Objectives of the M.U.S.I.C. Project

Sasan Rahmatian

The M.U.S.I.C. project began as my sabbatical work during Fall 2005 at California State University, Fresno.

The purpose of this project is to systematize the process of music composition. The strategy is to identify compositional possibilities and arrange them hierarchically. Hence, this project aims at logically documenting and "cataloging" existing compositional techniques, whether discussed by composition theorists in their writings or as derived from the existing body of music literature.

There are at least two practical goals associated with this project:

• The narrower – more static – goal is that its outcome would serve as an option-generator. When "stuck" at some point during a composing process and attempting to break free and think of “other ways of saying this,” a composer can utilize this framework to explore a variety of alternatives to the current way of doing things.

• The long-term – more dynamic – goal would be that it will serve as an evolving framework that allows the future documentation of possibilities. When, as a composer, I listen to an unfamiliar piece of music that moves me, I analyze it in a structural-functional manner as follows: What specific technique (or combination of techniques) was (were) used to create that special effect? These could be melodic, harmonic, rhythmic, or structural techniques. If I can identify the technique, articulate it, document it, and then use it properly (musically and aesthetically) in the future, chances are I will be able to reproduce the same effect in my own compositions. But, to be able to access/retrieve it effectively later on, I need to document it within a well-organized, logical framework. The goal of this project is to produce a framework rich enough to allow for this.

Beyond the rudimentary concepts of music, I have made every effort to define the terms used so as to make the project as self-contained as possible. Yet, this work will be intelligible to, and appreciated by, only those who have an active interest in music composition and/or improvisation.

In creating this framework, an important design criterion has been maintainability: The ease with which the framework can be updated. That is why the hierarchical structure has been selected as the organizing principle for housing the elements of music. If these elements were listed randomly and sequentially ("laundry list"), then each new element would have to be added at the end of the list. That would make later retrieval a nightmare. However, with the tree structure, it is easy to find the relevant branch of the tree where a new "leaf" needs to be added. For this reason, the binary (yes/no) approach has been utilized to the maximum. As a result, the output of the project can be viewed as a gigantic flowchart. It is purposely not laid out as a flowchart because the current format (sometimes called "Structured English") is easier to modify than a diagram.

Lest this approach be criticized as conducive to plagiarism, I would point out that the "respectable" alternative would be ... unconscious influence! As composers, it is impossible NOT to be influenced by the music we hear. If influencing is going to take place anyway, it is better to be influenced knowingly (actively) than unknowingly (passively). As such, this project acknowledges that influencing is inevitable (even desirable), establishes it as a respectable goal, and then facilitates it in a thoroughly planned manner.

This is a never-ending project. As long as there is music to be composed and there are minds that analytically reflect on its possibilities, this project will keep evolving. The invisible flowchart will keep flowing and flowing ...