UdK Berlin | WiSe 2023/24 | Prof. Dr.

Tom Rojo Poller

NEW/OLD SIMPLICT/COMPLEXIT/Y/IES

The notions of complexity and simplicity have been playing an important role in pursuing the 20th/21th-century project of
a modernist music. Be it on a (self)-de,natory, descriptive, analytical or normative level, the implications of labelling phe-
nomena as complex, simple or even simplistic (such as in ›New Complexity‹ or ›Neue Einfachheit‹) seem to be manifold,
intricate, and not uncommonly somewhat divisive. But what essentially do complexity and simplicity refer to? Are they
contradictory and mutually exclusive or interdependent and reconcilable concepts? In which forms and on which levels
do they manifest experientially and how do they apply to the notions of creativity, aesthetic experience, and value judge-
ments? By closely listening to and open-mindedly discussing music of both recent and historic times, we will investigate
suchlike questions and, most importantly, ask ourselves: How is all of this relevant to our own musical activities here and
now?

Dates: 25.10., 08.11., 22.11., 06.12., 20.12.2023, 17.01., 31.01., 14.02.2024

Time: 14-17h
Room: BU 310

Link to the seminar folder:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1cXPA44vGY7qS-4VSrtKtv7o5hjXm19bc?usp=sharing
DEFINITIONS

DICTIONARY (COLLINS)

Complexity is the state of having many diJerent parts connected or related to each other in a complicated way.
"...a diplomatic tangle of great complexity."
"...the increasing complexity of modern weapon systems"
Synonyms: complication, involvement, intricacy, entanglement
 descriptive aspect ("being the state") having to do with multiplicity and relationality

Simplicity

1. The simplicity of something is the fact that it is not complicated and can be understood or done easily.
"The apparent simplicity of his plot is deceptive."
"Because of its simplicity, this test could be carried out easily by a family doctor."
Synonyms: straightforwardness, ease, clarity, obviousness
 mental aspect (understanding), performative aspect (doing)

2. When you talk about something's simplicity, you approve of it because it has no unnecessary parts or complicated details.
"...fussy details that ruin the simplicity of the design"
"A pair of jewelled earrings will liven up this dress without detracting from its simplicity."
Synonyms: plainness, restraint, purity, cleanlines
 evaluative (including aesthetic) aspect
INTRODUCTORY SESSION

TWO BASIC QUESTIONS

I) What is complexity/simplicity for you?

II) In which way is complexity/simplicity relevant for your artistic work?

1. Sit ve minutes with the questions and jot anything down that seems relevant to you.
2. For the next ve minutes team up with your neighbour, discuss with them what you've written down previously, and boil down your an -
swers to three points that you completely agree upon.
3. Repeat step 2) in a larger group.

RESULTS
1) multi-layered information (density, simultaneity...), potential for a multiplicity of perspective, relational concepts, inherent relativity,
strongly subjective depending on individual experience, applicable in di3erent contexts of musical manifestations

2) importance of dealing with both concepts in creating music, relating the concepts in the process of creation, contextualisation as
as strategy working with complexity/simplicity
ETYMOLOGY

simplicity (n.)
late 14c., "singleness of nature, unity, indivisibility; immutability," from Old French simplicite (12c., Modern French simplicité), from Latin simplicitatem
(nominative simplicitas) "state of being simple, frankness, openness, artlessness, candor, directness," from simplex (genitive simplicis) "simple" (see sim -
plex). The sense of "ignorance" is from c. 1400; that of "simplicity of expression, plainness of style" is by early 15c. Middle English also had simplesse,
from French, and compare simpleness. The earliest was simplete, "lack of ostentation," c. 1200, from Old French.

complex (adj.)
1650s, "composed of interconnected parts, formed by a combination of simple things or elements," from French complexe "complicated, complex, intric-
ate" (17c.), from Latin complexus "surrounding, encompassing," past participle of complecti "to encircle, embrace," in transferred use, "to hold fast, mas -
ter, comprehend," from com "with, together" (see com-) + plectere "to weave, braid, twine, entwine". The meaning "involved, intricate, complicated, not
easily analysed" is ,rst recorded 1715. Complex sentence, for one containing one or more subordinate clauses in addition to the principal clause, is at -
tested from 1776.

USAGE FREQUENCY
WIKIPEDIA

Simplicity is the state or quality of being simple. Something easy to understand or explain seems simple, in contrast to something complic-
ated. In some uses, the label "simplicity" can imply beauty, purity, or clarity. In other cases, the term may suggest a lack of nuance or com -
plexity relative to what is required.

The concept of simplicity is related to the ,eld of epistemology and philosophy of science (e.g., in Occam's razor). Religions also reQect on
simplicity with concepts such as divine simplicity. In human lifestyles, simplicity can denote freedom from excessive possessions or distrac -
tions, such as having a simple living style. In some cases, the term may have negative connotations, as when referring to someone as a sim -
pleton.

Complexity characterises the behaviour of a system or model whose components interact in multiple ways and follow local rules, leading to
non-linearity, randomness, collective dynamics, hierarchy, and emergence.

The term is generally used to characterize something with many parts where those parts interact with each other in multiple ways, culminat-
ing in a higher order of emergence greater than the sum of its parts. The study of these complex linkages at various scales is the main goal of
complex systems theory.

The intuitive criterion of complexity can be formulated as follows: a system would be more complex if more parts could be distinguished, and
if more connections between them existed.
THE RELATION BEWTEEN COMPLEXITY AND SIMPLICITY

In philosophy, Occam's razor is the problem-solving principle that recommends searching for explanations constructed with the smallest
possible set of elements. It is also known as the principle of parsimony or the law of parsimony (Latin: lex parsimoniae). Attributed to William
of Ockham, a 14th-century English philosopher and theologian, it is frequently cited as "Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem",
which translates as "Entities must not be multiplied beyond necessity", although Occam never used these exact words. Correlated with
parsimony, the ontological principle of simplicity, is the syntactical principle of elegance, which bridges the gap between scienti,c and aes -
thetic contexts.
Occam's razor advocates that when presented with competing hypotheses about the same prediction, one should prefer the one that re -
quires the fewest assumptions and that this is not meant to be a way of choosing between hypotheses that make diJerent predictions. Simil-
arly, in science, Occam's razor is used as an abductive heuristic in the development of theoretical models rather than as a rigorous arbiter
between candidate models.
TEXT/QUOTES

THE POWER OF SIMPLICITY

Simplicity implies comprehensibility, and comprehensibility implies a short path to action, a method for decision if decision is needed.
A short path to action is valuable if survival depends on making the right decision.
Science loves simple explanations because they are easy to test, and science can only make hay out of falsi,able theories. Without falsi,ca-
tion, there is no cutting away, we are adrift and rudderless in an ocean of possibility. This is as perilous for art as it is for science.
Occam’s Razor is enjoying a renaissance in our age of computers and algorithms and data, as people try to mimic human learning processes
with arti,cial intelligence and to understand and optimize that process.
Many aspects of explanation and simplicity can be quanti,ed in the context of computer programs and data, and Occam’s Razor is getting a
good sharpening as a result.
But Albert Einstein cautioned against going whole hog on the simplicity theme. The “Einstein Constraint” has often been paraphrased as “A
model of the world should be as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
In other words, you can overdo it. There is a sweet spot that needs to be found.
But what does art have to do with models of nature?
I submit to you that every work of artistic creativity is a tiny world unto itself that has to “make sense” in a self-consistent way, just as we at -
tempt to make sense of Nature with scienti,c laws and principles.
This “making sense” in art is about getting at and creating meaning.
Like the little asteroid in Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince, each work of art is a whole ecology of relationships that has to work to -
gether to be meaningful, to take us in, to suspend disbelief that the art(-i,cial) world is not “real.”
Art is by de,nition arti,cial, that is to say, human-made as contrasted to the natural world.
We suspend disbelief because it’s not the natural world, but it has to be consistent like the natural world.
Our aesthetics come from the natural world because our imperative is survival.
We watch a movie or a play or read a novel. We know that it’s ,ction but we suspend disbelief and allow ourselves to be fully absorbed and
moved by the art if it meets certain conditions.
It’s self consistent.
It makes sense on some level.
It’s not true but it could be true.
In essence, Art mirrors life.
St. Exupéry also said: "Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."
As a creative, how do you ,nd your way to something compelling and aesthetic?
If we accept that aesthetics is rooted in Nature and survival, we need to be parsimonious in our use of resources.
Creatives often employ constraints to achieve aesthetic eJects and to make the process of sense-making more straightforward: Special
scales in music, a limited palette in some paintings, a subset of possible dance moves in choreography, certain lighting and camera angles in
cinematography to name a few.
As the great polymath Leonardo Da Vinci said: "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."
Nancy Hillis
TEXT/QUOTES

My freedom will be so much the greater and more meaningful the more narrowly I limit my ,eld of action and the more I
surround myself with obstacles. Whatever diminishes constraint diminishes strength. The more constraints one imposes,
the more one frees one’s self of the chains that shackle the spirit.
Igor Stravinsky
TEXT/QUOTES

In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.
Shunryu Suzuki
TEXT/QUOTES

I met Schoenberg and he is simplicity and genuineness itself.

John Cage
TEXT/QUOTES

When I imagine, as I sometimes do, that evolution were possible, complexity is not its goal, but perhaps the safety net
for a possible immediacy. This opens up the possibility to exercise suVcient safeguards in an ever ,ner woven net of ab -
stractions, if not to escape directly, to at least be able to risk a glimpse through the netting: a glimpse un,ltered through
abstraction, signs, predetermined patterns, a glimpse of unaltered reality.
Peter Ablinger
SIMPLICITY/COMPLEXITY IN MUSIC

DIFFERENTIATION OF REFERENTIAL ASPECTS

- conceptual (labels for and general descriptions of music, poetics of music, judgements about music etc.)
 What is complex about a concept?
 What needs to change in order to describe something as simple that previously was considered complex (and vice versa)?

- performative (modes, states, and strategies of (re-)creating, or receiving music)

 Are there complex actions/are there simple actions?
 What is complex or simple about actions?

- structural/analytical (descriptions of musical facts)

 What is a simple/what is a complex structure?
 Is complexity in the structure itself or the description of the structure?

- experiential (the perception of music in the sense ,elds and the emotional appraisal of it)
 Can experience be complex or simple? If so, what about it is simple/complex?
 What about perceived emotions? Can they be simple/complex? If so, what about them is simple/complex?
 Is there pure perceiving? If so, it is simple or complex?
 How many experiences are there?
POSSIBLE TOPICS

'Neue Einfachheit'
(Detlev Müller-Siemens, Wolfgang von Schweinitz, Manfred Trojahn, Wolfgang Rihm, Babette Koblenz etc.)

'New Complexity'
(Brian Ferneyhough, Michael Finnisy, Claus-SteJen Mahnkopf, Chaya Czernowin etc.)

Generating Music from scratch/from simple initial conditions

(The principle of canon, early serialism, Nancarrow, algorithmic music)

Old Complexity
(Ars subtilior, Bach, Beethoven et. al.)

Old and new 'Simplexity'

(Monteverdi, Mozart, Steven Takasugi, Eliane Radigue et. al.)

Old and new 'Neo-Classic(ism)s'

(Lera Auerbach, 'Neo-Klassik')

'Spiritual' Simplicity
(Arvo Pärt, Galina Ustwolskaja, John Luther Adams et al.)

Tradition as link between simplicity and complexity

(Wolfgang Rihm, Jörg Widman et. al.)