Ai Horton, “Laments for a Modern World”

Chapter 7: Painting the picture

IN THIS SECTION:

7.1 Dramatic structure and textual composition

7.2 Greek choruses, echoes, and ritornellos 

7.3 Use of language

7.31 Phonetics

7.4 Word painting as an expression of affect

7.41 Repetition and fragmentation

7.5 Chromaticism and dissonance

7.6 Sculpting drama

7.7 A personal reflection on embodying emotions while singing

7.8 A stirring of affections during the compositional process

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Contents

Appendix A: English translations of 17^th-century Lament texts

Appendix B: Texts of Laments for a Modern World

Bibliography

Although the narrative contexts of Laments may be grievous in and of themselves, it was only through a rich rhetorical impregnation of the compositions and an expressive delivery by the performers that the pathetic powers of these words were able to come to life. Publications detailing rhetorical practices by the likes of French philosopher Petrus Ramus (1515-1572) and German music theorist Joachim Burmeister (1564-1629) are useful resources for establishing a framework of terminology that can be used for the purposes of rhetorical analysis. Their dedicated application in the analysis of 17^th-century Laments, however, proves a futile effort. With the lack of Italian treatises on rhetoric and the genre of Laments having largely originated from Italian composers, the application of specific German or French sources for the sake of a structured analysis is untenable. According to Dietrich Bartel’s Musica Poetica, “Instead of introducing an intermediate level of linguistic and theological significance to the musical phenomena as was done in Lutheran Germany, the Italians sought to speak directly and immediately to the senses.”¹ The marked identification of a rhetorical device also does not necessarily explain how and why it is able to evoke a pathetic response, nor do these devices fully encapsulate the many pathetic techniques employed in Laments.

The forthcoming rhetorical analysis is instead largely guided by my own aesthetic and pathetic observations as I actively studied each work, supported by several theorems regarding behavioural cognition. Methods for collecting observations included a visual score analysis, listening to several different recordings of the Laments, playing the works on a keyboard instrument, singing passages, and, in some cases, performing the Laments in their entirety. Approaching the analytical process as both an academic and singer allowed me to simultaneously scrutinize the scores and experiment beyond the written page in a manner that reflected the nature of my compositional process and my general artistic practice. To assist in the relation of observations made, terminology delineated in texts by Ramus and Burmeister, as well as those in the Greco-Roman classics of Aristotle, Cicero, and Plato, may be occasionally utilized.

7.1 Dramatic structure and textual composition

Certain structural elements regarding the presentation of a Lament can cause us to anticipate grief even before the start of the piece itself.  When included as a part of a larger work, the lament-triggering events are usually illustrated in preceding scenes, or else the information is relayed by a secondary character. As the audience already has knowledge of the crisis and has witnessed the relationships between characters, they expect subsequent scenes to include the reactions of specific persons. For example, in Cephale et Procris, the death of Procris occurs onstage in the presence of Cephale, and as Cephale’s romantic connection with Procris has already been established earlier in the opera, we expect her death to trigger his emotional response. The lament-triggering events for Act V of L’Orfeo, “Lamento d’Arianna”, “Misero Apollo”, the excerpt from Historia di Jepthe, “Uscitemi dal cor lagrime amare”, and “Dido’s Lament” are all presented onstage prior to their consequent Laments. In cases where the lament-triggering event occurs offstage, the news of said event may be introduced by a secondary character, as is the case in Act II of L’Orfeo with the Messaggiera’s announcement of Euridice’s death.

Many of the stand-alone works include the word ‘lament’ or a similar moniker in their titles, or else a score may have the designation of ‘lament’ written across the top. As the verb ‘to lament’ exists outside of musical terminology, we immediately ascertain that the subject matter will be grievous in nature.

Example 14: The opening measures of “Lagrime Mie”

Barbara Strozzi, “Lagrime Mie”,  in Diporti di Euterpe (Venice: Francesco Magnini, 1658), p. 76.

Note the designation of ‘Lamento’ written directly over the opening phrase.

These anticipatory markers may cause us to be predisposed to experience emotion during the Lament itself. According to the ITPRA model developed by David Huron, the emotional consequences of expectations can be divided into five subsections: imagination response, tension response, prediction response, reaction response, and appraisal response.² The first of these subsections, ‘imagination response’, theorizes that “our feeling states are first activated by imagining different outcomes.”³ By imagining possible scenarios within the forthcoming Lament, we trigger low-level emotional responses in the body and are physically prepared to experience stream-of-consciousness emotional responses during the Lament itself.

Another of the subsections of the ITPRA model, the ‘prediction response’ may also offer some explanation as to why we may feel emotionally satisfied by the start of a Lament after we have inferred its content. According to Huron, “[w]hen the stimulus is expected, the emotional response is positively valenced; when the stimulus is unexpected, the emotional response is negatively valenced […] Confirmation of expected outcomes generally induces a positive emotional response even when the expected outcome is bad.”⁴ Therefore, when we expect a Lament to occur and our expectation is met, we are likely to feel some level of gratification, adding to the lasting positive relationship with the Lament despite its somber subject matter.

7.2 Greek choruses, echoes, and ritornellos

While secondary characters can be used to introduce a lament-triggering event, additional voices may also be used to heighten the emotional affect within the Lament itself.⁵ The dramatic chorus—taken from the traditions of ancient Greek theatre—was designed both to comment on the action and to help drive the plot forwards, as it was generally comprised of persons who had some relation to the main characters, such as friends, neighbours, and townspeople.⁶ The function of the chorus in and around Laments is twofold: firstly, they offer the perspective of society as a whole regarding the lament-triggering event or on the solo Lament itself; secondly, the introduction of the chorus offers “an interlude of alienation during which time the audience [can] stop feeling and begin to think.”⁷ The inclusion of a chorus directly after a Lament enables the ‘appraisal response’ of the forementioned ITPRA model, as it allows for time to fully assess the content and outcome of the Lament and enables subsequent emotional responses to arise.⁸ The excerpt from Act 2 of L’Orfeo is directly followed by a chorus that comments on the cruelty of fate regarding the death of Euridice, allowing the audience to absorb the grievous material they have just witnessed.

“Lamento della Ninfa” includes a trio of lower voices that offers the benefits of a chorus while also providing a condensed narrative context for the Lament. The trio begins the first part with a short madrigal that announces the entrance of the nymph and continues to narrate during her solo with repeated interjections of ‘miserella’ that reflect a general sense of pity. The third and final part is another madrigal setting for the trio that brings the short narrative to a close, concluding the Lament with its message of “cosi ne cori amantinasce amor fiamm’e giel”: “and so in the hearts of lovers, love pours fire and ice”. This final madrigal allows us to emotionally process the misery of the nymph while delivering a broader societal view of the context of this Lament: that love can cause both passion and pain.

In lieu of choruses, echoes sung by additional voices are used in the excerpt from Act V of L’Orfeo and Filia’s Lament from Historia di Jepthe. In both cases, these echoes are sung by the same voice type as the character whom they are echoing: a tenor for Orfeo, and two sopranos for Filia. In L’Orfeo, the echo’s role is personified, with Orfeo speaking directly to it in both acknowledgement and admonition.⁹ The personification of the echo is further enhanced by a feature that is not necessarily audible in performance yet is clear in the written text; Orfeo’s words are not always echoed verbatim. For example, “ahi piantò” is transformed into the second person “hai pianto”, and “guai” becomes “hai”.  Consequently, the echo appears to sympathize with Orfeo, although Orfeo is unable to find consolation from its words owing to the magnitude of his grief. While the echoes in Filia's Lament are recognized by Filia, they are not given the personified role seen in L’Orfeo. Instead, Filia calls out for an answer as she journeys up the mountain and hears only the echo of her own voice in response. Where a chorus offered a broader perspective on an individual’s grief, the use of an echo can help to emphasize specific emotional intentions within a Lament (see 7.41 Repetition and Fragmentation).

Although lacking the textual elements of the forementioned vocal choruses and echoes, the solo violin in “The Plaint” and the ritornellos in “Uscitemi dal Cor” both function in a similar manner. In Example 15, the vocal line of “The Plaint” is extended by the violin using a melody that follows a similar dulcet contour. Here the violin acts almost as a chorus, responding to the Lament and providing an ambient grief that supports the vocal solo without offering an individualized perspective.¹⁰ In Example 16, the solo violin supplements the vocal line with short, echo-like statements.

Example 15: Excerpt from “The Plaint”, demonstrating extension of the vocal line

Example 16: Excerpt from “The Plaint”, demonstrating echo-like statements

A typical feature of 17^th-century Venetian opera,¹¹ the use of integrated ritornellos in “Uscitemi dal cor lagrime amare” also offer a chorus-like element in which one can mentally process the emotion of the Lament, while also carrying emotional intentions between two sections of text. As previously mentioned in Chapter 5.5, the bassline of “Uscitemi dal cor lagrime amare” also incorporates a call and response motif that interacts with the singer, providing a countermelody that can amplify the grief of Idraspe. 

7.3 Use of language

The language used in the Laments is highly formalized, keeping with the poetic and dramatic traditions of the time. Rhetorical devices help to deliver narrative information while offering structure and bulk to the text, thus enabling stand-alone works to have an encapsulated dramatic thread. The use of comparison helps to illustrate the dire situations of specific characters; for example, “you are dead, my life, and I breathe” in Act II of L’Orfeo, and “Athens prepares for you superb happy celebrations, and I remain food for beasts in this lonely arena” in “Lamento d’Arianna”. In the case of these Laments, the rhetorical figures that encompass an entire clause best serve to drive the narrative, leaving the pathetic prowess to smaller units within the clause.

Words that amplify a profound sense of grief appear to have been preferred over those that may have been more common within the everyday vernacular.  For instance, despite both words carrying a similar meaning of sadness or grief, ‘dolore’ was heavily favoured over its more demotic cousin, ‘triste’. Interjections of ‘ahi/ahime’, ‘o/ohime’, and ‘dhe/deh’ (Italian); ‘o/oh’ and ‘ah’ (English); ‘ô’ and ‘ah’ (French); and ‘heu’ (Latin) all regularly occur. These interjections are naturally occurring heightened speech patterns, and can be easily exclaimed without disrupting the flow of the narrative and music. Words that conveyed the physical effects of sadness by Descartes in his Passions of the Souls previously outlined Chapter 5, such as weeping (‘weep/pianto/lagrimare’), sighing (‘sigh/sospiro’), and groaning (‘ulate/cris’) also regularly appear. The choice of words was not only significant due to their elevated formality and poetic fervour, but also for the affect their individual phonemes could provide.

7.31 Phonetics

According to Giambattista Mancini’s Pensieri, e Reflessioni Pratiche sopra il Canto Figurato, “[a]n actor or singer cannot express passions and feelings nor transmit them to the public if he does not comprehend the value and meaning of each word; if he does not know and speak well the pure Tuscany tongue (Italian). Above all, he must have a clear, though not exaggerated pronunciation […] The merit and value of a word do not always lie in its nature or intrinsic value, but often in the way of saying it.”¹² Clarity in the pronunciation of the words not only makes the text comprehensible to listeners but can also offer benefits towards the expression of the emotional affect, provided appropriate choices are made by the performer. Librettists, perhaps unconsciously, appear to have favoured words that offer affectual phonetic benefits.

Table 3: Examples of phonemes appearing in Lament texts

*may also be expressed as a semivowel [wi:p]

The two fricatives, [s] and [ʃ], offer an audible expulsion of air through the mouth that is emblematic of a sigh.¹³ The length of the fricative and strength of aspiration can easily be adapted by the singer according to the dramatic needs of the phrase. An excellent example exists in Strozzi’s “Lagrime mie” on the utterance of ‘respiro’, which is further heightened by a rest that divides the word in a manner that is not only emblematic of breathlessness, but also forces the amplification of certain consonants.  

 Example 17: Textual setting of ‘respiro’ in “Lagrime mie”

Note that Example 17 presents the setting of ‘respiro’ as it appears in its original publication, in which the word is separated as ‘res-piro’. Current common practice in vocal music would not separate the consonant cluster, thus dividing the word as ‘re-spiro’ and elongating the fricative [s].¹⁴ In the case of the original setting, the plosive [p] is also amplified.¹⁵

The use of [l] can offer several benefits regarding the colouring of a word. Firstly, one can extend the phoneme on the voice by allowing the tongue to make contact with the teeth, hard palette, or the alveolar ridge for a longer period of time. As the phoneme [l] is voiced, this can result in an elastic legato that is particularly affective on words like ‘languire’ (Act V of L’Orfeo) or ‘let’ (“The Plaint”).  When the [l] is shortened to a short tap or flap of the tongue, the effect is similar to that of a plosive consonant, as the subsequent vowel is released with a burst of energy. This could prove affective in cases such as “Ferma, lascia, ch’io parli”, in which Maria Stuarda lets out impassioned utterances of ‘lascia’. In Filia’s Lament, [l] in the word ‘dolete’ could be affectively coloured with either option, although the second pronouncement is perhaps better expressed by a short flap owing to the increase in emotional energy suggested by the change in register.  

Example 18: Textual setting of ‘dolete’ in Historia di Jepthe

All four plosives ([k], [p], [d], and [t]) can be used to emphasize the importance of a specific word in an energized, explosive manner. Contrarily, diphthongs offer a smoother release of a vowel owing to the transition from one sound to the next, creating a more languished affect. Voiced consonants directly followed by a vowel work likewise, such as with the phoneme [m] in words like ‘morire’. Being a bilabial consonant, [m] may also be shortened in words like ‘ma’ to release the vowel with the same energy as a plosive. The successful pathetic application of these phonetic techniques can only be achieved if the singer first applies language rules governing pronunciation and word stress, and any alterations to the natural lilt of the text should be made with careful consideration to their influence on the meaning and affect of the word in question.

7.4 Word painting as an expression of affect

The textual setting of Laments is a careful balance between natural speech patterns and heightened illustrative notions. The practices of recitar cantando readily accommodate natural speech patterns and a clear pronunciation of the text, which in turn allows for an easy conveyance of the narrative. Even when the texts were set to drawn-out melodic lines, efforts were made by 17^th-century composers to retain the normalcy of syllabic stresses and the emphasis of key words within clauses. When specific words or phrases were deliberately taken out of their natural speech patterns, the result was usually a targeted affectual colouring that garnered a listener’s attention through its defiance of expectation.

The examples of motivic tears, wails, and cries presented in Chapter 6.11 demonstrate the application of word painting to replicate non-textualized vocalizations of grief.  The inclusion of these elements bring emotional intention to the respective texts, designating them as expressions of grief. Non-textual vocalizations in Laments also take the form of melismas that oscillate pitch in a manner that resembles moaning or whimpering. Barbara Strozzi’s “Lagrime mie” uses this to great effect on words such as ‘lagrime’ (see Example 11), ‘piangete’, ‘pietoso’, ‘moro’, ‘pene’, and ‘pianto’. While lacking the melismatic element, “Lamento della Ninfa” elongates the descending line of “perchè di lui mi struggo” with a syncopation that achieves the effect of a lengthy sob. Purcell applies a similar sobbing gesture on top of the elongation of the word ‘laid’—which is already an example of literal word painting represented in the descent of the line with written out appoggiaturas—in “Dido’s Lament” by adding a dotted rhythmic texture.

Example 19: Word painting of ‘laid’ in “Dido’s Lament”

Carissimi’s “Ferma, lascia, ch’io parli”, on the other hand, applies melismas as impassioned and fiery outbursts on words like ‘vaglion’, ‘sfogati’, ‘assail scarica’, ‘furor’, ‘vibra’, ‘lascia’, and ‘fulmina’. In these cases, the applied affect is anger, distinguished by means of its higher vocal register and through an increase in the rate of delivery of the text.

7.41 Repetition and fragmentation

Repetition and fragmentation are perhaps the two most readily identifiable feature of affectual text settings in vocal music. Referred to by Burmeister as auxesis (growth by text repetition),¹⁶ the repetition of words in Laments is rampant and occurs most frequently at the beginning of a clause. This may be emblematic of a speaker’s reluctance to acknowledge the occurrence of a grievous event, or else it may signal an intentionality that encourages the listener to engage with the subsequent lamentation.¹⁷

Repetition indicative of a reluctance or inability to speak may be represented by ‘amor’ and ‘dove’ in “Lamento della Ninfa”, ‘oh’ in “The Plaint”, and ‘misero’ in “Misero Apollo”. In these cases, the repeated word does not demand a specific action and each iteration can be coloured with a different sentiment, such as anger, despair, pleading, or restlessness.  Conversely, when a direct order is repeated at the beginning of a clause, it serves to encourage others to listen. Examples include repetitions of ‘plorate’ in the excerpt from Historia di Jepthe, ‘taci’ in “Lamento della Ninfa”, and ‘remember me’ in “Dido’s Lament” . In fact, the entirety of “Dido’s Lament” can be framed as a direct plea for others to not mourn her death, and repetitions of ‘no trouble’, ‘remember me’, and ‘forget my fate’¹⁸ all work towards this effect.

Repetition within a Lament may also create a sense of endless grief, as it can cause a psychological effect known as semantic satiation, in which a word or phrase loses meaning due to repetition. This principal is exemplified by the numerous sequential repetitions of ‘sospir’ in “L’Eraclito Amoroso”, which seems to imply a future of endless sighs. With numerous repetitions of the singular word, we start to disassociate from the word itself and can become lost in the musical gestures.

Example 20: Repetitions of ‘sospir’ in “L’Eraclito Amoroso”

As previously seen with the echoes in Chapter 7.2, repetition can also work to heighten a word and its emotional context, as it offers an opportunity for the singer to colour and vary the emotional affect. For example, “Lamento d’Arianna” begins with two iterations of ‘lasciatemi morire’—the first could be given an air of reluctancy by taking a softer dynamic into the anticipatory B♭ and elongating the [l] and [∫], while the second could be exclaimed with desperation by leaning into the dissonant C♯. These variations on repetitions of the same text are also important to prevent semantic satiation.

 Example 21: Repetition of ‘Lasciatemi morire’ in “Lamento d’Arianna”

The forementioned deconstruction of the word ‘respiro’ in “Lagrime mie” is an example of word painting achieved through fragmentation—a technique that appears to have been favoured by Strozzi. The same technique is applied to ‘sospir’ in “L’Eraclito Amoroso” (see Example 19), with the breathlessness further defined by the short upward gestures that precede the break in the word. Fragmentation in the form of an inserted rest is also used on the world ‘trattenete’ in “Lagrime mie”—in this case, to illustrate the sensation of holding back tears. Coupled with a melismatic and chromatic ending in its first iteration, ‘trattenete’ becomes a key affectual term in “Lagrime mie”.

7.5 Chromaticism and dissonance

In most rhetorical practices, chromatic movement is usually representative of pathopeia (a rhetorical figure that aims to evoke a strong emotional response).¹⁹ The chromatic movement of a line offers dissonance and resolution that affects us emotionally and psychologically. Firstly, the interaction of a dissonance against consonance irritates our reception of the sound, as we fight to distinguish the interaction of the different tones. The appearance of dissonance is also, by nature, unpredictable. As previously discussed, a correct prediction can bring with it a positively-valenced limbic response. The unpredictability and startling quality of dissonance can, in turn, cause a negatively-valenced limbic response, which we may attribute to feeling a negative emotion. The resolution of a dissonance (if it occurs) can provide a cognitive resolution as well, both with a positively-valenced limbic response as our expectation of the musical resolution being met, and with the dissipation of the irritating interference on our auditory reception. The physical reaction of frisson²⁰ is also “strongly correlated with marked violations of expectation—in particular, with dynamic, metric, and harmonic violations."²¹

Examples of dissonance range from a simple movement to a neighbouring tone (“The Plaint”), a chromatic passing tone or implied leading tone (Excerpt from Act II of L’Orfeo), and anticipations (“Lamento d’Arianna” – see Example 20), to longer chromaticised passages (“Lagrime mie”). Note that the dissonance occurs against the harmony of the continuo line, which has not been realised in the examples.

Example 22: Dissonance in 17^th-century Laments

7.6 Sculpting drama

In order for the various pathetic elements explored in this chapter to work within a narrative, an overarching organizational system is needed. Key points for affectual shifts are included as a part of a Lament’s design, marked by significant rests or register changes in the vocal line, a development in the rate of harmonic change and textual output, the inclusion of a pause in the music, or a drastic change in musical style. These affectual shifts within a Lament help to create different shades of grief around a single lament-triggering event. Instead of a sole emotional climax right before the end of the Lament, these compositions feature multiple arcs of emotion, allowing a development of grief without necessitating a final release or resolution.

In Laments that exclusively use a chaconne bass, rests and register changes in the vocal line are the best indicator as to where an affectual shift can take place. In “Lamento della Ninfa”, the vocal line includes significant rests between some repetitions of words or phrases, indicating that they should be given a different affectual attention. Changes in register, whether at the start of a segment or a with a gradual movement, also indicate a development of the emotion in question. For example, the final 'remember me' in Dido’s lament is set much higher than its previous utterances, indicating that it needs a more impassioned affectual colouring. While these two principles certainly apply to non-chaconne Laments, they are of particular importance in the pure chaconnes as the cyclical bass does not accommodate the other organization systems listed.

Recitar cantando, however, provides numerous opportunities for shifts in harmonic change and textual output, often in conjunction with rests and register changes. Segmental climaxes may also be achieved by the inclusion of higher harmonics that move away from the mean²² pitch of the piece. This combination of organizational tools is exemplified in “Lamento d’Arianna”, where the increased rate of harmonic change and textual output is accompanied by a movement towards a higher vocal range as Arianna angrily calls for Teseo’s destruction in the sea (see Example 2).

The end of Arianna’s heightened outburst is also marked by a tutti rest before her re-entrance, at which point her rate of textual output and relative pitch regresses to the mean. These pauses—notated with a rest, barline, or fermata,²³—create clear affectual sections and divide the text into individual thoughts. This brief respite between sections also allows for the ‘tension response’ outlined in David Huron’s ITPRA theory. This “pre-outcome limbic reaction”²⁴ is stimulated by a change in arousal and attention as the listener prepares for what will follow the silence, triggering a stress-like reaction in the body. The pause also allows the singer time to prepare the affectual shift before beginning a new segment.

The changes in musical style in our hybrid compositions (“Lagrime mie”, “L’Eraclito Amoroso” and “Misero Apollo”) are perhaps the most distinguishable examples of affectual change, as the entire musical output is shifted. The other organizational structures listed may also exist within these larger shifts. In “Misero Apollo”, the final section of recitar cantando also includes fermatas, changes in register, and changes in harmonic rate to further delineate affectual shifts.

By identifying and designating a specific emotional shade to segments within these organizational structures, the other rhetorical elements outlined in this chapter can be applied in a manner that serves the narrative impulses of the text as a whole; understanding how these units work together to stimulate an emotional response is key in achieving the affective performance of a Lament.

7.7 A personal reflection on embodying emotions while singing

The purpose of this analytical exploration was to identify components of Laments that could be used to achieve an emotionally moving performance. As many of these rhetorical practices stemmed from oratory models, 17^th-century singers were encouraged to study the principles of oration and to apply them to their practice. While present-day singers do not necessarily work exclusively from the model of the orator (even those of us who specialize in the study of historical performance practice), understanding how the art of persuasion is applied in musical compositions is the first step in unlocking their pathetic potential. This sentiment was also shared by Italian music theorist and composer Nicola Vicentino (1511-c. 1576), who advised that “the more one understood learned compositions the more one would be moved by them, and therefore singers needed to be aware of what the musical poet, that is, composer, had in mind.”²⁵

That is not to say that the application of rhetorical principles alone will evoke a pathetic response. One of the most important figures of oratory practice, the Roman rhetorician Quintilian (c. 35), warned that “[…] all emotional appeals will inevitably fall flat, unless they are given the fire that voice, look, and the whole carriage of the body can give them… Consequently, we can have no hope in moving him [the judge] if we speak with languor and indifference, nor of preventing him from yielding to the narcotic influence of our own yawns.”²⁶ I myself find that there is a very fine line between giving a fully committed emotional performance and being overcome by my own feelings. Years were spent experimenting with the sensations that arose while attempting to live through the character I was portraying, and I worked to identify the signals that told me I was too close to the edge. In order to place myself within the character’s world, I like to walk through the scenarios (sometimes actively in an open space, sometimes mentally) and imagine what I would feel in each moment. Each sentence and musical line needs to play like a movie in the back of my mind, to the point where I can anticipate reactions that the character would have to any given situation.

The main concern with giving an emotionally committed delivery is the potential that you may tap into your own emotions, particularly when you can relate to the character personally. Therefore, many performers find a level of coldness and personal distance necessary. Thanks to the many years of exploration, I can usually recognize when my own emotions enter my practice, and when I may be entering a danger zone in terms of emotional expression. Tears will well up in my eyes, or I will start to feel a tinging in my fingers and temples, and the globus sensation will start up in my throat. These sensations are signs that the music is tapping into my own memories and emotional being, and that I need to be careful if I do not want to let my own pathetic responses take over. 

7.8 A stirring of affections during the compositional process

Now that I can reflect on how I worked to compose my new Laments, I realize that the emotional sensations I am so accustomed to when performing were a major guiding factor throughout the creative process. The implementation of compositional elements from 17^th-century Laments was always confirmed by my own emotional impulse before being finalized. To test this, I would listen to the midi track generated by the composition software I was using, mentally singing along (a specialized audiation practice I use as a means of silent study and for a last moment of centring before going onstage for a performance). I would experiment with a melodic line until I was able to sink into it and could imagine myself singing it in the same manner as I would one of the historic Laments.

This is why the mixture of practical and analytical study of the 17^th-century works was so integral to this project; analyzing the pre-existing repertoire allowed me to see what tools were being used to elicit an emotional response and performing them enabled me to experience their pathetic power. Unconsciously, the emergence of these pathetic responses within myself became the overarching aesthetic guide in my compositional process. Thus, my Laments for a Modern World, while not composed in a purely historical manner, have achieved a level of historical aestheticism I was not anticipating.

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