Chapter 4. The Musical Timespace.
An Investigation of the Listening Dimensions in Music
Introduction
A concise version of The Musical Timespace (1996) presents an investigation of the listening di-
mensions in music and the experience of musical space. The concise version consists of selected
excerpts of the original text. Approximately half of the text is included. The original text is maintained,
except for minor corrections. Thus, the selection of excerpts does not represent a revised edition of
the book. The aim of the shortening is to clarify the investigation of the listening dimensions by omit-
ting parts of the text that appear to be weakly underpinned. Criteria for the omissions are presented
in a brief concluding discussion.
The investigation suggests that particular properties of sound constitute the listening dimensions that
interact in music perception and musical experience. It is a basic presupposition of the investigation
that hearing is not designed for music listening, but for survival in the surrounding world. The essen-
tial functions of listening are the identification and localization of sound, and the detection of move-
ment. Basis for the investigation is music that explores the natural continuum of sound, which is not
divided into discrete steps.
Abstract
The concise version of The Musical Timespace is presented in appendix 4.01, pp. 293-378.
The following represents an abstract of the concise version.
- The Basic Listening Dimensions
The biological basis of listening, pp. 294-298.
Hearing is designed for survival, not for music listening. Hearing permits instant identification and lo-
calization of sounds in the surrounding world. Hearing permits detection of movement, which implies
the sensation of time. Hearing permits detection of recurrent repetition, which implies the sensation
of pulse. Movement and pulse evoke two kinds of temporal experience, related to change and regu-
larity.
The five basic listening dimensions in music, pp. 299-301.
It is proposed that five properties of sound; intensity, timbre, pitch, movement and pulse, constitute
the basic listening dimensions in music. Intensity is the prerequisite of sound, and the fundamental
dimension of listening. Timbre is the basis for identification of sounds. Pitch is a property of musical
sounds. Intensity, timbre and pitch are microtemporal dimensions of sound, perceived instantly.
Movement and pulse are macrotemporal dimensions of sound, evoking the experience of time.
The proposed basic dimensions of listening are displayed in the graphic models p. 300 and
356, which reflect that pitch and pulse are related to regularity in sound, and timbre and movement are
related to change in sound.
- States, Events, and Transformations
Descriptions of music which exemplify the basic listening dimensions, pp. 302-316.
The selected pieces of music explore the continuum of natural sound, which is not divided into
discrete steps, and which encompasses noise as well as tones. Xenakis’ Metastasis investigates the
continuum of gliding pitch and the perceptive qualities of noisy sounds. Ligeti’s Atmospheres