New Composition for Oboe Utilizing a Brutalist Tablature (Excerpt)

 

"Puddleprance" for Tuba. Bil Smith Composer

"Puddleprance" 

for Tuba

Bil Smith Composer

Link to PDF

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1reJ8E0Fa3Yj1XmltqBDaWNaw_MoVhh9e/view?usp=sharing

 

New Website is Live

 

New Website:

https://www.bilsmith.com/

"Locked Transit" for Flute and Bassoon.

"Locked Transit" for Flute and Bassoon.  

Published by LNM Editions

(Laboratorie New Music)

"Barb's Invisible Chimera" For Solo Flute

 

"Barb's Invisible Chimera" For Solo Flute

Bil Smith Composer

2024-2025

10 Images. 32” X 28”; 81.28 X 71.12 cm

Ink, Graphite, Acrylic, Metallic Powder, Gunpowder on Ilford Galerie Prestige Gold Fibre Silk

Edition of 5 with 2 APs

My new work for solo flute, "Barb's Invisible Chimera"  is a boundary-pushing musical composition that defies conventional expectations of both notation and performance, blending elements of visual art and sound in a way that challenges the performer’s interpretative instincts.

Conceptual Framework

The title Barb’s Invisible Chimera hints at a dialogue with the work of conceptual artist Barbara Kruger. Kruger’s signature style—bold textual interventions that critique consumerism and societal power structures—finds an echo in this work, which manipulates musical notation, imagery, and textual constructs to convey a layered critique of perception and interpretation in contemporary music.

My engagement with semiotic structures extends beyond music into branding and pharmaceuticals, drawing inspiration from the language of medical and commercial industries. My lexicon mirrors the syntacticons found in pharmaceutical branding, where invented words, color associations, and typography contribute to an overarching psychological effect. This aesthetic is reminiscent of Damien Hirst’s fascination with the pharmaceutical industry, aligning the notation of Barb’s Invisible Chimera with the conceptual weight of contemporary visual art.

Notational Structure and The Jubal Project

A central feature of Barb's Invisible Chimera is its incorporation of my Jubal Project notation archetype. The Jubal Project is an experimental notation system that departs from traditional staff-based representation, instead using striking circular color combinations, gestural mark-making, and unconventional symbols to communicate sonic intent. This system redefines the relationship between performer and score, transforming interpretation into an active, almost improvisational process.

This composition is a realization of an "idea of a moment in time for the flutist," placing emphasis on the ephemeral nature of sound and performance. By integrating Jubal Project notation, the score becomes an interactive, kinetic object—one that demands engagement beyond mere visual deciphering.

Materiality and Medium

The choice of materials in Barb’s Invisible Chimera contributes significantly to its impact. Ilford Galerie Prestige Gold Fibre Silk paper, known for its rich, tactile surface, serves as a base for the intricate layering of ink, graphite, acrylic, and metallic powder. The addition of gunpowder—a volatile, elemental material—imbues the score with a sense of transience and combustibility, reinforcing the idea of performance as an act of momentary existence. The materiality of the score is thus inseparable from its musical realization, making the process of interpreting and performing the piece inherently linked to its physical presence.

Performance Considerations

Performing Barb’s Invisible Chimera requires the flutist to engage with the score in a non-traditional manner. The absence of standard musical notation means that the performer must develop a unique interpretative strategy based on:

1. Color and Shape Recognition – The Jubal Project notation system employs color coding and geometric forms to suggest specific timbres, dynamics, and articulation techniques.
2. Gestural Reading – The physical markings on the score often imply movement and energy rather than discrete pitches, necessitating a gestural approach to sound production.
3. Temporal Fluidity – The composition resists strict metric structuring, favoring an organic, free-flowing temporality that adapts to the performer’s intuition and physical response to the score.
4. Multisensory Engagement – The interplay between visual art and sound demands an expanded sensory approach, where the flutist’s interpretation is influenced by visual stimuli as much as by traditional musical thought.

Aesthetic and Philosophical Implications

This work is intended to raise critical questions about the nature of composition, authorship, and the role of the performer. By relinquishing rigid control over musical outcomes, Barb’s Invisible Chimera situates the performer as a co-creator, blurring the line between composer and interpreter. This aligns with postmodern artistic discourses that challenge hierarchical structures in artistic production.

Furthermore, the pharmaceutical branding aesthetic embedded in the notation hints at deeper cultural commentaries—specifically, the ways in which language, imagery, and commodification shape human cognition and behavior. My approach suggests a parallel between the performative aspects of pharmaceutical branding and the performative nature of musical interpretation, highlighting the constructed realities inherent in both domains.

Conclusion

Barb’s Invisible Chimera for solo flute stands at the intersection of music, visual art, and conceptual philosophy. My integration of the Jubal Project notation archetype, combined with his unique material choices and cultural references, results in a work that is both provocative and enigmatic. For the flutist, the piece is less about executing predefined notes and more about inhabiting a shifting, momentary space of sonic and visual engagement.

By challenging traditional notions of notation, performance, and musical meaning, Barb’s Invisible Chimera continues my intent of pushing the boundaries of contemporary composition. It is a work that demands deep interpretative commitment, offering an ever-evolving experience that transcends conventional musical paradigms.

"Triumphant Adoration". A Fanfare for Zirnbauer Piccolo Trumpet. Link To PDF.

Zirnbauer Piccolo Trumpet

PDF Link to Score

In "Triumphant Adoration" you will note that the notational patterns appear with some uniformity, however each should be treated by the performer as a module capable of containing a variety of material sound possibilities.  The symbology serves numerous functional demands with a visually consistent solution.  

This notational system concurrently serves as a delivery device for informational, climactic, structural and aural interpretation.  The performer finds that unconventional categories and methods emerge; new hierarchies established and traditional trumpet performance boundaries are perforated.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cpBygsLqHjPpE6tC1Nvt7WoMJWuVQ0LC/view?usp=sharing

"Triumphant Adoration".

The Power of Visual Representation: An Investigation into Non-Traditional Music Scores

 

Piece for Tuba

As the sphere of music composition continues to evolve, we find ourselves at a crossroads of sorts, with emerging technologies and approaches vying for our attention and allegiance. One such approach that has recently captured the imagination of composers and theorists alike is that of hyper-complex visualized scores. These scores, which combine intricate musical notation with highly abstract visual elements, offer a new way of understanding and engaging with musical composition, one that draws heavily on the work of thinkers such as Wilhelm Reich and Roland Barthes.

At its core, these radical scores represent a departure from traditional methods of musical notation. Rather than relying solely on written symbols and conventions, these scores incorporate a wide range of graphic elements, from abstract shapes and patterns to representational imagery and text. The result is a kind of synesthetic experience, where the visual and auditory elements of the music are intertwined in a complex and dynamic relationship.

But what are the implications of this new approach to music composition? For one thing, it raises questions about the role of notation in the creative process. Traditionally, musical notation has been seen as a kind of neutral medium, a way of encoding musical ideas in a way that can be easily shared and communicated. But with hyper-complex visualized scores, the notation becomes an integral part of the creative act, shaping the music itself in profound ways.

This shift in emphasis also has implications for the way we think about musical interpretation. In a traditional score, the written notation provides a kind of roadmap for performers, guiding them through the various elements of the music and helping them to bring it to life. But with hyper-complex visualized scores, the relationship between notation and performance becomes much more complex. Rather than simply following the written instructions, performers must engage with the visual elements of the score, interpreting them in a way that is both creative and responsive to the musical ideas being presented.

This brings us to the work of Wilhelm Reich, who saw the human body as a kind of musical instrument, capable of expressing and responding to the subtle nuances of sound and vibration. For Reich, music was a way of accessing the deep emotional and psychological energies that underlie our experience of the world. In a sense, hyper-complex visualized scores represent an extension of Reich's vision, offering a new way of accessing and expressing these energies through the medium of musical notation.

At the same time, hyper-complex visualized scores also draw heavily on the work of Roland Barthes, who famously wrote about the "death of the author" and the ways in which the meaning of a text is constructed by the reader, rather than by the author. This idea of the text as a kind of open, generative space is key to understanding the possibilities of hyper-complex visualized scoring. By creating scores that are at once highly structured and highly abstract, composers are opening up a space for interpretation and engagement that is far more expansive than traditional methods of notation.

But what are the challenges of working with hyper-complex visualized scores? For one thing, they require a high degree of technical skill and visual literacy on the part of both composer and performer. Unlike traditional scores, which can be read and understood by musicians with a relatively limited set of skills, hyper-complex visualized scores require a deep engagement with the visual elements of the music, as well as a willingness to experiment and take risks in the performance of the music.

At its core, hyper-complex visualized scoring can be understood as a fundamentally liberatory practice, one that seeks to subvert the hierarchical power structures that have long governed the creation and reception of musical works. In Reich's theory of orgonomy, for example, the human body is understood to be the primary locus of creative energy, with the production of musical works seen as a manifestation of this innate biological process. By extension, the role of the composer is not to impose their will upon the material, but rather to act as a facilitator, channeling the energy of the body into a coherent sonic form.

Similarly, Barthes' semiotic theory posits that meaning is not fixed or stable, but rather arises out of the complex interplay between signifiers and signifieds. In this sense, musical scores can be seen as a kind of language, with each note or symbol carrying its own unique set of associations and connotations. By embracing the inherent ambiguity and multiplicity of the musical language, hyper-complex visualized scores have the potential to create new forms of meaning that challenge conventional modes of interpretation and understanding.

Of course, the use of hyper-complex visualized scores also raises a number of significant challenges and questions. One of the primary concerns is the potential for these scores to become overly insular and elitist, catering only to a select group of highly trained musicians and scholars. This danger is particularly acute given the highly specialized vocabulary and notation systems that often accompany hyper-complex scoring, which can make it difficult for newcomers to access and engage with the works.

Another potential issue is the risk of over-reliance on technology, with composers and performers becoming too reliant on digital tools and software to generate and interpret the scores. This not only raises questions about the authenticity and originality of the works themselves, but also runs the risk of further entrenching existing power structures within the music industry, particularly with regard to the distribution and consumption of musical works.

Ultimately, however, the potential benefits of these scores far outweigh these challenges, particularly in terms of the ways in which it can disrupt traditional notions of musical authorship and interpretation. By foregrounding the role of the body, and by embracing the inherent ambiguity and multiplicity of the musical language, hyper-complex visualized scores offer a radical alternative to the hierarchical power structures that have long dominated the music industry. In so doing, they provide a powerful tool for artists and audiences alike to explore the myriad possibilities of musical creation, and to imagine new futures for the art form as a whole.