Re: [microsound] |-| Re:eR [microsound] autechre/richard devine//techniques ]]

[glyn <glyn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> > I think that the very avoidance of those "traditional rules" is a pretty
> > strong relationship... (this leads back to "learn the rules so you can
> break
> > them")
>
> how so? certainly active "avoidance of traditional rules" will bring said
> rules into the picture, but how about "ignorance of traditional rules" ?
>
> this is the same thing as saying "having no relationship whatsoever to
> traditional rules" .. and this is what i mean by experimental music.

it's impossible to consciously set yourself as "having no relationship
whatsoever to traditional rules", since by defining yourself in such a manner
you automatically place yourself in some kind of relation to "traditional
rules".  adopting the term "experimental music" implies that you're being
experimental compared to something which is non-experimental (and that you must
have some kind of knowledge of traditional music in order to articulate that
degree of relationship.)

i think "classical" music theory is useful insofar as it provides a significant
amount of insight into the cultural context from which most of us are
writing/listening.   what you do with that information is up to you, but i
personally think it's better to be highly knowledgeable about the
traditional/dominant (Western) musical culture and be able to consciously
critique it, rather than being somewhat vaguely aware of it, which you
inevitably are if you're participating in this discussion.

or i could be dead wrong and making no sense whatsoever.  insomnia = bad.

glyn