ROME: not only the capital city of Italy, but also an acronym standing for Roman Aleatoric Music Experience. The three musicians of the Rib Trio, featured in this Da Vinci Classics album are all among the leading experts in the field, and they decided to explore a quintessentially Roman phenomenon, i.e. the fertile ground found by aleatoric music in the Roman area, from the post-World-War II years until present-day.
Aleatoric music is music whose notational parameters (such as pitch, duration, order of the notes, or also instrumentation, dynamics, articulation etc.) are not entirely defined, in a greater or lesser proportion. They are left to “alea”, to chance; and this can mean either that the interpreters must actively involve chance processes (such as throwing dice or similar) for finding the version they will actually play, or that they are called to improvise following certain given data or rules, but without anyone being able to predict what the actual sound result will be.
Aleatoric music was, in some way, a direct and opposing response to the hyper-detailedness of serial and post-serial music, which, on the contrary, tended to increasingly specify all minimum details of performance. At times, avantgarde scores are so complex to read and to play that it is nearly impossible to respect each and all indications; thus, the hyper-detailedness fatally becomes its opposite, i.e., chance. This compositional stance, partially in polemics with the very systematized compositional techniques of the post-War years, was adopted by many composers worldwide (John Cage is the first name coming to mind), but was slow in gaining a foothold in Italy. Indeed, with the exception of two very original personalities such as those of Bruno Maderna and Sylvano Bussotti, who received the torch of these compositional experiences in a very personal fashion, Italy was rather impermeable to this kind of experiments. Rome, therefore, was a notable exception, with a whole bunch of great composers who chose to engage in this field. It is a field which also requires an important degree of cooperation with the performers (whereas some modernist composers would have easily renounced the performer’s figure tout court), who are called to a role of co-authorship with the composer.
At the forefront of the Roman aleatoric movement stood Franco Evangelisti, a visionary composer and proponent of aleatoric music. Evangelisti’s journey from engineering studies to musical pursuits culminated in his embrace of aleatoric techniques, influenced by luminaries such as Harald Gezmer and Werner Meyer-Eppler. The transformative experience at the Ferienkurse of Darmstadt marked a turning point, propelling Evangelisti towards electronic music and aleatoric exploration. Freed from the constraints of serialism, Evangelisti championed improvisation and collaboration with performers, advocating for a symbiotic relationship between composer and interpreter. His collaborations with notable musicians, including Hermann Scherchen, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and Luigi Nono, highlighted his global impact.
The Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza, co-founded by Evangelisti, emerged as a powerful embodiment of the synergy between performance and composition in aleatoric music. This innovative ensemble embraced a philosophy akin to John Cage’s avant-garde ideals, forging connections between the Roman aleatoric movement and the broader global context. Evangelisti’s international reach extended across the United States, Germany, and beyond, leaving an indelible mark on the trajectory of aleatoric music worldwide. His pedagogical contributions at the Conservatory of Santa Cecilia in Rome solidified his influence, while his seminal work “Dal silenzio a un nuovo mondo sonoro” unveiled the depth of his artistic philosophy.
Proporzioni, a work dating from 1958 was dedicated to Severino Gazzelloni, a star-flutist who was able to draw to the flute many of his compatriots, also thanks to an efficacious communication strategy. From the same year dates the premiere of Proiezioni sonore, whose initial sketches had been conceived some time before, and which was premiered by D. Tudor in Darmstadt: this piece was meaningfully dedicated to Stockhausen.
If Evangelisti can be considered as the founding father of Italian aleatoric music, the seeds he planted kept blooming until present-day, as is demonstrated by the inclusion, in this album, of a new aletoric piece by Schiaffini, Rib Trio, purposefully composed for the interpreters of this CD.
“… I write music to astonish the roses “. These words are the aesthetical manifesto of Walter Branchi. “Writing music to astonish the roses” is as poetic as it is unusual. But, in Branchi’s case, it is also a rather literal statement. Branchi, in fact, is not only a professional musician with an impressive biography, but also one of the world’s leading experts in roses. He has “identified, saved, disseminated and introduced lots of old varieties of roses, understanding the importance of historical traditions”, as another expert affirms.
Roses and music do not simply constitute the two poles of Branchi’s interests; they are also two sides of the same coin. He proclaims to maintain an “ecological concept” of music, which he relates with his passion for the environment.
Musically, Branchi teaches Electroacoustic Musical compositions at Italian conservatories, and was among the co-founders, in 1967, of the legendary Studio R7, along with two other musicians represented in this recording (i.e. Evangelisti and Guaccero). A polymath in music and horticulture, introduced an ecological concept of music that intertwines artistry with environmental consciousness. An educator and co-founder of pivotal initiatives, Branchi’s compositions harmonize spatial and musical dimensions, epitomized by his graphic score “Looking South-West.”.
Its notes are integrated within geometric shapes arranged in a deliberate spatial configuration. Due to its inherently visual characteristics, this artwork offers an excellent opportunity to delve into the exploration of both spatial and musical elements, examining their interplay within the context of space and time.
A blend of compositional activity and conducting characterizes the ongoing activity of Marcello Panni, who graduated in both disciplines (along with piano) at the Conservatory of Santa Cecilia in Rome, and who later continued his studies in composition with Goffredo Petrassi and in conducting with Manuel Rosenthal (in Paris).
As a conductor, his main interest has been in the field of contemporary music, as was clear already from the time of his debut, which took place at the Biennale of Venice in 1969. On the other hand, symphonic and vocal/symphonic works represent the core of his output, along with numerous operas – a genre frequently neglected by composers of his generation.
He founded an Ensemble, “Teatro-Musica”, whose primary vocation is the dissemination of new works, including pieces by Berio, Bussotti, Cage, Clementi, Donatoni, Feldman, Schnebel and many others. Some of the most important stages worldwide welcomed Panni and his works, and he also had roles as an artistic director of important musical institutions.
His talent for the stage and the concert scene is evident in works such as Déchiffrage, a surreal divertissement. The French word déchiffrage stands for “sight reading”; it consists of 12 panels, which can be variously orchestrated; performing solutions have to be found for each page. Duration, as frequently happens with aleatoric music, is not traditionally determined but rather prescribed by time slots. Panni’s Seiner edlen Freundin has a score made only of data and durations; dots indicate the rhythm. The version played here corresponds to a piano version realized and recorded by the composer himself: thus, a fascinating pattern of improvisation/composition/performance comes to the surface.
If Evangelisti was rather unimpressed by serialism, Giacinto Scelsi can be considered as one of the Italian pioneers of this language. He came from an aristocratic family, and his numerous travels put him into contact with some of the leading intellectuals of the time, including Jean Cocteau and Virginia Woolf. His musical activity encompasses a large variety of languages, in the unceasing and restless quest for a voice of his own. He digested and elaborated influences as diverse as those by Scriabin, Berg, and Baroque music: frequently, his works are characterized by dense and knowledgeable counterpoint.
One of the distinctive traits of Scelsi’s life and work is his lasting interest in spirituality, esoterism and mysticism: all of these elements come to the fore in his post-War output, where notable echoes from the music of Far East are also clearly discernible.
His spirituality is the generating force behind his compositional output, behind his making “within” and “with” sound; the spiritual and the musical aspects are indivisible. For him, sound without music could exist, but not music without sound. His interest in spirituality generated a kind of music different from that he had written previously; this “conversion” was also made visible by his choice to adopt his maternal grandfather’s name as his artistic identity. In works such as his first quartet, he began to explore the sound of the single notes or pitches, of microintervals; he was interested in sound rather than in music as a cultural production. In this, he is considered as the inspirer and pioneer of what will became the French movement of spectralism.
Scelsi was one of the reference points of Giancarlo Schiaffini, who is also featured here as a composer. Schiaffini, a versatile composer, trombonist, and tubist born in Rome in 1942, has left an enduring impact on contemporary music and jazz. Graduating in Physics in 1965, he ventured into self-taught free jazz performances. Like other composers represented in this recording, in 1970 he studied with Stockhausen and Ligeti at Darmstadt, forming Nuove Forme Sonore, a chamber music ensemble. His collaborations with influential artists like Nono and Scelsi showcased his talent globally. Schiaffini founded the Gruppo Romano di Ottoni in 1975, and he remains a member of the renowned Italian Instabile Orchestra. A dedicated educator, he has taught at prestigious institutions worldwide and authored works on contemporary trombone techniques. His multimedia events inspired by literature and visual arts, alongside Silvia Schiavoni, highlight his artistic range.
Domenico Guaccero (1927-1984) was an Italian composer and musician known for his experimental and avant-garde contributions to contemporary music. He studied composition with Barbara Giuranna and Goffredo Petrassi in Rome, exploring serial techniques before embracing American experimentalism and aleatory music. Guaccero actively promoted contemporary music and, in turn, was among the co-founders of Nuova Consonanza. He taught at various conservatories and wrote extensively on music. His compositions incorporated theatrical elements and innovative sound production techniques. Guaccero’s enduring legacy lies in his pioneering approach to musical experimentation and his vision for the communicative role of contemporary music. He was also a zealous apostle of new approaches to teaching. His Luz is inspired by some core areas of the human body, conceived as poles around which our biological and psychical life can revolve. Luz is an aleatoric piece, played by the flute alone. The composer gives a series of very detailed indications on the effects which should be produced by the low-pitched instrument chosen by the performer. The only fixed element is its articulation into “bars” lasting five seconds each, and comprising both traditionally notated fragments and unconventional indications; its aleatoric dimension is also found in the possibility to stop it at a given point, and to restart canonically, by contrary motion.
Together, the pieces recorded in this album represent a valuable insight into the quintessentially Roman contribution to aleatoric music.
Chiara Bertoglio © 2023
Rome Open Music Experience: Aleatoric music in Rome 1955-2023
