Ru
EnM. Fuksman, S. Bugayan
Reflection of the title and semantics of a work in its texture (on example of the First Piano Etude “Movements of Qi” by M. Fuksman)
In the artistic works of the Rostov-based musician and writer Mikhail Fuksman, words and sounds engage in a complex interplay of signs. Within this interplay, the unique fluid material form of sound (the signifier) corresponds to the mobility of concepts (the signified). This article examines this semiotic interaction through the example of the First Piano Etude, “Movements of Qi”. The study focuses on the material dimension of the work associated with its musical texture. Within the latter, certain objects referred to as pulsars are identified. A pulsar is defined as a centralizing textural element oscillating around the tone C#5, designated as a primary pulsar. Different types of pulsars are examined, including tonepulsars and synton-pulsars. To describe the properties of both the pulsars themselves and the process of their oscillation, a number of parameters are introduced, encompassing both pitch-related and rhythmic characteristics. A certain logic is revealed in the variation of certain parameters, such as the deviation of the pitches of current ton-pulsars from the pitch of the primary pulsar and the distribution of maximum instantaneous density within synton-pulsars. The oscillations of the pulsars are interpreted as a symbolic representation of the principle of Qi through its essential properties: systemic oscillations of various kinds, approximate structural symmetry, and gravitation toward a central state. This interpretation provides a tool for understanding the enigmatic titles characteristic of Fuksman’s compositions, including the present work. Such titles, often expressing specific cryptophonic tendencies in the music, generate an interaction between signified meanings and the lexical structures that signify them in the form of erratives. Thus, the evolutions of the pulsars are interpreted semantically in accordance with the composer's clue, concealed within the title of the piece, regarding their signifier (“Movements of Qi”).
Key words
Qi, texture, pulsar, musical semantics, properties of a sound object.
For citation
Fuksman M., Bugayan S. Reflection of the title and semantics of a work in its texture (on example of the First Piano Etude "Movements of Qi" by M. Fuksman). In: South-Russian Musical Anthology. 2026. No. 2. Pp. 5–11.
