Duet: Multivariants
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Open (Duet)
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Duet: Multivariants uses a structural approach based on literary multivariant structure. Multivariant structure can be found in the iconic
Chose Your Own Adventure books (and even earlier, in fact, in certain modern and post-modern literature). Today, this structure is
most commonly used in hyperlink art.
In essence, multivariants represent the ways one can navigate between different discrete models. Some examples are a split (where
one has the option to go to one of two or more different modules), a join (where two different modules lead to the same place), a
bypass (where one module leads past numerous others to a further point), and a loop (where a module leads back to an earlier point
in the series).
In my duet, I create modules (using square brackets) in which I place musical material for the two instruments performing. One is
blue, the other pink. I provide arrows that indicate which choices the performers have, and certain other symbols (numbers within the
boxes, text indications) to indicate duration. The score is a map because it allows for a full navigation of musical material, but in a
sense functions more like a dungeon in a video game than a traditional map. Certain things change by returning to certain places,
such as durations, and certain things (such as those yellow modules that are linked with a dotted line) are only unlocked by returning
to other modules a certain amount of times.
By creating this type of musical structure, I allow the musicians to perform and realize a piece of music that is elastic, modular, and
ever-changing, yet still born of the same kernel idea. I use this approach because I believe it invites the musicians involved to engage
more closely with the material, be more active in the performance, and invest in creating a realization that is true to themselves as
players.
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