Tolga Yayalar

Automated Process instead of Dramatic Narrative

Our conception of music is held prisoner by tradition and by our education. All has been cut into slices, put into categories, classified, limited. Tristan Murail

I. Introduction
The New Grove Music Dictionary defines the concerto as (a)n instrumental work that maintains contrast between an orchestral ensemble and a smaller group or a solo instrument, or among various groups of an undivided orchestra1. In 20th century, the term concerto is no longer associated with formal characteristics that were so crucial to its definition and recognition in earlier centuries. Why do we still need to employ the term concerto, if we need it at all? In contrast to other genres such as the symphony or sonata, the concerto does not necessarily imply a particular framework. Yet, for purposes of analysis, I believe there is some merit in employing the term as a heuristic tool. Most of the twentieth century composers have abandoned utilizing the term in reference to their pieces. Some examples are Xenaxis, Birtwistle and Berio. Their hesitancy in making use of this term can be interpreted as an attempt to be liberated from the chains of the demands of the tradition. It may also be linked to the expectation of the audience, which accompanies this conventional perspective. Like the composers listed above Tristan Murail does not use the term concerto neither in his titles nor in his essays concerning his pieces. Yet, I believe that it is essential to invoke the concerto in thinking about Murail for two main reasons. Firstly, it will enable us to exhibit how he challenges and redefines the genre throughout his work. Secondly, this strategy will serve as the basis for a comparative analysis of Murails pieces in an effort to show the different

New Grove

Tolga Yayalar approaches he takes with regard to the concerto. Murail composed three concerti throughout his career condensed within three years. Although he also wrote some other pieces during this period, these three works have an exceptional commonality, which allows us to group them together under the rubric of the concerto. This categorization is not only based on affiliation with a mutual genre, but also a shared compositional technique. In this paper, I will formulate my analysis by referring to these commonalities. After situating Murail and his work in contemporary music, I will focus mainly on Mmoire/Erosion for horn and ensemble (1976) and Ethers for flute and five instruments (1978). The first part of the paper will focus on the substances related to form and material. In other words, it will try to explicate how the form and the material work themselves out in the simulation models of electronic processes that Murail employs. It will also contain a detailed analysis of each element of this process including echo, reverberation, distortion, pulsation, filtering and phasing and modulation. The second part of the analysis will concentrate on how these pieces relate to the concerto genre. This will be examined with an emphasis on two issues; the nature of the relationship between the soloist and the instrumental group and virtuosity. As I mentioned above, I believe that this paper will serve two main purposes. On the one hand, this in-depth examination of the two concerti of Murail will be beneficial in investigating the symbiosis of the traditional concerto genre and the modernist tendencies of contemporary music. On the other hand, it will set the stage for a consideration of Murails perception models in relation to his early period2.

There are several works which employ the term perception models in analysis of Murails works. It was not possible to locate the exact origin of this phrase. The earliest publication in which this concept was utilized is La Transcription dans Boulez et Murail by E. Humbertclaude in 1999.

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II. Murail and Spectral Music

Fineberg discusses the difficulty in providing an exact definition of spectral music in his article on this subject3. In this essay, drawing on Murail, he draws attention to conceptualizing spectral composition as an attitude rather than a compilation of techniques. This observation is essential for the purposes of this paper since this emphasis on the sound as a discrete entity rather than the composition as a discursive medium raises a set of issues once we try to relate it to the genre of concerto. Admitting the problems involved in coming up with a definition, Fineberg proposes that we should look for two main traits in spectral music. As he puts it, (t)he only true constant for all these composers is that they consider music to ultimately be sound and see composition as the sculpting in time of those sounds that a listener will hear4. As this description suggests, the roots of spectral music can be traced to a challenge of the assumptions of serial music. This approach involves a refusal of a linear development that is associated with serial music. Instead it offers a notion of process and continuous change. Even though this interest in process music had begun with minimalist currents, spectral music involved a radical denial of the philosophical assumptions that defined composition traditionally. That is to say, it advocated a perception of music as a special case of the general phenomenon of sound5. Finebergs definition also involves another defining feature of spectral music, an emphasis on sound. Spectral music scrutinizes the compositional devices and techniques of serial music such as permutations, rhythmic and intervallic symmetry and pitch class sets. According to Anderson, (i)n place of all this, the dominant force is that of sound itself, and our perception
3 4

Fineberg ibid, p.3 5 ibid, 2

Tolga Yayalar of it. The use of the acoustic constituents of sounds, or sound spectra not only as the basis for large scale forms, but also as pitch and rhythmic material in their music has given rise to the clich spectral music6. Given the fact that sound is the primary object; spectral composers seek finer resolutions than twelve notes. Hence, microtonality is imminent to spectral music. Yet another important aspect of spectral composition is what is called the harmony-timber continuum7. What is denoted by this concept is that harmony and timber can be conceptualized as identical entities on a theoretical level. Similarly, frequency and rhythm exhibit identical properties in terms of perception. For example, below our hearing range of 20hz, we begin to hear frequencies as beats. With the advent of electronic music, the idea that the whole spectrum is available to the composers became acknowledged. Thus, the composers began to make use of the extensive possibilities of the sonic space, but this was not without its own problematic. As Tristan Murail argues electronic music was developed in such a way that it often suffers from the opposite excess, a lack of formalization, of criture or writing in the larger sense of structuring the sonic universes that it discovers8. The main question then becomes how this sonic universe is organized when temperament is disregarded. Again according to Murail, spectral music promotes the idea of relationality, rather than identity with regards to absolute reference points.

III. Perception Models Murails works from the period between 1976 and 1979 exclusively employ simulation models of electronic music processes. Each work of Murails early period makes direct analogies with standard electronic music techniques. However, these models can occur at different levels of the piece. For example, in Mmoire/Erosion, the simulation of the feedback system evokes the global form of the piece. In Territoire de LOubli, for piano solo, Murail exploits the echo process throughout the piece, whereas in Ethers, different models juxtapose each other. Similarly, in Les
6 7

Anderson 1993,p 321 Murail 1984 8 Murail 1984

Tolga Yayalar Courants de lEspace a multitude of models are employed but Murail makes extensive use of ring modulation. The following parts will focus on these acoustic models in detail.

a. Echo This is probably Murails most favorite device in his early pieces. Two of his pieces from this period are based entirely on different echo systems. Mmoire/Erosion utilizes reinjection loop as a generator model, which is a technique that can be attributed to analogue synthesizers. In this process, two virtual tape recorders are connected. First, a live sound is recorded on tape with the first recorder. This is then sent to the second machine, which plays back the recorded sound. Finally, the resulting sound is sent back to the first machine, which is merged with new recorded sounds. This process is then continually repeated. In Mmoire/Erosion, everything the solo horn plays is recorded and played back by the ensemble in a similar way. However, as we would expect it to happen in the tape loop, the original sound starts to get distorted, deteriorated and blurred with each repetition. In the piece, the ensemble works just like the tape, it distorts the soloists music, adds hiss and pushes the music more and more to absolute noise.9 Even the periodicity of the loop starts to get blurred and every new material is subjected to this continuous erosion. In any case entropy is inevitable. In Ethers, echo occurs in a simpler form. In the middle of the letter E, the multiphonics of the flute are immediately echoed by the violin. In this case, the echo is more of a resonance rather than a tape delay. The reflections of what the flutist plays, are simulated by the violin. Here theres no distortion but violin has a typical envelope of the impulse response.

b. Reverberation The difference between echo and reverb is that reverb consists of many echoes. As a result, the echoes become resonance. Curtis Roads defines the reverberation time as the time it
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Anderson 2000

Tolga Yayalar takes the sound to decay 60db from its peak amplitude10. Therefore, the other important attribute of the reverberation is the time it takes for the sound to deflate. Murail uses both of these aspects of reverberation in his piece Ethers. At letter I, while the soloist plays his own echo, the lines he produces are resonated by the strings. Tremolos and trills help to produce a more resonant effect. The dynamic envelope of the strings also resembles the impulse response envelope. In Mmoire/Erosion, the difference between echo and reverberation is more distinctive. The mechanical echo/delay produced by the tape loop is different from the natural echoes of the reverberation. In the tape delay, sound gets deteriorated, in the reverb its deflated. One of the most obvious examples would be the very beginning of the piece, where the horns C is repeated at two different levels. This is first repeated immediately by the clarinet with very fast articulations and second, periodically every two beats by a different instrument each time. Here, the first imitation clearly represents the reverb and the second is the direct simulation of the mechanical tape delay.

c. Pulsation Pulsation is one of the important devices that Murail uses in his processes. If we think in terms of rhythm/frequency continuum, periodic rhythms have a parallel relationship with harmonic spectra. The graph representation of both functions would be a straight line. Their values follow a linear relation. As with harmonic spectra, Murail uses periodic rhythms very sparingly, and often with an accelerando or ritardando. In Ethers, at letter E, a short pulsation with a ritardando occurs in the strings and the trombone three times. However, the end of the letter F is where he uses the pulsation extensively to achieve the ultimate climax of the piece. This part is in a constant accelerando. In electro acoustic music, accelerando is achieved by increasing the speed of the tape playback. However, here the pitches stay constant throughout. Instruments oscillate between the
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Roads p475

Tolga Yayalar same pitches, but there are different pitch collections for each instrument. The non-pitch shifting aspect suggests a simulation model of a sequencer found in the early Buchla analog synthesizer. This part contrasts with the earlier more fluid textures. The extensive periodicity gives the music a mechanical and automated quality In Mmoire/Erosion, occasional pulsations take place as a result of the continuous repetition of single notes of the horn by different instruments. Because they are a part of the feedback system, and hence get distorted in time, the effect is more like a mechanical delay. Except at F, the pulsation occurs in multiple instruments. Thus, the effect we get is quite different from the beginning where horns C is repeated by only one instrument each time. In this passage, the horn produces a periodic three-note figure, which is then repeated by the winds and the low strings immediately. However, in a short time, the figure becomes periodic. This time, the echo creates order instead of distortion. Meanwhile, violins still continue to play late echoes of the previous passage. What we hear is the juxtaposition of these two elements creating a sense of a more complex loop.

d. Filtering/Phasing Filtering is another common device that Murail utilizes in his processes. It is a very complex operation but in its most basic definition, its a device that boosts or attenuates regions of a sound spectrum 11. We can identify two general categories of filtering techniques in Ethers: static and dynamic. In a static filter Murail adopts usual filter types, such as band-pass, band notch, low-shelf etcto his criture. In Ethers, Murail achieves this effect by using nonconventional instrumental techniques. At B20, overblowing the flute causes some partials stand out. Strong air pressure on the flute works just like a band-notch filter. It attenuates lower partials, especially the fundamental, and gives more emphasis on the higher partials. At letter C, crush

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Roads

Tolga Yayalar sounds on the strings theoretically produces undertones especially the major 7th below12. Same method is also used at E44 and during the first part of letter F. At the same passage, flutes harmonic glissandi work as a filtering device. Roads claims that one of the methods for filtering is delaying a copy of the output signal and combining it with the input signal13. Thus, the dynamic spectrum becomes a dynamic filter. This is precisely the method that Murail adopts for his instrumental writing. Slightly delaying a line creates a phasing effect, which then functions as a dynamic filter. Murail explains this process as it turns internal movements into harmonic aggregates, a kind of sweep of all the frequencies.14 This technique appears in multiple places in Mmoire/Erosion (C15) and Ethers (D10 and I17). Especially, at letter I in Ethers, right after the string reverberations, Murail makes use of phasing quite extensively. Flute, Violin and Viola plays the same arpeggiations, but slightly out of phase. The gesture slows down gradually until the arpeggiations become glissandi and violin and cello become 180 out of phase.

e. Modulations Modulation syntheses are used to calculate complex spectra/harmonies. The most prominently used modulation technique is the Frequency Modulation (FM) which creates side bands above and below of the carrier signal according to the modulator signal. When the ratio between them is a simple one, then the resulted spectrum is harmonic, otherwise is inharmonic. Ring Modulation is another common device to generate complex harmonies. The main difference from the Frequency Modulation is that there is no hierarchic relation between pitches. In ring modulation, all the sounds are treated equally, they all modulate each other and they are directly present in the resulting sound. Murail uses Frequency Modulation as a spectral model in Gondwana (1980) and ring
12 13 14

Murail, 1978 Roads Murail, 1980, p84

Tolga Yayalar modulation in Les Courants de lEspace. In Ethers, two of the six acoustic models are based on modulation techniques. In the opening, the soloist produces FM sounds by singing into the instrument while playing. These complex inharmonic sounds disturb the fluid texture of the strings, but the FM chord produced by the flute is immediately taken over by the strings.

IV. The Concerto genre in Murail: What is intriguing about these three pieces is that Murail engages with the concerto genre in such a way that he reproduces it while at the same time redefining its limits. This becomes especially apparent when we focus on the relationship between the soloist and the ensemble. Similar to conventional expressions of the genre, Murail employs a contrast between the soloist and the ensemble. This contrast plays itself out as the soloist assumes a dominant role whereby the ensemble presumes the role of an imitator. Yet what characterizes these pieces is not only similarity with the concerto genre. As I will argue below, some differences in terms of the way the protagonist is used can be observed.

a. Soloist as the acoustic model for the ensemble In Ethers and Mmoire/Erosion the use of the material is similar to the concerto genre in the traditional sense. The soloist and the ensemble share the same material. This stands in contrast to some other contemporary concerti such as Birtwistle and Carters pieces. Some recent strategies can be the employment of the soloist and the ensemble as distinctive voices where each makes use of different harmonic material. This may even lead to two different kinds of music for the soloist and the ensemble as in Birtwistles Secret Theater. However, in Murails pieces the soloist almost always initiates the musical material so much that it imposes its own identity to the rest of the ensemble. The response of the ensemble varies from exact gestural imitation to simple resonance of the soloist. The lack of dialogue between the soloist and the ensemble is one of the most important

Tolga Yayalar distinguishing characteristics of Murails concerti. This can be interpreted as a factor that sets these pieces apart from the conventional examples of the concerto genre. Instead of dialogue, Murail builds up a unidirectional relationship whereby the protagonist assumes the role of the generator. Hence, the ensemble surfaces not as a respondent or a dialogue partner but as an initiator of the entropic system. This observation also resolves the question raised at the beginning. That is, why do we still need to appeal to the concerto to talk about these pieces? Why werent these pieces planned as solo pieces for example? This is related to the idea of the entropy. The notion of dialogue between these contrasting groups, that is the soloist and the ensemble, no longer makes sense. What is essential to an understanding of these pieces is that they exist in a universe, which is made possible by the ensemble. Thus, the soloist acts as the acoustic model for the ensemble, which in turn provides this universe through distorted images and repercussions of the material invoked by the soloist. The definition of the genre of the concerto still holds for these pieces. Yet, the basic relationship is disfigured to such an extent that it becomes possible to say that the limitations of the genre is breached.

b. Extended Techniques as Virtuosity In Murail the prominent force of the composition is the sound itself. He sees the notation as symbols for representation of the intended sounds. Therefore, the virtuosity needs to be redefined. The emphasis is on producing the intended sonorities rather than playing what is on the paper. In Murail, the virtuosity is the performers interaction with the sound. One of the important ways of achieving complex sounds is the use of extended techniques. Unlike Lachanmann, Murail rarely uses noise-based sounds. Although his extended techniques are limited in number when compared to people like Lachannman and Sciarrino, their presence is crucial to the overall sound world. With the extended techniques, Murail usually aims to produce complex results such as FM modulated sounds, Ring Modulated sounds, sub tones,

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Tolga Yayalar spectral filtering, harmonic glissando etc... Ethers solo flute part is almost solely based on these techniques. The complex sound world that results from this extended playing is then reflected to the rest of the ensemble. Because of this intimate relationship between them, the accuracy of the intonation and the articulation takes an extra importance. In the first section of the piece, the soloist is required to sing into the instrument while playing. S/he usually starts with a unison note, and when s/he jumps to a different note on the flute, the sound suddenly gets very rich. What happens is that the singing tone and the actual flute tone act like carrier and modulator signals, and together they produce a Frequency modulation sound. Murail carefully notates the approximate resulting sonority in the score. One of the other virtuosic extended playing techniques is the use of multiphonics. During the letter E, the flute plays exclusively multiphonics and creates ring modulation type sounds. All the resulting harmonies are again reflected in the ensemble. Therefore, the multiphonics here work as a harmonic generator. On the other hand, the solo horn part in Mmoire/Erosion doesnt call for any extended techniques, except maybe the glissandi at letter G. On the contrary, the solo part is much simpler than any other ensemble part. This is a compositional choice because in Mmoire/Erosion, the solo part simply presents the material, which is then to be transformed by the ensemble. Letter F is a good example how extended techniques are incorporated into the texture. The beginning of F is the only place in the piece where harmonic spectrum and periodicity are used. 9 measures later, woodwinds start to play multiphonics in a canonic order and turning the texture into inharmonicity.

V. Conclusion

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Tolga Yayalar As Ive tried to argue above, the genre of concerto is still a viable tool in thinking about contemporary music. An analysis of the two pieces by Murail with a focus on Perception Models and automated process attest this. An emphasis on the relationship between the soloist and the ensemble exhibits how the concerto is both implicated and redefined through these pieces. It is essential to note that the vocabulary and the musical language that Murail uses in these works are representative of his other works from the same period. Transcription of the procedures of electro-acoustic music to instrumental music and literally creating simulations models of those procedures characterize his pieces from this period. This perception became available as a result of the possibilities advanced by electronic music. Another important characteristic of Murail is that he opposes any deterministic models, especially the ones that were advocated with serial music. Instead, he offers calculations with mathematical functions and logarithmic curves which presuppose an a priori knowledge and perception. The main goal is diminishing the arbitrariness in musical means. Despite the merits of these processes, Murail discontinues this strategy in his later years, especially after 1990. The reason for this is that once he sets off the machine, the process becomes predictable. Although the sound world is intriguing, trajectory of the sound events tend to become deterministic. Murail abandons the unidirectional quality of these works by adopting more complex mathematical theorems such as chaos theory. Similarly, mechanic simulations are replaced by models derived from natural phenomena such as a wave breaking against the shore. Although it seems like Murail is a highly ideological composer, the fact is his prime concern has always been the aural result and the perception of music. The research that he made into the sonic world helped him to develop an aesthetic sense of harmony and also a perceptual clarity of formal organization. The aim of the all the techniques and theories he developed, was to achieve a coherent and comprehensible discourse15

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Murail, 2000

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Bibliography

ANDERSON, Julian. Tristan Murail in accompanying booklet, Tristan Murail, Cest un jardin secret, ma sur, Una Corda LC00280, 2000, compact disc ANDERSON, Julian. In Harmony, in The Musical Times, Vol. 134, No. 1804 (Jun., 1993), London: Musical Times Publishing, 1993

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Tolga Yayalar FINEBERG, Joshua. Spectral Music, in Contemporary Music Review 2000, Vol 19, Part 2. New York: Hardwood Academic Publishers, 2000 GARANT, Dominique. Tristan Murail: une expression musicale modlise. Paris: LHarmattan, 2001 HUMBERTCLAUDE, ric. La Transcription dans Boulez et Murail: de loreille lveil. Paris: LHarmattan, 1999 MURAIL, Tristan. After-thoughts, in Spectral Music, in Contemporary Music Review 2000, Vol 19, Part 3. New York: Hardwood Academic Publishers, 2000 MURAIL, Tristan. Spectra and Pixies, in Contemporary Music Review 1984, Vol. 1. London: Hardwood Academic Publishers, 1984 MURAIL, Tristan. Ethers, Performance notes. Paris: Edition Transatlantique. 1978 MURAIL, Tristan. La Rvolution des Sons Complexes, in Darmstdter Beitrge, vol.XVIII, Mainz: Schott 1980 New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, online edition. Oxford University Press, 2003 ROADS, Curtis. The Computer Music Tutorial. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1996

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