Onishi

Study guide for yoshiaki onishi's Antefenas studies

Introduction

Antefenas-Studies is a piece for 10 musicians and electronics in four parts. “Antefenas” refers to the words “antiphon,” “antefn” and “anthem.” Dictionary.com defines “antiphony” as:

alternate or responsive singing by a choir in two divisions.
a psalm, verse, etc., so sung; antiphon.
a responsive musical utterance.

Onishi uses antiphonal characteristics throughout Antefenas-Studies, from direct call and response echoing, to more loose “choral” textures.
Instrumentation: Flute, clarinet in B-flat, piccolo trumpet in A, tenor trombone, percussion (4 woodblocks, bongos, vibraphone, bass drum), prepared piano, 2 violins, viola, violoncello, electronics

I. L'antienne acoustique 1

Background: The title of the first movement of the work translated from French is “The acoustic anthem.” This can refer to the lack of electronics used in the movement, as well as the use of a musical “psalm.” The movement is effectively unpitched. All notes are percussive in nature, and unsustained (taps, tongue rams, etc.).
Form: The movement begins with union material, mostly on downbeats. Starting at mm.9, the ensemble begins to split, eventually creating a texture that seems like randomness or “entropy.” This marks the beginning of a 10 part canon. The canon uses a rhythmic “psalm,” as notated in “Antefenas-studies Studies.” Entrances are offset by one measure in the following order: percussion, piano, violin I, viola, violin II, violoncello, trumpet, clarinet, trombone, flute. Near the end, the rhythmic pattern truncates with some variations, depending on where the instrument enters in the sequence.
Approaching the movement: Use the “Antefenas-studies Studies” with a metronome (60-80 bpm) to help you internalize the rhythmic “psalm.” Use a combination of speaking, speaking with accents, speaking with accents and clapping, and just clapping (or use a syllable or sizzle, depending on the sound production ultimately required). Practice it in unison and in canon with others to develop security (one person speaks, the other sizzles) or independence (offset speaking by a bar or two). Rhythm words used are: beat, duple, potato, dedicated, pulchritudinous, nanotechnology.

II. Mouvements

Background: I don't have much information for this movement yet, as there's a lot to digest. This movement is by far the largest movement, taking up 57% of the score page-wise. I'm putting down what I do know about the score, however, there's a lot you can tackle without contextualizing too much (see Approaching the movement).
Form:

mm.46-49, Introduction: Four bars to start off the movement
mm.50-64, [A] Antiphony: Some "call and response" action between winds and strings. Entrances fade in and out dynamically. Rhythm is characterized by quadruplets. Bongos hold a steady subdivision through this section into the next.
mm.65-73, [B] "Next Section": Flute and clarinet murmur on timbral bisbigliandi. Strings quietly hold the subdivision, with sporadic accents. Brass quietly ebbs and flows.
mm.74-87, [C] "Movement": Suddenly there is more pitch movement in the woodwinds and strings. The prepared piano enters with a left-hand ostinato. By mm.81, the rest of the ensemble has petered out, leaving the piano to solo.
mm.88-104, [D] "Attacks": By mm.88, the piano's ostinato has devolved, and the right-hand is added, mirroring the disjunct rhythm of the left. Winds enter one by one with violent bursts of 32nd notes in groupings of one or two. The strings eventually reenter with malleable long tones (changing with timbre).
mm.105-109, [~C] "Transition 1": The "movement" from [C] is revisited as a brief transition into the next.
mm.110-119, [E] "Cacophony": This is the climax of the movement. Ideas from previous sections are combined: Quadruplets from [A], piano movements from [C], and violent "Attacks" from [D].
mm.120-122, [~A]: A brief transition brings the movement aways from the climax into the next.
mm.123-137: The is the calm, slow "middle section" of the movement. Stagnant harmonics and viola pizzicati are met with little bursts from the piano. The end of the section is marked by the entrance of quiet sustaining winds, the sudden off-balance of the string pitches, and the building piano movement.
mm.138-143, [C']: Material is reminiscent of [C]– piano ostinati, and string subdivisions. The clarinet sustains throughout, and brass have small sparkles.
mm.144-157 [F] "The Bridge": This quietly cacophonous employs all bu the piano (except what sustains from the previous section). The motion is unbalanced, and the woodwinds and vibraphone call out bursts of odd arpeggiations.
mm.158-164 [G] "Conclusion": The strings suddenly wind down to a unison battuto texture, playing steady beats until the end of the measure, transitioning right into the rhythmic material of movement III.

Approaching the movement: The primary difficulty in this movement is executing the extended technique correctly, and then putting into context.

Technique: Make sure you are performing every extended technique as written. If you have any questions, ask Andrew or Yoshi (yoshiakionishimusic@gmail.com). Isolate each technique and learn it out of context by exploring its different properties, and similar technique to help you differentiate between similar (but still different!) techniques.
Dynamics: This movement calls for many sudden, stark dynamic contrasts. Practice the different techniques in dynamic isolation, long tones as appropriate. Find the maximum louds and softs, and practice going in between two, slowly at first and then faster (with a metronome!).
Rhythm: Isolate learning the rhythm from the technique. Airbow, sizzle, or say your parts to learn the rhythm, and then add in the technique. Make sure the dynamic contrasts show through!

Another potential difficulty is metric modulation. Similar to Ted Hearne’s But I Voted for Shirley Chisholm, modulations occur between the quadruplets and sextuplets. For example, at mm.199 the subdivision pulse is 4 32nd notes a beat (112 bpm for beats, or 448 bpm per subdivision). When it enters mm.120, the subdivision tempo stays the same (448 bpm), but 6 32nd notes comprise a beat, thus the main tempo slows (74.66bpm). Practice changing between these feels by counting/sizzling while conducting. The most confusing set of modulations occur between mm.120 and mm.124.
[Table 1. Metric modulation analysis II]

mm.#	119	120	121	122	123	124
Pattern	1	3	3	2	2 (2+3)	3
Notes	Think in quadruplets (4 per beat)	Think in sextuplets (6 per beat). Big beat (8th note) slows.	Think in duples (2 per beat). Big beat stays the same.	Fermata	Think in 16th notes, first beat with 2 and the second with 3.	The 2nd beat (3 16th notes) of the measure before becomes the big beat. Think in triples.

To further contextualize the metric modulations and to practice the passage discussed above, please go to this page.

III.

Background: The third movement of the work is untitled and its simplicity is a welcome breath of fresh air for the ensemble. The downbeat 3/8 material alludes to the beginning of the first movement. It only calls for sustained vibraphone, sustained piano, and electronics (and strings, on the very first downbeat, an elision from the previous movement). No two chords in the movement are the same.

IV. L’antienne acoustique 2

Background: The sound world of the last movement is similar to that of the first (hence the connection in the title)– unpitched and sporadic. Onishi describes the movement as “the reverse” of the first. It begins in what seems like randomness, as the first movement ended, and gradually shifts to unison attacks. In opposition to the first movement, there is a lot more sustaining in the last movement, all within an attack-decay style. In fact, the end is completely sustained, with the exception of attacks. This movement is most clear with its antiphonal style: many rhythmic phrases are repeated right after another, almost verbatim, suggesting a “call and response.”
Form: Onishi articulates the form of the piece using thicker single barlines in the parts and score (ex. mm.173 or 175). Each phrase set marked by thick barlines are divided in half, with the two halves of each phrase using the same rhythmic material. There are very few exceptions to this, mainly in the first few sets of phrases (especially the first, starting at mm.173).
[Table 2. Phrase structure for IV]

mm.#	172	173	175	177	179	183	187	191	195	201	209-end
length	1 (hold)	2	2	2	4	4	4	4	6	8	(n/a)

Similar to the first movement, there is a sort of “psalm” that is employed, although a little more broken than before (especially to start). The rhythmic pattern is as follows:
[Table 3. “Psalm” structure for IV]

mm.# of "Psalm"	Beat 1	Beat 2	Beat 3
1	rest	rest	rest
2	rest	rest	poTAto
3	rest	rest	pulCHRItudinous
4	rest	rest	pulchriTUdinous
5	rest	rest	duPLE
6	rest	rest	deDIcated
7	rest	rest	pulCHRItudinous
8	BEAT	rest	duPLE

As mentioned before, all instruments play this psalm, however, the first few to do so play it in a relatively broken manner to start. All, however, play at least measures 3-8 in sequence before entering the sustaining ostinato that closes out the piece. The order in which these happen is in opposite to the beginning: flute, trombone, clarinet, trumpet, violoncello, violin II, viola, violin I, piano, percussion. Here is the outline of how entrances are structured to help contextualize entrances:

Flute – mm.202: 5-6, 3-8, (mm.195: 1-3, 1-4)
Trombone – mm.203: 5-6, 2-8 (mm.195: 8, 1-2, 8, 1-4)
Clarinet – mm. 204: 5, 2-8 (mm.200: 1-4)
Trumpet – mm.205: 1-8 (mm.201: 1-4)
Violoncello – mm.206: 1-8 (mm.202: [1]-4)
Violin II – mm.207: 1-8
Viola – mm.208: 1-8
Violin I – mm.209: 1-8
Piano – mm.210: 1-8
Percussion – mm.211: 1-8

Approaching the movement: Approach the fourth movement similarly to how you would the first. Identify and mark rhythm words in the movement, and break it down into rhythm and technique. Mark where rhythms repeat (the midpoint of phrases), and approach learning and performing these rhythmic patterns in smaller groups.