 |  |
INTRODUCTION
Written by Robert Iolini. Extract from a Master of Arts thesis entitled Simultaneity in Music. Macquarie University. Sydney. Australia. February1998
The word simultaneous comes from the Latin simul, meaning 'at the same time'. Macquarie and Oxford Dictionaries define simultaneous as, 'existing, occurring or operating at the same time'. The notion of Simultaneity in the context of musical perception is more specific. Simultaneity in music occurs when one or more discrete or independent musical events are heard at the same time. A musical event is any self contained, identifiable sonic material that contributes to the overall musical structure. In order for Simultaneity to exist in a section or piece of music, certain temporal and spatial relationships must be present. In Western musical traditions time is related to metre, tempo, duration, and beat patterns. In most music, events are arranged within a defined temporal system. In Western traditional rhythm, for example, an 'architectonic'1 hierarchical system of time in music is used. This system refers to the division of time into subdivisions and conforming to a hierarchy where each layer reinforces the next. In any temporal system there is usually a common temporal reference point in time, such as a beat. In a musical performance a sense of time organisation in a piece of music enables the performers to play 'in time' with one another. Temporal simultaneities occur when two or more parts do not support a common temporal reference point. Each of the musical events can be said to exist in different time domains. Temporal simultaneities can result when more than one of these elements is juxtaposed. One example is a polyrhythm, which is formed when different beat patterns are played simultaneously. Of equal importance to time in the creation of musical simultaneities is the concept and perception of space. Space can be defined in two ways. The Macquarie Dictionary defines space as 1.'the unlimited or indefinitely great general receptacle of things, commonly conceived as an expanse extending in all directions ( or having three dimensions), in which, or occupying portions of which, all material objects are located', 2. 'the portion or extent of this in a given instance; extent or room in three dimensions: the space occupied by the body'.2 The spatial aspects of music can be referred to as musical space. Musical space can also be defined in two ways. Both refer to the vertical aspect of music, however one consists of the entire range of sounds, and corresponds to the unlimited notion of space given in the first definition, The other, which is used in this dissertation, reflects the space within limits notion, put forward in the second definition. Musical space used in this context, refers to the vertical aspect of music defined by specific musical limits such as dynamics and frequency. Frequency applies to register, timbre and pitch. As discussed above, certain temporal and spatial relationships must be present in order for Simultaneity to be clearly perceived in a musical work. A useful term when describing the relationship between musical space and time is temporal space. The concept of temporal space refers to the way sounds relate to one another - at the same time (vertically) and through time (horizontally). For example, when two or more events in a musical work are played in unison, they can be perceived as functioning in the same temporal space. Likewise, when several different musical events support a common temporal system they are also in the same temporal space. Alternatively, If the horizontal movement of two or more musical events occurring vertically, or at the same time in a work, are perceived as not supporting a common temporal system, then each of the vertical events can be described as operating in their own temporal space. The temporal and spatial aspects of music necessitate a discussion on texture . Groves Dictionary of Music defines texture as 'a term used loosely when referring to any of the vertical aspects of a musical structure, usually with regard to the way in which individual parts or voices are put together'.3 The texture of a work depends on how the musical events that may constitute rhythm, pitch, timbre, and dynamics are combined. When any or all of these individual musical events are perceived without loosing their individuality, the sonic results can be classified into an appropriate technique of Simultaneity. For example in the homophony of much nineteenth-century music, it is possible to hear a clear division of musical space as melody and accompaniment. This kind of texture does not contain Simultaneity, as both musical events are not in conflict with one another, but inform each other both temporally and spatially. However, if two different homophonic textures are heard at the same time, creating the effect of two independent strata, then the overall texture can be perceived as containing simultaneous events. In a particular texture it is also possible to perceive a foreground, middleground or background. Robert Erickson writes: 'In any texture some elements stand out and some recede. Louder or higher contrasting elements attract attention. The spatial terminology of foreground - background is also useful when defining texture'.4 Erickson's example is useful in that it acknowledges the fact that the listener is able to perceive and focus on different musical events that make up a texture. To once again use the example of a homophonic structure, the listener is able to perceive a clear division of musical events into melody and accompaniment in which one perceives a predominantly stable foreground and background. 1 Meyer, Cooper and. 1963, The Rhythmic Structure of Music, University of Chicago ©1998 Robert Iolini
|