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| Quadrantaria (substrate transparency) Score Excerpt |
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| Quadrantaria Score Detail |
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| Quadrantaria Score Detail |
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| Quadrantaria Score Detail |
"Psymonic Ratios" for Trumpet emerges as an exploration extending the boundaries of traditional scorecraft into the spectral domain. Lasting a precise three minutes and twenty-four seconds, this piece not only challenges conventional expectations through its temporal specificity but also through its use of spectral notation constructs.
The foundation of "Psymonic Ratios" forges formal unity from the spectral constructs employed within the score. These constructs do not merely serve as a notation system but act as a canvas where formal unity and incongruity coexist and converse.
The performer must navigate the suggestion of perspective—an invitation to perceive depth and dimensionality, which is then subverted by the very structure that proposes it. This contradiction creates a complex spatial dynamic within the performance, where depth can be hinted at but is never fully realized, much like an optical illusion that tantalizes but never satisfies. The result is a piece that oscillates between flatness and three-dimensionality, constantly challenging the trumpet's auditory and spatial perceptions.
The irregularity of interlocking forms within the score further accentuates this effect. Unlike traditional scores, where measures and phrases often predictably interlock, "Psymonic Ratios" presents a scenario where these forms seem to connect yet remain distinctly apart. This lack of regularity not only disrupts the linear progression of the music but also enhances the overall sense of unpredictability and intrigue.
Color integration within the score adds another layer of complexity and expression. The placement of the colored strips atop the score page challenge the trumpeter to interpret sections not as isolated incidents but as parts of a continuum. This approach encourages a performance that is less about executing discrete musical events and more about weaving a coherent tapestry of sound that reflects the complex layering of colors and emotions, akin to how Richter’s strips overlay translucent colors to create depth and texture.
The inherent ambiguity of using colors instead of precise musical notation grants the trumpeter a significant degree of interpretative latitude. This latitude transforms the performer from a mere executor of predefined musical instructions to an active participant in the creative act. The trumpeter must make real-time decisions about how to translate these visual cues into sound, which demands a high degree of musical sensitivity and imagination.
The piece exudes an unashamed sense of artifice, embracing its constructed nature without pretense. This is paired with an unchecked air of exuberance that permeates the performance, a celebration of the possibilities that arise from stepping outside traditional compositional techniques. The score does not attempt to hide its synthetic qualities; rather, it flaunts them.
"If You Find Her Reemergence Strange"
for B Flat Trumpet
2023
Bil Smith Composer
Published by LNM Editions
Link To PDF Score
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pInyEOM5hvgaxZRJh0Wi1PiFSqpb3om_/view?usp=sharing
This epicyclic tablature consists of a musical notation system that uses epicycles, which are mathematical curves generated by the motion of a small circle inside a larger circle, to represent various elements of music. This type of notation system is designed to convey complex musical structures in a visually intuitive and accessible way.
In epicyclic music notation, each epicycle represents a specific musical element, such as pitch, rhythm, or dynamics. The size, orientation, and movement of the epicycle are used to convey information about the specific characteristics of the note or sound, such as its duration, amplitude, or frequency.
The impact of epicyclic music notation on the performer can vary depending on their experience with the system. For performers who are familiar with experimental notation systems, epicyclic notation may be seen as a creative and expressive way of projecting and interpreting the score, allowing for greater flexibility and creative exploration in performance.
In "A Sullen And Truculent Citizen," scored for Chamber Orchestra, one finds a notational system that can be said to mirror the very unconscious structuring itself, operating within a Lacanian framework of the symbolic, the imaginary, and the real. The score utilizes a Gallifreyan representational framework interwoven with traditional notational elements, a juxtaposition that destabilizes as much as it defines, allowing for a spiraling set of associations whose burgeoning intractability speaks to the heart of the ineffable in music.
The Gallifreyan constructs, circular and enigmatic, become the locus of the imaginary, seducing the interpreter with their cryptic allure, their promise of meanings perpetually deferred. Here, in these arcane symbols, the score engenders a multiplicity of potentialities, inviting a hermeneutic engagement that simultaneously reveals and conceals the musical intentions. It is in this space that the score "feels suspended"—a concept of the suspended motif that captures the essence of the human condition, hanging between signifier and signified, perpetually in motion.
The musicians, caught in the gravitational pull of this notational behemoth, navigate a minefield of meaning where the paradox of precision and ambiguity reigns supreme. Every performance becomes an act of de-coding, a futile attempt to find a Rosetta Stone for a language that morphs with every glance.
The result is a notational dispositif that oscillates between the familiar and the unknown, creating a dialectic that invites and disavows meaning in equal measure.
