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JEAN-JACQUESNATTIEZ
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5': A STUDYIN
SEMIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS
Translated
by AnnaBarry
CONTENTS
Introduction 244
INTRODUCTION
Music analysis, as we understandit in the semiologicalperspective of
attentionto minutedetailandclarification,does not lend itselfwell to exhaus-
tive presentation.
In my book on music semiology (1975), I was able to give only a few
examplesof my approach,and the small numberof semiologicallyinspired
analysespublishedin periodicalsis confined, for the most part, to parts of
works.l I am, therefore,particularlygratefulto JonathanDunsby for having
offeredto devotemanypagesof MusicAnalysisto the publication,in English,
of this analysisof 'Density 21.5'. It first appearedin a Frencheditionof 300
copiesin 1975, and is long since out of print. I havemadevariouschangesin
orderto correcterrors,to take into accountthe evolutionof my theoretical
ideasin relationto a text now eight yearsold, and to clarifymy positionon
some issues.
The uncomfortablesituationof analysistoday can doubtlessbe explained
by the difficulty experiencedin drawingup and publishingwritten music
analyses.Whenone venturesto reproachanalysesfor not comingto gripswith
the detailof a workand the multipleconstituentvariableswhichgo to makeit
up, one is often told that analysisprofessors,in their classes, can 'go a long
way' into a work. Could music analysisbe an oral genre, or even an oral
tradition?2It must face the followingproblem:no analysisis truly rigorous
unless written down (Granger),an epistemologicalelaborationof the adage
'Verbavolant,ssnptamanent',since the recordof the analysisenablesit to be
checked: once it is written down, it is possible to review, criticise and go
beyondan analysis.Even with a very elaborateoralanalysis,the listenerhas
the physical problem of being unable to retain everything. If the teacher
managesto give the impressionof having penetratedthe work deeply, the
listenerwill be left with a positive 'aura',but a cumulativeadvancementof
knowledgecannotbe developedon the basis of impressions.
The presentstudy thereforeaimsto urgemusicologistsinterestedin analy-
sis to takethe time to recordtheirresearchand offersthe first ratherdetailed
analysisof an entire work from a semiologicalperspective.I am gratefulto
David Lidov for having understoodthis: 'This long study is an important
complementto Fondements. . . It gives a much fullerpicturethan the latter
does of the scope and force of the author'smethods' (Lidov, 1977: 45).
Writtenanalysisenablesus to take in all parameters,not that an oralanalysis
cannotdo this, but it is extremelydifficultto masterthe combinationof all
parametersin the absenceof rules, tablesand diagrams.
This analysisis alsothe first to illustratelinksbetweenthe neutrallevel and
poieticandesthesicdimensions,thoughit in no wayclaimsto offerexhaustive
poieticand esthesicanalyses.It is not proposedto give a new presentationof
the perspectivefromwhich I am working:3it shouldsufficeto rememberthat
a neutrallevel is a descriptivelevel containingthe most exhaustiveinventory
possibleof all types of configurationsconceivablyrecognisablein a score.The
level is neutral because its object is to show neither the processes of
JEAN-JACQUES NATTIEZ
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MUSICANALYSIS1: 3,1982 247
f =P ' _ - -3 J? p
NATTIEZ
JEAN-JACQUES
;; 1 ; 2 $ aS j 2J $
3 , j | [4b], _3
rf , ' , '
>= p 9 ]w 3X, F ] ^ 3 j
First, the left of the example:bs 4 and 5 can be seen, in fact, in two
differentways(A andB), showingstraightawaythatthe neutrallevelis not
restrictedto onemannerof presentation, but on the contrarydisplaysthe
diverseconfigurations possible,thoughwithoutprofessionto unitethemall.
To avoidconfusion,the numbersin squarebracketscorrespond to the parti-
tionedunits;a letterfollowinga square-bracketed numberdesignatesthe
particularparadigmatic alternativewherethereareseveralpartitions.Roman
numeralsdesignateunits regroupedat a higherlevel; these are discussed
below.5
As faras pitchis concerned,the firstthreenotes(unit[1])arerepeatedat
theendof b.3 ([3]).It is temptingto addto thesethe F#-G-F# ([5])of b.4.
Theparadigmatic axisregroupsunitswhichareequivalent froma givenpoint
of view:thisdoesnotmeanthattheyarehomogeneous. For[1], [3]and[5], I
useMolino'sterm block,[bloc].Theevaluation of affinitywhichallowsus
to maketheseassociations, dependsupona mixtureof separatecriteria:
(1) The melodicidentity of [1] and[3] (F-E-F#)
(2) The rhythmicsimilarityof [1], [3] and[5]:
Ex.2 [1XfUlJuJ ,2
t3]n l J
. '
[5g.r:' JS
Ex3
[2ag zP XJ) 4 J S
3 1 3 & t
[4ad SJ 3
:S 3
J &
t I |
[64 ;. j J J
3 1 3 } 3
fP
Despitedifferences hasthepatternlong-short-long8
in detail,thisparadigm as
a commontheme.Thereare,however,two anomaliesto be considered: the
inclusionof a semibrevein [2a]andthe two equalvalues(tripletcrotchets)
whichend [6a].
The semibreveis all the more importantbecauseit forms part of a
procedure whichis especiallycommonin Varese:theconstantlengthening of
eachnew note withinone musicalsegment.9Onephenomenon justifiesthe
Ex.4
['
[2S_Xss
1;gL \ semitone
1 j J k
[3] [4a]
03 [5,0 3
[6] , 3 }
zJ w1
(1 = semitone,d = descending,
a = ascending)
ld 2a 5d 5a
5d 6a 2d
ld 2a la
6a
ld la
ld 2d 3d
6a 6d
6a
2a la 3d 3a
3d 3a
2a la
ld la
ld la
etc.
c beclslons.
The differencebetweenan inventoryandactualanalysisis thatit doesnot
appearto bepossibletodeducethelatterfromthesumof theinformation provided
bytheformer.In fact,partitioning carriedoutnoteby noteandparameter by
parameter doespresentproblems:l4
(1) A certainnumberof variables is reduced,fromthestart,to thestatusof
hapax,thatis, theyarenot attachable to othervariables,remainingisolated
andunusablein the inventory.Rhythmicvaluesarea casein point:withthe
exceptionof initialnotesof 'phrases',characterisedby twosemiquavers (bs 1,
3, 9, 15,21, 41, 43),thereareveryfewstrictrepetitions in thepiece.Fromthe
thirdnoteof the piece,the valuesof the F: in bs 1-2 andthe F: of bs 3- 4
mustbe madeequivalent in orderto obtainaninteresting result-a departure
fromthe data.The algorithmic procedure lendstoomuchweightto the note
as the minimalpertinentunit. As Molinowrites,it 'is an "amalgam" of
heterogeneous characterisations:
it indicatesoneabsolutepitch,virtualinter-
vals,degreesand function,and virtualdurationswhichcould,potentially,
carryrhythms.Thisis whyanisolatednotecouldneverconstitutea unit:its
mostimportant properties(intervals,degreesandfunctions,rhythms)remain
virtualuntilat leasta secondnote is joinedto it' (1975:55). The example
showsclearlyhowphenomena pertinentfor analysisarepresentat the 'top'
x = semiquaver
y- triplet quaver
z- crotchet
258 MUSIC
ANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
ANALYSIS
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5': A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
which variablesare strategic (Molino's term). For example, the unit G-F
which joins the first two segmentsof Ex. 1, does not have the samevalue as
the F-E or the E-F# of the opening.G-F assumesthe statusof a joiningunit.
All the joiningunitsof the piecemightbe studiedfor certaincommontraits-
an interval,perhaps,which is characteristicin relationto all the other inter-
vals of the work. These comparisonsshould permit the identificationof
contexts and situationswhich give certainvariablesmore weightthan others.
(2) Secondly, Naud's inventorytable is an aide-memoire, an instrument
which confrontsus with phenomenathat the 'from the top' procedureof
paradigmaticanalysismight leave out. Once it is discoveredthat F-E-F#,
with its characteristicrhythm,is an important'thematic'elementof the piece,
the intervaltable can be scannedto see if ld-2a is found elsewhere.This
successionappearsin bs 10-11, in the trill of b.20 and in b.39, and makesit
possibleto show how these two characteristicintervalsforma developmental
thread,and at what privilegedpoints(beforethe returnof the real 'theme'at
bs 15, 21 and 41).
(3) Finally, the table in columnsshows up, on one page, conflictingseg-
mentations,the identificationof whichwouldotherwiserequirecomparisonof
paradigmatictables, often spreadover severalpages. Here, a conflict arises
betweenthe melodic segmentationwhich isolatesC#-G and the slur which
isolatesG. The partitioningfinallyadopteddoesnot excludethe other,sinceit
has been shown that it could be pertinentfrom anotherpoint of view.
NATTIEZ
JEAN-JACQUES
^ [63 3 j
Ex.5 ,
3
v ton e
p sud iho
-J br r ( b*
whichconnectsit to C, andtheC,
ButtheBbis isolatedfromtheG bythesluris separatedfromDb by duration
to distinctivedynamicemphasis,
subjected themomentum: themove-
its arrival,andby a breathwhicharrests
delaying / G-Bb-C-Db. There not be
will
mentC#-G / C#-G-A-Bb delaysG-Bb
symmetry.
perfect by a rhythmicdescription.Using
Themelodicanalysismustbe completed
thetypologypresentedabove,we obtain:
[7] b
[8] c or e
al
[9]
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
260
'\ ^ p1 3] k r 3 ,,
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5': ANALYSIS
A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
ka r E°]g _f
3 t11]
7mf
fi r
subsoo r 5 6
mf
brr
Subito
H ,\, E2] H
t semitonc
¢ Stf t
3 ' 3
: tf r
Ex8
[11] 012]
1 F
3
b;
3 3 z3
v tr- r
Ex .9
P r5r C : >
s
E5] 3 , 3
Sai r
st s. . st
L<?e' 42$m
. , ,
54 '
9 I tt
.- (st= semitone)
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5: ANALYSIS
A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
SectionB ends on the same note as sectionA, afterwhich the rise to high G
began(b. 7). The intervalof [21] is a doublecompoundsemitonebetweenF#
and G, the two predominantnotes of [1] and [2]. It wouldbe an exaggeration
to speakof a coda, but the composeris roundingoff andsummingup, andnot
only throughallusionsto the very openingof the piece. Hereis the paradigm
of bs 15-16:
Ex11 i0180 S 4<
E9]e
kOa] 4;
-; A
NATTIEZ
JEAN-JACQUES
Ex.12 5601 +
Xg 4tS J) #r
[,5 f f
520ag 3 § t21b]H
7 $N, r LS
directions
Justas in [16] a D# was introducedaftera D with the characteristic
/ , so in [20a] Vareseintroducesan E# after E, with the same directions
/ X . Even if these intervalsare not the same (ascendingtritone and major
second, decendingcompoundperfectfourthand compoundminor second),
the leapwhichleadsrespectivelyto D# in [16]and to E# beforethe returning
upward sweep (D#-A-D# / E#-F#-G) in [20a] is some justificationfor
drawingthese musicalsegmentstogether.Finally,the culminatingG in b. 17
has the samesemitonerelation(evenin octavedisplacement)to F#, as the E#
has to E, the Bb to A, and the A to G#.
It will be notedthatthe implicitpartitioningin the threesegmentsof Ex. 12
does not correspondto [16] and [20a]-[21a]. Recall that whilst in Ex. 9
rhythmicfactors,indispensablefor the analysisof bs 11-14, were taken into
account,in Ex. 11 the accentwas placedon melodicrelationships.The break
between[20a]and [2la] cannotbe retainedbecauseof the phrasing,dynamics
and breathing.It should thereforebe written:
Ex.13
D 20]<2= '
[21] -
L
,y C
B I [7] b
II [8] c or e
[9] al
III [10] a2
[1 1] al
[12] b
[13] a2
IV [14] a
[15] a
[16] b
V [17] b
VI [18] a2
[19] c
[20] al a
[21] a1
Exceptin [8]and[19],typesa andb, thosewhichgo fromtheshortestto the
longestduration,predominate.Type d, presentin A, is peculiarto the
beginningsinceit doesnotappearhereat all. Its returnfrom[22]to [26]will
be allthemoresignificant.Theomnipresence of a andb impliesthatallthese
JEAN-JACQUES NATTIEZ
I + J >
nf f mff w f
3- , 3 '
m dF3
# w-
1)1
##
tWu L
(I)74/-
gJ b
p s6izo f
I r
m UfT
*g--
mfs>Eto 3 f*g
Ex.14b
EH-e
f cL"-'
-
^
fP w - _,ff9c -
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5: ANALYSIS
A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
Thenewnotesfromeachunitactuallyforman ascendingstep-wiseprogres-
sionin relationto thosepreceding:
Ex.1 5
Ex.16
[1g-t2 [2,
@' o bo t.. o I
[1] [6] [72
o | U bo
t80 t9]
O bo l s
[lo]-[120 [13]
[18]-[20] t2og
[2<
o t° $° 14" 1$°' I
MUSICANALYSIS1 : 3, 1982
269
sJ -
JEAN-JACQUES
NATTIEZ
v l /
[2i
p tubito
>02603
I
r27g
[24Xff ft
--L*S-
p wubito
pt
Lookingfirstat the left-handparadigmatic axis, we see thatmelodically
[22]is a lowermordentlike[10],butrhythmically it belongsto typed of [2].
[23]transforms[22]byloweringA: onesemitone,thefamiliar procedure, but
operatingdownwards this time. G: is added,on the right,alsoa semitone
lower.Contraryto whathas happenedup to b. 17, herethe tendencyis to
descent.
In [24]thereis the samemelodiccontouras in bs 1S17:
Ex.18
,Q sl to 4;.w ("v) n
[24,
o ts. to °
section(bs24-28)
1. Thepercussive
Thesegmentation rests:
of thissectionis obviousbecauseof thenumerous
Ex.19
[29], 3 ,
[3] + + X
.
[312 + [3i
#S
, p
77S7'?P
t3i3 + +
[34] + +
nn [3i +3 +'
03i +
,b:
2. Verticalfalls
andflights
(bs29-32)
With the tempochangein b. 29 and the descendingleapswhichthe
composerusessystematically
forthefirsttimehere,something
differentagain
begins:
Ex.20
t38,
[39]29
_[40Xt $+
[420 3 9
[43> [43in ;-/st t
--43 A; J4T'lQl
[432 t br^t
Ex.21
bs 1-2
o ("-) ^ O bo
n to ) StZ
bs 16-17
.s go
(°} $0-----,<.
bs 20-21
O ta. t0 0
b.30
i,,, to n
o - - - -_ _ _ _X..
Ex.23 4 /
. 3 [42] 3
.
[4i, ''s
[43io 4e
[43@ f
withprogressive
rhythmictypes:typea from[38]to [42]andtypeb in [43].
3. TheflightsofDensity
I shallnowbreakaway,exceptionally, fromtheprinciplefollowedfromthe
beginningof thisanalysisby depariingfromthelinearunfoldingof thepiece.
[43]is compared withanalogous phenomena alreadyencountered orto come.
I havegiventhemthe genericname'flight':
Ex.24
bS 12-13
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
276
b.44 s _ 1+R
bs 58-61 \ 1+R;
Theconstructional
principleof theflightsmustbe soughtelsewhere,in the
roleplayedby semitonesin the appearance of newnotes:
Ex.25
bS t2-13 bs 31-32
t b. 1 6
O b. R2
, .
R2, ' | { _
! bo .
* 7, R
b- bo
{b o \
. tone \ \ \t+22 R
(R signifiesoctavedisplacement
andR2 double-octave
displacement)
[10] - [13]
[14] - [16]
[17] [18]
[21] - [20]
[25] - [27]
[43] [44] - [51]
[54] - [56]
[59] - [62]
[63] [64] _ [70]
[71] _ [74]
[79] - [81]
[82] [83]
Infourcasesoutof five([17],[21],[63],[82]-[83])theflightsareprecededbya
permutation: in threecasesoutof five([7], [43],[63]) exceptthatsincethe
lastechappeeendsthe pieceit is literallythreecasesout of four theyare
followedby a permutation (thus,two 'flights'areframedby permutations,
[17]and[63]).Evidently,permutations constituteoneaspectof thecontextof
one
flights,justasflightsconstitute aspectof thecontextof permutations: this
is an important melocticsyntagmaticelement of 'Density'.
Finally)flightshavea thirddistributional on the left this
characteristic,
time:in fourcasesout of five, one of the two unitscontains a descending
compoundinterval:
(1) beforetheflightof [17],descending compound fourthat the beginning
of [16];
(2) beforethe flightof [21],descendingcompoundsemitoneat the endof
[20];
(3) beforethe flightof [43],descendingcompoundsemitoneat the endof
[41];
(4) beforethe flightof [82]and[83],descendingcompoundmajorsecond
at the beginningof [81].
Returning fora momentto thecontentof theflights,werecallthatthefirst
two ([17] and [21]) containan ascendingcompoundsemitonein one- and
two-octave displacement andwe aretemptedto see if intervals
respectively,
greaterthan an octavehave someprivilegedrelationship to flights.Every
instanceof descending compoundintervalsnotin oneof thetwounitspreced-
ing an echappeeis a join([24]-[25]:compoundminorthird;[28]-[29]:com-
poundaugmented fourth;[32]-[33]and[33]-[34]:compound semitone;[69]-
[70]: majorthirdwith doubleoctavedisplacement; [74]-[75]:compound
minorsixth).Withascendingcompoundintervalsoutsidethe flights,seven
casesoutof tenarealsooverjoins([27]-[28], [38]-[39],[80]-[81]:compound
majorsecond;[36]-[37],[39]-[40],[63]-[64]:compoundsemitone;[70]-[71]:
compoundperfectfourth).[24]and [77]containa compoundmajorsecond
and [33] has a compoundsemitone.The inventorywill be affectedby the
followingobservations:
(1) Everyinstanceof a compoundsemitone,ascendingand descending,
from[33]to [37],is foundin a sectionof PartII wherebecauseof the
of unitsanabsolute
restsit is difficultto givetheproposedpartitioning
value.Should[31]and[32](b. 25)constituteoneortwounits,and[35],
[36]and[37](b. 28) one, twoor threeunits? We mighthesitate.It is
thereforeinteresting,whetheror notjoinsareinvolved,to examinethe
importance of compoundsemitonesin sectionB.
(2) Thesametypeof problemis posedby thejoin[27]-[28],since[28]is to
[27]as the C::-B: trillin b. 20 wasto theprecedingB. Moreover,the
intervalis thesame.Thisassimilation is allthemoreappropriatein that
[24] and [27]-[28]are not withoutanalogyto the flights:leap to a
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
278
a
In an Tone [20]
assimilated Tone [27]- [28]
flight Tone [77]
s . ,
gr j
s . . . n
8 - n
t460 3 9 g 3
& . ,
_#t T;
[48S
8 - 1
3 3
E i O------ n
L.ME
[502 8 ---- - -- -n
r#S
3 3
; 60
251] ,< ,
3ar^: G7'SS''
_ B
It is in extremis
that [51] reintroduces
the B. Note that, melodically,[51]
adoptsthe descendingsuccessionA-F#-B whichconcludesb. 32, but as
alwaystheunitwhichcreatesthisequivalence is imaginary,
becauseof theslur
whichseparates[44]from[45].23
Rhythmically and intervallically,
this sectionis distinguishedfrom the
preceding andensuingsectionsbytheabsenceof semitones,thelargenumber
of minorthirds,perfectfifthsandminorsevenths,andby typesa1,b ande:
I [44] a1 a1 7a 3a 3d (7d)
[45] b lOa lOd 7a 3a (lOa)
II [46] a1 a1 7a 3a 3d (7d)
[47] b lOa lOd 7a (3a)
III [48] a1 3d (3a)
[49] e 3d (3a)
[50] e 3d (3a)
[51] b 3d 7d
The breathbetween[45] and [46], like the repeatof the same units in
[46]-[47],justifiesthe demarcation of segmentsI andII. SegmentIII, up to
the fallingfifth(F#-B), is dominatedby minorthirds.The rhythmictypes,
then, havea characteristic distribution:a1 is alwaysat the beginningof a
section,b at the endande in an intermediate position.
5. Theendof PartII (bs36-40)
SectionC hasdevelopedon the samethreenotes:C, a semitoneabovethe
precedingB, seemsto be an intruder.Armedwith a tripleforte,it is the
culmination of the crescendobegunat the end of b. 35, but becauseof unit
[53],it willbe linkedto E. ThisC caneasilybeacceptedasmarkingtheendof
sectionC andthe beginningof sectionD:
Ex.29
X ''7^t'lr
.
[5! t9i
055] , 3 t >y
P SU6fb fp
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5: ANALYSIS
A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
, Lt , 7
L572--
-I br
[56 SP
vr 2^"
3 '2 '
fP
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
283
JEAN-JACQUESNATTIEZ
III PARTIII(bs41-61)
1. Repriseoftheopening
(bs4143)
Fromb.41 thereis a reprise.The initialtemporeturns(crotchet= 72)while
[59]is an exacttransposition,
a semitoneabove[1], of the firstthreenotesof
thepiece,whichpermitsa directarrivalon G withoutthe 'suspensions'of [2].
This is probablywhy it is repeated(withdurationalshorteningof the G)
withoutintermediary development in unit [60]:
Ex.30
01 ]
4 F, _J_,>
mf w
J J) S W4
- - w
r - - e
p
26i 3
p
[610 3 3
1e1
P=r y
2
26i 3
i2xJ :
1 06$
2sJ q;t
Lg
I
i b^t?t-
g ° t$s t(F"_,° r 1 °
[62] 3
- to ° v b. v j 4
2. PermutationsonB-D (bs4S50)
Afterthe flight, Varesereturnsto his predilectionfor playingon two
alternating notes:thisrecallsthe wayDb andC areexploitedin bs 9 and10.
TheB andD at issuearepositioned,respectively, a semitoneabovethenotes
of the flight(Bb - Ct). The D, is
moreover, brought in by Ct, a compound
semitoneabove it. This time, the D appearsto predominate:
Ex.32
[6 i 8 ----- - n
, 3 ,
t) , 3
L68-.---------------------,
3 3
t6 6] ; 3 - -- - - - - - - - --- -- - '
f f ft'
Y ,
JEAN-JACQUESNATTIEZ
26703 '
fS f
[ , s ,
06! - ,
[ ] G 5 G r r, ;
3 3
r65] G G r (a2,
3 3 3
0660 : : r r (a2
)
3 >s3
067] : r 5 (a1
)
3 3
0680 r r G S (a1 ,
[69] G C f ( b)
Lessimportant thanG andB, D nevertheless playsa decisiverolein certain
intermediarymoments:it closestheplayaroundB in b. 21;wefindit againin
a privileged
paradigmatic positionin bs 25, 26and28;it willreturnbeforethe
finalflightas the uppernote of the permutations of bs 5S58. It owesits
particularimportanceto the registralleapafterC# of [63]whichmakesit the
highestnoteof the piece.
VARESE'S
'DENSITY21.5: A STUDYIN SEMIOLOGICAL
ANALYSIS
Ex.34
st to ne
,2
X {w O #.
3
st tone
1
I _
j _
r _
11-1
5 . #
B P f P
3. Thelastsegment(bsSI-61)
Thisdoesnot mean,as in previouscases,thatthereareno linksbetween
thisfinal'phrase'andwhatprecedesit. BetweenC andF# of [71]wehavethe
samedescendingtritoneas betweenD and Ab of b. 50 in double-octave
displacement. But,aboveall, [71]bearssomerelationto thewidedescending
intervalsin rapidrhythmof [38],[39]and[40],and,to a lesserextent,[53]:
Ex.35,
7
t539
^ > '_ [54]
-
r - ff
070 s
[72]v. <:+
SfPrP
r A: SL,4Jb; ()
3 3 ,_
JEAN-JACQUES
NATTIEZ
tW*-*s s [SS WS
t1 >
, (_) 077
. [d P
' JR w
3
br F:
crcsc. rnolto
[29I'/ fE >
-ff4; : F
[802
$ - 3 > I t82]e, te
IV RECAPITULATION
The tableon the followingpagesattemptsto give a globalpictureof the
piece by assembling,in synopticform, the essentialelementswhichhave
underpinned atfourlevels:parts(Part
thisanalysis.Ontheleft, segmentation
I etc.), sections,segmentsandunits.Thenthethreeprincipledata:rhythmic
types, intervallicsequencesand melodicpattern.On the right, a general
characterisation of the syntagmsin units:zonesof permutation,of progres-
sion,of flightandof descent.27
Thistablecould,in addition,havecarriedotherdescriptive variables: for
example,slursanddynamics,bothof whichareessentialto the piece.But
theyaroseaboveall, in the precedingpages,to delineatethe unitsso thatI
considerit unnecessary to includethemhere.
PartI
Segmentation Rhythmictypes Intervallicsequences Melodic Patt
a2 ld 2a (Sa)
d Sa Sd 6a (2d)
A I [1]
[2] a2 ld 2a (la)
II [3] d 6d 6a (ld)
[4]
a2 la ld (2d)
III [s] "d" 3d 6a (6d)
[6]
B I [7] b 6a 2a la (3d) C$G/A-Bb
II [8] c or e 3a 3d (3a) G - Bb
[9] al 2a (la) /C
III [10] a2 ld la (ld) Db -C
[11] al la (ld)
[12] b la ld (la)
[13] a2 ld 2a (6a) /D
IV [14] al 6d (6d) G#- D
[15] al 6a (6a)
[16] b Sd + 6a 6a (6a) /A- D:
V [17] b 12d l+a (l+d) A-Bb - E
[31] al 3a (lOa) /D , .
Part II
A I [29] e 3d (3a) E - C#
[30] e 3d 0 (O)
to semiquaver C#-D-G#
[33] e l+a (l+d)
Segmentation Rhythmictypes Intervallicsequences Melodicpat
/Eb
'e
t: - 7
. -
t # n m A=t ;
u)
Ct
-v CC
o
u) =
Q u)
.- =
= -o
$ ce D X ce = t) t ce ce ct D D D ce ce ce
N m t V £ S X
=
n
- , I
m m m m
. .
m
. v)££££ ££££
- - -
v
*
ct
bt
ct
293
Segmentation Rhythmictypes Intervallicsequences Melodicpat
[68] al
[69] b
III [70] e
A I [71] a3
6d ld (7a) SF$E:
[72] al
6d (ld)
[73] e 7a 6d (la)
[74] c
7a (8+d)
[75] c+ d 2d ld 3a 3d (3a) /E
IIa [76] a2
2d la (3d) E-F$G
[77] b 3a 2+a (lld) IA
[78] d 6d 6a (lOd) /B
IIb [79] b 4a lOa(lOd) CE-D
[80] al
4d (2+a)
[81] e 2+d 4a (6a)
[82] b 4a 4a 7a (2a) Bb-D-F$C
[83] b 2a 2a 6a D$EtB
oo}^,4... ...* 4O ho I I I o l ., bo
Ex.36,partone
[1]-L63
g '>P °
[70
t82-t9]
, b.
E°d-[120
bo .,
L1
30
,.,
E40-05]
o
016,
o
[170
[180-[19]
0 >, o
[ ] 21]
o >
[2i-S2@ " g o
JEAN-JACQUES
NATTIEZ
[29]-032] [33]_[370
X 4° 14 #°
°-$° o I o b l
[44]-05 1]
- b Xo 1x^
bo | b*.<
Ex.36,part three
0590-2620 ,, bn"-
vo ° ' g bsw14vw
264]-0690 [700
° 40 1S4nW
[ ]eLL [7SS [76, L7d29][8t] i2]-g83] #E"+Z_
Tryaswemight,noparticular correlation
canbediscerned betweenrhythmic
andfunctionaltypes.This negativeresultis still progress:unlessthereare
gaps in our inventoryof variables whichcouldalwaysbe filled in by
anotherresearcher it showsthattheimpression of stagnation
orprogression
is dueonlyto modalitiesof the melodicline.
The valueof the procedurefollowedis, in any case, obvious:without
relyingon the completetable,particularlylookingat functionsin termsof
E>t.37
E00-E3q E4]-016]
E8]-t2lt
tS w r p
6 Ll; E 43 5
-z tf r 4 2tG 7
3 3
..1d1 t
#zi e-
A*m
r C- 5, bJ r ]3.1 b9 | / s 3
MUSIC
ANALYSIS1: 3, 1982 299
JEAN-JACQUES
NATTIEZ
V POIETICANALYSIS
Severaltimes, here and elsewhere,there has been occasionto recallthe fact
that neutralanalysisis an essentialbut intermediarystagein the semiological
approachto musicalworks. In this and the ensuingsectionthe intentionis to
show how the data of neutralanalysisrelateto those of poietic and esthesic
analysis.
1. Thepoieticproblem
There are two ways in which the phenomenacataloguedby the neutral
analysiscan be consideredpoieticallypertinent.To the extent that analysis
deals with the score, it is directed at the only traceleft by the composer.
Thereforeit is possible to consider that recurrenttraits demonstratethe
preferencesof the composerfor certaincompositionalprocedures;they enjoy
the presumption of poietic pertinence. This presumption is confirmed
particularlyif otherworksby the samecomposercontainthesetraits(don'twe
say 'he likes to do this, he likes to do that'?),or if our historicalknowledgeof
the evolutionof musicallanguageestablishesthat, on the basisof the heritage
receivedandexperiencedby Varesewhen he beganto compose,he decidedto
orienthis compositionalpracticein this or that direction.30
This poietic proceduremay be qualifiedas inductive:
poietics; neutrallevel
analysisaccordingly,
or to reorganise
the neutrallevel,constructed
indepen-
dentlyof the externaldatum:
; work
poieticdata > or
neutrallevel
2. Melodicpoietics
We begin by examiningthe secondpart of this text whichdealswith
melodicideas.Thequalifications 'modal'and'atonal'willbe setasidesince,if
the two ideascorrespond as I believeto [1] and [2], it is not clearthatthe
secondshouldbe moreatonalthanthefirst,or thefirstmoremodalthanthe
second.One couldobservesoundphilologicalprinciplesand turnto other
textsby Varese,in an attemptto shedlighton the meaningof thesewords.
ButVaresewasno theoretician, andnothingin hiswritings(1983)helpsus to
understand whathe means,here,by 'modal'.Withregardto 'atonality', these
twoquotationscanbe set off againsteachother:
[In contemporarymusic],whetherwe deny its presenceor not, we sensea
tonality.Thereis no need to havea tonic, with its thirdandfifth, in order
to establisha tonality(1934).
My languageis naturallyatonal, althoughcertainthemes, certainnotes
repeatedin the mannerof tonics, constituteaxes aroundwhich sound
massesappearto agglomerate.In this way, musicaldevelopmentgrows,
little by little, throughthe repetitionof certainelementswhich are pre-
sentedneachtime, in a differentaspect,andinterestincreasesthroughthe
oppositionof planesand the movementof perspectives.If themesreap-
pear, they have a differentfunctionin a new medium:dynamics(1930).
All of thislasttextcouldbe appliedto 'Density21.5',butit doesnothelpto
pinpointthe meaningof 'atonal'as opposedto 'modal':on the basisof these
twoquotationsthe piececouldbe qualified'tonal'justas muchas 'atonal'.
Thebinary/ternary oppositionis moretelling.I havetherefore
playedalong
andconstructed a paradigmatic
tablewhereaxesof equivalence aredefinedby
the rhythmiccharacter of units,binaryor ternary(Ex. 38 below).The first
axisthereforecontains[1] andits transformations. Noticethat[5]hashadto
be placedin the secondaxisbecauseits rhythmis ternary.[71]and[72]have
beenplacedin the firstaxisbecauseof theiranalogous distributional
position
andparadigmatic linkwith[1]throughtheintermediary [38].Thesecondaxis
containsall theunitswithat leastone 'irregular'value.Therefore a thirdaxis
must be opened,one not mentionedby Varese,whichgroupstogetherall
unitsthatareneither'areturnto thefirstidea',norin ternaryrhythm,thatis,
JEAN-JACQUES
NA1YIEZ
Es.38
t22
tr] 3 ,
LI t S 1D 1 o-
ll - ww
n X 04 ]
S JtL r --3
[5 ,l; t
_ 1 . _
vr _
t6 3 ,,
[100
o a- 5 [93 3 l ,
=FtU S : r f >
L] v E g - s3 ossia 3
tf r Af r
> 3 3
0 50 3 3
01 70
#2
[1 8]
L ] j -
[2 3]
ll
-
L290 r 3 1
H;; [
304 MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
:bS' 3 > [532 r
Ex.38 cont.
[312 [3 2]
2300 3
-
StJ77N,$ r w
0340 +
t]7 7P2:
3J,
L6]flC.e
S
\ =
I V rT,< r \
5L4528-r
t Lp
" d: ,r n
,
L4 7 s- - - - - -
L
0540
L553 L3 '
r560
[53 3 3
=+G 7
[580 3
305
1
NATTIEZ
JEAN-JACQUES
Ex. 38 end
t593
L6 1 l
>qi -X
tt- 3 n 0630 bss"e
,621
t20g-J
fi ..
- -44 r'lF
Ve 3 _ . 3
[65] 8 t f
3
L3 ° r- -
& 3;rCC
8 --- n
t6 71 - t_^
J tS 3-
_ Sr
068]ot [69]:5't'
s_3 T
j_
[7O]JCo)z
t7l;
L _ 5
,
[72k# [740
[73] 3- t
-- S Ser 0750
Mu
3
t760 3 3
[770 ; $ 5 j
- nz J poJ.If
078] _ 079]
l -
w
l
tJ
- - f |
0800
[82] X tt
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
306
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5: ANALYSIS
A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
(1) Descendingunits:[23],[49],[52],[53],[54],[75]and[80]wherethere
is noprivilegedrhythmictype.Theonlydescending unitsnotin thisaxis
are[38]to [40], [58]and[70]:the firstthreebecauseI havedecidedto
assimilatethem,here,withthe 'initialidea';[58]and[70]arethe only
descendingunitsin the secondaxis.
(2)All the unitsqualifiedas flightsarein the thirdaxis.Theseunitswere
by typeb (rhythmin augmentation).
seento be characterised Theflights
maythusbe drawntogether.
(3) Threeascendingunits,[9], [27]and[69],havea rhythmwhichis also
progressive (a1twice,b once).
(4) The lastcategorygroupstogethertheotherascending unitsin the axis:
fiveof thesebelongto thepercussive section([31],[32],[34],[36],[37]),
the other,[74],is a hapax.
3. Harmonic poietics
Thefirstpartof Varese'stextstatesclearlythatperforminga monodicanalysis
is not enoughto givean accountof thispiece.An harmonicanalysishasnot
beenincludedin the 'neutral'partof outstudybecausethereis alreadyonein
existence:thiswillbeexaminedbelow.Theharmonic description of 'Density'
belongsas muchto the neutrallevelas doesmelodico-rhythmic description.
'Neutral'implies,as I havesaidelsewhere(1975),'neutralisation',sinceit is
not trueto say thatmelodyandharmonyshouldbe analysedtogether:this
leadsto neglectingaspectswhicharestrictlymelodicor strictlyharmonic.In
sayingthatthe unfoldingof melodyfollowsthe harmonicplanandmakesit
explicit,Vareseindicatesclearlythatthepoieticanalysisconsistsof showing,
on the basis of two neutralanalyses melodicand harmonic,how the
monodicunfoldinggivesthe harmonicstructureits form.
The completetextof MarcWilkinson's harmonicanalysis(1957:17-18)is
set outbelow,interspersed withcommentsandcriticalremarks.I wouldlike
to say straightawaythat I considerthis text quite remarkable, and the
pernicketynatureof my commentsis due onlyto the explicitperspectiveI
havechosenhere.Wilkinsonwrites:
Ex.40
bs 6-10
rP w bo
bs 11-12
t bo ,
do v.
.
b. 12 ,
. ,
.. #°
7
L @
W° a.
t J
NATTIEZ
JEAN-JACQUES
X 1, bo t.. a (t,
bS 1B-23
* bS 24-25 , bS 25-28
($A" A o t0
Notethattheauthorplaysaroundwiththethirdsratherashe pleasessince,if
B reallyis thecentreof theambitD-G# (bs25-28)andin thiswayconforms
to the principlesustainedforbs 1-5, 9-17 and 18-21,the thirdC#-E is, on
theotherhand,abovetheA#. Thisshowshowthecriterionof thirdsarounda
pivot-notealternateswiththatof theexpansion of superposed thirds(already
usedin bs S9).
It is interestingto noticethatthe firstD (bar25) is obviouslyrelatedto the
B in 23, that the D in bar 26 is relatedboth to this B and to the C: (the
rhythmicexpressionhere is important),and the D in 27 to C: only
(becauseof octave transference);while the G: completesthe B-D-G:
relation,andfinally,in bar28 both D's appearandthe chromaticfillingin
of CtE is completedwith an Eb. This Eb also links the passagewith the
next, for it is relatedto the F: at the end of the firstphrase(bars15-16).
Bothresolveto G as harmoniccentre.The Eb serves,too, as a leadingnote
to the E of the G-SBb harmonicareawhich follows. Moreover,it has
been transferredan octaveup, and out of its normalregister,becauseit is
to influencethe harmonicmotiona little lateron (see bars3640).
If theideaof Ebfillingin C#-E (b. 28)is consistentwithothermomentsof
the analysis(bs 1-5, 15-17), it does not, however,have quite the same
meaning,since Eb is heardthreebarsafterthe last C#-E and one octave
higher Wilkinsonfeels,moreover, theneedto justifythis.Finally,it seems
difficultto establisha linkwiththe F# of b. 16on thepretextthatthesetwo
noteswerelinkedtogetheratthatpoint(eventhen,onlybythehypothesis of a
secondary harmonicfield).
Onthebasisof theideathatin b. 24 VaresetakestheE-C# of theopening,
thefollowinghypothesis maybe advanced: aftertheexpansion of minorthirds
whichcharacterised the first seventeenbars,then the slidingto B which
introduces,we note, a majorthirdbetweenG of b. 17 andB of b. 18, the
composer takesa newchainof thirds,startingfromthefirstthirdof thepiece,
butintroducing a majorthird.TheEbis thusa semitoneabovethelastnoteof
the passage,as areB# aboveB, G aboveF#, E aboveD# andDb aboveC:
Ei.43
bS1-17 sm b
j- bo bo
bS 18-23 \ $
10 X- °
b - o to
O1 o
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
'S_ 4 \
JEAN-JACQUES
NATTIEZ
i e o t - bo
' b.29' \ b. 31
b. 29 , b. 31 4 \
> - \
bS 32-364
40
j ' bo bo 44° n \
\ bS 17-23
=1$o o
bS 23-28
# (,3 o b-
o
bS 29-31
o
O bo
\
o ho t0 t o
l
b.32
4"
In this lasthypothesis,the permutationzone of bs 32-36, then the (; Eb of
bs 3S38, and the D of b. 38 to the returnof B in b. 40, are explainedthus:
Ex.46
bS 29-31
t0 0 bo
S 00 q ° (
bs 32-36
102v "
"s bS 36-3B
"s
"s S{w
b5 3 B -40
o b. b to
v
t O O bo b
bs 41-45
o b0 b°
bS 46-SO
ro 40<
B-D:
of the relationship
Afterthe rhythmicdevelopment
The Ab in bar 50 is connectedwith this intervalrelation(=D, KG:), as
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
316
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5: A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
ANALYSIS
was the C with A4-F# in bar 36; but the Ab resolvesto AWand GW(bar
51). A becomespartof the A-F$ A-C relationin the high register(bars
51-55) andG is relatedto the E-Ct, E-G spherein the low register.The
transferenceof AWan octave higher in bar 55 underlinesthese rela-
tionships.The E: servesas a link betweenthe twoharmonicareas,sinceit
belongsby intervalpolarityto the lowerregister,but is in fact transferred
an octavehigher. It is worth noticingthe use Varesemakeshere of the
sequentialpattern(wholetone, semitone)of barsS8 for he now employs
it to establishstronglyand for the last time the E<$G sphere (bars
53-55), instead of creatinga link between two areasby a sequenceof
minorthirdpolarities.
This commentarymay be representedthus:
Ex.48
bs 1-9
@ O O bo bo
, b.51 bS 51-53
bS 4 6 5 0 , q +
bS 53- 56
F w °F
'n° bo
Ex.4s
O
n °$ot s
X ' , ts F
/
/
) ° w t
j Obtobo4ffi}
'>, tl <, b_
, 8 \ I
, , AK . . . .
' 1, ' ° j
attemptsto joinupwithanotherpoieticdatum:thespiral.Re-reading
exegesis
thislastsectionin detail,it willbe noticedthatcertainnotesareincompletely,
or badly,integrated intothisexplanation andthatthe dooris openforother
hypotheses.
Throughout thissectionI hopeit is clear,in anycase,howthepoieticpoint
of view reorganises the neutralanalysis,but alsohow someof its elements
cannotbe integrated in the poieticexplanation andthusretaintheirrightto
autonomous existence.
ANALYSIS
VI- ESTHESIC
problem
1. Theesthesic
In the samewaythattherearetwomainapproaches to poietics,depending
uponwhetherone proceedsfromthe workto the poieticsor froma poietic
datumto thework,attemptsatperceptual analysismayequallybeclassifiedin
two categories.The first, inductiveas before,consistsof startingfromthe
musicaltextandpickingoutconfigurations to whicha perceptual is
pertinence
accordedon the basisof esthesichypotheses:
| work | g esthesics|
JEAN-JACQUES
NATTIEZ
2. Interpretation
asanesthesicdocument
Naturally,musicalsemiologydoesnot pretendto tell a performer howhe
mustplaya work.If it tookon a normative statusit wouldbe turningits back
on its scientificintentions.Semiologycancomeonlypostfestumto describe
whathashappenedandnotjustifyit. Sincethetechniques of theneutrallevel,
whenappliedto a monody,defineunits,theirresultis notwithoutinterestfor
thedefinitionof phrasing, aboveallwhenthereareno suchindications in the
score.Fromthisperspective, I havecomparedfourinterpretations
of 'Density
21.5'whichwillbe calledtheZoller,Gazzelloni, DebostandCraftversions.33
I shalldrawattentionto a fewpassageswheredifferences
betweenscoreand
performer,or betweenperformers,are most apparent.Lettersdesignate
precisepointsin the score.
(1) [1] and[2]:
Ex.51
[1] @ 02 >
@eg J 19&1 J l
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
320
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5': A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
ANALYSIS
6 j b<45>
P subito Cf
e Zr r tS ,3,r t s 3 t < it
Zo11er
@r tffltC1: tr?;3*=
Debost
-Xa
9 V
tb- -r r? rrr^ltf: t 1Ce
t 3t 1, j . . j 3 i 3J <
Here,the samemusicalfragmenthasbeencopiedfourtimeswiththe
phrasingof eachperformer. Althoughall 'respect'[11],theirchoices
thendiverge:DebostandCraftsplitthe musicup accordingto [12]:
Zoller,on the otherhand,isolatesthesecondC of b. 10. As forbs 11
and 12, we may say that the four versionsillustrateall possible
segmentations: Craftand Deboston D of b. 10, Gazzellonion G#,
Zolleron D of b. 11. This is a perfectillustration of the different
weightingof variablessinceeachof thesechoicesmeansattributing a
specificvalueto certainnotes:in CraftandDebostthelengthof D in
b. 10;in Gazzelloni,thisD is treatedasa pivot-notearoundwhichthe
lowandhighG#'sturn;in Zollerit is, onthecontrary, theimportance
givento the repetitionof G#-D whichseemsto determine the phras-
ing. This particularsectionof researchshowsclearlyhow different
partitionings of the neutrallevel describepotentialitiesof esthesic
pertinence.
(5) [24]:
Withthe exceptionof Debost,whomakesa slightbreakbetweenthe
loudB# of b. 20 andthe D of b. 21, thethreeotherflautistsjoinD to
B# as if the slurfrombs 19-20wereprolongeduntilb. 21. In making
this passage one single segment, I have opted for the same
interpretation. This is withoutdoubtbecauseof the trill (C#-B#)
whichdemandsto be followedby something,andalsobecauseof the
movefromf to ff whichprolongsthe crescendo begunon B.
(6) [25]-[27]:
Gazzelloniignoresthe threeslurswhichled us to distinguishthree
units.Note that,on a higherlevel,as we haveseen,thesethreeunits
forma whole,separatedfromthe previouscontextby a quaverrest
andfromtheensuingcontextby changeof register.Thehomogeneity
of the passageis guaranteed alsoby the playon the samethreenotes:
A, A#, B. We see, therefore,thateventhoughGazzellonidoes not
followthescoreto theletter(thefirsttwobarsshowclearlythatVarese
is capableof indicatingtwo levelsof phrasingif he wishes),he has
optedto outlinelargesections(cf. his phrasingof bs 1n11 and 12)
ratherthansmallsegments.
(7) [43]- [47]:
Gazzelloni proceedsin the samewaywithbs 31-34.WhileCraftjoins
E of [43] to the legatoof [42], Gazzelloni,allowinghimselfto be
3. Aninductive esthesic
of'Density'
It is fortunatethat the composerand theoretician JamesTenneychose
'Density21.5' as one of the worksanalysedin his article'Temporal Gestalt
Perception in Music'(1980).This title speaksfor itselfregarding the orien-
tationof the article.In addition,the authorsystematically compareshis
analysiswithmy own.Therearethereforetworeasonsforexamining it here.
Tenney'sperceptual approach canbe summarised thus:Whenwe perceive
a pieceof music,its temporal'continuum' is dividedinto 'a hieratchically
orderednetworkof sounds,motives,phrases,passages,sections,movements,
etc.'. Tenneycallstheseperceptualunits 'temporalGestaltunits'or 'TGs'
(1980:205).A detailedstudyof allthetheoretical andmethodological implica-
tionsof Tenney'sdiversepropositions wouldrequireanentirearticle.Forour
purposes,the followingaspectswillbe retained:
(1) His objectiveis to 'predict [myemphasis]wherethe TG boundaries
willbeperceived' (:206).Thisreallyis, then,aninductive step,starting
fromhypothesesaboutmusicalperception.
(2) Tenneymainlytakesthe followingperceptual datumas a basis:'The
perceptual formation of TGsat anyhierarchical levelis determined by
a numberof factorsof cohesionandsegregation, themostimportant of
whichareproximityandsimilarity' (:208).
(3) Moreconcretely,andcallingon the ordinary experience of a listener,
he considersthatin a monodicpiecetemporal andpitch-class intervals
whicharegreaterthanthoseimmediately preceding orfollowingthem
createtheTGboundaries (:208-9).To thesetwocriteriaTenneyadds
the roleof dynamics.
(4) The modeltakesinto accountneither'harmonicrelationsbetween
pitchesor pitchclasses'nor'motivic/thematic relations'(:217).
(5) The authoris consciousof the factthateachvariablehas a specific
weight,but notesthe impossibility of providingan adequatemeasure
JEAN-JACQUES
NATTIEZ
Ex.55
SECTIONS-
S EGMENTS:
SEQUENCES: 11 13 16
-
l ls 1, -7 1@ 1S 1t §7
Cl.ANGS
r r
;:79" ; A I ,s, X 1, I X
HIERARCHICAL j |R 13 4 5 6 7 |!
STRUCTURE I In m X ar
FROM NATTIEZ A B
(1975) lSt¢t
8°
N
0}s 1 123 p>+
6
1s 1}& 1Sz
7
1j! 1{9
16
1nO t; te
q to
z
4 12 53
|R
1S 9x.t
8
VARESE'S'DENSITY21.5': ANALYSIS
A STUDY IN SEMIOLOGICAL
n 1 },
{51 15i 53 r {ss e 147 1s! 59 t ¢,
x 7n 1
34ik
t q
2A A3 ;#
10
Z5 26 A7
1sj 18a 0t It
13and20 in Tenney:
(1and2) Elements [4] and[6] inNattiez
Onhis graph,Tenneyretainsonlyoneof thetwoalternative segmentationsI
haveproposed(cf. Ex. 1, B above).Nevertheless to notethat
it is interesting
Tenney'sdifferentcriteriafor the segmentationof Cit-Gareno less legiti-
mate.Ontheotherhand,I shouldfindit difficultnotto registerthereturnof
the melodico-rhythmicfigureof the openingin b. 4, in [5].
(1)Melodic progression
(2)Rhythmicdiversity
Vivier:'Rhythmicvalues,of greatvariety,setshortnotesandlongheldnotes
(3)Processes
ofvariation
Babbitt:
Thereare, I believe,no two identicalmeasuresin Density.The durational
successionassociatedwith the attackpoints of the initial three pitches
occurs,in the samemetricalorientation,only at two furtherplacesin the
work,andat thoseplacesis associatedwith the openingintervalsuccession
also, but the pitch successionis altered in each case by transposition
(1966:18).
A preciseremark,anda correctone, whichtaxonomic description
completes
fortherestof thepiece.In his article,Babbittis concerned
simplyto capture
Varese'sstylistictendencyto diversity.He adds:
Varese is one of those composers . . . whose music has necessarily
directedour attentionto the inadequaciesof our analyticalconceptswith
regardto rhythm,by decreasingcompositionalrhythmicredundancy,by
increasingthe numberof rhythmicconfiguratons, and the dimensionsin
which these configurationsare made to appear(1966:19).
Hopefully,typological
classification
of rhythmshasaccountedessentially
for
thisrhythmicspecificity,whicheludesthe usualanalytical
techniques.
(4)Registerandthe'polyphonic'
aspectofthepiece
Vivier:'Theuseof thedifferentregistersof thefluteis remarkable because
theyarecombinedwithdifferentmodesof intensityanddynamiclevels.In
certainpassagesthe modeof attackandthe dynamicchangeon everynote.
An echoeffect,or, moreprecisely,a feelingof expansionandreliefbetween
distancedplanes is createdby changesof registerlinked to opposing
dynamics:a highregisterfortissimois succeededby a mediumregisterpiano
subito,or againa medium-lowregister"enfle"forteis followedbya highnote,
pianosubito,repeatedthreetimesafterornamentation. Severalinstruments
seemto be answeringone another,severalinstruments,not severalflutes,
sincecertainpercussiveeffectsgo beyondthe soundworldwhichwe might
customarily haveexpectedfroma flute'(1955:193;1973:115).
Halbreich: 'Withtheaidof thisuniqueinstrument, Vareseconquersa new
soundspace,combining oppositionsof register,dynamicsandagogicsin such
answering
a wayasto givetheillusionof severalinstruments oneanother.The
percussiveeffectsof bs 2F28, often imitatedsince, open the way for a
genuinefluteequivalentto violinpizzicato'(1970:151).
ThelinkVivierestablishes by
betweenregistersanddynamicsis illustrated
two examples.It thereforeconstitutesboth the expressionof a dominant
impressionon the partof the analystand a hypothesisfor study:it would
sufficeto comparetwoseparatecolumns(forthedefinitionof registerandthe
enumeration of dynamiclevels)whichwe wouldaddto ourgeneraltable,in
orderto verifyup to whatpointthis correlationis correct.
(S)Formalorganisation
In Vivier'sbookthepieceis dividedintothreeparts:thefirstgoesto b. 23,
that is until the appearance of B has completedthe first elevensounds
introducedby long values.Bs 2F28 (percussiveuse of keys)constitutea
'centralinterlude'.Then 'threeveryfast arpeggiosannouncethe returnto
normalbreathing in a melodywhichbecomesmoreandmoreasceticwithits
wideintervals.A modifiedrepriseof the initialelement(b. 41) bringsin the
finalpart, particularly disjunct,whichends its development in ascending
movementovernearlythreeoctavesin a crescendo tofortissimo'(1973:115).
ForHalbreich,therearethreeperiods,'thefirsttwoof whichareseparated
by the strange"percussive" interludeof bs 2X28. The second(bs 2940),
intenselyexultant,throwsout an unutterable summonsto night,flamesof
light rising againstthe temptationsof despair.The third, a cumulative
synthesis,typicalof Varese,takes the quintessenceof the first two and
culminates,onceagain,in a desperate fortissimo in the upperextreme of the
register'(1970:151).
The authorsagreeon the essenfialdivisioninto threepartsand on the
intermediary roleof the percussivesection.My ownanalysiscoincideswith
theseviews.
MartinGumbelpresentsa quitedifferentbut subtlepointof view. His
objectiveis to showthattraditional analysiscannotaccountforthispieceand
that the statisticalapproachpicks out a more fundamental aspect. 'The
questionwill not be addressed herewhetherthe use of inadequate analytical
metilods can determine, iniluenceor even quite falsifythe of
result ananalysis
in an unreliable way' (1970:31). One might ask alsowhether the traditional
formalanalysisGumbelproposesis nota littlecontrived (1970:31-32).Thisis
the overallsegmentation he proposes:
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
JEAN-JACQUESNATTIEZ
Part I
1 a 1 Exposition 0 A
2 a1 2, 337 Evolution, Exposition
variation
3 b 6, 1 Contrast 5
transformation I
4 a1 9, 1 Exposition A
5 b1 15, 1 Evolution, Evolution
* .
varlatlon varlatlon
6 b1 19, 4 Contrast
transformation
7 24, 1 ) B
Contrast
Transformation
Part II
8 a2 29, 1 Exposition(?) i A
9 a2' 32, 3 Variation(?)
Evolution(?)
10 b2 36, 2 Transformation(?)
11 a3 41, 4 Exposition ) A1'
12 a3' 46, 1 Variation(?) 5 Evolution
13 b3 50, 3 Transformation(?)) Variation(?)
14 53, 1 j B1
5 Contrastand
(?)
8 transformation
REFERENCES
Babbitt,M., 1966:'EdgardVarese:a Few Observationson his Music',Perspectives of
New Music,Vol. 4, No. 2, pp. 14-22.
Charbonnier,G., 1970:Entretiens avecEdgardVarese,Paris, Belfond.
Deliege, C., 1975: 'Webern:Op. 10, No. 4; un theme d'analyseet de reflexion',
Revuede musicologie, Vol. 61, No. 1, pp. 91-112.
Fay, T., 1971: 'PerceivedHierarchicStructurein Languageand Music',3rournal of
MusicTheory,Vol. 15, Nos 1-2, pp. 112-37.
FrancesR., 1958:La perception de la musique,Paris, Vrin.
Gardin,J.C., 1974:Les analysesde discours,Neuchatel,Delachauxet Niestle.
Guertin, M., 1981: 'Differenceset similitudesdans les Preludes pour piano de
Debussy',Revuede musiquedesuniversites canadiennes, No. 2, pp. 5S83.
Gumbel, M., 1970: 'Versuchan VareseDensity 21.5', Zeitschrift fur MusiEtheorie,
Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 31-38.
Halbreich,H., 1970: 'Etude de l'oeuvred'EdgardVarese',in Charbonnier,1970,
pp. 12147.
Herndon,M., 1974:'Analysis:Herdingof SacredCows?',Ethnomusicology, Vol. 18,
No. 2, pp. 21942.
n preparatlon).
1979: 'A propos de Schoenberg:les problemesde la constructiondu modele
poietiqueen semiologiemusicale',2nd Congressof the AssociationInternationale
de Se'miotique(Vienna,July 1-6), 'Actesdu Congres',to appear.
1982: 'Problemesde la poietiqueen semiologiemusicale:quelquesreflexionsa
proposdu "De NaturaSonorum"de BernardParmegiani',in L'atelierdu sonore,
Paris, Buchet-Chastel.
Nattiez,J.-J. andHirbour-Paquette,L., 1973: 'Analysemusicaleetsemiologie: a
proposdu Preludede Pelleas',Musiqueen3reu,No. 10, pp. 4249.
Naud, G., 1979:'Pourune methoded'analysedes analyses',Addressto 1st Congress
Internationale
of the Association (1974),in Chatman,Eco, Klinken-
de Semiotique
berg, eds: Panoramasemiotique, The Hague, Mouton,pp. 1015-18.
1975: 'Apercousd'une analysesemiologiquede NomosAlpha',Musiqueen 3reu,
No. 17, pp. 63-72.
Ouelette,F., 1966:EdgardVarese,Paris, Seghers.
Ruwet, N., 1972:Langage,musique,poe'sie,Paris, Seuil.
Stefani,G., 1974:'Surl'approchefonctionelledes pratiquesmusicales',International
Reviewof AestheticsandSociologyof Music,Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 77-82.
1976:Introdazionealla SemioticadellaMusica,Palermo,Sellerio.
Tenney, J., 1980:'TemporalGestaltPerceptionin Music', Zournalof MusicTheory,
Vol. 24, No. 2, pp. 20541.
Varese,E., 1930:'E. Varesey la musicade vanguardia',interviewby JoseAndre,La
Nacion, BuenosAires, April 20.
1934: 'Vareseand ContemporaryMusic', Trend,Vol. 2, No. 3, May-June,
pp. 125 ff.
1959:Conferenceat Princeton,in Charbonnier,1970,pp. 83-86. Fullerversion
59, Vol. 1, No. 5, September-October,pp. 276-83.
in Liberte'
1983:Ecrzts,Paris, Bourgois(in press).
NOTES
1. See, for example, Gilles Naud's article on NomosAlpha (1975) or Marcelle
Guertin'sstudy of Debussy'sPre'ludes (1981).
2. Perhapslike the passing on of the teachingsof Oliver Messiaenand Nadia
Boulanger,hardlyrecordedat all exceptin the memoryof thosewho heardthem.
3. On semiologicaltripartitioncf. Nattiez (1974a, 1974b, 1975), Naud (1975),
Molino(1975, 1982).
4. This analysiswas the subjectof severalseminarsin the M.Mus. Semiologycourse
at MontrealUniversityin 1974. I thank all the students, the membersof the
Groupede Recherches en Se'miologieMusicale,especiallyGillesNaud who gaveme
concretehelp at the beginningof this study, and colleaguesLouise Hirbour-
Paquetteand JeanMolinofor criticalcommentswhich contributedto modifying
the contentof this analysis.JamesTenney'sanalysispublishedin 1980, and the
fruitfulconversationswith him in June 1982, led me to extend SectionVI
devoted to esthesic analysis which now containshis analysis. Following a
suggestionby David Lidov(1977:44), I haveremovedfromthe text all reference
to Pike'sdistinctionbetween'etic'and 'emic'units. It is not thatthesetermshave
no place in musical semiology, simply that their presenceis, in this context,
superfluous.These two words deserve, furthermore,a profound conceptual
studywhichwill be undertakenelsewhere.The firsteditionof the presentstudy,
in French,was partof a projectin semiologicalmusicanalysissponsoredby the
ConseildesArtsdu Canada(No. S73-1826).
5. The scoreabovewill give an initialoverallview of the differentlevelsof segmen-
tation.
6. The numeral3 below the last semiquaverof [1] indicatesthat it belongs to a
triplet.
7. This is an exampleof the necessityunderlinedby Ruwet(1972: 114)for perform-
ing an analysisbothfrombottomto top andfromtop to bottom.The presentation
of the analysiscouldhavebegunby delineatingsegmentsI, II andIII on the basis
of three criteria:
(a) the similarityof the initialnotes of [1], [3] and [5],
(b) the identicalfinal notes of [2], [4] and [6]: C#-G, and
(c) the rest between[2] and [3].
8. The 'short'and 'long'valuesin this paradigmcan obviouslynot be put onto the
same footingas the shortsand longs of Ex. 2.
9. This can be seen in characteristicfashionin the openingof Integrales(cf. Nattiez
1975: 285-97). One additionalcomment:in FondementsI advocateseriation,
while this monographis devotedto a singlework. The exampleof rhythmictype
whichconcernsus hereclearlyshowshow one traitcannotbe consideredpeculiar
to a single work unless the field of worksstudiedis widened.It is obviousthat
here we have touchedon one of Varese'sstylistictraits.
MUSICANALYSIS1: 3, 1982
339
JEAN-JACQUES
NATTIEZ