Musical cognition

The present research’s main objective is to inquiry the concept of musical meaning formation in the scope of jazz improvisation. Starting with the debate of musical meaning as traditionally understood by academia—associated to the theoretical foundations of the formalism of the 19th century consolidated with the famous publication Eduard Hanslick (1854)—, I debate the particularities of the repertoire originally targeted by this theoretical stream (so-called “absolute music”). By doing so, my intent is to illuminate the differences between jazz improvisation and composition’s traditional paradigm. Them I justify the search for new theoretical and methodological tools, ones that are more suitable to approach the subject of this work. Thanks to Derrida’s concept of scripture it was possible to propose a way out of the all too often cited opposition between written and improvised music that seems to orient many other’s scholars works and realign the debate of the situational divergences between improvisation and composition. Understanding that the real differences between a creative practice embedded in the notational situation (composition) and another intrinsically tied to the performance of soloist lines through improvisation, I turned myself to the concept of musical meaning in the light of the embodied cognitive sciences. From this theoretical framework here proposed, I developed and tested an observation method in order to collect data that might uphold my hypothesis by means of a case study (interviews, the transcriptions and analysis of solos and observations of live performances). The data that emerged from this method underwent analysis and discussion allowing the method itself to be tested and also my initial hypothesis—that the processes of musical meaning formation in jazz improvisation are mainly based upon the use of coherence generating devices according to each artist’s scripturability— their culture—. In this case the chosen artist for the realization of the first test of the model for collection and processing data proposed here was the french saxophonist Idriss Boudrioua whose major influence turned out to be the jazz improvisation pedagogy from the bebop that has been consolidated around the 1960s, mainly based on the coherence between melodies and chords.

This dissertation studies the phenomenon of orchestral conducting as it unfolds since 1950 in the international arena of this profession, and does so by comparing three types of texts: conducting manuals, conductors’ testimonies and orchestra players’ accounts. Two models, empirically inferred from these texts – the Visible Action Continuum and the Thematic String Matrix – are instrumental in subdividing the phenomenon, providing categories for discussing the practitioners’ opinions. Scholarly studies then contextualise these discussions. A video analysis of Bernstein and Boulez conducting Mahler’s Second Symphony complements this text-based approach, aiming to find points of contact between what the practitioners say about orchestral conducting and what the conductors actually do. This video analysis applies the Continuum and the Matrix as well as theories of movement analysis and nonverbal communication. By cross-examining the above-mentioned sources, this study aims to thoroughly discuss the phenomenon of orchestral conducting. It does not intend to provide direct guidance, theoretical or practical, on how to conduct an orchestra, nor does it propose a standalone score analysis of Mahler’s Second Symphony.
This study draws the following conclusions:
1. A significant part of the phenomenon of orchestral conducting is not apparent to the observer and exceeds musical boundaries. However, both aspects may be accessed through the practitioners’ testimonies.
2. The alleged invisibility of some aspects of the phenomenon is better addressed in terms of the observer’s unconscious perception.
3. Differences of opinion between practitioners often stem from situational factors: pedagogues, conductors and players see conducting differently. Sometimes sources conflict, but more often they complement each other.
4. The common vocabulary seems unsatisfactory to adequately describe musical praxis and may breed misunderstandings, as much regarding alleged agreements as alleged disagreements between practitioners.
5. As a possible consequence of this vocabulary insufficiency, only few elements discussed in text-based part of this study are traceable in the conductors’ actual performance.

This first chapter provides an overview of the four themes of the book that will frame the study of poetry, music and narrative: (1) bilingualism, (2) multicultural knowledge, (3) origins and evolution of the abilities of poetry, music and narrative and (4) the systems and subsystems of cognition that underlie these abilities. The first theme is especially concerned with how language systems interact, among themselves, and then with other kinds of ability. For example, how are the knowledge systems of language and music related and how are they different? Multicultural aspects of poetry, music and narrative will be concerned mainly with the idea of cross-cultural differences (and interactions) and cross-cultural universals. In this case musical ability will provide a good example for studying culture. The problem of origins takes an evolutionary research point of view. Lastly, the study of component systems and subsystems examines the applicability of an important concept from evolutionary science, that of modularity. 1 Introduction: Art in the Voice The problem of how music and literature are related, and how they interact in real life, has a long history. Going back thousands of years, one idea was that the relationship was actually very close; that music and literature sprang forth from the same wellspring. Today, musicologists and linguists have begun to take another look at this relationship, in some ways different and in some ways the same, with a lens borrowed from the branch of psychology that studies cognitive processes. This new appreciation and curiosity has opened another ripe forum for the science-humanities dialogue. Poetry, narrative and music are aesthetic genres that have a number of things in common, even though narrative also includes strictly prosaic and non-artistic forms. Today, we often associate them with literacy, writing and musical notation. But in all three cases this aspect of their reading and (written) composition is completely secondary, secondary from the historical and evolutionary point of view and in how the respective abilities develop throughout the life span of individuals. Possibly, most adults (or depending on how one counts, at least a large percentage), even today, who are skilled and active creators/performers-poets, narrators and musicians-do not read or write. Not that writing and notation are inconsequential-something can be "secondary," in the above sense, but turn out to be important and widespread, with time, even come to be indispensible in some ways. For example, Chapter 4 of this book is mainly about poetry and writing. In music, poetry and narrative, there are purposes for which writing and notation are useful and even necessary. But they are not the primary motivating purposes, at least not the ones that might tell us something about underlying core characteristics. If this idea turns out to be correct, it has important implications for studying how beginning learners experience these genres. What prior sensibility (if such a thing exists) might we possess, from the beginning, that allows us to process music and literature as objects of art? The three genres are also universal: all normally developing individuals acquire, without deliberate instruction, the basic receptive capabilities of each ability and all cultures pass on from one generation to the next their respective repertoire of poems, stories and songs. In this way, the defining sensibilities and skills associated with poetry, narrative and music cross the oral-written "divide" (not a "divide" in the true sense) and cross all cultural boundaries. Upon closer inspection, the apparent exceptions might even be good examples of this generalization. The focus in this book will be on these poetic, narrative and musical abilities, how they develop and how we learn them. What might be some of the primitive components that distinguish one set of abilities from another, and then which components might be shared in common? A better understanding of the nature of these kinds of knowledge and skill, and the

The field of interactive music systems (IMSs), beginning in the 1980s, is still relatively young and fast moving. The field of music theory-analysis, during the same period (since 1980), has undergone a major transformation in terms of technological innovations, flexibility, and breadth. The two fields have not really caught up with each other. It will be interesting to see what arises as they do — especially as both fields have become more concerned with the role of the body and embodied cognition. Framed in terms of contrasting epistemological orientations, this essay considers some relevant developments in IMSs, music cognition, and music theory and analysis, leading up to the present.  The most popular approaches to music cognition and to IMS design are rationalist (Ashby 2010), exploiting the ‘correct’ embodiments of music (Godøy 2004, Leman 2007, Paine 2009) based on affordances (Gibson 1977, Kelso 1998). This essay, however, advocates a pragmatist (Ashby 2010) approach inspired by music analysis and exploiting the potential of kinesthetic learning (associative learning). Prompted by a progressive approach to music analysis, theory, perception, and cognition (Dubiel 1999, Mailman 2007), interactive music technology can also be constructive, flexible, and progressive, by exploiting kinesthetic learning from immersion in new and unusual motion-to-sound mappings derived from dynamic formal processes in analysed music. In this way, immersive interactive systems offer an opportunity systematically to learn new associations based on principles theorised in response to analysis. Experience of these systems essentially ‘rewires the brain’, thereby exemplifying what Korsyn (2004) has attributed to Lewin’s (1986, 1987) approach to music perception: the ironist approach, as formulated by Rorty (1989). Thus a pragmatist ironist experimental (PIE) approach is articulated. Rather than committing to any particular ways music is already embodied, this approach acknowledges the flexible nature of embodied musical experience. It forges and uses interactive music technologies continually to redescribe and therefore reform how music is embodied, thereby disembodying to re-embody music, expanding how music is heard, contemplated and experienced.

En los últimos años, dejando atrás tres décadas de hermenéutica particularista, se ha demostrado productiva una musicología basada en la cognición y la neurociencia. Ella ha puesto de manifiesto numerosos universales que, tanto o más profundamente que la experiencia de la diversidad cultural, rigen diversos aspectos de la generación y la percepción musical. Al mismo tiempo, paradójicamente, se ha demostrado la influencia de factores culturales y de experiencia en la configuración del específica del cerebro de los músicos. También ha sido explosivo el desarrollo de un marco evolucionario en torno al cual se afianzó una robusta etología cognitiva de la música.

En lo que va del siglo XXI, con el avance de técnicas no invasivas de escaneado de alta resolución, se ha logrado comprender más de la relación entre el cerebro y la música que en todos los siglos precedentes. La corriente principal de la teorización musicológica (antropología de la música inclusive) no ha materializado todavía la actualización que estos avances están demandando.

En esta presentación se investigan los recientes estudios en desarrollo musical humano, las complejas relaciones neurológicas entre las capacidades lingüísticas y las musicales, las manifestaciones musicales a través de las especies y las relaciones entre música y emoción.

Resumo: No processo de envelhecimento, os sujeitos sofrem diversas transformações físicas, mentais e psicológicas, além das implicações da repercussão social diante da velhice. O aumento da população idosa está evidenciado por estatísticas da Organização das Nações Unidas (ONU). Frente a este inevitável aumento da população idosa, torna-se necessário associá-lo à manutenção/melhoria da qualidade de vida, principalmente considerando os idosos que vivem institucionalizados. A Musicoterapia pode atuar como uma das modalidades de tratamento para o indivíduo idoso, visando a reabilitação e/ou preservação de suas funções cognitivas. Este estudo, de metodologia quali-quantitativa, tem como principal objetivo investigar a contribuição da Musicoterapia para a preservação da memória de pessoas idosas institucionalizadas. Realizou-se uma pesquisa experimental em uma instituição asilar de Goiânia, com um grupo fechado composto por seis idosos, com idades entre 65 e 75 anos. As intervenções musicoterapêuticas foram aplicadas por um período de quatro meses, totalizando dezesseis sessões de sessenta minutos cada, sendo uma vez por semana. Antes e depois das intervenções foi aplicado o teste MINIMENTAL (Mini Exame do Estado Mental). Durante as intervenções estabeleceram-se
categorias que avaliaram a memória durante todo o processo através do Protocolo de Observação de Aspectos Relativos à Memória e Interação dos Idosos elaborado pelas autoras do trabalho. Foi possível observar, através da aplicação do MINIMENTAL, que houve melhora na memória de evocação, escrita, desenho e cálculo, enquanto as outras funções foram preservadas. A Musicoterapia viabilizou a preservação das funções cognitivas, especialmente na memória de longo prazo, semântica e episódica. Tendo em vista os resultados  satisfatórios obtidos nesta pesquisa, acredita-se no tratamento musicoterapêutico como intervenção que preserva a memória
interferindo assim positivamente na qualidade de vida dos idosos institucionalizados.
Palavras-chave: Musicoterapia; Idoso; Memória.

Based on Wittgenstein's Tractatus and other writings, an effort to write serious philosophical work with the use of jokes and humor.  This is an effort to explore Wittgenstein's concept of jokes and meaning, and the perhaps Freudian idea that jokes contain more truth than serious comments, at least in some cases.  The laughing Zen masters and their "Kwatzing" rituals are also an influence in this piece, which jumps thru time, trying to describe an ineffable concept which I call "The Encryptment Thesis".  The paper begs the question "What is the Encryptment Thesis?"

Resumen. El presente texto se fundamenta en tres artículos: " The Neuroscientific Basis of Music: Applications to the Development of Talent and Education " de William Bart y Michael Athernon, " Swinging in the Brain: Shared Neural Substrates for Behaviors Related to Sequencing and Music " de Janata y Grafton y " Towards a Neural Basis of Music Perception " de Koelsch y Siebel. Adicionalmente, su desarrollo se encuen-tra matizado por otros autores e investigadores que relacionan sus postulados con los temas tratados por los tres primeros artículos mencionados. Vale la pena resaltar la importancia del trabajo interdisciplinario en los hallazgos científicos que se pueden lograr en cada campo del saber, constituyéndose en un significativo aporte para el fortalecimiento e impulso de la ciencia. En este caso, estos estudios tendrían una importante implicación pedagógica para la educación musical, de manera particular, pero también para la educación general, revalidando la apreciación y la importancia de los procesos musicales en la escuela. Abstract. This text has been developed based on three articles: " The Neuroscientific Basis of Music: Appli

Este artigo enfoca o estudo de um “triângulo existencial” em funcionamento na prática pianística. Conectar atenção, consciência e memórias ao processo de tocar um instrumento, neste caso o piano. O tema é extenso por isso aqui será feita uma pincelada as questões que este problema abarca. As abordagens estão entre a filosofia, psicologia
da música, neurociências e educação musical, delineando o ponto de vista da cognição incorporada.

Este texto presenta el proyecto composicional acusmático “Listening animals”, una obra octofónica encargada por el Laboratorio de Creación y Cognición Musical “AcusmaLab”, el cual es parte del Centro de Estudios de Argumentación y Razonamiento de la Facultad de Psicología de la Universidad Diego Portales, Chile. El encargo fue realizado como parte del proyecto de investigación “Hacia una gramaticidad de las músicas no escritas: un enfoque neurofenomenológico” llevado adelante por Federico Schumacher y Claudio Fuentes, ambos investigadores del AcusmaLab. El Proyecto “[…] busca explorar en la experiencia musical por medio de metodologías mixtas, cualitativas y cuantitativas, surgidas desde la neurofenomenología, tomando como foco la música acusmática en tanto «caso límite de escucha pura»”(CEAR, 2015)(1).
Este artículo incluye un texto autoetnográfico a la manera de un diario personal, algunas veces usando un lenguaje formal y en otras más personal y subjetivo en primera persona. A la vez describe la obra, sus vínculos con la investigación mencionada y como desde esta fueron definidos aspectos específicos de su planificación y estructura.
Palabras clave: Acusmática, octofonía, autoetnografía.

This article presents the acousmatic compositional project “Listening animals”, an octophonic piece comissioned by the Laboratory of Creation and Musical Cognition, “AcusmaLab”, which in turn is part of the Center for Argumentation and Reasoning Studies in the Psychology Faculty of the Universidad Diego Portales, Chile.
The comission was made as part of the research project “Towards a grammar of unwritten musics: a neurophenomenological approach” carried forward by Federico Schumacher and Claudio Fuentes, both researchers of the AcusmaLab. The project “[…] seeks to explore within the musical experience through mixed, qualitative and quantitative methodologies, arising from neurophenomenology, focusing on acousmatic music as a «limit case of pure listening»”(CEAR, 2015)(1).
This paper includes a autoethnograpic text in the form of a personal journal, sometimes using a formal language and others more personal and subjetive in first person. At the same time describes the piece, its links with the mentioned investigation and how from this one, specific aspects of its plan and structure were setted.
Key words: Acousmatic, octophony, autoethnography.

(1) CEAR. (2015). Fondo de la Música Nacional adjudica dos proyectos a Investigadores del CEAR [online]: Centro de Estudios de Argumentación y Razonamiento (CEAR). Available at: http://cear.udp.cl/fondo-de-la-musica-nacional-adjudica-dos-proyectos-a-investigadores-del-cear/ [Accessed 30th January, 2017 2017].

The article discusses the formation of the meaning of emotional expressions in music. Using the term “expression” to describe the music content reflects a widespread idea that music has meaning, because its content is connected, somehow, with our mental states. The hypothesis considered here is that the understandings of formal coherence of musical events and emotional effects caused on music listener by the configuration of these events have the same experiential origin: the physical movement. The theoretical device that ground this research is that music shares with several semantic processes, including language, the embodiment of meaning.

The present work brings a cognitive model that proposes communication through musical language. We consider communicative manifestations as behaviors aiming to elicitate other behaviors in social interactions. From this point on, we can argue that songs are tools for dialogue, with communicative behavior triggering listener's behavior through music interpretation and meaning attribution. In this sense, the communicative interaction bases itself not only in informative content, but also in the interaction between cognitive domains of individuals involved in every human activity.

Resumo: Este artigo trata do resultado parcial de uma pesquisa empírica sobre a percepção de similaridades nos materiais sonoros em nível granular, utilizados na composição eletroacústica. A partir do estudo feito pelos pesquisadores Stephen McAdams e David Matzkin (2001), que verificaram as invariâncias e similaridades em materiais musicais, encontramos equivalências com a nossa pesquisa. O cruzamento dos dados de ambas pesquisas resultou em uma ferramenta analítico/composicional voltada para composição eletroacústica.
Palavras chave: Similaridade musical. Percepção musical granular. Composição eletroacústica. Cognição musical. Stephen McAdams.

Abstract: This paper deals with the partial result of an empirical research on the perception of similarities in the sound materials at the granular level, used in the electroacoustic composition. From the study by researchers McAdams and Matzkin (2001), who verified the invariance and similarities in musical materials, we find equivalences with our research. The cross - checking of the data of both researches resulted in an analytical / compositional tool focused on electroacoustic composition.
Keywords: Musical similarity. Granular musical perception. Electroacoustic composition. Musical cognition. Stephen McAdams.