texture as narrative

[anechoicmedia <kim@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I am dealing with the issue of 'texture as narrative' in my own work but I
wanted to put out a general q: to other composers about how you deal with
this concept...this has been puzzling me for many years (especially thru my
ambient phase) so here's my q:
what exactly takes place in a piece that essentially contains monochromatic
material playing over a long period of time with small changes (ie: filter
mod, amplitude, other aspects of the sound mixing in and out etc) holding
the listeners attention with some sort of narrative?...
I was listening to some CD's in the car this week and one piece I had on
didn't achieve this effect (considered boring) while another one did
(considered interesting)...
has anyone out there dealt with this issue and found what it is that makes
monochromatic material 'interesting' over long periods of time?
(sorry if this isn't clear I'm still waiting for the black tea to kick in)
KIM