Ressources.ircam

Notation is a system within a system. It has evolved in between or amidst the composer and the performer/instrument and has had a clear position (composer-score-performer), functionality (communication tool and performer engagement), and directionality (towards performative sonic results). Despite its multifarious paths and appearances it has remained in the background or as a secondary aspect of music (sound being dominant). But could notation denature or leave behind its symbolism, its reference system or its place in the system it evolved within? Does it have an escape route? In this talk I will trace and propose a (im)possible evolution of a strand of notation called prescriptive notation and explore another notational directionality, leading to experimental fusion of material and notation, or something I’m calling concrete notation where notation examines and questions its own functionality and history.