkür in einer Folge fragmentierter Gesten und diskontinuierlicher Entwicklungen. Das Werk pendelt zwischen präzisen metrischen Konfigurationen und abrupten Abweichungen und erzeugt so eine Spannung zwischen formaler Kohärenz und impulsiver Störung. Motive kehren in unterschiedlichen Kontexten wieder – oft verzerrt oder verschoben – und bilden ein wandelbares Gefüge von Erinnerung und Transformation. Die Instrumentation wird sowohl als klangliche Einheit wie auch als Ensemble autonomer Stimmen behandelt, wodurch intime Dialoge und plötzliche Fremdheit entstehen.

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Arbitrarium (2025) for violin, cello og klaver udforsker spændingsfeltet mellem struktur og vilkårlighed gennem en række fragmenterede gestusser og diskontinuerlige forløb. Værket veksler mellem præcise metriske strukturer og pludselige afvigelser, hvilket skaber en spænding mellem formel sammenhæng og impulsiv forstyrrelse. Motiver genopstår i varierende kontekster – ofte forvredne eller forskudte – og danner et bevægeligt net af erindring og forvandling. Instrumentationen behandles både som en samlet klangkrop og som en konstellation af autonome stemmer, hvilket muliggør øjeblikke af intim dialog og pludselig fremmedgørelse.

@ChristianHildebrandt2025

Resumen:
A lo largo de la historia de la música docta occidental aparece insistentemente la práctica de la criptografía musical, usada por compositores para insertar mensajes textuales en partituras, y comúnmente llevada a cabo disponiendo notas de manera tal que la sucesión de sus nombres (sean sílabas [do, re, mi, etc.] o letras [C, D, E, etc.], según la tradición) forme palabras, como ocurre con el apellido de Johann Sebastian Bach – en clave alemana: B=si♭, A=la, C=do, H=si♮ –, usado como motivo melódico por él mismo, y luego a manera de homenaje por una larga lista de sucesores. Al célebre B-A-C-H podemos sumar las codificaciones textuales de Schumann y Elgar, y una interminable lista de criptogramas y métodos de diversas épocas, algunos de los cuales han expandido el arsenal de recursos de encriptación hasta acercarse a una concepción de la obra musical como traducción directa de un texto (ver Messiaen, Méditations sur le Mystère de la Sainte Trinité).

Aunque esta práctica se ha abordado principalmente desde el ámbito extramusical, incorporando un relato complementario a la obra audible, se puede considerar su impacto en el plano sonoro, donde la intención criptográfica genera configuraciones musicales automáticas, disociadas del significado de las palabras originales, que se ha extraviado en el tránsito entre la página escrita y la partitura. Este giro de consideración invita a sustituir el concepto de criptografía musical, asociado a un traspaso de contenido, por el de mapeo de texto, también en uso, y que enfatiza un traspaso de rasgos estructurales (p.ej.: orden de letras a secuencia de notas). Desde esta perspectiva, cabría preguntarse si el concepto de traducción aplica a este tipo de métodos, considerando que puede instalar el equívoco de un supuesto traspaso de contenido semántico, o si acaso una definición amplia del concepto de traducción permitiría descartar ese equívoco.

Palabras clave: música, criptografía, textualidad, mapeo, traducción.