Appearance and anti-appearance On Helmut Lachenmann's ...

Appearance and anti-appearance On Helmut Lachenmann's composition TAKAYASU Keisuke

This paper considers what attitude composers have towards the illusory nature of music, namely the character of appearance (Schein in German), by examining the music of German composer Helmut Lachenmann (1935- ). This paper argues that in his music, the model shown by Adorno's aesthetic theories has been radically developed, but in a way Adorno wouldn't have expected. This is evident especially in Lachenmann's concept of musique concrète instrumentale, which is based on the alienation of an instrument’s familiar sounds via an unconventional performance technique. First, Lachenmann’s solo pieces which embody this concept should be discussed. Second, our attention centers on his work Allegro Sostenuto for clarinet/ bass clarinet, violoncello and piano 1987/88, because in this piece of chamber music his earlier experimental attempts are integrated subtly and more clearly than in his highly complex orchestral pieces. In clarifying how alienated sounds and silence are treated in Allegro Sostenuto, this analysis leads to the description of structural elaboration and also the structural rift or split which is to be viewed positively as an anti-illusory element in aesthetic appearance. Above all, it is important to note that in this aesthetic conflict, Lachenmann's music includes critical insight into the problems of our time.