Leif Segerstam and His Path to Aleatory Music

Abstract

The article examines the genesis of the technique of free pulsation — an individual version of the aleatory technique developed in the music of Finnish composer Leif Segerstam. Its formation went underway from the middle of the 1960s to the middle of the 1970s. During the course of this period, Segerstam carried out a number of artistic projects, of which the following are examined in this article: a number of works carrying the composer’s inscription “organic musical kaleidoscope”; the piano composition Seven Questions to Infinity; the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh String Quartets. An analysis of the compositional techniques and means utilized in each case made it possible to come to the conclusion that Segerstam’s motion towards an original version of the aleatory technique was connected with a consistent restriction of the improvisational element, its subjugation to the will of the composer. While the organic musical kaleidoscope in its specific features correlated with free collective improvisation, the Seven Questions corresponded with an individual manner of improvisation based on instructions compiled by the composer. Such a solution has also been applied in the middle section of the Seventh String Quartet, but in this case, it was carried out within the context of an instrumental ensemble. Finally, in the outer sections of this String Quartet, improvisation became a means of organization of aleatory texture and built into the space modelled by the composer. Although the phenomena of improvisation and the aleatory technique are related to each other, they pertain to different traditions: improvisation stems from a centuries-old practice of performance, while the aleatory technique is a part of the art of composition. Leif Segerstam, who in his compositional works from the late 1960s to the middle of the 1970s varied his attitude towards improvisation, not only progressed along the path of formulating his own technique, but also genuinely formed himself as a composer, overcoming his past of a performer and conductor.

Keywords: Leif Segerstam, technique of free pulsation, aleatory technique, improvisation, organic musical kaleidoscope, Seven Questions to Infinity, Seventh String Quartet