Research and publications
Permanent URI for this collection
Browse
Recent Submissions
Item Open Access Multiphonics in Didjeridu Tones: Acoustical Effects of Applying the Tongue Positions of Spoken Vowels to a “Bilabial Aerophone.”(2024-06-13) Rahn, Jay; Koumoulas, MarkosWithout speaking or singing while they make sounds on a didjeridu, performers and pedagogues have applied the tongue positions they would otherwise use to produce vowels in speech or song and simultaneously “buzzing” their lips to produce the fundamental frequency of the instrument’s unchanging drone. By focusing on the sound pressures of particular frequencies within individual sonic spectra, we show how formants of specific spoken vowels are related to these added sounds, which might be termed “didjeridu formants.” Among our principal conclusions are the following. 1) At least four distinct sounds, rather than merely one or two, can be added, one at a time, to a didjeridu’s unchanging fundamental frequency. 2) Depending on the specific tongue positions that produce them, these added sounds are acoustically quite similar to each other with regard to their absolute frequencies and perceptually similar with regard to their contrasts between higher and lower “pitches.” 3) However, despite their similar absolute frequencies, these higher and lower pitches are assimilated to a particular instrument’s fundamental frequency. 4) Accordingly, in contrast to European-derived notions of “pitch,” these added sounds can be considered “timbral pitches,” or more precisely, “lingual pitches.”Item Open Access Prioritizing Rhythm: Oral Presentation, June 2023(2023-06) Rahn, JayItem Open Access Prioritizing Rhythmic Analysis: Temporal Organization of ’Are’are Solo Polyphonic Panpipe Pieces(2023-06-08) Rahn, JayThe repertoire of polyphonic panpipe music for solo performance, termed “‘au ni aau,” by ‘Are‘are musicians in the southern part of Malaita Island in the Solomon Islands is seemingly unique among musical traditions. As Hugo Zemp showed in 1981 (https://www.jstor.org/stable/851551), solo polyphonic panpipes were designed so that some pairs of adjacent pipes could be sounded simultaneously to produce two or three kinds of dyads within each piece rather than being restricted to single tones as is usual in solo panpipe performance. Whereas Zemp’s analyses understandably focused on aspects of tuning and melodic structure, the present report treats features of temporal organization as its starting point and main concern. As well, in order to draw conclusions that might provide a basis for comparisons with other pieces and performers in the much larger repertoire of solo polyphonic panpipe music, the pieces analysed here are by a single ’Are’are musician, Manamaetare of Takataka in the southeastern part of the island. In this regard, the Centre de Recherche en Ethnomusicologie (CREM) has streamed these pieces to the public (https://archives.crem-cnrs.fr/archives/items/CNRSMH_E_1995_004_001_001_04/dc/ and has graciously made them available to me as individual files for detailed acoustical analysis. Since Zemp’s initial study, software that provides acoustical corroboration of, and elaboration on, what one can hear in the original recordings has become widely accessible, both for free (e.g., Audacity: https://www.audacityteam.org/) or almost free (e.g., Transcribe!: https://www.seventhstring.com/xscribe/overview.html). By means of such software one can trace with precision temporal aspects of the pieces that inform one’s understanding of topics raised in his original analysis. In particular, the pieces’ inter-onset intervals (IOIs), inter-stimulus intervals (ISIs), amplitude envelopes, and changing frequency spectra within individual dyads yield information relevant to the pieces’ meters, tempos, segmentations, formal structures, tremolos, and types of articulation, as well as issues concerning their relationship with the performer’s breath control, the layout of the polyphonic panpipe itself, and comparisons with the repertoire of polyphonic music for ’Are’are panpipe ensembles. In the present report, these topics are approached analytically in bottom-up fashion by applications of the Gestalt Grouping Principles of Similarity and Proximity (Wertheimer 1923) as well as the closely related principle of Analogy (http://iftawm.org/journal/oldsite/articles/2011a/Rahn_AAWM_Vol_1_1.htm).Item Open Access Prioritizing Rhythmic Analysis: Temporal Organization of ’Are’are Solo Polyphonic Panpipe Pieces(2023-06-08) Rahn, JayThe repertoire of polyphonic panpipe music for solo performance, termed “‘au ni aau,” by ‘Are‘are musicians in the southern part of Malaita Island in the Solomon Islands is seemingly unique among musical traditions. As Hugo Zemp showed in 1981 (https://www.jstor.org/stable/851551), solo polyphonic panpipes were designed so that some pairs of adjacent pipes could be sounded simultaneously to produce two or three kinds of dyads within each piece rather than being restricted to single tones as is usual in solo panpipe performance. Whereas Zemp’s analyses understandably focused on aspects of tuning and melodic structure, the present report treats features of temporal organization as its starting point and main concern. As well, in order to draw conclusions that might provide a basis for comparisons with other pieces and performers in the much larger repertoire of solo polyphonic panpipe music, the pieces analysed here are by a single ’Are’are musician, Manamaetara of Takataka in the southeastern part of the island. In this regard, the Centre de Recherche en Ethnomusicologie (CREM) has streamed these pieces to the public (https://archives.crem-cnrs.fr/archives/items/CNRSMH_E_1995_004_001_001_04/dc/ and has graciously made them available to me as individual files for detailed acoustical analysis. Since Zemp’s initial study, software that provides acoustical corroboration of, and elaboration on, what one can hear in the original recordings has become widely accessible, both for free (e.g., Audacity: https://www.audacityteam.org/) or almost free (e.g., Transcribe!: https://www.seventhstring.com/xscribe/overview.html). By means of such software one can trace with precision temporal aspects of the pieces that inform one’s understanding of topics raised in his original analysis. In particular, the pieces’ inter-onset intervals (IOIs), inter-stimulus intervals (ISIs), amplitude envelopes, and changing frequency spectra within individual dyads yield information relevant to the pieces’ meters, tempos, segmentations, formal structures, tremolos, and types of articulation, as well as issues concerning their relationship with the performer’s breath control, the layout of the polyphonic panpipe itself, and comparisons with the repertoire of polyphonic music for ’Are’are panpipe ensembles. In the present report, these topics are approached analytically in bottom-up fashion by applications of the Gestalt Grouping Principles of Similarity and Proximity (Wertheimer 1923) as well as the closely related principle of Analogy (http://iftawm.org/journal/oldsite/articles/2011a/Rahn_AAWM_Vol_1_1.htm).Item Open Access Prioritizing Rhythmic Analysis: Temporal Organization of ’Are’are Solo Polyphonic Panpipe Pieces(2023-06-08) Rahn, JayThe repertoire of polyphonic panpipe music for solo performance, termed “‘au ni aau,” by ‘Are‘are musicians in the southern part of Malaita Island in the Solomon Islands is seemingly unique among musical traditions. As Hugo Zemp showed in 1981 (https://www.jstor.org/stable/851551), solo polyphonic panpipes were designed so that some pairs of adjacent pipes could be sounded simultaneously to produce two or three kinds of dyads within each piece rather than being restricted to single tones as is usual in solo panpipe performance. Whereas Zemp’s analyses understandably focused on aspects of tuning and melodic structure, the present report treats features of temporal organization as its starting point and main concern. As well, in order to draw conclusions that might provide a basis for comparisons with other pieces and performers in the much larger repertoire of solo polyphonic panpipe music, the pieces analysed here are by a single ’Are’are musician, Manamaetare of Takataka in the southeastern part of the island. In this regard, the Centre de Recherche en Ethnomusicologie (CREM) has streamed these pieces to the public (https://archives.crem-cnrs.fr/archives/items/CNRSMH_E_1995_004_001_001_04/dc/ and has graciously made them available to me as individual files for detailed acoustical analysis. Since Zemp’s initial study, software that provides acoustical corroboration of, and elaboration on, what one can hear in the original recordings has become widely accessible, both for free (e.g., Audacity: https://www.audacityteam.org/) or almost free (e.g., Transcribe!: https://www.seventhstring.com/xscribe/overview.html). By means of such software one can trace with precision temporal aspects of the pieces that inform one’s understanding of topics raised in his original analysis. In particular, the pieces’ inter-onset intervals (IOIs), inter-stimulus intervals (ISIs), amplitude envelopes, and changing frequency spectra within individual dyads yield information relevant to the pieces’ meters, tempos, segmentations, formal structures, tremolos, and types of articulation, as well as issues concerning their relationship with the performer’s breath control, the layout of the polyphonic panpipe itself, and comparisons with the repertoire of polyphonic music for ’Are’are panpipe ensembles. In the present report, these topics are approached analytically in bottom-up fashion by applications of the Gestalt Grouping Principles of Similarity and Proximity (Wertheimer 1923) as well as the closely related principle of Analogy (http://iftawm.org/journal/oldsite/articles/2011a/Rahn_AAWM_Vol_1_1.htm).Item Open Access Tuning by Ear in Antiquity: Acoustics of Plucked Strings and Closed Pipes(2018-09-20) Rahn, JayItem Open Access Towards an Autochthonous Understanding of Mesopotamian Tuning(2021-11-04) Rahn, JayItem Open Access Towards an Autochthonous Understanding of Mesopotamian Tuning(2021-11-04) Rahn, JayItem Open Access The First Noëls(Camargo Foundation, 1998) Rahn, JayItem Open Access Assumptions of Normality: How Three Women with a Disability Changed the Face of Music(Bielefeld : transcript Verlag, 2023-03) Kolin, DianeSince the last 30 years, women musicians with a disability have remodeled the laws to integrate disability in the professional musical world, changed the way music is presented, understood, and taught, and integrated music as a form of activism. In this chapter, I give three examples of women I interviewed, who transformed the musical landscape through their actions. Evelyn Glennie is the first woman to develop a career as a solo percussionist. She had to show her teachers that deafness would not prevent her from achieving her musical studies. In her TED Talk “How to truly listen” she explained the methods she used to learn music through vibrations in her whole body, that she often presents to music students today. Gaelynn Lea is an American folk singer, violinist, and public speaker, very present on musical stage since winning NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest in 2016. By changing the traditional way of holding her violin, she proved that physical limitations do not mean musical limitations. Lachi is an American singer, songwriter, composer, and producer. She advocates for a better diversity, equity, inclusion, and disability awareness in the music industry. As a blind musician, she faced the lack of role model figure when she was progressing in her career. Today, she wants to hold this role for the next generation of artists with a disability. In conclusion, I situate these three artists in our society, through the lens of gender diversity in the music industry.Item Open Access Measured Focus in 2 Complete Strictly Proper Tunings of Central Java(2022-07-23) Rahn, JayItem Open Access Stretched and Compressed Intervals(2021) Rahn, JayItem Open Access 373(2021-12-22) Rahn, JayItem Open Access 362(2021-12-22) Rahn, JayItem Open Access Music as a Tool for Disability Activism(Music & Politics in the Moment, 2021) Kolin, DianeThe relationship between disability and music/the arts has been documented in various disability activism movements of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In the domain of Critical Disability Studies (CDS), scholars have explored the different stages of disability activism in our society. In this article, I explain how CDS has changed the vision of disability thanks to artistic initiatives, and how different models of disability differ in relation to arts and culture. I give an overview of disability activism in the arts more generally and in music in particular. Events that have impacted disability inclusion in the professional music world are given as examples. I enhance my study with narratives of disabled musicians I have interviewed.Item Open Access Comprendre les premières indications métronomiques : Le Projet A Tempo(l'Association Beethoven France et Francophonie, 2021) Kolin, DianeThe following article presents a mixture of musical history and analysis of musical excerpts. The passages oriented towards the interpreter, sometimes somewhat technical, are kept here in order to offer the possibility of testing the hypotheses put forward. The subject of the first metronomic indications has always been a long-standing enigma for artists and researchers. Conductors and musicians face the difficult task of interpreting the tempi of 19th century works, containing metronomic indications that appear incorrect based on our current standards. The pianist, organist and composer Bernhard Ruchti studied different hypotheses concerning the first original metronomic and tempi indications. The series of videos he produced under the name “A Tempo Project” illustrates original interpretive tempi of important 19th century works. His research includes valuable analyzes of scores and musicological sources such as concert press articles, correspondence, original manuscript annotations, and recordings of studied works. Ruchti illustrates the impact of the view of tempo indications on period concerts and offers a wide range of explanations for interpretations of early metronome markings. L’article suivant présente un mélange d’histoire de la musique et d’analyse d’extraits musicaux. Les passages orientés vers l’interprète, parfois quelques peu techniques, sont ici conservés afin d’offrir la possibilité de tester les hypothèses avancées. Le sujet des premières indications métronomique a toujours été une énigme de longue date pour les artistes et les chercheurs. Les chefs d’orchestre et musiciens font face à la difficile tâche d’interprétation des tempi d’œuvres du 19ème siècle, contenant des indications métronomique qui semblent incorrectes si l’on se base sur nos normes actuelles. Le pianiste, organiste et compositeur Bernhard Ruchti a étudié différentes hypothèses concernant les premières indications métronomiques et tempi d’origine. La série de vidéos qu’il a produites sous le nom de « Projet A Tempo » illustre des tempi d’interprétation originaux d’importantes œuvres du 19ème siècle. Sa recherche inclue de précieuses analyses de partitions et de sources musicologiques telles que des articles de presse concernant des concerts, de la correspondance, des annotations de manuscrits d’origine, et des enregistrements d’œuvres étudiées. Ruchti illustre l’impact de la vision des indications de tempo sur les concerts d’époque et propose un large éventail d’explications des interprétations d’indications métronomiques.Item Open Access Le Monument Beethoven et premier Beethovenfest de Bonn en 1845(l'Association Beethoven France et Francophonie, 2021) Kolin, DianeAt the time of Beethoven’s death, there was no public place in Germany honoring a composer. France had a statue of Gluck, and the United Kingdom a statue of Handel. Between Beethoven’s death and the unveiling of the statue representing him in 1845, Germany placed a plaque in honor of Haydn in Vienna, installed a bust of Bach in the St. Thomas School in Leipzig, and a sculpture from Mozart to Salzburg. Of all these tributes, none provoked as much controversy as that of Beethoven. While the initial idea was already mentioned by the University of Bonn shortly after 1827, the year of Beethoven’s death, it became public in 1832, and official in 1835 with the formation of the Beethoven Society and the Beethoven Monument Committee. This monument was not inaugurated until 1845. It was Bonn, where he was born, and not Vienna, where he spent most of his life, that was chosen as the place of homage. A l’époque du décès de Beethoven, il n’existait aucune place publique en Allemagne rendant hommage à un compositeur. La France possédait une statue de Gluck, et le Royaume Uni, une statue de Haendel. Entre le décès de Beethoven et l’inauguration de la statue le représentant en 1845, l’Allemagne posa une plaque en l’honneur de Haydn à Vienne, installa un buste de Bach dans l’École St. Thomas à Leipzig, et une sculpture de Mozart à Salzburg. De tous ces hommages, aucun ne provoqua autant de polémique que celui de Beethoven. Si l’idée initiale est déjà évoquée par l’Université de Bonn peu après 1827, année du décès de Beethoven, elle devint publique en 1832, et officielle en 1835 avec la formation de la Société Beethoven et du Comité du Monument de Beethoven. Ledit monument ne fut inauguré qu’en 1845. C’est Bonn, où il est né, et non Vienne, où il a passé la majeure partie de sa vie, qui fut choisi pour lieu d’hommage.Item Open Access Early Metronome Markings and the “A Tempo Project”(American Liszt Society, 2021-04) Kolin, DianeThe topic of early metronome markings has always been a long-standing puzzle for musicians and scholars. Conductors and performers face the difficult task of interpreting tempi indications of works of the nineteenth century, with metronome markings that occasionally seem incorrect according to our modern standards. The “A Tempo Project,” a video project by Swiss pianist, composer, and organist Bernhard Ruchti, includes useful analyses of scores and musicological sources such as historical performance reviews, correspondence, original manuscript notations, and recordings of the studied works. Ruchti illustrates how different readings of tempi indications have impacted historical performance and attempts to explain the wide range of metronome marking interpretations. Taken as a whole, Ruchti’s work helps shed light on the complicated and ever-timely problem of historical metronome markings.Item Open Access Matching map(2021) Rahn, JayItem Open Access Sonification of MS Schøyen 5101(2021-03-13) Rahn, Jay