Listening to Noise and Listening to Oneself: An Analysis of Peter Ablinger’s Orgel und Rauschen
Marina Sudo · Lirias · 2020
Peter Ablinger’s innovative use of noise has provided a unique contribution to new music. In his composition, static noise (Rauschen) is not explored for the sake of expanding the sound palette but for its provocative potential as a “screen” onto which listeners project their imaginations. In order to show how the composer manifests this idea in his compositional practice, this article examines his methods of production and manipulation of noise (or analogous sounds with extreme densities and complexities) whilst exploring one possible reception of the resulting music. The aesthetic discussion on noise and listening is followed by an aural-based analysis of the multilayered static sounds in Orgel und Rauschen (Diaphanie 3) (1998–2000). The analysis shows that the composer attentively manipulates components in order to create a distinct perceptive condition for listeners, whilst always allowing room for spontaneous and “subjective” investigations by them.