Chapter 1
Introduction
1.1 Experimental Popular Music
1.2 Terminology
1.3 Graphical Representations of Unpredictability in Music: Process and Perception
1.3.1 Visualising Unpredictable Music
1.3.2 Visualising Random Processes in Music
1.4 Cryptography and PRN Generation
1.5 Quasiorder: Standardisation, Repetition and Predictability
1.6 Social Reception and Perception
Chapter 2
Relevant Histories
2.1 Chance and Music
2.1.1 Musical Dice Games and Puzzles
2.1.2 The Dadaists
2.2 Clashing Philosophies: Chance Operations, Serialism and Stochastic Music
2.2.1 John Cage
2.2.1.1 Rhythmical Structure
2.2.1.2 Silence and 4'33"
2.2.1.3 Morton Feldman, Earle Brown and Christian Wolff
2.2.2 Boulez and Serialism
2.2.2.1 Total Serialism: Non-equivalence and Automation
2.2.2.2 Open Form
2.2.3 Stochastic Music
2.2.3.1 Metastasis and Pithoprakta
2.2.4 Summary
2.3 Unpredictability in Popular Music
2.3.1 The Beatles
2.3.2 The Grateful Dead
2.3.3 Brian Eno: Oblique Strategies
2.3.4 Sonic Youth and Stereolab
2.3.5 Mike Patton: Mr Bungle and Fantômas
2.4 Summary
Chapter 3
Unpredictability in the Music of Frank Zappa (1940-93)
3.1 Unpredictability in Performance
3.1.1 Anything, Anytime, Anywhere - For No Reason At All
3.1.2 Conducted Improvisation
3.1.3 "Eyebrows"
3.1.4 Meltdowns
3.1.5 "Approximate"
3.2 Technology-based Procedures
3.2.1 Musique Concrète
3.2.2 Xenochronicity (Strange Time)
3.2.3 The Synclavier
3.2.3.1 "The Girl in the Magnesium Dress"
3.2.3.2 Regaining the Human Element
3.3 Project/Object: Quasirandom Organisation
3.3.1 Thematic Links
3.3.2 "Conceptual Continuity" As Thematic Cryptography
3.3.2.1 A Reading of "Conceptual Continuity": The Grand Wazoo
3.4 Summary: Moving Beyond Zappa
Chapter 4
PRN Generation and the Application of Encryption
4.1 Cryptography
4.1.1 Modern Ciphers
4.1.2 Encryption within Music
4.2 Cryptographic Randomness and Serial Organisation
4.2.1 Polyalphabetic Ciphers: The Vigenère Cipher
4.2.2 A Summary of Pierre Boulez's Use of Matrices in Structures 1a
4.2.2.1 Forming Matrix 'O'
4.2.2.2 Organisation of Musical Elements
4.3 Quasirandom Composition Procedures
4.3.1 Experiment I: Generation of Quasirandom Rhythm and Allocation of Timbre
by way of Binary Serialism
4.3.2 Experiment II: The Application of RPMs to Binary Grids
4.3.3 Experiment III: Testing the Impact of Different Series on the System Described
in Experiment II
4.3.4 Experiment IV: Parametric Encryption of a Melody
4.4 Summary
Chapter 5
Quasiorder: Repetition and Randomness
5.1 Repetition Theory
5.1.1 Repetition in Popular Music
5.1.2 Repetition and Structure
5.1.3 Summary
5.2 Structural Predictability and the Treatment of Repetition in Popular Music
5.2.1 The "Golden Rules" of Pop
5.2.2 "Plunderphonics"
5.2.3 The Bootleg Genre: A Synthesis of the "Golden Rules" and "Plunderphonics"
5.3 The Incorporation of Quasiorder in Popular Music Composition
5.3.1 Coloured Dots Process: A Score-based System for Generating Riffs from
Random Seed Pitches
5.3.2 A Computer-based System for Generating Random Riffs
5.3.3 Creating a Quasiorder Pop Song
2 5.4 Summary and Conclusions
Chapter 6
Reception and Perception
6.1 Experimental Popular Music Under Current Social Conditions
6.1.1 The MTV Generation
6.1.2 Evil Dick and the Banned Members
6.1.3 Music Industry Feedback
6.2 The Perception of Randomness
6.2.1 Gestalt
6.2.2 The Application of Gestalt Principles to Music
6.2.3 Dynamic Attending and Pattern Prediction
6.2.4 Empirical Approaches
6.2.4.1 Testing the Perception of Randomness
6.3 Survey on the Perception of Randomness in Music
6.3.1 Measuring the Perceived Level of Randomness
6.3.2 Method
6.3.3 Results of Question H
6.3.4 Analysis of Results and Conclusions
6.3.5 Improvements and Considerations for Future Trials
6.4 Summary
Chapter 7
Summary And Conclusions
7.1 Summary
7.2 Conclusions
Appendix A
Analysis of Rock 'n' Random
8.1 Track Summaries
8.2 Composition Analysis
8.2.1 Method of Composition: "Gastrointestinal Emergencies"
8.2.2 Method of Composition: "Hair Spider Stuck to Sock"
Appendix B
Binary Grids
9.1 Twelve Note Binary Sequence (Expts 1 and II)
9.2 Eight Note Binary Sequence (Expt III, series i)
9.3 Eight Note Binary Sequence (Expt III, series ii)
9.4 Eight Note Binary Sequence (Expt III, series iii)
Appendix C
Scores and Extracts
10.1 Cryptographic Score Extract
10.2 "Coloured Dots I": Score
10.3 "Coloured Dots I": Composition Structure
10.4 "Coloured Dots II": Score
10.5 "Coloured Dots II": Composition Structure
Appendix D
Interviews and Surveys
11.1 The Banned Members Interview
11.2 BBC Radio Leicester Interview Evil Dick
11.3 Demo Jury
11.4 Survey Questions
11.5 Results of Survey
Appendix E
Miscellaneous
12.1 Mangle Filter Analysis
12.2 Event List For Lumpy Gravy, Part 1
12.3 Evil's Vegetarian Chilli Recipe
Bibliography