IMPRESSIONISM	PRIMITIVISM	NEO-CLASSICISM
EXPRESSIONISM	SERIALISM	TOTAL SERIALISM
*
INDETERMINISM	TEXTURALISM	MINIMALISM
ELECTRONICISM	NEO-ROMANTICISM	ECLECTICISM

INDETERMINISM: an appeal to spontaneity

	Lavender Mist is an example of "action-painting". Pollock would throw, splatter, and dribble paint onto his canvas, allowing random motions to construct his art.
Jackson Pollock: Lavender Mist #1	(1950)

Background

There has been a general tendency in Western music to restrict options for the performer, and to require more accurate performances. Indetermininism is a reaction to this, and follows traditions from other musics and other cultures. 20th century Indeterminism can be a result of actions made by chance (called aleatoric music--"alea" is Greek for "dice") or choice (not by the composer). One of the first recognized composers of Indeterminate music was John Cage. Read more on the web about his most famous composition, 4'33" .

Certain Indeterminate features have always been a part of Western music. Performers are generally in control of dynamics, articulations, and tempi of older music, and improvisation has a long history, as in the creation of cadenzas. Whether by chance or choice, each performance of a piece of Indeterminate music will be very different. The resulting performance is frequently a composition of great complexity, and this randomness can sound curiously like music produced with Total Serialism. In other words, although these styles could not be more different in concept, the end result can be surprisingly alike.

Composers associated with Indeterminism

• John Cage (1912-1992)
• Iannis Xenakis (1922-2001)
• Luciano Berio (1925-2003)
• Morton Feldman (1926-1987)
• Earle Brown (1926)
• Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928)
• Cornelius Cardew (1936-1981)

Musical elements

A. Chance

1. Tossing dice
2. Flipping coins
3. I-Ching charts (Chinese tables of figures)
4. Random number sources (such as phone books or logarithmic tables)
5. Random events
6. Computer generation of numbers or patterns
7. Random electronic signals (such as radio or television)

B. Choice

1. The composer can provide written instructions.
2. The composer can provide a graphic symbol for the performer to interpret.

C. Materials

1. Pitch or pitch class
2. Rhythms
3. Tempi
4. Rests (such as pauses and entrances)
5. Expressive devices (such as articulations or dynamics)
6. Timbral devices (such as mutes or tremolo)
7. Medium (such as instruments or voices)
8. Form

Analysis projects

• John Cage: TV Koln (1958) [ATM #21]
• Aaron Allen: Mass Subjects Performers (2000)

Suggested listening

• John Cage: Imaginary Landscapes (multiple pieces)
• Earl Brown: December 1952
• Karlheinz Stockhausen: Zyklus (1959)

Composition project

See project for Texturalism.

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