In the words of Joel Ryan, musical instruments are “embodiments of music theory” [31]. In search of a music concept that defines my personal musical path and aesthetic, I started to practice with developing different intonation and musical scales. Like a piano, which embodies “the division in octaves in a well-tempered tuning system.” (Baalman, 2019. pg.237), I aimed to build an instrument inspired by the development of a specific musical system, not as a format or a frame, but a system that takes artistic design and exploration as a reference and starting point for creativity.
When looking for the application of new sonorites reflecting other cultures and their instruments, I decided to explore a different tuning system for tuning Knurl’s strings. I opted for a 31-TET tuning system that I deduced would be the most accessible and applicable for almost any musical situation. I arrived at this decision because 31-TET is composed of a circle of harmonics that are divided in intervals familiar to a 5th, which facilitates the understanding. In this case, from a western perspective, a musician who plays Knurl could always be ‘in tune’ even when playing a 31-TET instrument.
I noticed that the pattern of a standard cello string set (C G D A) was present in each opposite face of the circle, but ½ ¾ higher or ¼ lower than this conventional string set. As a cellist, using this pattern with 6 notes to represent 4 different 6 cello strings allowed me to introduce and understand the many possible relationships I could create with this system.
3.2.1.1. Practice
Choosing the journey of extended intonation was a long process starting from my youth’s fascination about microtonality in modern Brazilian music. My musical intentions behind creating Knurl resulted from this interest and my personal passion for the polyphonic sound in the lower range of the cello. For instance, some of my earlier solo cello compositions (EX, 2018; INNERE, 2016; GLANCE, 2015) involved practicing the composition of possible harmonics and multiphonics into a polyphonic combination. This included their ability to produce beating and other psychoacoustic effects, such as sympathetic resonance. Using 24 strings to explore these types of sonic combinations and their respective timbres developed easily into a theme I could explore for this research project.
By practicing and imposing this tuning system, I learned to present the contrast of each set of strings by rotating the instrument to the right or the left with a customized 3D ring structure designed for Knurl. With this intention I learned to embody the sonic stress or release by turning it right or left to play a set of 6 cello strings microton higher or lower.
Applying 24 strings into a thin material was a challenge for the 3D printed structure. Since resonance and sound projection is achieved by the stiffness and elasticity of a material (Duerick, 2021), It was important to test the stress limits of the chosen material (RPETG), sometimes coming to the point of breaking the whole structure.
As I learned about the properties of 3D printing, I discovered that there are different types of stresses: such as impact resistance (dynamic), tensile strength (static); which also contain specific qualities for stiffness, elasticity, resistance and grip. In order to test those specific qualities that 3D printing could embody, I designed a cello bridge 5 mm deep to test the strength resistance of PETG framed into a topological design. I used a 0.3 mm layer height and 10% infill. This helped me to practice and understand the stress on the instrument and how to release it by being more aware of the instrument’s topology.
3.1.3. Artistic Result
- Fisherman friend (artwork)
‘Chasing breath’ is a new album release where I play the Knurl in a way that alludes to my experiences diving underwater and seeing seascapes in southern Croatia. This project is a collection of thoughts and insights about the local culture, diversity and sustainability in this part of the world. The Fisherman friend is an artwork released in this album applying different combinations of open strings using this tuning system.
This is a story about a drunken fisherman who crashed his boat 20 years ago on some rocks of a small island in Tmara national park. Inspired by this place and the story, I used the combination of different sets of strings to represent an ancient and calm plucked instrument, originally from the island Tmara (where I spent time diving). The whole piece is performed using plucked open strings of the instrument. Embodying the new tuning system for a whole year has allowed me to know intuitively for this composition the combinations of microtones, exploring combinations in chords or counterpointed voices in time .
