Listening-in-readiness

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Listening-in-readiness

Barry Truax has, according to Borgo (1999), “described three general modes of engaging with the acoustic soundscape: listening-in-search, listening-in-readiness, and background listening”. 5 (pp. 79–80)

implies for Truax a “state of attention to receive “significant” audio information and familiar sounds-associations built up over time that may be readily identified”. (p. 80)

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It is rather obvious that free ensemble improvisation demands “an intense concentration on the music” and “an intense listening to the whole” (point 1), since there is nothing else to adopt as a base for the interaction between the musicians, that is to say, the ensemble improvisation, than their listening to one another. Notes, conductors and stylistic models are no longer present, and the only thing left to musically relate to is what is actually sounding and how it is sounding.

*`Nunn gets the last word on the importance of listening for free improvisation. “It
was stated that free improvisation is not made, it is allowed to make itself, and this
comes from active listening”. (Nunn 1998: 87)`

Topic ticket number T1398