Christopher,

I will think about it some more, but my initial comments are as such;

You mentioned some key elements about half way through, that for me, would

have helped to give a clear picture from the outset;

1) the pure mathematic modeling, then rendered synthetically and finally

rendered acoustically. I am a little unsure...what is their view then of

purely electronic (not including sampling) music? Is a computer, for the

most part then, a pre-compositional tool? I guess it depends on who you are

talking about...

2) the idea of one sound's overtone structure 'interpreting' another sound.

As we talked about briefly afterwards, what are the methods by which this

result could be obtained (filtering vs. synthesis...)

3) the temporal delay/spraying of what would otherwise be a purely vertical

structure of partials. Could this been seen as a temporal rendering unique

to this school of composition? If it is still a kind of 'tonal music' would

this be something akin to harmonic rhythm? Or a simpler question, how is

time occupied/territorialized?

I4.) ts interesting how Risset mediated two samples through a morphing

technique, it brings up the question of the role of oppositions...one of the

most obvious possibilities of electronic music is the possibility for

extreme collision of truly disparate sounds, is this not part of their

aesthetic? Do extreme oppositions always have to be mediated as such?

Michael mentions that I mentioned some key elements about half way through. I am happy that these were the result of a students question, but I wish that I had introduced them earlier in the presentation, it had been my plan. This is why I want to have a “bottom line” sheet in the future, ie. Bottom line you must start with these concepts and then go from there.

1. Here Michael is referring to a conceptual model of composition that I presented to the class. I am happy that it stimulated this response of “what is their view of purely electronic music?” What is even better is that this presentation got the idea across the even though this is a “school” of composition, it does depend on which composer is being discussed.

3. One of the omissions from my presentation is a discussion of rhythm. In reducing my material to not deal with this concept I left this question unanswered. During the reduction I made this decision because it is not a key element in this style. In looking back I realize that this is such a cornerstone of music that even if it is not integral to the style, this needs to be mentioned. <Lesson to take forward!>

4. This question represents a success on my part. The morphing technique that I presented to the class and the compositional use of oppositions is one that Cogan presented. The success is that my presentation got to such a place so as to work within the context of the class it has evolved over the year. I am thrilled that what I presented over a half hour was not something else, but rather part of larger framework of the class. It makes me cogniscent of planning for this as a teacher who works over a larger timeframe with the same class.

5.) Why also such a bias towards harmonic/periodic spectrums? What about white,

brown, pink noises etc. (they all have their mathematical counterparts as

well) Or why not using mathematics to generate new non-periodic

spectrums...why the bias towards imitating 'acoustic' (occidental /

orchestral at that) instruments. Their choices seem very pointed. Is this

ever talked about?

your talk introduced all these ideas to me, and for that I am thankful, you

obviously did a lot of work, and have thought deeply about the issues.

thanks,

michael

5. This is a great follow up question and one that I am sorry that I was unable to address in class. Which makes me think about the myriad of unanswered questions that leave classrooms everyday and may never be answered. How does a teacher invoke the student to get these questions out while the class is happening? As I think back, I realize that I am so vocal in class about my questions because I have had teachers in the past who have personally encouraged me outside of classrooms, this is something that I must remember going forward. In order to invoke a dialog, the teacher must deploy tactics that go beyond the class room setting.

Hey Christopher

I just responded to the basic questions you asked.

• was the information in the handout useful or overkill?

The information will be useful in the future, but without reference to it during class time, it seemed to be overkill. A little background info would have been great.

• did you get a good picture of the genera?

I got the best idea through listening to the music. In-class participation of such nature

(the listening sense) tends to give the best tools for understanding the genre. If there

could have been more time to listen to a wider spectrum of music from either the same

composers, or even different ones, I would have had a better understanding of what is

going on.

• did it inspire you in anyway

I always feel inspired when coming across different avenues of musical discourse. This

was very much an eye-opening experience.

• things that didn't work, questions,

A more concrete picture of the philosophical and aesthetic issues that gave rise to the

needs to compose in these methods would have clarified things. The brief historical

info was good, but what wasn't clear was how these composers got to where the were.

In order to provoke response I sent questions to several people in class. These are Daves responses.

1. In reducing the information I left out background on the how and why of Spectral music, this is something that would have made the presentation more effective for this student. <Lesson to take forward>

Looking back I am happy that the handout is a little overkill in that it will be useful outside of the classroom. During the presentation I could have referenced it more, which would have tied it more together.

2. There is nothing more thrilling than planning something, in this case that the listening would exemplify the genera and material covered and then to have feedback that this was indeed the case.

3. Glad to open eyes as to a type of music that I am interested in. In speaking further with David I am aware of how impressive this presentation was and how he subsequently requested more music to listen to.

4. This seems to reinforce what I thought about the first question, in reducing the information, I left out information historically and aesthetically. This choice on my part seemed obvious, but in this case I did not think about the information that I was taking for granted and what it might look like to someone external. This is an important gage for creating a curriculum, what does it look like the outsider.

did it teach you anything?

Like I said, I learned something new and had my eyes opened up to a world I was un-

familiar with, but I personally am concerned with the changing aesthetic issues as well

as technique which wasn't always clear, mainly due to time constraints.

etc......

Providing a basic background of the terms, or at least the most important ones, may

have added a lot to the presentation. The listening examples were excellent and gave

a very concrete example of what the music was all about. Unfortunately you didn't

have a lot of time to make your presentation. I know if you had a full hour, a lot more

would have provided. Also, don't be afraid to talk over the music.

-dave

5. I am sorry that I ran out of time, I only wish there had been more time. Retrospectively I could have impromptu changed my lesson to fit into the time constraints. This is something that I can plan for with future teaching engagements.

6. The general overview is something that he would have liked. Although this can be helpful it is also very limiting and why I shy away from it. I attempted to provide the core elements of what constituted this movement and let the student draw their own conclusions. (As Cogan suggested i was a little bit more on the advocacy side than I would have liked.)

I am always hesitant to ruin music by talking, although he suggests it, I am not sure that it is appropriate in that I was not looking to point out specific things but rather to suggest principles that were in the music and then present the music as a way in which to inspire the student to delve deeper into these issues.