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6D Experimental Music – Unit 6: Electronic and Experimental Music

♫ 6D Experimental Music ♫Unit 6: Electronic & Experimental Music

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Icons key: For more detailed instructions, see the Getting Started presentation

Flash activity. These activities are not editable. Teacher’s notes included in the Notes Page

Accompanying worksheet

Listening activity

SoundComposing activity

Performing activity

Weblink

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Learning objectives

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To recognize the features of a range of 20th century experimental music.

To devise and perform music in an experimental style.

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Notation and experimental music

Standard musical notation (staves, clefs, notes etc.) has been used for hundreds of years. A pianist can look at the score of a piano sonata by Mozart and be able to reproduce what the composer wanted in precise detail.

♫ What if a composer wanted to leave some decisions about how the music should sound

up to the performers? ♫

However, for experimental composers, this form of notation was not appropriate.

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Three line staves

♫ The sound clip is one example of how this stave could be played. Can you think of any more? ♫

Unlike conventional notation, this form of notation allows the performer to decide the actual pitches of notes during the performance, from within a range set by the composer.

Experimental composers can leave some degree of choice to the performer through the use of the three line stave.

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Graphic scores

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New uses for old resources

Composer John Cage is best known for his piano piece 4’33”, an experimental piece which focuses on background noise.

In the 1940s, Cage wrote a number of pieces for what he called ‘prepared’ piano. The piano is ‘prepared’ by inserting various things such as metal screws, bolts and pieces of rubber in amongst the strings of the piano. The result is that the piano’s sound is very much altered.

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inside a grand piano

John Cage: ‘prepared’ piano

Although Cage made ‘prepared’ piano more popular by using it extensively in his work, he did not invent the concept.

Since the time of the harpsichord (the 17th century), keyboard instruments have been able to produce different sounds using different settings, like the pedals on a piano. In the early 19th century, some pianos had a stop (like stops on an organ) which lowered a strip of paper onto the strings, and there were other types of stop which made more percussive sounds. In the early 20th century, Eric Satie placed pieces of paper onto piano strings to create a mechanical sound.

♫ Listen to an extract of ‘Mysterious adventure’ by John Cage. Discuss its melodic and rhythmic qualities. ♫