Analysis of Due Notturni Crudeli by Salvatore Sciarrino

Felipe Pinto d’Aguiar

 
‘Analysis  of  Due  Notturni  Crudeli  by  Salvatore  Sciarrino’  by  Felipe  Pinto  d'Aguiar  is  licensed  under  a  Creative  Commons  Attribution-­‐NonCommercial-­‐NoDerivs  3.0  Unported  License.  2014  

 
  

Commentary on Methodology

Most of the bibliography about Salvatore Sciarrino’s Music is written in Italian. A

useful exception is the thesis ‘Writing the Sonic Experience: An Analytical Narrative of a

Journey into Salvatore Sciarrino’s Five Piano Sonatas (1972-1994)’ by Ju-Ping Son from

NYU, which is rich in musicological and analytical materials. I have taken some perspectives

from this text in order to complement my analysis as well as contextualizing the piece I chose

in relation with the major piano works by the composer.

In the first pages of this paper, I introduce a framework where I describe the work of

Sciarrino and his contributions to the avant-garde scene. Then, I set a context for the piece in

discussion, by describing stylistic considerations of his keyboard music.

Regarding the analytical approach, different parameters are discussed independently,

and then I attempt to establish a few generalizations and interrelations. Additionally, a

number of particularities or exceptions that defy the internal rules of the piece are discussed.

Pitch and harmony are examined at the end because the piece seems to be primarily

determined by other forces than frequencies. My guess is that almost the same piece could

have been written with many other arrangements of the pitch material.

The main purpose of this analysis will be to show how form is determined by an

organized structure, and how this fundamental foundation experiment random changes at

certain points. The composer has shown his deliberated intention to create music that resists

all analysis, so any attempt undertaken here is nothing, but a vague approximation to some

of the mysteries that govern this music.

 
  

Finally, complementary diagrams are included throughout the document to support

the ideas in discussion.

The Music of Salvatore Sciarrino

Sciarrino has described himself as a self-taught composer. No matter the fact that he

actually received some formal education, his originality is extraordinary and it has kept him

distant from any school or current. It is particularly interesting to consider that Sciarrino

acknowledged the contributions of the Darmstadt scene, but took a conscious exploration in

the opposite direction from Stockhausen. For more information about the career of the

composer, his personal website can be a useful resource.

His contribution in the domain of developing instrumental and vocal techniques is

enormous. With some antecedents in Luciano Berio, one could say that certain instruments

like the flute have a before and an after Sciarrino. One of his main contributions has been

the de-naturalization of traditional organology. He uses the whole potential of instruments

and very important, makes a distinction between ‘special effects’ and genuine extended

techniques. However these extended techniques are not used for the sake of novelty, but

always in the search for new sonorities and even more important, new expressive gestures. To

round the idea, Sciarrino’s music is not ‘extended techniques’-music. On it, there are not just

coloration of traditional material, but imaginative sonic objects, which are musical entities

that usually does not allow pitch or rhythm reductions. This is particularly relevant for his

piano music where he rarely use effects like playing in the inside or striking the body of the

 
  

instrument, but rather he obtains new sonorities by extreme amplifications or exaggerations

of the traditional keyboard technique (i.e.: super fast passages in pppp).

The music of Salvatore Sciarrino comprises a large catalogue of various instrumental

forces and during his development he has developed very particular and defined styles for

different instrumental combinations. We can identify the vocal style, the keyboard style and

the general instrumental style (including chamber and orchestral works). The vocal style is

characterized by the exploration of breathing, restrained lyric lines (almost like singing for the

inside of the body) and the use of special phonemes. The keyboard music is normally more

active, continuous and sonorous. Heavy attacks are abundant and he plays with saturation

and intricate resonances. Finally, the general instrumental style is characterized by the

exploitation of the limits of audibility (very soft sounds), the principle of permanence (a very

idiosyncratic use of repetition and variation) and the inclusion of distinctive gestures such as

trills and glissandi. These categorizations are not excluding and we can find approximations

to the vocal style into the instrumental domain and vice versa. This exchangeable property is

not about incorporating traditional cantabile sections on instrumental music, but about

instruments borrowing the corporality of the sound production characteristic of the voice

(for example the inclusion of breathing sounds on instruments). The keyboard music style

seems to be more isolated though, possibly due to the nature of the instruments themselves.

A general distinctive feature of all Sciarrino’s music is the way he dispenses the musical

material. More determinant than the way he builds and delivers his musical ideas is the way

in which he restrains and doses the musical flux. In other words, he is able to communicate

his music with the minimum amount of elaboration, too few elaboration someone could say.

In other words and I am definitely speculating here, it is possible that the composer set a

 
  

limited number of elements with the hope that the listener will re-arrange the material by

him/herself and create a personal composition.

Keyboard Music

As I said before, in comparison with his other output, Sciarrino’s keyboard music

(harpsichord and piano mostly, but also organ) is particularly idiosyncratic. It tends to be

more continuous, louder, more rhythmic, and piercing, at least in the musical surface. And

this is key because many times under the surface we discover subtle layers of crackling

elements, which emerge from the percussive first plane in the form of resonance.

Consequently, after a number of listening, the attention tends to move towards the

fluctuations and articulations of the resonance, rather than to remain in the aggressive

percussive surface, which after all seems to be just a physical vehicle to trigger an additional

sonic world.

Moreover, there are various fragments or even pieces (for example ‘De la nuit’), which

explore a Ravel-Debussy-like super legato texture, but of course in a transliterated way.

Due Notturni Crudeli (2001)

Due Notturni Crudeli (Two Brutal Nocturnes) are totally outside the canon of a

traditional Nocturne. Notturno Crudele No1 is a strange combination of repeated high

pitches, consonances, sudden descending clusters, and fades in and out, which remind

minimalistic music. At some points the descending gesture becomes prominent, but the

 
  

initial materials always come back and there is no evolution at all. At the end, a cadence-like

gesture closes the piece in a rather polite way.

Notturno Crudele No2 is in fact, very loud music! It pushes the limits of dynamics on

the piano and its shape keeps us very in state of alert. Before going to the analysis of

Notturno Crudele No2, it is important to mention a type of development Sciarrino utilizes.

Type of Development

During his residence at BU, Sciarrino talked among other things about the principle

of permanence. The term refers not only to the fact that something is stable or permanent on

time, but also that this element is kept in our attention and memory producing an emotional

connection. This is different from traditional repetition. The principle of permanence is

based on the introduction of subtle variations. Many times a small set of materials (a few

gestures, well defined and differentiated from one another) are transformed and mixed to the

point of changing roles: they contaminate each other and/or switch personalities. During the

audition of some pieces, one can question how something that was first plane at one point

became foreground at another moment and vice-versa. A case of components that mutates is

found on the little interruptions of the Notturno Crudele No2, which end up becoming two

clear episodes. Additionally, little ornaments (small gesticulations that initially interrupt the

main gesture) become prominent points in their own. These gestures display a sense of

directionality (in these places the pitch tend to move chromatically up or down) and connect

different parts of the music. Another analogy for the processes these gestures experiment is

the use of zooms in and out, which present the material from multiple angles, but never

 
  

really evolve or transform into something new. In fact, one could say that all the episodic

materials of this piece, which I later classify into three types, are different behaviors of the

same fundamental ingredient.

Overall Form

Notturno Crudele N.2 can be divided into five main parts as Figure 1 shows. There is a

first stage, followed by an episode, a second stage (with similar material to the first stage, but

shorter in duration), followed by another episode, and finally a coda.

The piece introduces a number of characters, each of which has a very defined

personality. Taking the initial indication by the composer as a source for labeling, I have

classified them into Furia (descending): a rapid descending gesture made of 5 to 6 pulses;

Furia (ascending): a similar gesture in an ascending way; Metallo: a brief accented cluster-like

punctuation, which comprises the extreme registers of the instrument, Crossbreed (which is a

combination between Metallo and the Episodic material, Proto-Episode: a brief chromatic

scalar gesture that announces the episodic material; Episode: a rapid succession of ascending

chromatic notes from the middle to the high register; Coda: made of 4 semi-phrases, which

explore Metallo in a humorous manner. Crossbreed, Proto-Episode and Episodes interrupt

the continuum and contribute to articulate the piece. In addition, Crossbreed and the

episodic material can be connected to gestures from the Sonata Nº1 (‘Static Chromatic’ and

‘Chromatic Run’ gestures, as defined by Ju-Ping Song).

I have sub-divided the main structure into phrases, which can be observed in Figure

2. The piece has in total 23 phrases. The segmentation I have realized is based on the way I

 
  

hear the piece (I have listened to two different performances) and it is of course debatable.

Additional segmentation is also possible, for example phrase 2 could be divided into 2 semi-

phrases of 1+3 Furia elements. Furthermore, elements, which are equidistant to articulation

points and separated by similar amount of silence, could be re-arranged as starting or

finishing points of other phrases.

STAGE 3
(CODA)

EPISODE 2  
STAGE 2

EPISODE 4
PROTO

(POST)

EPISODE 1
CROSSBREED
5

EPISODE 3
PROTO
CROSSBREED
4
STAGE 1

EPISODE 2
PROTO
CROSSBREED
3 (LONG)
CROSSBREED
2

EPISODE
PROTO

1
CROSSBREED
1

Figure 1. Form of the piece and its division in sections

 
  

1l T.T.T.® ® ® l.T. ® ® ® .T.®.T.®.T.® ® ® l.t. ® ® ® .T.t.®.t.®.t. ® ® ® l

3 4 5

4l.t.t.t ® l [CROSSBREED 1] l.T. [PROTO-EPIDOSE 1] .T.T.T. ® ® ® l

3 4

7l.T.® .T. [CROSSBREED 2] .T. ® ® ® ® ® ® ® l.t.T.t.t.t. ® ® ® l.t.®.t.®.t. [CROSSBREED 3] l

3 5 3

10l.t.T ® ® ® ® .T.T. ® ® ® l.T. ® ® ® .T.®.T.®.T.® ® ® l.t. ® ® ® .T.t.®.t.® .t.® ® ® l

4 4 5

13l.t.t.t ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® l.T. [PROTO-EPIDOSE 2] .T.T.T. ® ® ® l

3 4

15l.T.®.T. [CROSSBREED 4] .T. [PROTO-EPIDOSE 3] .t.T.t.t.t. ® ® ® l

8

16l.t.®.t.®.t ® [CROSSBREED 5] .T.t ® t.T.T.T.l [EPISODE 1] ® ll

9 [19]

18l t ® ® ® ® ® T.t ® t [PROTO-EPIDOSE 4] .T.T.T. ® ® ® l.T.®.® ® ®.T.®.T. ® ® ® ® l

7 3

20l t.T.t.t.t. ® ® ® l.t.®.t..t.l [EPISODE 2 ll [CODA = METALLO UMORISTICO] ll

5 3 [8 + 9 + 4 = 21] [4]

Figure 2. Suggested segmentation of the piece (the blocks are grouped for space convenience and their
horizontal alignment does not necessarily reflect any kind of grouping category or hierarchy)

 
  

The function of episodes is to articulate the structure by presenting familiar material

in new and unexpected ways and crystalizing previous irruptions. The nature of these

interruptions is a distinctive feature of Sciarrino’s piano music that can be observed since the

first Piano Sonata.

Trajectories and Predictability

Alternation between continuous flux and sudden irregular irruptions plays with our

expectations. The trajectories of the element Furia follow a specific pattern that can be easily

followed throughout the piece with a few exceptions. Phrases that contain 3 Furia elements

have always ascending or descending trajectory. Phrases containing 4 Furia elements have

descending trajectory in all of them with the exception of phrase number 10. Phrases that

contain 5 Furia elements follow a pattern of 1 ascending, 1 descending, and 3 ascending

trajectories. Phrase number 15 can be understood as and addition of 3 plus 5 in which case

the behavior described before applies. Phrase 16 can be interpreted as an addition of 3 plus a

mutation of the pattern of 5. Finally, phrase 18 can be interpreted as an addition of (5-1) plus

3. This element of permanence provides a frame of stability within a highly unpredictable

environment. Another aspect that is interesting to observe is the fact that there are no

succession of phrases containing the same number of Furia elements (except phrase 10 and

11, but still the trajectories are slightly different). In addition, there are two exceptional

behaviors, which confirm the thesis of including singular events in a frame of general

organization. First, in phrase 16 and 18 we encounter a succession of two consecutive Furia

elements without any punctuation (Metallo) in between. This gesture sounds like an

 
  

interruption of itself. Secondly, on phrase 21 we have two consecutive Metallo elements and

this happens only one time during the whole piece.

Harmony and Pitch Content

Sciarrino has said that harmony is not particularly relevant to him, at least not as a

defining component of his style. Actually he pointed out in a lesson the risk of over using the

amalgamating property of harmony to put elements together in an easy and superfluous way

(He called harmony glue). In general, his music does not have much variation in pitch

content, but even tough is able to avoid being static due to the highly elaboration in

articulation, the richness and imagination of gestures, the addition of new elements at the

right moment (which reminds me the mastery of Morton Feldman playing with our

expectation and changing the risk of boredom into permanent fascination), and the

inclusion of exotic element, which brake the rules.

The organization of pitch in this piece is in strict relationship with the gestures. In

order of appearance, we have 4 behaviors of Furia: Furia descending (6 notes), Furia

descending (5 notes), Furia ascending (5 notes) and Furia ascending (6 notes).

C#, C-C, B-B, Bb-Bb, A-A, Ab-Ab F-F, E-E, Eb-Eb, D-D, Db-Db D, D#-D#, E-E, F-F, F#-F# C#, D-D, D#-D#, E-E, F-F, F#-F#

 
  

The succession of pitches is basely entirely on seconds (or ninths) and sevenths, which

provides the music with a dissonant surface and reinforces the dramatic alternations between

contrasting dynamics.

Each of these characters experiment transpositions and mutations throughout the

piece. Mutation imply that the transpositions may not be equal to all the components of a

group or that their internal elements can be re-arranged in different octaves compressing the

original configuration. An example of mutation can be observed between the first and third

Furia gestures of the piece. The first 5 beats of the element 1 are transposed a major sixth in

the Furia number 3 element, but the fifth beat brakes the rule and is transposed a minor

sixth. During the piece, Furia descending (6 notes) is transposed a fourth, a sixth, and a ninth

up. Furia descending (5 notes) is transposed a tritone, an octave, and a ninth down. Furia

ascending (5 notes) is transposed a fourth up, a third down and up, and a sixth down.

Finally, Furia ascending (6 notes) seems to be invariable at first, but just after the first episode

it shows its flexibility by being transposed a sixth down.

On the other hand, Metallo seems to follow a less determined principle of

organization. Focusing on the extremes of its component, we see that the top notes moves

between Ab, Bb, B and C in an unpredictable way. Moreover, the basses move within a field

that contains Bb, B, C, D, Db, Eb, and E. Finally, Crossbreed, Proto-Episodes and Episodes

are simple chromatic gestures.

 
  

Further analysis and Preliminary Conclusions

At certain point of his career Sciarrino (and many other composers) discarded using

graphic scores because they weren’t really useful for performers and tended to produce

unsatisfactory results. He then found ways of expressing complex musical ideas by simpler

and more traditional means. The prominence of gesture and physicality of Notturno Crudele

No2 would make it a good candidate for a graphic representation. However, that seems to be

no longer an option. On the other hand, the fact that an important part of the piece can be

reduced to a scheme as the one I presented in Figure 2, reinforces the idea that pitch material

is secondary in this work. I have tried an improvised rendition of it following the structure

discussed and the result is closer to the original piece, rather than a mere caricature of it.

Conversely, the fact that the pitch arrangement experiment slight variations

throughout the piece is important for the overall result. There is a thoughtful use of

irregularity and no matter that it is possible that we do not perceive all of these changes at

once because the sense of repetition is stronger, there are enough new elements to refresh

our ears at least at a subliminal level.

A more in depth analysis of the frequency domain could include the exploration of

the resonance. In the sonogram in next page we can see how this piece alternates between

dense monolithic blocks of sounds and thinner textural moments of discrete ascending

figurations, both texturally opposing renditions of a common chromatic ground.

 
  

Figure 3. Sonogram and waveform

 
  

Bibliography

Son, Ju-Ping. “Writing the Sonic Experience: An Analytical Narrative of a Journey into

Salvatore Sciarrino’s Five Piano Sonatas (1972-1994)” PhD diss., New York

University, 2006.

Longobardi, Ciro. Nuit. Stradivarius. CD. 2009. (Booklet text: “The Hut and the

Skyscraper”. Salvatore Sciarrino in conversation with Ciro Longobardi, translated by

Jonathan West)

Wu, Tingting, pianist, “De la Nuit”, by Salvatore Sciarrino, Brown Hall of The New England

Conservatory, Boston. March 31, 2013

Likness, Aaron, pianist, “Notturno 2 and 3”, by Salvatore Sciarrino, Brown Hall of The New

England Conservatory, Boston. March 31, 2013

Lectures, master classes and lessons by Salvatore Sciarrino. March 2013, CFA, Boston

University.

URL: http://www.salvatoresciarrino.eu/Data/index_eng.html