Re: Real instruments vs. electronic instruments

[Matthias Grob <matthias@grob.org>]

I sad, not very smartly, I admit:
>maybe, if there are enough parameters... but what about the listener 
>who is not familiar with those parameters?
>Again a question of balance between tradition and innovation?


James answered:
>I'm not sure I follow
>
>Many listeners aren't familiar with sound as a wave, yet they hear.
>They may not be familiar with the concept of a key, yet the hear a 
>cadence come to rest.

right.
I was interested in how the listener interpretes the sound. Probably 
he has to associate it to something.
For example, distortion became famous rather quickly, maybe because 
the concept of overdriving and clipping is preestablished in our 
hearing, so it was immediately associated to anger and revolution in 
the 60ies.

>I find that very expressive music can be made with relatively few 
>parameters.  Clavier instruments are very good examples of this. 
>One is talking through mechanical or electrical proxies to the sound 
>production means. Simple parameters can interact in complex and 
>sometimes unexpected ways.

sure, melodies and rhythms are expresive and dont depend on sound, 
but when we talk about the expression of instruments here, its 
probably mosty through the sound.

>I think the very important (and often missed) part is to remember 
>that the interface is BIDIRECTIONAL.  It's important to be aware of 
>your instrument's reactions.  That's why, even though your piano is 
>reacting to some pedal states and hammer rates (the rebound of which 
>is controlled by the mechanism) -- you can HEAR when someone is 
>playing with the weight of their arms or the muscles of their 
>fingers (like a harsichord player on a piano).

yes, thats the kind of expression I was thinking of: The sound 
reminds of a movement which reminds of a feeling.

>I would venture we've all heard (or played with) mechanical players 
>that weren't LISTENING to what they were doing.  They weren't 
>communicating with their instruments.
>
>The instrument alters the player.

Nice. The player probably selects the instrument that takes him to 
the state he wants to work in/about...

No way to really theoretically fix this. We play an feel. But we 
observe more and more consciously what we want to achieve/express and 
how the instruments influence us and the listener. I think looping 
helps for this due to its immediate return.
-- 


          ---> http://Matthias.Grob.org