All roads lead to the Golden Section: Contrasting compositional thought processes producing similar musical structures

Description

Background
Many musicological works analyse the proportions of various composers’ pieces and show how significant structural points align with the mathematical concept of the Golden Section (henceforth GS). Two well-known examples are Lendvai’s writing on Bartók (1971) and Howat’s writing on Debussy (1983). Other composers include Bach (Webster, 1950), Beethoven (Haylock, 1988), Mozart (Putz, 1995), and Satie (Adams, 1996). Much of this literature addresses whether the use of GS proportions by the composers was intentional (Phillips, 2019). First-hand accounts from more recent composers such as Knussen (Anderson, 2003), Gubaidulina (Lukomsky & Gubaidulina, 1999), and Daverson (2014) confirm their deliberate use of GS in their structures. However, for other composers such as Debussy or Bartók, authors must speculate based on manuscripts of scores or other biographical information. In some cases, such as in Atlas’ (2011) analysis of Vaughan-Williams, the conclusion is that the composer’s use of GS structures is not deliberate but instead intuited subconsciously. In my own compositional practice, I have deliberately structured my pieces
around the GS for many years. I have also encountered these structures in the works of colleagues who have confirmed that their use was nonconscious.
Aims
This presentation explores nonconscious thought processes that might inform a composer’s decision making when structuring and pacing their pieces. How is it that both conscious and nonconscious compositional approaches can be drawn towards the same GS structure as an outcome?
Main contribution
Movement for strings (2021) and Vision (2022) are two pieces by composer Adam Webster which both evidence GS proportions in their structure. These proportions were arrived at intuitively according to the composer. Examination and comparison of both pieces’ Sibelius files saved at regular intervals (provided by the composer) show how the structures of both took shape over the course of their composition. An interview with Webster was also conducted to explore the thought processes behind various structural decisions made. A theme that emerged from the interview is the idea that the pace of events in music can evoke a feeling of correctness from the listener. This concept is common to much writing on the GS in music, with similar
propositions being offered by Atlas (2003, p. 271) and Evans (1992, p. 305) among others. Webster describes this feeling of correctness as being the guiding principle behind his structural choices.
Discussion and conclusion
What remains unclear is what establishes the standard or criteria of correctness that the composer as listener judges the music in question against. Models of the compositional process proposed by Sloboda (1985) and Lerdahl (1998), in addition to Betsch’s (2008) definition of intuition, suggest that established repertoire as it exists in one’s long-term memory can have a strong role in setting these criteria. The prevalence of the GS in the structures of those such as Mozart and Beethoven, and later Bartók and Debussy, may therefore significantly contribute to its continued use even by those who compose intuitively. The reasons for the use of the GS by these classical period composers and the origins of this prevalence, however, are still unknown.

Period	14 Sept 2023 → 16 Sept 2023
Event title	GAPS2 - Global Arts and Psychology Seminar: Creativity in music and the arts
Event type	Conference
Location	York, United KingdomShow on map