Negotiating between work, composer and performer: rewriting the story of notational progress

Abstract

Evolution of notation indicates a tendency to make creation or production constantly more complex and important … to make its performance or reproduction constantly more mechanical. John Cage, Notations (1969) Scores are more than just tablatures for specific actions or else some sort of picture of the required sound: they are also artefacts with powerful auras of their own, as the history of notational innovation clearly shows us. Brian Ferneyhough (1990) Many observers of the early music movement may overestimate the degree to which ‘historically informed’ musicians actually foster a distinctive approach to the interpretation of their parts, normally cleansed of every romantic accretion. Indeed, many purists might be shocked on their first visit to the rehearsal of their local Baroque or Classical band. The conductor will often give a long list of dynamics to be inserted into the parts, and will provide indications of tempo changes and ornaments. Moreover, the players – in the course of rehearsal – will make their own markings to remind themselves of various issues such as bowings, difficult fingerings, and those places where they must reluctantly resist the co-operative urge of the early music ethos and actually watch the conductor.Our purist will be further disappointed to compare the level of marking in the performers' parts with those of a ‘mainstream’ symphony orchestra. For the most part, the symbols used and the detail of the marking will be similar.