Alternative Temporalities Grisey

Beneath the Skin of Time: Alternative Temporalities in Grisey's "Prologue for Solo Viola"
Author(s): Jeffrey J. Hennessy

Source: Perspectives of New Music, Vol. 47, No. 2 (SUMMER 2009), pp. 36-58
Published by: Perspectives of New Music
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25753696
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Beneath the Skin of Time:
Alternative Temporalities
in Grisey's Prologue
for Solo Viola
L-?
Jeffrey J. Hennessy
Gerardfounders
Griseyof(1946-1998)
is widely
to be one oforigi
the
the movement
known considered
as French "spectralism,"
nating in Paris in the mid 1970s. Spectral composers utilize the analyses
of the complex harmonic spectra of individual sounds as a primary pitch
resource. These spectra are orchestrated to produce "spectral chords,"
which are then manipulated in various ways including: filtering, fre
quency modulation, and evolving inharmonicity.
In many ways, the original spectral concept developed in reaction to
the compositional trends of the previous generation, what Grisey

referred to as the "misunderstanding of perception our elders had
attained," when they "ended up confusing the map with the lie of the
land."1 Instead of the artificial pitch organization of European and

American serialism, spectral composers sought new pitch resources
based on the organic qualities of sounds themselves. It is not surprising
Beneath the Skin of Time
37
then that the majority of analytical studies of Grisey's music (and

spectral music in general) have focused on the pitches inherent in the
source spectra and the various orchestrational techniques used to score
and transform the resulting harmonic complexes.2
For Grisey however, it was not only pitch that needed liberation, but
also time. He often rejected (or simply ignored) the term spectralism
when describing his own music. In his view, the term spectralism was:
just a sticker that we got at a certain period. I think my attitude is
basically the same, but the departure point of spectralism was . . .
the fascination for extended time and for continuity. How to com
pose an extended type of time in a composition without writing the
sort of chromatic clusters like Ligeti in Atmospheres. What language
does that extended time imply? That is really the starting point of
spectralism and not the writing of spectrums or whatever.3
Grisey's published articles, interviews, and CD liner notes all reflect

his continuing preoccupation with the relativity of temporal perception
in his evolving sound complexes. In effect, the spectra provided nothing
more than static pre-compositional harmonic backgrounds to Grisey,
while he considered time to be the more malleable parameter. Indeed, a
simple survey of titles of his later works reflects his fascination with time:
Talea, Tempus ex Machina, Vortex Temporum. In an article titled "Did

You Say Spectral?" in Contemporary Music Review, Grisey outlined what
he considered to be the prime elements of spectral composition:
What is radically different in spectral music is the attitude of the
composer faced with the cluster of forces that make up sounds and
faced with the time needed for their emergence. From its begin
nings, this music has been characterized by the hypnotic power of
slowness and by a virtual obsession with continuity, thresholds,
transience, and dynamic forms. It is in radical opposition to all sorts
of formalism which refuse to include time and entropy as the actual
foundation of all musical dimensions. Strengthened by an ecology
of sounds, spectral music no longer integrates time as an external
element imposed upon a sonic material considered as being

"outside time," but instead treats it as a constituent element of
sound itself. This music forces itself to make time palpable in the
"impersonable" form of durations; apparently far removed from

spoken language, but doubtlessly close to other biological rhythms
which we have yet to discover.4
38
In 1980 Grisey presented a lecture at the Internationale Ferienkursen

at Darmstadt entitled "Tempus ex Machina: A Composer's Reflections
on Musical Time." He divided his lecture into three sections referred to
respectively as "The Skeleton of Time," "The Flesh of Time," and "The
Skin of Time." Grisey considered these to be three alternative

temporalities coexistent within the same musical space.5
The "Skeleton of Time" refers to the basic quantitative, temporal

infrastructure of a work as measured in chronometric time (i.e., minutes
and seconds). Grisey maintained that the temporal divisions of the

skeleton are not immediately discernible. In other words, the crude
arbitrary measurement of musical events in terms of seconds is of no real
consequence to the listener. However, the temporal unfolding of

musical events does, in Grisey's view, affect the degree of predictability
of musical units. This, in turn, plays with a sense of expectation, which
ultimately alters the underlying sense of rhythm. To this end, Grisey
proposed a scale of predictability measuring from maximum to zero or
from order to disorder.6 This is shown in Example 1. Of the five

categories listed, it is the periodic (continuously repeating) and dynamic
(accelerating or decelerating) predictabilities that feature most

prominently in Grisey's music, as we shall see. Between periodic and
dynamic predictabilities, Grisey also proposed the notion of "fuzzy
periodicity" consisting of "periodic events which fluctuate slightly
around a constant, analogous to the periodicity of our heartbeat,
breathing, or footstep."7 This is one of the underlying concepts of the
work we shall examine shortly.
The "Flesh of Time" represents the more qualitative, phenomeno

logical, and psychological aspects of musical time. Grisey believed that
composers have control over this qualitative time by considering the
differences perceived between sounds and the degree of "preaudibility"
of a future sound. Sounds that become predictable (or preaudible) allow
for an expansion of time and a greater focus on the internal dynamics of
the sounds themselves. Unexpected sonic jolts cause time to contract,
eliminating preaudibility, forcing the listener to confront a future time
point.
The "Skin of Time" is that elusive, subjective time of the individual

listener, the field where the composer "notices more than he acts."8
Grisey believed that contemporary psychoacoustic and sociological

investigations might one day illuminate more about the relationship
between musical time and listener time, but that, at present, the
composer has very little control over the slippery skin. The analyst is, of
course, no better positioned to access individual musical subjectivity,
especially regarding something as elusive and complex as temporality.
39
* a) Periodic
Maximum
Order
Predictability
b) Continuous-Dynamic
"fuzzy
periodicity"
1) continuous acceleration
2) continuous deceleration
Average
Predictability
c) Discontinuous-Dynamic Slight Predictability

1) acceleration or deceleration
by stages or by elision
^ 2) statistical acceleration or
deceleration
d) Statistical Zero Predictability Disorder
complete redivision
unpredictability of durations
maximum discontinuity
e) Smooth
rhythmic silence
EXAMPLE 1: GRISEY'S SCALE OF PREDICTABILITY
However, an exploration of what lies beneath the skin of time in

Grisey's music reveals musical processes that are not readily apparent
through a mere examination of pitch relationships, but which I believe
may be universally perceived.9
Grisey's 1976 Prologue for Solo Viola is a case in point. This piece
opens the cycle of six pieces collectively known as Les espaces acoustiques.
In keeping with its function as a prologue, the piece exposes musical
materials that will feature prominendy in the rest of the cycle. The
Prologue departs from other spectral pieces in that it presents the

harmonic series in its pure form, thus suggesting all possible pitch
relationships. Example 2 shows the harmonic series formed on the
fundamental pitch El, which acts as the fundamental tone for the entire
cycle.10 The initial pitch process of Prologue simply presents the

harmonic partials in order of frequency beginning with the third (with
one exception, the appearance of the eighth partial is delayed as we shall
40
Initial Gestalt Unit Pitches
= lowered by 1/8 tone h = raised by 1/8 tone k = raised by 1/4 tone * = raised by 5/8 tone fit = raised by 3/4 tone
EXAMPLE 2: HARMONIC SERIES FROM El (41.2 Hz) SHOWING IGU PITCHES.
see later). This is shown in Example 3, which contains the verticalized

pitch complexes of the piece up to the entry of the eighteenth partial.
A strict examination of the work's pitch structure offers only
superficial insight into the overall process. As with most spectral works,
a harmonic spectrum is initially presented and gradually rendered

inharmonic over the course of the piece.11 Unlike other spectral pieces
though, the composer cannot rely on massive, colourful harmonic

complexes to achieve his ends. Indeed, a cursory listen to the first five
minutes of this twenty-minute piece seems to offer nothing more than
alternating arpeggiation figures coupled with a two-note pulsing figure
that never changes in pitch. A closer look at the inner alternative
temporalities, however, reveals the inner dynamism of this seemingly
mundane section. I will therefore direct the majority of analytical
attention in this study to the first quarter of the piece. I define this as
Section 1 of the piece, with smaller structural divisions referred to as
subsections.
Initial Gestalt Unit

Prologue for Solo Viola opens with a repeating unit that, in many ways,
provides the impetus for the musical content of the rest of the work, and
indeed the entire cycle. This is shown in Example 4. Grisey has referred
to these referential figures in his music as the "Initial Gestalten"12 I
have adopted the term "Initial Gestalt Unit" (IGU). The work's
publisher (Ricordi), in their composer biography of Grisey, describes
41
EXAMPLE 3: PITCH COMPLEXES SHOWING ENTRIES UP TO THE 18TH PARTIAL.
this unit as combining two gestures: a 'respiratory gesture' consisting of

five pitches, and a 'cardiac' gesture consisting of two pulses on the pitch
B2.13 The pitch content of the initial unit (including the B2 pulses)
comprises the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and ninth partials of the
harmonic series formed on El (see Examples 2 and 3).

We see that the respiratory gesture is a highly dynamic entity with
continuously changing durations, pitch contour, and volume dynamics.
Example 5 shows graphically the dynamic contouring of each parameter.
Respiratory Cardiac
EXAMPLE 4: INITIAL GESTALT UNIT (IGU)
42
Duration Contour
Event
EXAMPLE 5: DYNAMIC CONTOUR CURVES FOR INDIVIDUAL IGU PARAMETERS.

(RELATIVE AMOUNTS ARE ASSIGNED AN INTEGER WITH 0 CORRESPONDING TO THE
LOWEST PITCH, AMPLITUDE AND DURATION.)
43
Following basic contour theory, the relative minimum of each

dynamic level is assigned an integer value of zero.14 Note the wave-like
characteristic of the first two graphs and the inherent symmetry of all
three curves. These individual contours of volume, pitch, and duration
combine to establish the dynamic identity of the respiratory gesture,
opposing it to the more dynamically static (though rhythmically active)
cardiac gesture that follows. These opposing gestures allow this short
unit to become imprinted in the musical memory after only a few

repetitions. The performer is free to determine the number of times the
unit is to be repeated.
Consistent with the basic tenets of spectral composition, Grisey

considered this Initial Gestalt Unit to embody one (admittedly complex)
sound that is stretched out in order to present its dynamic qualities as
isolated parameters. In a sense, the respiratory gesture provides the sonic
colour (the overtones and amplitude envelope), while the cardiac
gesture provides the kinetic propulsion. These are laid out sequentially
at the beginning, and one of the form-defining processes of Prologue is
their gradual fusion.
The Skeleton of Time

The IGU then acts as a periodic referent for subsequent iterations of
similar events. Example 6 contains the first five lines of the score. As you
can see, this page consists almost entirely of alternating numbers of

respiratory and cardiac gestures. A closer examination of the respiratory
gestures, though, reveals three main subsections. Subsection 1 contains
five-note respiratory gestures, Subsection 2 contains seven-note
gestures, and Subsection 3 contains eleven-note gestures. Each

subsection is offset by a three-second pause.15 The cardiac gestures
further divide each subsection and act as the temporal reference points
or the chronometric punctuation. The temporal "skeleton" is thus
defined by the placement of cardiac gestures within each subsection.

After several repetitions of the IGU, a simple periodicity is established
whereby the listener expects to hear a cardiac gesture follow each

respiratory gesture. Grisey's "fuzzy periodicity" begins to exert itself
immediately following the IGU. For the next respiratory gesture is
followed, not by a cardiac gesture, but by a two-second pause, then
followed by another respiratory gesture. When the cardiac gesture

follows these two respiratory gestures, the listener's expectation is
fulfilled, though with a distorted projection of what will happen next.
This distorted predictability then outlines the temporal infrastructure of
n <
CO
""Cr
n'
Subsection 3
EXAMPLE 6: PROLOGUE SCORE EXCERPT SHOWING SUB-SECTIONAL DIVISIONS AND SEGMENTED DURATIONAL UNITS.
? Universal Music Publishing Ricordi. By kind permission.
IGU Unit 1 Unit 2
45
each subsection as the listener awaits the arrival of each cardiac gesture
and thereby segments the chronometric continuum into individual

durational units, punctuated by the two-note pulses.
Although there is no time signature and no note duration hierarchy,
the score provides a great deal of temporal information. The individual
respiratory gestures are represented in proportional notation with a
consistent logarithmic acceleration throughout each gesture. Moreover
the tempo extremes of the accelerations are fixed. In the first subsection,
each respiratory gesture begins at seventy, accelerating to ninety notes

per minute. The cardiac gestures are also proportionally notated as a
shorter duration followed by a longer duration with a total span of one
second. Thus the composer exerts a great deal of control over the
chronometric durations of each musical event while preserving the free,

unmetered feeling.
The relative time spans of each segmented unit can thus be
approximated from the score. For example, Unit 1 contains two
respiratory gestures separated by a two-second pause, followed by a

cardiac gesture. As such, it is shorter than Unit 2, which contains two
successive respiratory gestures (offset by a breath) followed by a longer
pause, and then a third respiratory gesture followed by the cardiac
gesture. Unit 3 is shorter than either of the two previous units because it
contains two respiratory gestures separated only by a breath. Example 7a

summarizes each unit of the first subsection, indicating its gestural
content, relative duration, and actual measured duration of one
recorded performance.16 The relative durations are again assigned an
integer value ranging from 0 to 4 indicating shortest to longest

durations respectively. The same procedure can be followed for the
second subsection, which is shown in Example 7b.
Example 7c represents graphically the relative durations of each
segmented unit in each subsection as durational contour curves. Note

the inverted relationship of the two curves. The curves are, of course,
not exact inversions. However, for our purposes, what is most important
is the clear reciprocal relationship between the two subsections

concerning the durations of adjacent segmented units. That is, the
second unit in the first subsection is longer than the first while the
second unit in Subsection 2 is shorter than its predecessor, and so forth.
Also worthy of note is the relationship of these curves to the pitch

contour curve shown in Example 5. The second curve in Example 7c is
isomorphic to the pitch contour of the IGU, while the first curve in 7c
is again related by inversion.
As intriguing as it might be, I am not trying to posit a kind of

structural unity based on contour curves, only that the piece contains
multiple levels of dynamic contour that correspond to a number of

46
different parameters. In this case, the contour curves suggest a kind of
"dynamic hypermeter" or "metric wave" for each subsection,
corresponding to Grisey's notion of a temporal skeleton.
In the third subsection, this skeleton becomes more complex. The

durations between cardiac gestures increase to the point where the
simple antecedent-consequent relationship between respiratory and
cardiac gestures begins to break down. As we shall see, this third
subsection is much more dynamic (in accordance with Grisey's scale)
than the previous two. I will thus defer discussion of this passage until
we have considered the 'Flesh of Time' in the first two subsections.
Unit
Content
Relative Actual
Duration Duration(s)
respiratory, 2s pause, respiratory, breath, cardiac
12
respiratory, breath, respiratory, 2s pause, respiratory,
16
breath cardiac
respiratory, breath, respiratory, breath, cardiac
respiratory, breath, cardiac
14
respiratory, 2s pause, unexpected jolt, breath, cardiac
(a) Content and duration of segmented units in Subsection 1.
Unit
Content
respiratory, breath, respiratory, breath, cardiac

respiratory, breath, cardiac
Relative Actual
Duration Duration(s)
1
10
respiratory, breath, respiratory, breath, respiratory,
breath, 2 cardiac
respiratory, breath, respiratory, 2s pause, respiratory,
14
breath, respiratory (with echo), Is pause, respiratory,
25
respiratory, breath, respiratory, breath, respiratory,
20
cardiac
breath, respiratory, 3 cardiac_
(b) Content and duration of segmented units in Subsection 2.
EXAMPLE 7
47
(c) Durational content curves for Subsections 1 and 2.
example 7 (cont.)
The Flesh of Time

Clearly there is a high degree of predictability in the first two
subsections. The listener expects that each musical event will be either a
cardiac or a respiratory gesture. This "preaudibility" induces Grisey's
time dilation and the listener becomes more attuned to the subtle
variations in the respiratory gestures. Throughout the section we are

examining, durational contours remain consistent (always accelerating),
however pitch and volume contours undergo constant variation. The
first five pitch contours (as well as that of the IGU) are all very similar in
that the highest pitch is always the fourth, which then falls to the next
highest pitch. These pitch contours therefore vary only in the order of
presentation of the first three pitches of each gesture (the root, third,
and fifth of the E major triad). After the fifth respiratory gesture
(following the IGU), pitch contours attain greater variety and the
listener is more attuned to the changes because of the consistency of the
initial five pitch contours. Example 8 displays pitch contour curves for
the first six respiratory gestures (following the IGU).
Pitch Contour - Gesture 1
EXAMPLE 8: PITCH CONTOURS FOR FIRST SIX RESPIRATORY GESTURES
(FOLLOWING IGU).
49
12
Event
Event
Different Ending
EXAMPLE 8 (CONT.)
The fourth respiratory gesture following the IGU represents

something of a special case. As Example 3 shows, the pitches conform to
the E major triad, the only time this "tonic" chord is sounded on its
own in the piece. Moreover, the eighth harmonic partial E3 (two
octaves above the unsounded fundamental) makes its delayed
appearance at this point as the last pitch in the gesture. The volume
dynamics emphasize this arrival with a crescendo over the course of the
gesture. A subsequent two-second pause further separates this gesture
from the overall texture. The effect is somewhat cadential in a tonal
sense and is temporarily (and temporally) jarring; a brief example of an
unexpected sonic jolt. This conflicts with the timeline established by the
temporal skeleton as there is a temporary "resolution" prior to the

arrival of the next cardiac gesture.
Volume contours also vary with each respiratory gesture. In the first
two subsections, each amplitude contour consists of an initial crescendo
to its maximum pitch (unless it begins with the loudest note). This pitch
is assigned a tenuto articulation and is played with vibrato (the only
50
pitch in each gesture that is played with vibrato), and then is followed
by a decrescendo (unless it ends with the loudest note). Example 9
displays the volume contour curves for the first four respiratory gestures.
The amplitude maximum pitch changes each time. This not only alters
the dynamic shading of each gesture, but also highlights a different pitch
or "overtone partial" each time, thus changing the "colour" of the

composite sounds.
Volume curves also affect the durational perception of each
respiratory gesture. This is akin to a sound's attack gradient and release

time. The second respiratory gesture following the IGU begins with the
loudest pitch and decrescendos throughout the duration of the gesture.
Here the durational and volume curves are isomorphic. This dynamic
envelope is similar to that of a percussion instrument, which has a rapid
Volume Contour - Gesture 1
Volume Contour - Gesture 2
Event
Isomorphic to duration contours. Shorter durational perception?
EXAMPLE 9: VOLUME CONTOURS FOR FIRST SIX RESPIRATORY GESTURES
(FOLLOWING IGU)
51
Vokme Contotir - Geshre 3
Volume Cootour Gesture 4
Inversion of durational contours. Longer durational perception?
EXAMPLE 9 (CONT.)
attack and quick release. In the fourth respiratory gesture following the
IGU, the durational and amplitude contours are inversions of each other
(a crescendo over the course of the gesture). In a sense, this gesture is
similar to a string or wind instrument with a slower attack and longer
release. Thus, at least to my ears, the fourth gesture seems to last longer
than the second gesture despite their chronometric equivalence.
The first subsection ends with a gesture that could be characterized as
an unexpected sonic jolt (see Example 6). Here the material differs
radically from the previous gestures. For one thing, the entire unit
decelerates in opposition to the accelerations of all previous respiratory
gestures. Also, it is made up of three-note gestures with disjunct and
angular contours. The first three pitches comprise the sixth, eighth, and
eleventh partials of the harmonic series, which then become inharmonic
when flattened by eighth-tone increments in each subsequent three-note
52
gesture (see Example 3). For the first time in the piece, there are also
inter-gestural timbral modifications as the gesture begins alto sul tasto
and progresses to sul ponticello. The performance instructions indicate
that this entire unit should be thought of as an aside or an echo. The
effect is much like a Doppler shift and can be thought of as the
reverberation of elements in the previous gestures that degrade as they

fade out. All of this sets this ending gesture apart from the preceding
music, and thus (according to Grisey) causes time to contract and forces
the listener into a future timepoint. Indeed, this gesture actually
foreshadows many of the processes that will take place in later sections.
The second subsection proceeds much like the first but also begins to
introduce foreshadowing elements that jump out of the prevailing
process. For the first time, in the middle of the third line, we hear the
cardiac gesture repeated twice in succession. It is later repeated three
times at the end of the subsection. As well, the cardiac gesture at the
beginning of the fourth line appears without a preceding pause for the
first time and acts like an interruption. This interruption effect is even
more pronounced because of the sudden dynamic shift (from p to nip)
and the sul tasto timbral change. The cardiac gestures thus begin to take
on a periodicity of their own, distinct from that of the respiratory
gestures. This periodicity continues to assert itself throughout the rest of
the piece, eventually fusing with the respiratory-like gestures in the latter
half of the piece.
Pitch contours become slightly more angular in the second
subsection. For example, the last two respiratory gestures of the second
subsection feature sudden registral shifts between extreme pitches. This
is shown in Example 10. In the penultimate gesture, the pitches ascend
by skip to the fourth and highest pitch only to fall immediately to the
lowest pitch. This accentuates the lower registral extreme, separating it
from the prevailing registral density.17 Two contour leaps appear in the
final gesture, with two resulting registral shifts. The overall wave-like
characteristic of each respiratory gesture remains intact; however, these
sudden registral shifts induce a weak level of pulsation created by the
accented registral extremes. As we shall see, the succeeding third

subsection features much stronger and more pronounced inter-gestural
pulsation.
Finally, the overall volume increases in the second subsection, with

each amplitude envelope beginning at pp and crescendoing to mp. The
amplitude extreme {mp) of each respiratory gesture thus matches the
volume level assigned to the cardiac gestures, eliminating the amplitude
opposition between the two gestures. The second subsection therefore
maintains the overall time dilation effect induced by the sonic

preaudibility, but offers more interjections of unexpected sonic jolts, and
53
Registral Shifts
example 10: final two respiratory gestures of subsection 2
begins to prepare the way for the eventual fusion of respiratory and
cardiac gestures.
Subsection 3
The third (and much longer) subsection, though containing the

essential elements of the first two, features many more discontinuities. It
thus embodies a more dynamic predictability and an increased state of

temporal flux. The individual eleven-note respiratory gestures of this
subsection are played much faster and with a greater acceleration curve
(160-240). This increase in kineticism further compromises the

relationship between respiratory and cardiac gestures. The decreased
durations between adjacent pitches results in an overall increase in attack
density and induce a greater sense of pulsation in the respiratory

gestures.
Other factors also contribute to increased respiratory pulsation. The
pitch contours of the third subsection become increasingly more

angular. As before, the sudden contour leaps and registral shifts produce
accents. As the third subsection progresses, the wave-like motion of the
respiratory gestures becomes greatly compromised by the increased

frequency of these contour leaps. Inner pulsation is also induced by the
introduction of two successive dynamic volume curves, resulting in two
swells over each gesture and two amplitude maxima. In addition,
frequent inter-gestural bowing changes appear in the third subsection,

disrupting the predominantly legato texture of the previous respiratory
gestures.
54
Timbral and pitch inconsistencies in the respiratory gestures also serve
to disrupt the wavelike continuity. For example, the occasional

appearance of touch-string harmonics induces sudden timbral shifts akin
to the registral shifts of the pitch contours. The overall pitch stability
also begins to degrade with the introduction of non-harmonic pitches.
This begins with the very first respiratory gesture of the third subsection
with the introduction of the "un-flattened" note D4 played as an open

string. This is actually the first open string other than the cardiac gesture
to sound in the piece and its timbral resonance stands out (especially
being the loudest pitch), matching the timbre of the cardiac gesture.
The timbral resonance of all pitches is further increased by the removal
of the mute, allowing for more sympathetic string vibration and the
introduction of more random noise.
Cardiac gestures continue to interrupt without pause. The durations
between cardiac and respiratory gestures increase to the point where
these interruptions become less and less predictable. For example, the
third segmented unit of Subsection 3 features six consecutive respiratory
gestures followed by five consecutive cardiac gestures. All of this begins
to blur the periodic timeline as unpredictable elements begin to multiply
and the antecedent-consequent relationship between cardiac and
respiratory gestures becomes compromised. Respiratory gestures feature

cardiac-like pulsation and cardiac gestures adopt wave-like repetition.
As a result, the frenetic texture in the second half of the piece is

accepted as the logical outcome of the overall process. Example 11
shows an excerpt from a later timepoint in the piece. At this point, the
cardiac and respiratory gestures are fusing into a highly dynamic unit
with greater pulsation, melodic angularity, and kinetic propulsion. A
high level of pulsation results from the accent articulations on certain
pitches. However, the glissandi between adjacent pitches preserve some
of the smooth continuity of the previous respiratory gestures. Tremolo
dyads follow the respiratory-like glissando gestures. These tremolos are
similar to the previous pitch-static cardiac gestures but the tremolo
articulations infuse a wavelike (respiratory) characteristic. As a result,
each complete unit, while still nominally containing two separate

gestures, no longer differentiates the dynamic identities of each gesture.
As this passage progresses, the tremolos disappear. Pitch and
durational contours align so that continuously decreasing pitch levels
correspond with continually diminishing durations. Only volume

contours remain variable. However, the wavelike nature of former
amplitude envelopes is here replaced by abrupt changes in volume level

(all varying degrees of loud). Eventually, all pitches become accented
and the gestures attain a consistent volume level of ff. The last five
=r r+zrCOLT>7t
CDCOz5CD%
zj'
H3
LnLn
CO
EXAMPLE 11: EXCERPT FROM LATER TIMEPOINT
? Universal Music Publishing Ricordi. By kind permission.
56
descending glissandi gestures of Example 11 present a continuous

acceleration (a type of "dynamic predictability"). Durations continue to
diminish in each gesture, finally culminating in the tremolo glissandi
that conclude this passage. These tremolo glissandi are, in a sense, the
ultimate fusion of respiratory and cardiac gestures. We thus arrive at a
new state of predictability with its own temporal hierarchy.
The Skin of Time

What can be objectively written about the skin of time when, according
to Grisey, each individual listener subjectively perceives this level of
musical temporality? Despite the specific nature of an individual's

temporal perspective, I maintain that there are temporal universals, if
only in a relative sense. In other words, despite the fact that we all
interpret two contrasting temporal states in our own ways, the idea that
we may universally recognize the change in temporality at all is
significant. For this reason, I have chosen to concentrate on phenomena

in this music that I believe are aurally perceptible on the musical surface
to most listeners, rather than on possible deeper abstract relationships.
Even a cursory review of this piece will discern periodic processes giving
way to more dynamic ones throughout the section we have examined.
Through a closer examination of the layers beneath the skin of time, we
come closer to deducing the individual's personal temporal perspective,
even if the most we can hope for is a generalized and relative picture of
the 'skin' itself.
Grisey's anatomical metaphor of musical time implies that temporality
in music is akin to a living system, and as such, exists in a constant state
of growth or decay. This is particularly apt when considering that the
perception of isolated temporal layers, and their relationships to one
another, constantly change with each repeated listening. Indeed, my
initial temporal experience of listening to the piece is now a distant
memory itself. Musical preaudibility is greatly enhanced by my increased
familiarity with this music. There are now no more unexpected events.
Thus, by Grisey's definition, the very act of listening to this piece (or
perhaps reading this paper) alters the musical timeline. Not only is the
skin of time affected, but the flesh and skeleton also exist in a permanent
state of flux. Thus, by choosing to focus on time as the primary musical

element, Grisey has created a piece with a musical identity as fleeting as
time itself.
Beneath the Skin of Time 57
Notes
An earlier draft of this article was presented to the musicology
colloquium series at the University of Toronto. I would like to thank
Mary Ann Parker who ran the 2004 Ph.D. seminar at the University of
Toronto, thereby giving me the opportunity to begin exploring this
research.
1. Gerard Grisey, "Tempus ex Machina: A Composer's Reflections on
Musical Time." Contemporary Music Review 2 (1987): 240-242.
2. See Francois Rose, "Introduction to the Pitch Organization of

French Spectral Music." Perspectives of New Music 34/2 (1996): 6
39.
3. David Bundler, "Interview with Gerard Grisey." Musical Time Arti
cles, Interviews, and Essays, ed. Mauricio Vazquez, http://
www.angelfire.com/music2/davidbundler/grisey.html (accessed 3
Jan 2010).
4. Gerard Grisey, "Did you say Spectral?," trans. Joshua Fineberg.

Contemporary Music Review 19 (2000): 1-3.
5. Grisey (1987).
6. Ibid., 244.
7. Ibid., 245.
8. Ibid., 272.
9. Some recent scholarship has indeed directed attention to temporal
issues in Grisey's music. See Jean-Luc Herve, Dans le Vertige de la
Duree: Vortex Temporum de Gerard Grisey (Paris: L'ltineraire, 2001)
and Angelo Orcalli, "Gerard Grisey, 'duree reelle' e dilatazione del
tempo musicale," Sonus 3(4) (1991): 36-38.
10. Note that all pitches are rounded to the nearest eighth-tone, as is
the case in the Prologue.
11. See Rose (1996) for an explanation of the process of evolving inhar
monicity in Spectral composition.
12. Gerard Grisey, liner notes to Vortex Temporum/Talea (Accord CD
206352,1998).
58 Perspectives of New Music
13. Casa Ricordi, "Gerard Grisey." Composers of Our Time.

http: / /www. ricordi. com/Compositori/Dettaglio. asp ? IdComposi?
tore=193 (accessed 3 Jan 2010).
14. See Joseph N. Straus, Introduction to Post-Tonal Theory, 2nd Edi
tion (Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2000): 87-89 for an

introduction to pitch contour theory, and Elizabeth West Marvin,
"The Perception of Rhythm in Non-Tonal Music: Rhythmic Con
tours in the Music of Edgar Varese," Music Theory Spectrum 13
(1991): 61-78 for an application of contour theory to the rhythmic

domain. Here the term dynamic refers to any continuously changing
musical parameter while the terms volume and amplitude will be
used interchangeably to refer to that specific parameter.
15. The rectangular-shaped fermata denotes a three-second pause; the

triangular fermata indicates a two-second pause.
16. Gerard Grisey, Les espaces acoustiques (Accord CD 206532, 1999).

This recording features a performance of Prologue by Gerard
Causse, for whom the piece was originally composed and dedicated.
17. The phenomenon of contour accent has been much discussed. For a
formal definition and treatment of this type of accent, see John
Roeder, "Beat-Class Modulation in Steve Reich's Music," Music

Theory Spectrum 25/2 (2003): 275-304.

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Beneath the Skin of Time: Alternative Temporalities in Grisey's "Prologue for Solo Viola"

Author(s): Jeffrey J. Hennessy

Beneath the Skin of Time:

the compositional trends of the previous generation, what Grisey

land."1 Instead of the artificial pitch organization of European and

Beneath the Skin of Time

then that the majority of analytical studies of Grisey's music (and

Grisey's published articles, interviews, and CD liner notes all reflect

Talea, Tempus ex Machina, Vortex Temporum. In an article titled "Did

element imposed upon a sonic material considered as being

"impersonable" form of durations; apparently far removed from

Perspectives of New Music

In 1980 Grisey presented a lecture at the Internationale Ferienkursen

respectively as "The Skeleton of Time," "The Flesh of Time," and "The

Skin of Time." Grisey considered these to be three alternative

The "Skeleton of Time" refers to the basic quantitative, temporal

and seconds). Grisey maintained that the temporal divisions of the

consequence to the listener. However, the temporal unfolding of

from order to disorder.6 This is shown in Example 1. Of the five

(accelerating or decelerating) predictabilities that feature most

The "Flesh of Time" represents the more qualitative, phenomeno

The "Skin of Time" is that elusive, subjective time of the individual

Grisey believed that contemporary psychoacoustic and sociological

Beneath the Skin of Time

c) Discontinuous-Dynamic Slight Predictability

d) Statistical Zero Predictability Disorder

EXAMPLE 1: GRISEY'S SCALE OF PREDICTABILITY

However, an exploration of what lies beneath the skin of time in

Prologue departs from other spectral pieces in that it presents the

cycle.10 The initial pitch process of Prologue simply presents the

Perspectives of New Music

Initial Gestalt Unit Pitches

EXAMPLE 2: HARMONIC SERIES FROM El (41.2 Hz) SHOWING IGU PITCHES.

see later). This is shown in Example 3, which contains the verticalized

A strict examination of the work's pitch structure offers only

a harmonic spectrum is initially presented and gradually rendered

though, the composer cannot rely on massive, colourful harmonic

that never changes in pitch. A closer look at the inner alternative

temporalities, however, reveals the inner dynamism of this seemingly

mundane section. I will therefore direct the majority of analytical

Initial Gestalt Unit

Beneath the Skin of Time

EXAMPLE 3: PITCH COMPLEXES SHOWING ENTRIES UP TO THE 18TH PARTIAL.

this unit as combining two gestures: a 'respiratory gesture' consisting of

harmonic series formed on El (see Examples 2 and 3).

EXAMPLE 4: INITIAL GESTALT UNIT (IGU)

Perspectives of New Music

EXAMPLE 5: DYNAMIC CONTOUR CURVES FOR INDIVIDUAL IGU PARAMETERS.

LOWEST PITCH, AMPLITUDE AND DURATION.)

Beneath the Skin of Time

Following basic contour theory, the relative minimum of each

unit to become imprinted in the musical memory after only a few

Consistent with the basic tenets of spectral composition, Grisey

colour (the overtones and amplitude envelope), while the cardiac

The Skeleton of Time

can see, this page consists almost entirely of alternating numbers of

five-note respiratory gestures, Subsection 2 contains seven-note

gestures, and Subsection 3 contains eleven-note gestures. Each

or the chronometric punctuation. The temporal "skeleton" is thus

defined by the placement of cardiac gestures within each subsection.

whereby the listener expects to hear a cardiac gesture follow each

followed by another respiratory gesture. When the cardiac gesture

? Universal Music Publishing Ricordi. By kind permission.

IGU Unit 1 Unit 2