Before i share all 3 sections of the article by Jim Wilson to say that i tried to look up for email and ask properly for permission to reprint these ,i wrote to Bernie once over some other issue and got no reply at all ,so if i need to remove this content from my blog i will ,just as it goes for so many lost schematics in electronotes that so very few have built ..it is same for the many articles (mostly technical issues) that can be found there or in older publications of the type and it's shame to be forgotten .
The present use of the term "electronic music" covers a wide range of musical phenomenon from certain rock groups and the Hammond Organ to the most sophisticated computer techniques . It seems that the only requirement for the music to be given the adjective electronic is for electricity to be present .Evidently ,this is considered necessary and sufficient .
What i would like to suggest is that ,the above use of the term "electronic music" is a striking example of definition by non-essentials .It confuses and blurs the characteristic of electronic music which makes it unique and revolutionary .That characteristic is that electronic music is not a performing art .This immediately distinguishes electronic music from all other types of music .It also radically alters the relations between composer - audience ,composer - performer ,composer - sound .In addition the status of the recording is drastically changed .
But what about live electronic music ? I propose to call this electrified music. What i want to stress here is that electrified music does not change the composers relations with audience ,performer or sound ,and that electrified music represents a part of a general evolutionary trend we have seen in the history of music.That trend being to create instruments which expand the timbre and range available to the composer .
In short - electrified music is evolutionary ,electronic music , revolutionary .We can see this by examining certain relations one by one .
The Relation Between Composer and Audience :
In performed music ,electrified or acoustic , the composer addresses his audience only indirectly ,through the medium of the performer ,or twice removed through the performer and a distorted recording .The only exception to this is if the composer himself performs a work he has written for an unaccompanied instrument ,to a live audience .
The composer of electronic music has a more direct , more intimate communication with his audience because electronic music is not performing art .No performers means no distortion of the composer's intentions . Also ,the recording of an electronic music opus does not represent a distortion .(More on this later)
Paradoxical as it may sound, even tho the electronic music composer communicates more directly with his audience then the composer of performed music, the electronic music composer also has less physical contact with his audience .This is because the electronic music composer's audience is dispersed ,rarely coming to concerts because electronic music sounds as good on one's own stereo ( or quad ) as it does in the concert hall. The electronic music composer speaks to his audience in the same manner as the novelist .The novelist never meets the vast majority of his readers and may deliberately cut himself off from contact with his audience .For the first time the composer ,if he writes electronic music ,can do the same .
The Relation Between Composer and Performer :
In performed music ,both electrified and acoustic ,the composer is at the performer's mercy .He must first convince the performer that his music is worth playing . But even should he convince the performer that his music is good the performer must also consider his reputation and whether or not the audience will want to listen to a new piece .The situation is immensely frustrating since a composer's work may be rejected on grounds that have nothing to do with esthetics ,and even if the performer finally deigns to play the composer's opus ,the performer may not play the piece the way the composer would like.
5c.ESTHETICS OF NEW MUSIC
Thoughts On Electronic Music
II
Music - Electronic vs. Electrified*
by Jim Wilson
The present use of the term "electronic music" covers a wide range of musical phenomenon from certain rock groups and the Hammond Organ to the most sophisticated computer techniques . It seems that the only requirement for the music to be given the adjective electronic is for electricity to be present .Evidently ,this is considered necessary and sufficient .
What i would like to suggest is that ,the above use of the term "electronic music" is a striking example of definition by non-essentials .It confuses and blurs the characteristic of electronic music which makes it unique and revolutionary .That characteristic is that electronic music is not a performing art .This immediately distinguishes electronic music from all other types of music .It also radically alters the relations between composer - audience ,composer - performer ,composer - sound .In addition the status of the recording is drastically changed .
But what about live electronic music ? I propose to call this electrified music. What i want to stress here is that electrified music does not change the composers relations with audience ,performer or sound ,and that electrified music represents a part of a general evolutionary trend we have seen in the history of music.That trend being to create instruments which expand the timbre and range available to the composer .
In short - electrified music is evolutionary ,electronic music , revolutionary .We can see this by examining certain relations one by one .
The Relation Between Composer and Audience :
In performed music ,electrified or acoustic , the composer addresses his audience only indirectly ,through the medium of the performer ,or twice removed through the performer and a distorted recording .The only exception to this is if the composer himself performs a work he has written for an unaccompanied instrument ,to a live audience .
The composer of electronic music has a more direct , more intimate communication with his audience because electronic music is not performing art .No performers means no distortion of the composer's intentions . Also ,the recording of an electronic music opus does not represent a distortion .(More on this later)
Paradoxical as it may sound, even tho the electronic music composer communicates more directly with his audience then the composer of performed music, the electronic music composer also has less physical contact with his audience .This is because the electronic music composer's audience is dispersed ,rarely coming to concerts because electronic music sounds as good on one's own stereo ( or quad ) as it does in the concert hall. The electronic music composer speaks to his audience in the same manner as the novelist .The novelist never meets the vast majority of his readers and may deliberately cut himself off from contact with his audience .For the first time the composer ,if he writes electronic music ,can do the same .
The Relation Between Composer and Performer :
In performed music ,both electrified and acoustic ,the composer is at the performer's mercy .He must first convince the performer that his music is worth playing . But even should he convince the performer that his music is good the performer must also consider his reputation and whether or not the audience will want to listen to a new piece .The situation is immensely frustrating since a composer's work may be rejected on grounds that have nothing to do with esthetics ,and even if the performer finally deigns to play the composer's opus ,the performer may not play the piece the way the composer would like.
The electronic music composer's relation to performers is very simple. Since there are no performers in electronic music no relation exists. The performer becomes irrelevant, and ,thank gooodness, the attendant problems
The Relation Between Composer and Sound :
The material the composer uses is sound and this, of course, is true for both electronic music and performed music. But how the composer relates to sound undergoes a severe change in non-performed electronic music.
In performed music, either acoustic or electrified, the composer's relation to sound is distant and the coomposer has to rely heavily on his inner ear. This was result of the fact that it was extremely difficult to gather the proper musicians just to hear if a certain passage sounded correct. A positive cult grew up labeling any composer who composed at the piano inferior.
With electronic music the composer deals directly with sound. He therefore does not have to wait to hear certain passages, he can try them out, over and over again if need be. Here the composer resembles a sculptor and it might be appropriate to call electronic music sound sculpture. An electronic music composer can take a bloc of sound or passage and wittle it away, or add to it, or change it and hear the results very soon.
The Status of the Recording :
In performed music ,electrified or acoustic, the recording represents a reproduction in the same sense as a reproduction of a painting. The recording of a piece of music is generally considered an esthetically inferior product to hearing a "live" performance. (I must confess that i never understood the prejudice for i have never heard a piece of music in a concert hall with the amazing clarity with which i hear the same piece on a recording. Besides if i want to stand up while listening to a recording no one will mind and i won't be bothered by anyone else coughing , shuffling, whispering etc..)
In electronic music the recording becomes the actual artwork itself. It is not a reproduction. Just as each copy of a novel is the novel, so also each copy of an electronic music opus is the art work.
This leads directly to a chamber like quality of electronic music for electronic music is perfectly suited for home listening either from records ,tape or radio.
I think the above case speaks for itself. In no significant way does performed electronic music change the relation between composer and performer or sound or the recording or audience . Electronic music as a non-performing art substantially changes all of these relations. Therefore electronic music and electrified music should be conceptually differentiated .
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