The play element
In continuation of his 1976 article, Clifton points out that two elements of play, ritualistic and heuristic
behavior, are constitutive aspects of music.
Similar to ritual, music is an activity whose continuation is desired. It involves goal-directed
action which constitutes meaning, and it permits an experience of achievement or accomplishment.
And, similar to ritual, music unfolds as the interplay between spontaneous, immediate rhetorical
gestures and structures that confirm expectations. Clifton characterizes this interplay as a dialectic
between freedom and control (pp. 207-211).
Heuristic behavior aims at active discovery, the orientation towards grasping an experience
which is unknown, but not unknowable. Clifton observes that in music listening, ”the ”How wonder-
ful!” is coupled with ”What is going to happen?”” (p. 221). The listening experience raises questions
and arouses attentive curiosity. The flow of music can continue in many different ways, and heuristic
behavior directs the listener’s experience towards hidden possibilities which may or may not unfold
in the music (pp. 222-223).
Clifton’s achievements: investigations and discovery
Music as Heard applies phenomenological description to a wide and multi-faceted selection of musi-
cal examples. The book opens a fruitful perspective by uncovering and comparing the temporal and
spatial structures of early music, major-minor tonal music, and 20th Century music. The text provides
a multitude of references to phenomenological philosophy, and illuminating reflections on the appli-
cation of phenomenology in music analysis.
Clifton’s style of writing is characterized by spontaneity. He asks open questions, and reintro-
duces some of his discussions several times. As the book was published posthumously, one may
speculate if he had planned to edit the text before publication.^21 Nevertheless, Music as Heard re-
mains a pioneering exploration of applied phenomenology. In his concluding pages, Clifton reminds
the reader of the primary motivation of the book: ”to provoke the sense of wonder, to uncover the es-
sence beneath the obvious (...) and to contribute to the effort of reuniting music theory with musical
experience” (p. 296). This statement sums up Clifton’s achievement. His comprehensive knowledge
and sincere engagement incites the reader to continued investigation of the listening experience.
2.2.5. Lawrence Ferrara (1984): ”Phenomenology as a Tool for Musical Analysis”
In the introduction to his article, published in The Musical Quarterly in 1984, Ferrara declares his
epistemological position: Objective knowledge is not possible. Any kind of scientific or analytical
investigation relies on the researcher’s value assumptions and personal decisions. The choice of a
particular method determines what questions can be asked, and what kinds of knowledge can be
achieved. In order to avoid the dominant restrictions of traditional analytical designs, Ferrara chooses
to apply a phenomenological approach (p. 356).
Similar to Ihde and Clifton, Ferrara presents a strategy for a phenomenological investigation of mu-
sic. However, his project is more modest, and more pragmatic. He does not intend to propose a
foundation for music phenomenology. It is his intention to pave the way for applying phenomenology
as a tool for musical analysis. The phenomenological description can serve as a guide for the appli-
cation of other kinds of analyses.
21 Reviewers have pointed out that some of Clifton’s analyses are not strictly phenomenological, and that his usage of
the concepts ”time” and ”horizon” is not throughout consistent (Tenney 1985, Lochhead 1985/86).