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Contemporary Music Review
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The influence of implicit harmony, rhythm and musical
training on the abstraction of tension-relaxation
schemas in tonal musical phrases
Emmanuel Bigand
a
a
Laboratoire de Psychologie de la Culture Universit Paris X Nanterre, Paris, France
Published online: 21 Aug 2009.
To cite this article: Emmanuel Bigand (1993): The influence of implicit harmony, rhythm and musical training on the
abstraction of tension-relaxation schemas in tonal musical phrases, Contemporary Music Review, 9:1-2, 123-137
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Contemporary Music Review 9 1993 Harwood Academic Publishers GmbH
1993, Vol . 9, Parts 1 & 2, pp. 123-137 Pri nt ed i n Malaysia
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The i nf l ue nc e of i mpl i ci t harmony, rhyt hm and
mus i c al t rai ni ng on the abstracti on of "t ensi on-
rel axat i on s chemas " i n tonal mus i cal phras es
Emmanuel Bi gand
Laboratoire de Psychologie de la Culture Universitd Paris X Nanterre, Paris, France.
Tension-relaxation schemas are an i mport ant meaningful structure i n music. The two present experiments
investigate the mai n factors i nvol ved in their abstraction. The experimental method, similar to the
procedure used by Palmer and Krumhansl (1987) consists i n segmenting into several fragments 6 melodies
varyi ng i n their implicit har mony or their rhythmic structure. Asking the subjects to evaluate the degree
of completeness of each fragment may be thought of as an indirect way of measuri ng the degree of musical
stability. The collected responses define an average profile which may be considered as an approxi mat i on
of the musical t ensi on/ r el at i on net work abstracted by the listener. Results indicate that a level of codi ng
exists where the musical phrase could be represented by its net work of musical tensions and relaxations,
which is i n accordance wi t h the Lerdahl & Jackendoff's prolongational hypothesis. Abstraction of this
net work is influenced by the implicit harmony, the rhythmic structure, and, for musician-subjects by the
interaction of these two factors. Results of the second experiment seem to suggest that the psychological
processes i nvol ved i n such an abstraction are not strongly influenced by the musical training. In
conclusion, some suggestions about a systematic formalisation of the rules i nvol ved i n the det ermi nat i on
of tension-relaxation schemas are put forward.
KEY WORDS: Prolongational reduction, interaction pitch hierarchy x rhyt hm musi cal training, tension-
relaxation network, psychological representation of musical structures, musical phrase.
Music is one of the most complex acoustical structures of our environment. The
study of the way a listener perceives, organises and memorises musical pieces
fundamentally improves our knowledge about the complex perceptual and cogni-
tive processes human beings are able to perform. But considering music only as a
complex acoustical structure would be restrictive; from a psychological point of
view, music is primarily an informative structure which enables us to exchange
different emotions, and so to communicate in a non-verbal fashion. Understanding
how a listener uses all his perceptual and cognitive competence to extract musical
informative structure is the main goal of the research.
From this perspective, there are two questions to be distinguished: the first
concerns the nature of meaningful musical structures, the second the psychological
processes involved in their abstraction. Research on musical expressivity and on
musical semantics, carried out by Francbs (1958) and Imberty (1979,1981) showed
the essential part played by musical tension and relaxation schemas; these schemas
are extracted from the musical piece and then assimilated to kinetic and emotional
schemas of tension and relaxation, which accumulate all of the affective experience
of the listener. Therefore, it seems reasonable to consider that the most important
part of musical expressivity might be determined firstly by the specific way each
123
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124 Emnmnuel Bigand
composer organises the musical tension and relaxation in time, and secondl y by t he
ki nds of musi cal t ensi on and relaxation the listener manages to abstract.
I shall now expand upon this second point. What are the psychological processes
i nvol ved in such an abstraction; how does a listener i nt erpret all the musical
par amet er s to det er mi ne the musical tensions and relaxations of the piece?
Lerdahl and Jackendoff' s t heory is a very i mport ant cont ri but i on to this question.
The aut hors claim that intuitions about tension and relaxation are det er mi ned by
t he combi nat i on of the gr oupi ng structure, the metrical structure, and t he t onal
hierarchies. This combi nat i on leads to the abstraction of an event hi erarchy from
whi ch a hi erarchy of tensions and relaxations ("Prolongational reduct i on") may be
deri ved.
Grou ping~. . . . . ~
s t r u ~ u r ~ - ~ T i me - s p a n
. . ---. asegment at i or
IM et r i cal ~ "'
[stru c tu re I
Figure I
T i m e - s p a d o l o n g a . o n l
" r e d u c t i o n ] " l r e d u c t i o n I
~ N ~ S t a b i l i t y ~
conditions]
Schematic representation of the theory by Lerdah11989.
Many of these component s are psychologically plausible. First, we know t hat
gr oupi ng is a major characteristic of percept i on (Fraisse 1974) and the experi ment s
carried out by Deli6ge (1987) confirm the psychological validity of different
gr oupi ng rules i nvol ved in t he model. Second, several experi ment s have shown t he
listener' s ability to abstract metrical st ruct ure (Povel 1981, Essens & Povel 1985,
Sl oboda & Parker 1985), and many others have poi nt ed out a very sophi st i cat ed
implicit knowl edge of tonalhierarchies by the listener (Krumhans11979, Krumhansl
& Kessler 1982, Bharucha & Krumhans11983). Other data indicates t hat the listener
manages to organise musical event s in a hierarchical way (Deutsch 1980, Stoffer
1985, Serafine 1989). At the very least, the possibility of extracting a link bet ween
di fferent variations and a t heme, suggests that a level of codi ng exists where t he
musi cal phrase is represent ed by its underl yi ng net wor k of t ensi on and relaxation
(Bigand 1990a, 1990b, 1990c).
The mai n probl em however, is to under st and how these different component s
really interact. Lerdahl and Jackendoff' s theory suggests that: the metrical and
gr oupi ng st ruct ures have a doubl e function. First t hey di vi de t he piece into groups,
and t hen t hey add rhyt hmi c values to the tonal hierarchy to det er mi ne t he relative
stability of each event.
a b
Figure 2
1983.
~ ) ~'~"~_~. , . ~ ~..L.,. ~-L*" ~-~" , ,
Influence of the rhythmic structure on the tension-relaxation schemas by Lerdahl & Jackendoff
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Tension-relaxation schemes 125
Let us look at figure 2. Because of the tonal hierachy the D (quaver) creates a
strong musical tension that is resolved on E. At a more abstract level, the D (minim)
institutes a relative tension which will be resolved on C. Finally, at the most abstract
level, the E (minim) produces a fundamental tension which will be resolved on C.
Because of his implicit knowledge of the tonal hierarchy, we may reasonably
suppose that a listener would abstract these three levels of tension and relaxation.
But what will happen if the rhythmic structure is changed? As Lerdahl and
Jackendoff remarked, the musical tensions will be differently organised.
Experiment I
Thus, it is probable that rhythmic values are added to the tonal weight to determine
the musical tension. The few experiments on this issue suggest that the structural
importance of the notes comprising a melody is not only determined by the tonal
hierarchy but also by their rhythmic position (Palmer and Krumhansl 1987a,
1989b). More recently Serafine (1989) has observed that this structural importance
is also strongly influenced by the metrical position: events on the strong beat tend
to be perceived as more important. Though these experiments are of great interest,
the way these different factors really interact in music perception is still little known
and many problems remain.
The first concerns the psychological importance of the tonal hierarchy in the
perception of musical phrase. Can two melodies having the same rhythmic
structure, the same melodic contour, the same tempo, the same dynamic, but
differing in their implicit harmonies, really generate different networks of musical
tensions and relaxations?
The second concerns the role of the rhythmic structure in the determination of
musical stability: can two melodies differing only in their rhythmical structure
generate different tension/relaxation schemas? It may be interesting to distinguish
which part of this effect relates to the metrical structure and which to the different
durations.
The third problem concerns the eventual interaction of the pitch hierarchy and
the rhythmic structure. Palmer and Krumhansl's results (1987a, 1987b) tend to
confirm an independent relationship suggesting that each structure is treated by
two separate cognitive processes. As Peretz and Morais (1989) emphasised, this
question is important for the cognitive sciences, since it improves our knowledge
of the possible modularity of the musical mind.
The last question concerns the role of musical training. Are processes involved
in the abstraction of a network of musical tension determined by musical training,
or do they reveal a competence to structure musical pieces, which does not require
any particular learning, as in the case of the understanding of language? The
purpose of these two experiments is to address to these questions.
Experimental method
To measure the tension/relaxation schemas generated by a musical phrase it is
necessary to register the degree of musical stability of each note. The procedure used
by Palmer and Krumhansl (1987a, 1987b) appears very efficient: it consists in
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126 Emmanuel Bigand
segment i ng t he mel ody into several fragments; each st ops on a di fferent not e
def i ni ng di f f er ent l y- endi ng units. In HI R1 (fig. 3), t he first f r agment st ops on t he
G#, t he second on t he A, and so on. A mel odi c f r agment st oppi ng on a ver y st abl e
not e (a t oni c in a st r ong rhyt hmi cal posi t i on for exampl e) does not cont ai n any
musi cal tension: in this case a musical cont i nuat i on seems unnecessar y and t he
f r agment can be consi der ed concl uded. But when t he mel odi c f r agment st ops on an
unst abl e not e (l eadi ng note) it contains a st rong musi cal t ensi on t hat r equi r es
musi cal cont i nuat i on: in this case the mel odi c f r agment woul d appear weakl y
concl uded.
I=M
1=13
Ending unit l i 2 i 3 4 9
~I ' E] NY %
12 13141516 1 7 1 B1 9 2D2,1 2223
9 t 9 t 9 " # a 9 9
"4
I:M
b FG m n , n iFI n r a i n n n ,,,
t - 1 i i 9 ~ i I 9 ~ I I I I I I I I I i I I I I t I I i i - " I I I I I I I I I I
J r ~ , ~ , ~ ~ - I - , , I I , " " I I ' , ' A I | I i - i - i , i , h l I
I - . . I I i ~ - i i i . . ~ - i . i i ] i i ~ . I-- l
~ - ~ ' - - - - , i : ~ ' . , : . , ; . ' . . ; ' . . . . . I . I . ~ . . .
Figure 3
~VI ! V ! d I V oV! V i
T ~ . . . . . . . . .
1=I 3
H 4 ~ M Q N Y Z
i V i V 2 ' V i V d
T ~ . . . . . . . . .
T I . . . . . . . . . . . o . . . . . T 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The 6 mel odi es of the first experiment with their prolongational structure defi ned by Lerdahl.
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Tension-relaxationschemes 127
Therefore, aski ng the subjects to eval uat e the degr ee of compl et eness of each
f r agment ma y be t hought of as an indirect wa y of measur i ng the degr ee of musi cal
stability. As musi cal t ensi on may be vari ed in a subt l e way, it is necessar y t o pr ovi de
t he subj ect s wi t h a scale of responses. Her e this scale cont ai ns 7 st eps and t he
subj ect s' t ask is to choose t hose whi ch best cor r espond to the degr ee of compl et e-
ness of each fragment . The collected responses defi ne an average profile whi ch ma y
be consi der ed as an appr oxi mat i on of the musi cal t ensi on/ r el axat i on net wor k
abst r act ed by t he listener. If a tonal mel ody does not generat e musi cal t ensi ons,
t hese profi l es woul d l ook like a straight line. If a musi cal phr ase generat es a
hi er ar chy of musi cal t ensi on/ r el axat i on effectively, t he profiles woul d pr esent a
gr eat cont rast .
Ma t e r i a l
In or der to s t udy the effects of the t onal hi erarchy on this profi l e we mus t defi ne
anot her mel ody wi t h t he same r hyt hm and same mel odi c cont our, but di fferi ng i n
its n~usical progressi on. As i ndi cat ed in figure 3, the mel odi es H1 and H2 di ffer i n
their i mpl i ci t har moni es and t hus in their prol ongat i onal st ruct ures; t he mai n
t ensi on appear s on bar 3 in H2, wher eas a the mai n relaxation appear s in H1, and
t he mai n t ensi on appear s on bar 4 in H1, wher eas t here is a l arge rel axat i on in H2.
Because of this di fferent implicit har mony the tonal wei ght of an identical endi ng
uni t woul d not be the same consi dered wi t h respect to H1 or to H2. For exampl e,
t he E on endi ng uni t 12 is mor e st abl e in H2 wher e it is a pr ol ongat i on of t he local
tonic, t han in H1 wher e it is a third subor di nat e to the local tonic C.
In or der t o s t udy the effect of the r hyt hmi c organi sat i on we now defi ne t wo ot her
mel odi es. R2 is obt ai ned by shifting the r hyt hmi c st ruct ure of R1 by one quaver; let
us not e t hat many endi ng uni t s whi ch wer e on a st rong beat in R1 are on a we a k beat
i n R2. A mor e i mpor t ant r hyt hmi c change is per f or med in R3 so that t he effect of
dur at i on ma y be measur ed. Let us note, for exampl e, t hat the quaver A in HI R1
becomes a dot t ed crot chet in HI R3 (endi ng uni t 2).
Finally, in or der to s t udy the interaction, t hese rhyt hmi c changes are appl i ed to
t he mel ody H2. Each of t he six mel odi es is segment ed into 19 fragment s, 114
f r agment s i n all, pl ayed by a comput er , strictly at the same t empo and wi t hout
accent uat i on.
Pr o c e d u r e a n d s u b j e c t s
The pr ocedur e is similar to that of Pal mer and Krumhansl (ibid): each subj ect listens
to all t he fragment s and the present at i on or der is var i ed r andoml y. 18 subj ect s are
empl oyed: 9 musi ci ans from the Marseilles' Phi l harmoni c Orchestra, 9 non- musi -
cians who have never pl ayed or l earned music.
Experimental hypotheses
1. If t he t onal hi erarchy influences the t ensi on/ r el axat i on schemas, t he profiles
s houl d di ffer in t he mel odi es H1 (R1, R2, R3) and the mel odi es H2 (R1, R2, R3).
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128 EmmanueI Bigand
2. If t he r hyt hmi c st ruct ure i nfl uences t he t ensi on/ r el axat i on schemas, t he profi l e
of R1, R2, R3 woul d differ. In this case t wo ot her hypot heses mi ght be tested: one
concer ni ng t he effect of the durat i on, the ot her that of the metrical st ruct ure.
3. If t onal hi erarchy and r hyt hm are t wo i ndependent musi cal di mensi ons, chang-
i ng t he r hyt hmi c st ruct ure from R1 to R3 shoul d alter t hese profi l es in t he same wa y
in H1 and in H2.
4. Finally, if musi cal training influences the abst ract i on of t ensi on/ r el axat i on
schemas, t he effect of the pr ecedi ng factors shoul d differ in musi ci ans and non-
musi ci ans.
R e s u l t s o f t h e f i r s t e x p e r i m e n t
First let us consi der the musi ci ans' results. Profiles obt ai ned in each exper i ment al
si t uat i on are s hown in Fi gure 4. We can see i mmedi at el y t hat each mel ody generat es
var i ed t ensi on/ r el axat i on schemas, and that these schemas differ st r ongl y in each
exper i ment al situation. These di fferences are exami ned usi ng t he Mul t i vari at e
statistical anal ysi s met hod. First t he effects of the factors are anal ysed on each
endi ng uni t (uni vari at e anal ysi s of variance). The profile di fferences are t hen t est ed
b y a mul t i var i at e anal ysi s of variance.
M ~
9 " " ,
..~ . . ~ . . - : . . ~ : . ~ ~ . . ' - ' ~ . ~ . ~ ~ . ~ - ~ . ! . i . . ~ : . :--:. . , - L ? - i . i..---:" ~-i~...-~. ! . ~ - - ~ . , - - L . ~ . ~ . , . " .
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" 4
: , i : . .
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9 . . d ' 8 9
Figure 4 Average profiles of musical tension obtained in the first experiment 9
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Tension-relaxation schemes 129
T h e s e ar e t he ma i n r e s ul t s o f t hi s a na l y s i s .
1. Th e d i f f e r e n c e i n t he pr o f i l e s o b s e r v e d i n H1 a n d H2 i s s i g n i f i c a n t at p<0. 001
( Wi l k s , Pi l l a i a n d Ho t e l l i n g - L a ws o n tests). The s u p e r i mp o s i t i o n o f t h e s e p r o f i l e s
s h o w s h o w t h e t w o i mp l i c i t h a r mo n i e s g e ne r a t e d i f f e r e n t t e n s i o n / r e l a x a t i o n
s c h e m a s ( f i g. 5).
Musical
t e n s i o n
7
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e 8
R 4;
I i
t 3,
i
n 2~
g
HI
. . . . . HZ
HI m o r e s ~ a b l e
H ~ . m o r e s t a b l e
i /
7
6
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3
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I
R~
V
R3
Fig. 5 Effect o f the i mpl i ci t har mony i n R1, R2, R3.
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130 EmnLanueI Bigand
Whi l e a musi cal stability per i od appears at H1 in bar 3, a st rong t ensi on per i od
is obser ved in H2 in bar 4. The phenomenon is reversed at bar 5 whi ch accords wi t h
t he pr ol ongat i onal tree. Let us consi der some of these di fferences in mor e detail. At
endi ng uni t 5 we have t he tonic A at H1 and a D# at H2, whi ch does not bel ong to
t he t onal i t y and i nt roduces a st rong musi cal tension. Because of this di f f er ent t onal
wei ght t he degr ee of musical stability observed her e is hi gher in H1. An opposi t e
resul t is obser ved on t he endi ng uni t 8. A mor e interesting fact is s hown for endi ng
uni t 12. Her e t he t wo mel odi es have the same not e E, but as t he implicit har moni es
are di fferent , t hose Es do not have t he same musical funct i on and t herefore t he same
t onal wei ght : at H1 t he E is a t hi rd subordi nat e to t he local tonic C, and at H2 t he E
is a pr ol ongat i on of t he local tonic. Experi ment al dat a confi rms t hat t he musi ci ans
per cei ved t hese di fferent functions; i ndeed the degree of stability is hi gher in H2
and this di fference is significant at p<0.039.
These resul t s demonst r at e t hat t wo mel odi es havi ng an i dent i cal superficial
st ruct ure, but di fferi ng in their har moni c progressi on generat e effect i vel y di fferent
t ensi ons/ r el axat i ons schemas.
2. Consi der now t he effect of t he r hyt hmi c structure. Di fferences bet ween t he
profiles of R1, R2, R3 are significant at p<0.007: musical t ensi ons are not onl y
det er mi ned by t he t onal hi erarchy. Two di fferent r hyt hmi c effects can be distin-
gui shed. The responses obser ved i n R1 for endi ng units 2, 6, 9, 13, 16, 20, whi ch are
on t he st r ong beat, are compar ed to t he responses observed for t he same endi ng
uni t s in R2, whi ch are now on t he weak beat. Man Wi t hney' s test i ndi cat es t hat t he
di fferences are not significant. In this experi ment t he met ri cal st r uct ur e does not
i nfl uence t he musi cal stability of t he note.
The responses obt ai ned in R1 for t he endi ng units 2, 6, 10, 14, 18, 20 (quaver) are
now compar ed to t hose obt ai ned on t he same endi ng uni t s in R3 (dot t ed crotchet).
The degr ee of musi cal stability is syst emat i cal l y hi gher in t he second case (p<0.01):
all t he musi cal par amet er s bei ng equal, t he l onger the note, t he hi gher its musi cal
stability. In compar i ng ot her endi ng units we can observe a significant effect of this
factor even for a ver y little di fference of dur at i on ( quaver / cr ot chet ) , (p<0.01).
3. Gi ven t hese t wo mai n effects, t he t hi rd quest i on concerns t he interaction. Results
of t he mul t i var i at e analysis of vari ance indicates an i nt eract i on bet ween t he implicit
ha r mony and t he r hyt hm significant at p<0.007. Changi ng t he r hyt hmi c st r uct ur e
does not have t he same effect on H1 as on H2. Consi der for exampl e what happens
on endi ng uni t 5. The not e is t he tonic A in H1 and a l eadi ng not e of key E in H2.
As we can see in figure 6, t he same r hyt hmi c changes st rongl y affect t he musi cal
stability of t he A but not that of t he D# (interaction significant at p<0.019).
4. Let us now consi der t he non-musi ci ans' results. Profiles are less const rast i ng
t han t hose of t he musicians, and differences bet ween each exper i ment al si t uat i on
are less i mport ant . The effect of t he implicit har mony is onl y significant at p<0.078
suggest i ng t hat t he di fferent har moni c progressi on generat es onl y a smal l differ-
ence in t he t ensi on/ r el axat i on schemas for the non-musi ci ans. The effect of
r hyt hmi c st r uct ur e is also significant at p<0.001: for t he non-musi ci ans, changi ng
t he r hyt hm of a mel ody alters its net wor k of musi cal t ensi on/ rel axat i on. As
previ ousl y, t he effect of dur at i on appears hi ghl y significant (p<0.01) even if t he
di fference in dur at i on is onl y one quaver for one crot chet (p<0.04). In cont rast t he
effect of t he met ri cal st ruct ure is not significant here. Finally compar i son of t he
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Tension-relaxation schemes 131
M u s i c a l
t e n s i o n
M 7
e
a 6
n
5
R
a 4
t
i 3 ,
n
g 2
g - .
0 ( I B
R 1 R 2 R 3
A
D~
Fi gure 6 Example of local interaction observed with musician subjects.
profi l es shows t hat t he implicit h a r mo n y / r h y t h m i nt eract i on is not signifi-
cant.
Therefore, t hese results suggest that musical t rai ni ng has a st rong effect on t he
abst ract i on of t he t ensi on/ r el axat i on schemas: t hey seem to suggest t hat t he non-
musi ci ans' apt i t ude in abstracting these schemas is less devel oped. I ndeed t hei r
profiles appear al most monot oni cal l y related to overall mel ody dur at i on, suggest -
i ng t hat for t hem, i rrespect i ve of t he musical function, t he l onger t he fragment , t he
hi gher its degr ee of achi evement .
Co mme n t s
Before i nt er pr et i ng t hese di fferent results, let us not e t hat t wo are surpri si ng. First,
t he lack of effect of t he metrical st ruct ure mi ght suggest t hat this st r uct ur e has no
i nfl uence on t he musi cal tension and relaxation. Second t he st r ong di fference
bet ween t he t wo popul at i ons is inconsistent wi t h ot her recent experi ment al results
i ndi cat i ng t hat t he non-musi ci an has a ver y sophisticated musi cal compet ence
(Bigand 1990b, Deli6ge 1990). For t hese t wo reasons t he experi ment al pr ocedur e
was consi der ed critically. Two mai n weaknesses shoul d be ment i oned. First, each
subject listens to all t he musi cal fragments. As t hese fragment s are ver y similar, this
desi gn pr oduces i nt erferences whi ch coul d obscure many subtle effects of t he
di fferent factors. Second, as the present at i on or der is det er mi ned at r andom, it oft en
appear s t hat a short f r agment follows a l onger one. In this case t he degr ee of
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132 EmmanueI Bigand
compl et eness is not onl y defi ned by musical stability but also by t he listener' s
knowl edge of the cont i nuat i on of the mel ody. These t wo defects mi ght seriously
confuse t he subjects: the mai n pur pose of the second experi ment is to r emedy to
t hem.
Ex p e r i me n t 2
Onl y four mel odi es are used (HIR1, HIR2, H2R1, H2R2). 8 i ndependent gr oups of
9 subjects are formed: 4 groups of musi ci ans (graduate conservat ory st udent s
st udyi ng musicology), 4 groups of non-musicians (st udent s of the same age, but
wi t hout formal musical training or practice). 2 x 4 x 9 (72) subjects wer e requi red
for this experi ment . Each group listened to fragments of onl y one of t he 4 melodies.
This time, a fragment ( x ) i mmedi at el y follows the fragment (x-l) and precedes t he
f r agment (x+l). This new present at i on respects the chronol ogy of t he mel ody and
permi t s observat i on of how the listener abstracts the different stages of t he musi cal
progressi on. As he does not know when the mel ody will st op his responses can onl y
be based on t he musical t ensi on or relaxation he perceived. Because many interfer-
ences are now rul ed out, it may be conjectured that t he effect of t he factors will
appear in a mor e relevant way.
l i l I I l l l l
I l I I I l l
7,
/ v"
2
1
4 I I ~ 9 I q I I I i i l l i I t I t l t u I t 1 4 1 i i l ~ ~
\ . " : /
j ' , ,
t , ' N
e i
3
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I ,
9 I ,l II Ii I! 4 I I # I~ I ~ ~ t i t i ~ IO I t l e I I ~ ~J
HSI ~.
HT.NI
, , . J
HZRZ
Figure 7 Average profiles of musical tension obtained in the second experiment.
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Tension-relaxation schemes 133
Re s u l t s
As we can see in fi gure 7, the musi ci ans' profiles are r oughl y t he same as t hose of
t he first exper i ment , al t hough much mor e constrasted. Agai n we fi nd a mai n effect
of t he i mpl i ci t ha r mony significant at p<0.001. The differences bet ween t he har-
moni c progressi ons are localised in exactly t he same wa y as ment i oned in experi-
ment 1. The r hyt hmi c factor too is significant at p<0.013. The effect of t he dur at i on,
si gni fi cant at p<0.001 confi rms that all things bei ng equal, t he l onger a note, t he
hi gher its musi cal stability.
The first di fference appears when we measur e the effect of t he met ri cal st ruct ure.
The aver age degr ee of musi cal stability observed on the endi ng uni t s si t uat ed on a
st rong beat in one exper i ment al situation (U2, U6, U9, U13 in R1 for exampl e) is
syst emat i cal l y hi gher t han those observed for t he same endi ng uni t s whe n si t uat ed
on t he weak beat in t he ot her experi ment al situation (U2, U6, U9, U13 in R2). This
di fference, significant at p<0.011 indicates that, all things bei ng equal, a not e on a
st r ong beat is per cei ved as mor e stable t han one on t he weak beat.
Finally t he i nt eract i on bet ween t he implicit har mony and t he r hyt hmi cal struc-
t ur e is si gni fi cant at p<0.05. The effect of changi ng t he r hyt hm of a mel ody depends
on its implicit har mony. This effect is investigated in mor e detail in t he fol l owi ng
way. First, t he degr ee of stability observed for t he endi ng uni t s UIR1, U7R2, U8R1,
U14R2, U15R1 (crotchet) are compar ed to those observed in UIR2, U7R1, U8R2,
U14R1, U15R2 (quaver) respectively. This compari son is effect ed in H1 and in H2.
A mul t i var i at e anal ysi s of vari ance shows that the effect of t he dur at i on is not t he
same in H1 and in H2. All things bei ng equal, t he effect of i ncreasi ng t he dur at i on
of a not e depends on its musical function. For example, i ncreasi ng t he dur at i on of
a tonic ( endi ng uni t 7) does not have the same effect as i ncreasi ng t he dur at i on of
a l eadi ng not e (Fig. 8a).
The effect of t he met ri cal st ruct ure is det ai l ed in the same way. It di ffers in a
significant wa y if it is observed in H1 and in H2 (p<0.035): all t hi ngs bei ng equal, a
not e on a st r ong beat is percei ved as mor e stable t han one on t he weak beat but this
gai n depends on t he tonal wei ght of t he note. For example, t he E in H2 (endi ng uni t
12) is mor e st r ongl y affect ed by the change in its metrical position, t han t he E in H1
(fig. 8b).
Mui r . !
t e u i e a
M
l 7
9 6
R 5
: 4
i
9 3
|
2
I,
7
6~ , . /
s
5 t
J
4, f
3
2 / ~ "
~ a ~ b
Hm. . . . .
Fi g u r e 8 Examples of the interaction bet ween the tonal weight and the durat i on (short / l ong) o b s e r v e d
on endi ng uni t 7 (a), and bet ween the tonal weight and the metrical position ( weak/ st r ong beat) o b s e r v e d
on endi ng unit 12 (b) wi t h musician subjects.
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134 Emmanuel Bigand
To summar i se, t he musi ci ans' results are consistent wi t h t hose of t he first
exper i ment and t hey give mor e i nformat i on about the i nt eract i on bet ween implicit
ha r mony x r hyt hm.
It is not t he same whe n we look at t he non-musi ci ans' results.
These ne w profiles differ radi cal l y from t hose of the first experi ment : t hey are
mor e cont rast ed, and mor e opposi t e in each experi ment al situation generat ed. The
mul t i var i at e anal ysi s of vari ance poi nt s to an effect of t he implicit ha r mony
significant at p<.001, whi ch is t he most i mpor t ant di fference bet ween t he t wo
experi ment s. Here, each musical progressi on generat es cont rast ed t ensi ons and
rel axat i ons schemas. Differences bet ween t hem are qualitatively t he same as t hose
obser ved wi t h musi ci ans (see exp. 1). An i nt erest i ng phenomenon is obser ved
agai n for t he endi ng uni t 12. The average degr ee of musi cal stability is 3.33 for t he
E in H1, and 4.39 for t he E in H2. This difference, significant at p<0.03, pr oves t hat
even non- musi ci an subjects are able to abstract ver y subtle di fferences in musi cal
funct i on.
The effect of t he rhyt hmi cal st ruct ure is significant at p<0.05, just as t hose of t he
dur at i on p<0.001), whi ch is consistant wi t h t he results of t he previ ous experi ment .
But this t i me, t he effect of the met ri cal st ruct ure is hi ghl y significant at p<0.009: all
t hi ngs bei ng equal, a not e t ends to be mor e stable when it is pl ayed on a st rong beat.
Finally, compar i son of the profiles shows that the changes of t he r hyt hmi c
st r uct ur e have t he Same effect in H1 and in H2. Gi ven this lack of interaction~ i t was
i nt erest i ng to compar e t he effects of t he met ri cal st ruct ure and of t he dur at i on in H1
and in H2. Firstly, t he effect of t he met ri cal st ruct ure appears not to be t he same in
H1 and in H2 (p<0.033). For t he non-musi ci ans too, the musi cal stability of a not e
t ends to i ncrease when this not e is pl ayed on t he st rong beat, but this gai n depends
on t he t onal funct i on of t he note.
Consi der i ng now t he effect of t he durat i on, we not e that it is t he same in H1 and
in H2. So, for t he non-musi ci ans, i ndependent of its musi cal function, t he l onger a
not e, t he hi gher is its musi cal stability. This resul t explains t he absence of a global
i nt eract i on bet ween implicit har mony x r hyt hm for the non-musi ci ans.
In sum, t he mai n results of this second experi ment is such as to i ndi cat e a v e r y
sophi st i cat ed compet ence of t he non-musi ci an listener in abst ract i ng musi cal
t ensi on and relaxation. As we can see in figure 7, their resul t s are qui t e si mi l ar to
t hose of t he musi ci ans; in this second experi ment , musician-subjects do not reveal
a musi cal compet ence whi ch woul d not exist in t he non-musi ci an subjects.
General i nterpretati on
Taken t oget her, t hese t wo experi ment s confi rm that a level of codi ng exists wher e
t he musi cal phr ase is r epr esent ed by its net wor k of musical t ensi on and relaxation.
For all t he listeners, abstraction of this net wor k is i nfl uenced by at least f our factors.
The mai n effect of t he implicit har mony shows t hat t wo mel odi es havi ng t he
same superfi ci al aspects but di fferi ng in their implicit har mony gener at e ver y
di fferent t onal wei ght s are percei ved as havi ng di fferent musi cal stability: as we
have not ed, di fference in musical stability t ends to follow di fference in t onal
wei ght .
But t he musi cal stability of each not e cont ai ned in a mel ody is not onl y det er-
mi ned by its t onal weight. The mai n effect of the r hyt hmi c st ruct ure i n t hese t wo
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Tension-relaxation schemes 135
exper i ment s suggest s t hat it is also st rongl y i nfl uenced by r hyt hmi c val ue. The
exper i ment s howed t hat t wo ki nd of rhyt hmi c val ues are relevant. The first
concer ned t he metrical posi t i on of t he event , the second its durat i on. As we have
ascert ai ned, even a smal l di fference in dur at i on can slightly alter t he local t ens i on/
rel axat i on schemas. This result expl ai ns how subt l e vari at i ons in dur at i on effectu-
at ed by t he per f or mer may be appr eci at ed by the listener.
These resul t s demonst r at e, in accordance wi t h Lerdahl and Jackendof f ' s t heory,
t hat t onal wei ght and rhyt hmi cal val ue interfere in t he det er mi nat i on of t ens i on/
rel axat i on schemas. They s how t hat an interactive relation bet ween t hese t wo
musi cal di mensi ons cannot be rul ed out; it means that musi cal di mensi ons are not
pr ocessed i ndependent l y; as we have seen t he effect of a change on one di mensi on
depends on the musi cal cont ext wher e it appears. This resul t cont radi ct s ot hers
obt ai ned by P.almer and Krumhansl (1987a, 1987b). This di ver gence may be
expl ai ned by the di fferent met hodol ogi es empl oyed. In order to s t udy t he interac-
t i on be t we e n t wo factors, it coul d be bet t er to use a classical factorial desi gn wher e
t he t wo fact ors are syst emat i cal l y varied. The experi ment of Pal mer and Kr umhansl
var i ed onl y one; the rhyt hmi cal factor. The presence of interaction suggest s t hat t he
cogriitive pr ocesses implicit in the det ermi nat i on of t ensi on/ r el axat i on schemas are
unl i kel y to be modul ar .
The last factor whi ch i nfl uenced this out come is musi cal training. Resul t s of t he
t wo exper i ment s seem to suggest that the tension and relaxation schemas ab-
stra.cted by t he musi ci ans t end to be mor e varied. However the resul t s of t he second
exper i ment poi nt to t he fact t hat this difference shoul d not be exaggerat ed; a
det ai l ed anal ysi s will convi nce us that t hese listeners managed to abst ract ver y
subt l e di fferences in musi cal structure. Obvi ousl y, a musi cal compet ence to struc-
t ure musi cal pi eces exists, whi ch does not requi re any specific training: for this
reason, t he mai n hypot hesi s of Lerdahl and Jackendoff' s model ma y be ext ended
to i nexper i enced listeners as well.
C o n c l u s i o n
In concl usi on, I woul d like to offer some suggest i ons about t he formal i sat i on of t he
rules i nvol ved in the est abl i shment of t ensi on/ r el axat i on schemas. Gi ven the effect
of t he t onal hi erarchy we coul d assi gn to each not e of a mel ody a specific t onal
wei ght . The tonic of the mai n key woul d receive a wei ght of 7, t he domi nant a
wei ght of 6, t he third, a we i g ~ of 5, the ot her not es of the key a wei ght of 4, and a
not e whi ch does not bel ong to the key a wei ght of 3 or 2, dependi ng whet her t hey
bel ong to a near or far key. When a modul at i on appear s t he not es in t he new key
ma y be assi gned val ues usi ng the same syst em wi t h a decrease of a val ue of I or 2
dependi ng whet her the new key is near or far from the mai n key. Appl i ed to the
mel ody H1, this syst em pr oduces t he line I (fig. 9). Of cour se this line di ffers f r om
H1 to H2. Gi ven t he effect of dur at i on we can allocate to each not e a dur at i on
val ue var yi ng here from I to 2 (line 2). We can appl y a similar syst em in det ermi n-
ing met ri cal val ue, var yi ng here from 1 to 3 (line 3). Of course t hese l i nes var y
f r om R1 to R2. If we consi der the musician-subjects, because of the interaction,
we can as s ume that the mul t i pl i cat i on of t hese three lines can pr oduce a t heoret i cal
profi l e of musi cal t ensi on/ rel axat i on, whi ch shoul d not be t oo di fferent to t hat
obser ved.
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136 Emmanuel Bigand
24
I
151
I
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Fi gure 9
I
k G dl EI ~/ ~G'~ f~ [ G~ B ~" F'q A D ~ A g~ g ~ I~ (j~ A
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Comparison of the theoretical and the real profiles.
Ce r t a i nl y t he s i mi l a r i t y o bs e r v e d i n f i gure 9 i s a g o o d st art i ng poi nt , b u t o b v i o u s l y
t he l a c k o f t ot al a d e q u a c y i mp l i e s t hat ot her f act ors s h o u l d be i n c l u d e d . Thi s s y s t e m
c o u l d be u s e f u l i n f o r ma l i s i ng t he mi s s i n g factors, a n d i t wi l l be t he object o f f ut ur e
e x p e r i me n t s .
R ef er en c es
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Uni versi t 6 Paris X Nanterre, France, Universal microfilm ISSN: 0294-1767, n ~ 09882/90.
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Music, vol. 18, n~ 45--60.
Bigand, E. (1990c) Perception des sch4mas de tensions et d4tentes dans une phrase musicale, Acte du ler
Congr~s Europ~en dAnalyse Musicale de Cohnar.
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stability as a function of context. Cognition, 13, 63-102.
Deli~ge, I. (1987) Gr oupi ng conditions in listening to music: An approach to Lerdahl & Jackendoff' s
gr oupi ng preference rules. Music Perception, 4, (4), 325-360.
Deli6ge, I. (1990) Mechanisms of cue extraction in musical grouping: A Study on Sequenza VI for Viola
by L. Berio. Psychology of music, vol. 18, nxl , 18--44.
Deutsch, D. (1980) The processing of structured and unstructured tonal sequences. Perception & Psychophysics,
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Essens, P. & Povel, D. (1985) Metrical and non metrical representations of temporal patterns. Perception &
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Fraisse, P. (1974) La psychologie du rythme, Paris, PUf.
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Tension-relaxationschemes 137
Krumhansl , C. (1979) The psychological representation of musical pitch in a tonal context, Cognitive
Psychology, 11, 346--374.
Krumhansl , C. & Kessler, E. (1982) Tracing the dynami c changes in perceived tonal organisation i n a
spacial representation of musical keys, Psychological Review, 89, 334--368.
Lerdahl, F., (1989) Structure de prolongation dans l' atonalit4, in S. McAdams & I. Delii~ge (eds.), La musique
et les sciences cognitives, Bruxeltes, P. Mardaga, 103-135, English version in Cont emporary Music
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