1 New Complexities: Ferneyhough and Parra by Joan Arnau Pmies One of the commonest assumptions among new music

audiences is to categori e !New Complexity" into one single box# $ ha%e heard in many occasions that Ferneyhough& Finissy& 'ench& (arrett& Cassidy& and Parra sound !the same" )whate%er that means*# +uch a misbelief has been repeated throughout history,it is generally assumed that 'ebussy and -a%el are impressionists. +choenberg& (erg and /ebern de0ne the +econd 1iennese +chool. and Cage& (rown& Feldman& and /olff are members of the New 2or3 +chool# 4herefore& the goal of this essay is to clarify the nuances that de0ne what New Complexity is# 4o do so& $ pic3ed two composers of this trend whose musics at 0rst may loo3 ali3e: (rian Ferneyhough and 56ctor Parra# 4hrough the de%elopment of this essay& $ hope the reader ends up noticing that& despite sharing comparable characteristics& Ferneyhough and Parra are se%erely concerned with different aesthetic and philosophical issues#

7# A 'e0nition of !Complexity" /hat categori es music as complex is an extremely %exed topic# (eing aware of this fact& it is not the goal of this essay to de%elop any further thoughts on what complexity in music means& for the literature about such a topic $ belie%e is substantial enough for what this essay is concerned with# Nonetheless& the reader still might as3 for an explanation of what is understood as !complex" or not within the following context& although there is no intention whatsoe%er to elaborate an ob8ecti%e response to this issue# $ found thus two remar3able de0nitions of what complexity represents in a musical setting& both of which are 9uite similar and compelling# 4he 0rst one is by (rian Ferneyhough: !As a term& :complexity; pertains more to the relationships lin3ing situations& tendencies or states than to the amount and type of sonic material de0ning a particular space# /hat may& on the local le%el& be percei%ed as chaotic or not amenable to useful prediction is often seen to be highly ordered when obser%ed from a differently<scaled perspecti%e# 4his sort of gradual transformational re<assessment capability is by de0nition complex in respect of the codi0cation and transmission potential since it encourages the acti%e

2 contraposition of hypothetical formal models on the basis of momentary and incomplete information#" )Ferneyhough 7==>& p# ??*# 4he second de0nition is by musicologist -ichard 4oop& which can be found in his article !On Complexity" published by Perspectives of New Music )$ strongly recommend this reading for further in%estigation on the topic*# 4he author& after ha%ing explored the terminological intricacies between complexity& complicacy and dif0culty& ends up drawing the following conclusion: !@ComplexityA is& in my %iew& essentially a sub8ecti%e& perceptual phenomenon,not an ob8ecti%e& material<based one# For me& the word :complexity; e%o3es a situation in which there are not necessarily :many things; )there could be many& but there might be only a few*& yet in which $ sense many le%els of relationships )organic& mechanistic& or e%en fortuitous*& their outcome is something $ unreBectingly sense )$ can reBect microseconds laterC* as :richness;#" )4oop 7==D& p# EF*# (oth de0nitions ha%e my most absolute respect& not only because of their inner coherence& but also because of the seriousness and rigor that the writings of both Ferneyhough and 4oop ha%e shown o%er the years. this is e%idence of the credibility that both authors deser%e# 4a3ing the aforementioned de0nitions of complexity in music as models& ours will be the following: Complexity in music is a sub8ecti%e phenomenon that occurs as a conse9uence of percei%ing surprising& uncon%entional& and unexpected sonic relations within a cohesi%e structural context& whether they are microscopic or macroscopic in the scope of the formal de%elopment of the piece# 4his de0nition is not 0nal nor does it pretend to be an absolute truth& although it summari es what $ belie%e is an extremely thoughtful and well<argued trend in music academia,so far& the only one that con%inced me# 4herefore& $ personally see this de0nition as a rigorous enough entity that will help me )and hopefully the reader too* go decisi%ely deep into the main body of this essay#

3 G# /hat Ha3es FerneyhoughIs Husic Complex

(rian Ferneyhough: Second String Quartet )7=F7*

Nowadays& the old debate among new music connoisseurs of whether (rian FerneyhoughIs scores can be treated seriously or not is fortunately o%er# 4hirty<four years after his Sonatas for String Quarteta GJth Century milestone of string 9uartet literature,, there is no doubt that FerneyhoughIs music is elo9uently uni9ue# 'espite using extremely dif0cult rhythms& fast and large microinter%allic 8umps& and %ast dynamic range )among many other characteristics that end up leading to extraordinarily densely<notated scores*& the composerIs ability to artistically express himself is undeniably e%ident# FerneyhoughIs music is& in my opinion& complex in two separate planes# First of all& the most ob%ious one: his treatment of musical syntax and large<and<small scale structure presents,to 9uote again 4oop,!richness"# $n order to explain what $ understand as richness& $ will start by sharing with the reader a funny anecdote that too3 place a couple of months ago in Kra & while at $mpuls Festi%al# $ met there $talian composer Pierluigi (illone& with whom $ ended up discussing about whether or not it is rele%ant to connect all the aspects )pitch& rhythm& dynamics&

4 texture& etc* that form musical material to successfully achie%e expression# (illone& while loo3ing at one of my scores& stated something similar to the fact that my music is %ery different to FerneyhoughIs& in that my materials are not treated separately during precompositional stages# According to (illone& Ferneyhough would create different processes for each aspect of music,Process A for pitch organi ation& Process ( for rhythmic construction& Process C for dynamics organi ation& and so forth,& without caring so much about what the sonic result would be once he puts them all together# 4his is both true and false )ironically& it is much more complex than that*# On the one hand& it is true because Ferneyhough does actually precompose the material separately# On the other hand& it is false because he ends up ordering the precomposed material in a way in which the 0nal sonic result is extremely important# French composer Fabien LM%y explains in his doctoral thesis how Ferneyhough treats and de%elops material# $ will now summari e LM%yIs research 7& which $ belie%e is going to be %ery important for the reader to e%entually understand my point: After his solo guitar piece Kurze Schatten )7=FD<7=FN*& Ferneyhough formali es pitch and rhythm with $-CAH software Patchwor3 )todayIs Open Husic*& which allows him to further de%elop his earlier techni9ue of permutation# 5owe%er& the difference between con%entional serial permutations and FerneyhoughIs own approach is that he ta3es ad%antage of the paradoxes that the software produces# Patchwor3 is based on a code named L$+P# For example& in order to insert a rhythmic pattern such as 7 9uarter note and 7 dotted half note in a EOE bar& one has to type it the following way: )E )7 D**& in which the four represents the EOE bar& the one the 9uarter note& and the three the dotted half note:

Now& if the composer wants to subdi%ide the 9uarter note into a triplet& he or she has to use a certain amount of parentheses for the software to understand what to do# 4hus& instead of only ha%ing one number one& we will ha%e D number ones within parenthesis, each number one now represents an eighth note within a triplet:

1 4he examples gi%en are LM%yIs own& they are not mine#

Ferneyhough& by dealing thus with such a simple process& is able to construct extremely dif0cult patterns not directly& but indirectly,it is a matter of choosing the amount of digits and parentheses that one wishes to use and order them in a certain way# 5ereIs an example of FerneyhoughIs !famous" rhythmic permutations )notice how despite the ordering of digits is %ery simple& the resulting rhythmic patterns are extremely complicated*:

4his is one of the methods )probably the best 3nown* that (rian Ferneyhough does not only use to formali e rhythm& but also other aspects of music,if we learned something from serialism is that any musical parameter can be translated into numbers# $n FerneyhoughIs wor3& precompositional formali ation ta3es place as a result from communicational paradoxes between human and computer& or to be more precise& con%entional musical notation translated into L$+P code# 5owe%er& Ferneyhough doesnIt get trapped by the 3nic33nac3s of computeri ed<music# 5e is aware of the fact that computers !cannot" write music# For him& to use Patchwor3 is only a way to de%elop the materials that he will further use in a piece& the same way 5aydn 3nows that in order to achie%e musical tension& he needs to

6 write a dominant se%en chord# Ferneyhough& therefore& arranges the materials the same way composers ha%e been doing for centuries: following his own aural intuition and musical taste# 4he relationship between serial methods of formali ation& paradoxical communicati%e issues between computer and composer& and the composerIs own impro%isatory intuition is& to my opinion& what ma3es FerneyhoughIs wor3 rich# 4he second aspect that is rele%ant in FerneyhoughIs music is the aesthetically<charged 9uality of the score& which irrefutably inBuences how the performer percei%es and performs the actual sonic message# Fabien LM%y points out this aspect in a %ery elo9uent way: !LIextrPme complexitM de lIMcriture est cohMrente a%ec le propos du compositeur )C*# Ferneyhough cherche en particulier& par la double complexitM graphMmologi9ue de la notation et de la lecture& pousser le musicien professionnel hors de ses con%entions et crMer& par les tensions 9ui en rMsultent& une sonoritM inouQe& bruitMe& imprM%isible& instable& dMpassant les catMgories de la note harmoni9ue et entretenue comme celle des rythmes Rm6trisMsS et RmaTtrisMsS" )LM%y GJJE& p# ?F*G# FerneyhoughIs scores are not 8ust mere practical ob8ects from which the performer learns what sounds the composer has in mind# $nstead& his scores transcend the historically<gi%en role of music notation& thus ma3ing the aspect of how<a<sound<is<%isually<percei%ed<by<the<performer much more rele%ant than the con%entional !what<sound<needs<to<be<produced"# /hat such a feature produces to the sonic outcome of the score is what LM%y identi0es as unheard& noisy& unpredictable& and unstable sounds# (y doing so& Ferneyhough opens a new path of musical exploration& in which the dichotomy of notational !content %s# form" allows the composer to in%estigate the intricacies of complexity in a newly different planeD#
2 The extreme comp exit! in notation is coherent with the purpose of the composer" #n particu ar, $erne!houghwith the grapho ogica comp exit! in %oth notation and reading eaves the professiona musician out of his or her conventions to create, with the resu ting tensions, an unheard, nois!, unpredicta% e, and unsta% e sound, which surpasses categories such as the harmonic note&, a though sti maintaining 'metricized' and 'contro ed' rh!thms&" 3 One could argue that earlier forms of notation such as the ones de%eloped by Cornelius Cardew& Christian /olff& or Uarle (rown had already considered such a dichotomy# 5owe%er& those forms of notation would be mainly concerned with form rather than content,the le%el of detail in as3ing the performer to produce !that exact sound" in FerneyhoughIs scores is ridiculously enormous compared to& for example& CardewIs scores& whose approach to notation is thus radically di%ergent#

7 D# 56ctor ParraIs Own !Complexities"

56ctor Parra: (!perpro ogue Music )GJJ=*

Just by loo3ing at this score& one could argue that the music of Catalan composer 56ctor Parra )b# 7=N? in (arcelona* has many similarities to Ferneyhough;s wor3# $n fact& Parra studied with him& but also with Jonathan 5ar%ey and Hichael Jarrell& both of whom ha%e strongly inBuenced him as well# Furthermore& Parra;s scores can also be recogni ed by their rhythmic dif0culty& microinter%allic pitch relations& and extreme textural density# /ith such characteristics& one could say that Parra is 8ust another composer of the New Complexity school# Uri3 Vlman& howe%er& ma3es an interesting point when he writes the following: !$ am ambi%alent about what seems to ha%e been labeled the INew ComplexityI# One reason for this is that many Inew complexitiesI are grouped under this heading& and are not %ariably interesting but potentially contradictory# Casually to subsume these in a IschoolI is to obscure this %ariety and to deBect attention to relati%ely tri%ial surface similarities among composers& such as taste for elaborate rhythmic notation& or the fact of performati%e dif0culty#" )Vlman 7==E& p# GJG*#

8 Following VlmanIs point& we should reali e that !New Complexity" is 8ust a mere label,ParraIs !complexity" comes from a %ery different locus than Ferneyhough;s& a fact that places his music on a totally different plane# Furthermore& ParraIs own %ersion of the potential inBuence Ferneyhough had on him rati0es VlmanIs %iews: !No puedo negar 9ue (rian Ferneyhough ha sido para mi una potente inBuencia en mis comien os de compositor# Fue 'a%id PadrWs& mi profesor en (arcelona y antiguo compaXero de estudios de Ferneyhough en Freiburg 9uien& despuMs de mostrarle mis primeras pie as para piano en 7===& me sugiriW leer y escuchar su mYsica# La fascinaciWn fue inmediata& y entre GJJ7 y GJJD seguZ algunos de sus cursos en Uuropa y tomM clases con Ml# Paralelamente en GJJJ conocZ a Jonathan 5ar%ey& y el contacto dilatado pero constante 9ue he mantenido con Ml tambiMn ha e8ercido una fuerte inBuencia estMtica en mi mYsica# Un todo caso& despuMs de estos aXos iniciales& he ido siguiendo mi camino sin muchas inBuencias realmente personales o directas# 1i%iendo en Paris desde GJJG& m[s bien me he dedicado a componer y a %ia8ar constantemente para traba8ar con los mYsicos y estrenar las obras# Un realidad& creo 9ue nunca me he planteado !arti0cialmente" 9uM tipo de mYsica 9uerZa escribir# Un todo caso& puedo asegurar 9ue mi ob8eti%o no es la comple8idad sino la ri9ue a#" )Parra GJ7J*E# 4he music of 56ctor Parra is extremely concerned with how the listener percei%es time& or how densely<notated sonic material forces the listener to approach the dimension of time in a different way than in earlier music# Har3us (\ggemann describes ParraIs music as the following: !$f we are to percei%e time as something we can form and modify& and if time passing can become a uni9ue aesthetic experience& then it has to materiali e 0rst& it has to be gi%en a body and %olume# $n 56ctor Parra;s music this manifestation occurs with technical inno%ation and structural consistency# At the same time the acoustic phenomenon alludes in %arious ways to the composer;s af0nity for the %isual arts: Karst ) *hroma ## )GJJ?* for large orchestra begins with a dense homogenous sound which is bro3en down in the course of the piece& it is washed out& in a similar way to the geological formation mentioned in the title# $t is replaced by succession of rhythmically and acoustically dissociated episodes& which& formally 9uite additi%e& explore extremes of instrumental expressi%eness# 4he idea behind this IgMomorphologie acousti9ueI is genuinely plastic: to wor3 away at the musical material li3e at a stone& to chisel out the surprising& indi%idually
4 # cannot den! that +rian $erne!hough was to me an important in,uence in m! ear ! pieces" #t was -avid Padr.sm! teacher in +arce ona and former co eague of $erne!hough in $rei%urgwho, after showing him m! ear ! pieces for piano in /000, suggested to read and isten to $erne!hough's music" # was fascinated immediate ! %! it, and from 122/ to 1223, # fo owed some of his masterc asses throughout 4urope and too5 essons with him" 6t the same time, in 1222 # met 7onathan (arve!, whose contact has %een a strong aesthetic in,uence on m! music" #n an! case, after those ear ! !ears, #'ve fo owed m! path actua ! without man! persona or direct in,uences" 8iving in Paris since 1221, #'ve spent most of m! time composing and constant ! trave ing in order to wor5 with performers and premiere m! wor5s" #n rea it!, # thin5 #'ve never thought 'arti9cia !' a%out the music # p an to write" #n an! case, # can assure that m! goa is not comp exit!, %ut richness"&

9 formed details from an opa9ue foundation,this principle informs 56ctor Parra;s music e%en when it does not explicitly follow a geological or sculptural metaphor#" )(\ggemann GJ77*# $t is this materia ization of time that allows Parra to mold how the listener e%entually percei%es the temporal dimension# $n addition& $ ha%e had the pleasure of 3nowing 56ctor for two years now& and $ can tell from my own personal experience that he is a composer that !sees" sounds: !Un GJJG descubrZ el mundo de la inform[tica musical& la electroacYstica y la composiciWn asistida por ordenador,en el 9ue habZa estado soXando durante aXos pero 9ue apenas me habZa sido accesible hasta entonces# Vna %isiWn frecuencial del sonido tan pl[stica como la 9ue ofrece el programa Audiosculpt unida a las casi in0nitas y modulares posibilidades de tratamiento en tiempo real de HaxOH+P no te de8an indiferente frente al acto creati%o# Adem[s& en este primer contacto traba8M a fondo en la formali aciWn,con la ayuda del programa Open Husic,de un lengua8e rZtmico generado a partir de la reali aciWn de un paralelismo estructural entre tensiones colorimMtricas y acYsticas# )C* @Usta tecnologZaA me ayudW a categori ar y a estructurar mi pensamiento sonoro de forma m[s profunda& rica& sWlida )segYn mi punto de %istaC* y a la %e relacionarlo con el mundo de la pintura y la percepciWn de ciertos estZmulos %isuales#" )Parra GJ7J*># On the other hand& ParraIs interest in science )particularly physics* is crucial in order to appreciate how his music is constructed# 4he composer treats his wor3s as if they were physical phenomena that 3eep e%ol%ing o%er time# +pea3ing to him& one can recogni e words such as !atoms"& !molecules"& and !9uar3s" used in a structural musical context# $f we were to be poetic& ParraIs goal would be to create uni%erses rather than 8ust musical wor3s,his opera (!perpro ogue Music is the paradigm of such an idea: !(!permusic Pro ogue era un proyecto en el 9ue habZa estado soXando ya muchos aXos antes del GJJ?& aXo en 9ue se puso en marcha# Lisa -andall& la libretista de la Wpera& es todo menos conformista# $nmenso talento de la fZsica y autMntico prodigio de las matem[ticas& renuncia de bien 8o%en a una carrera estandari ada en el marco teWrico del modelo est[ndar de partZculas elementales para a%enturarse en los inno%adores e inestables caminos de la fZsica post<cu[ntica# Al elegir este camino& gente como ella encarnan para mZ lo 9ue podrZa llamarse una 0gura para la Wpera del siglo ]]$# Us actual& su
5 #n 1221, # discovered the wor d of computer music, e ectroacoustic music, and computer:assisted compositiona wor d that # dreamed of during !ears, %ut which # never had a chance to exp ore" Such a 'fre;uentia ' and p astic vision of the sound in software 6udioscu pt connected to the a most:in9nite and modu ative possi%i ities of rea :time treatment in Max<MSP don't eave !ou indifferent in front of the creative act" $urthermore, in this 9rst contact # deep ! wor5ed towards forma izationwith software =pen Musicof a rh!thmic anguage generated from a structura para e %etween 'co orimetrica ' and acoustica tensions" This techno og! he ped me structure and categorize m! sonic thought in deeper, richer, more so id eve s >to m! opinion? whi e a so re ate it to the wor d of painting and the perception of certain visua stimu i"&

10 pensamiento es a%an ado& y sus aspiraciones son cl[sicas y uni%ersales: trata de comprender la realidad fZsica como el ser humano lo ha hecho desde los griegos& pero de manera %anguardista# Fue esta actitud intelectual y humana& el hecho de cuestionar tan fuertemente los fundamentos de su propio pensamiento& lo 9ue me propulsW a pedirle de escribir un libreto 9ue tratara de una hipotMtica 9uinta dimensiWn& siendo tan tremendamente difZcil de concebir algo 9ue %aya m[s all[ de las tres dimensiones fZsicas con las 9ue estamos familiari ados# H[s de una %e la propia Lisa -andall ha a0rmado 9ue la pasiWn de un cientZ0co debe ser expresada a tra%Ms de un camino distinto al de ob8eti%idad y sentido crZtico,tan imprescindibles para su traba8o# +in embargo& momentos como el presente& donde ciertos conceptos 9ue estructuran los presupuestos b[sicos de una ciencia comien an a tambalearse y a cambiar& de8an entre%er las profundas relaciones 9ue hermanan ciencia y arte& donde la pasiWn por el conocimiento y por la %ida pueden estar unidas al traba8o estructural de una manera m[s explZcita# La pasiWn nutre el traba8o tanto del cientZ0co como del mYsico& pero el primero siempre debe e9uilibrar lo ob8eti%o y lo pasional& mientras 9ue el mYsico debe hacer uni%ersales sus pasiones con el 0n de compartirlas con el mayor nYmero de gente# Ul ob8eti%o entonces se con%irtiW para nosotros en llegar a una gran forma& a una ar9uitectura sonora nacida de nuestras pasiones y baXada por una estMtica 9ue podrZa inspirarse sin comple8os en elementos cientZ0cos& en la comprensiWn cientZ0ca de la naturale a )las propiedades de las cuatro fuer as o interacciones fundamentales& la naturale a del espacio<tempo cur%o de Uinstein& ciertas caracterZsticas de la teorZa de supercuerdas& los propios modelos de Lisa -andall y como estos podrZan cambiar nuestra %isiWn del Vni%ersoC*#" )Parra GJ7J*?# 4he music of 56ctor Parra is complex& but also contrasting from aforementioned conceptions of complexity# 5is concerns are far from FerneyhoughIs& although ParraIs complexity can also be summari ed triptychally# 4o my opinion& the relationship between the use of physical theories to de%elop structural parameters& the interest in manipulating the perception of time through the use of dense textures& and a musical thought based on visua ization ma3es ParraIs music uni9uely rich and 9uite differently complex from the wor3s of (rian Ferneyhough#
6 5yperprologue Husic was a pro@ect which # had %een dreaming of man! !ears %efore 122A, the !ear which actua ! started" 8isa Banda , the i%rettist of the opera, is ever!thing %ut a conformist" (aving an immense ta ent in ph!sics and %eing an authentic prodig! of mathematics, at a ver! ear ! age she renounced a standardized career within the theoretica frame of the standard mode of e ementar! partic es in order to go deeper into the innovative and unsta% e paths of post:;uantics ph!sics" +! choosing this path, to m! opinion, peop e i5e her em%od! what one cou d see as 'the 9gure' of opera in the 1/ st *entur!" She is modern, her thought is advanced, and her aspirations are c assica and universa C she tries to comprehend ph!sica rea it! the same wa! man5ind has %een doing it since the ancient Dree5s, a though in an avant: garde wa!" #t was this inte ectua and human attitude >;uestioning so strong ! the foundation of her own thought? what made me as5 her to write a i%retto a%out a h!pothetica 9fth dimensiona fact that is extreme ! dif9cu t to conceive since it goes %e!ond the three:dimensiona notion which we are so fami iar with" More than once, 8isa Banda has stated that the passion of a scientist needs to %e expressed through a different path from o%@ectivit! and critica sensethese %eing extreme ! important in her @o%" Nonethe ess, moments such as the present time where certain concepts that structure the %asic preconceptions of science start changing et us see the profound re ationships %etween science and art, where %oth the passion for 5now edge and ife can end up %eing together in a much more exp icit wa!" Passion nurtures wor5%oth of the scientist and the musician, %ut the former a wa!s must %a ance o%@ective and passiona thoughts, whereas the musician needs to %ring his or her passions to the rea m of universa it! in order to share them with the argest possi% e amount of peop e" To me and 8isa, the goa was to reach a great form, to reach a sonic architecture %orn from our respective passions and surrounded %! an aesthetic sense inspired in scienti9c means to understanding nature >the properties of the four forces or fundamenta interactions, the nature of 4instein's curved space:time, certain characteristics of string theor!, the mode s deve oped %! 8isa Banda and how these cou d change our vision of the universe"""?"&

11 /O-^+ C$4U' (\ggemann& Har3us# !56ctor Parra"# Urnst %on +iemens Husic Foundation# 7N April GJ77# _http:OOwww#e%s<musi3stiftung#chOenOcomposers<grants<in<aidOcomposers<pri e<winners< GJ77Ohector<parraO`# Ferneyhough& (rian# Collected /ritings# 5arwood Academic Publishers& 7==># LM%y& Fabien# Le compositeur& son oreille et ses machines a ecrire# Not published yet& GJJE# Parra& 56ctor# !Untre%ista"# Uspacio +onoro& No# GG& +eptember GJ7J# _http:OOwww#tallersonoro#comOespaciosonoroOGGOUntre%istaaGJ5aCDaA=ctoraGJParra#htm`# 4oop& -ichard# !On Complexity"# Perspecti%es of New Husic& 1ol# D7& No# 7& 7==D# Vlman& Uri3# !+ome 4houghts on the New Complexity"# Perspecti%es of New Husic& 1ol# DG& No# 7& 7==E#