When You Hear "experimental music" what do you think of?

Just curious. What does it mean to you, and do you like it?

Moved this thread to Composers Headquarters, as it does not include any music! :)

Sorry. I just thought maybe it would get the Experimental forum some interest.

Just curious. What does it mean to you, and do you like it?

It is not possible to make a general statement about such a vast subject. Some you like, some you don't, but even if I don't like a serious effort of a composer, I do not think "mine is the last word", because there is bound to be someone somewhere who would like the piece very much.

But I am talking about serious efforts only - not those ones which are experiments for experiment's sake. How to distinguish ? Well,...time is the key here!

An experimental music should be highly original and interesting. I believe in balance in music, if it is going to be disturbing to listen, there has to be something interesting inside that will keep the interest of the listener. Such as the rhythm or the instrumentation. Otherwise it will not be easily perceivable and favorable to listen to it the second time.

I am not saying that experimental music should be written to please the audience or present them what they want to hear. But then again if no one is listening there is not much of a motivation to write now is there ?

Many people hate John Cage on this site I found. I too don't listen his music, in fact there is an unfortunate occasion that my composition teacher made me listen his prepared piano sonatas for a whole class (don't try this at home!). Nevertheless, he is a guy of extreme originality and vision. That is experimental music.

EDIT: Yes I like experimental music, if not particularly Cage.

The term "experimental music" , to me, evokes anything that totally abandons the normal (i.e. accepted) practices of a genre.

It's an experiment.

...Usually, it does nothing more creative or impressive, but brings a new point of view. Alternatively, it can be wholly more creative and interesting and totally revolutionize how one hears a certain style or sound....

...

Looking at the way Beethoven burst the boundaries of the symphony and the way he scored his string quartets, his music was very experimental. So I'd say it's context.

I can't answer this question - every piece has to be taken on its own merits or demerits.

True - look at Orlando de Lassus - his mannerist music was, and still is, quite experimental-sounding.

True - look at Orlando de Lassus - his mannerist music was, and still is, quite experimental-sounding.

His polyphony wasn't bad either.

:)

When You Hear "experimental music" what do you think of?

..of anything but the music:P

..just joking:D

I think of one thing when I hear those two words. *ahem*

SUPER MARIO BROS. THEME SONG!!!!

Uh? :P

I've never heard of Orlando de Lassus- what pieces would you recommend by him?

Cum Essem Parvulus

Omnia Tempus Habent

I can get you recordings of these if you so desire - my early music choir sang them recently.

Experiment can be a part of musicmaking at any or all stages of musicmaking. One can make an experiment of composition, or even before composition (that is, make an experiment and take it as input to composition). One could make a piece with the intent of making an experiment out of the listening (that is, noticing the novelty of matching this music with these ears).

Experimental music is not always scientific-method music, with a hypothesis and all that, though it can be.

A favorite quote of mine, albeit a complaint, from Mark Enslin/Herbert Brun: "The multimodal monoculture neither converses nor discusses; it chats, gossips, hangs out, flips through, watches. (Experiment is disparaged, experimenters ostracized,...) The banishment of play from work forces play to be a relief from work; this makes difficulty not an attraction but at best a sales pitch inflating the value of one's work in order to impress higher-ups. Cultural obliteracy from the spontaneity factory."

Well it depends on what i listen to. You could call pat mentheny experimental, he refuses to be called a jazzer. I dig his music, it's positive and very bright, it's not structure based. But it's good enough to not require a structure you know. But experimental music benifits music in total because if we kept music in little genres all the time, music woulden't be as interesting. That's my 2 cents.

...You could call pat mentheny experimental, he refuses to be called a jazzer. I dig his music, it's positive and very bright, it's not structure based. But it's good enough to not require a structure you know.

:)

Really? What Metheny are you listening to?

I think Metheny is about as far from 'experimental' as possible. He can be very creative (i.e. Bright Size Life, 80/81)...or he can be very sqaure and boring (i.e. We Live Here). His stuff is very structure based, the only thing holding some of those Pat Metheny Group records together are the intricate compositions.

Only one of his records I would consider experimentall - Zero Tolerance for Silence.

He may not call himself one, but a jazzer he is.

I recently, at a Composition Department Recital, performed a piece, along with 19 others, by a student. It was called 'Footsteps and Stopwatches', and the 20 performers each got their own part, written on an index card. It had a timeline and instructions like 'Walk - 20 sec.', 'STOP', 'Walk slower', etc. We were all walking around the stage, carrying the index card and stopwatches/cell phones. The result, after 8 minutes of walking around in a seemingly hectic, yet overall very planned-out manner, was actually pretty cool.

That's experimental music. Music that tries to be different, that explores new ideas and terrains. Not just extended techniques for instruments, or random noises, actually new and interesting ideas.

:pinch:

Really? What Metheny are you listening to?

I think Metheny is about as far from 'experimental' as possible. He can be very creative (i.e. Bright Size Life, 80/81)...or he can be very sqaure and boring (i.e. We Live Here). His stuff is very structure based, the only thing holding some of those Pat Metheny Group records together are the intricate compositions.

Only one of his records I would consider experimentall - Zero Tolerance for Silence.

He may not call himself one, but a jazzer he is.

That's the album i own :P I know he makes alot of jazz music, but he dose have a different way of making music.

That's the album i own :P I know he makes alot of jazz music, but he dose have a different way of making music.

The one Metheny record you have is Zero Tolerance for Silence ??!!

It's a terrible record.

Go buy Bright Size Life...

bach_in_black, i htink its time u got a does of ur own speling.

I feel better now.