The Big Note: The Ultimate Gesture: The incorporation of time and space in performing, composing, arranging and producing Frank Zappa’s music

Paul Carr

Research output: Contribution to conferencePaper

Abstract

Often regarded as one of the most prolific and versatile composers of the rock idiom, Frank Zappa's ability to amalgamate numerous popular music styles alongside musique concrète, electronic, and serial techniques make him a fascinating case study on the interdisciplinary roles of performer, composer, arranger and producer. One of the earliest musicians to successfully and consistently experiment with fusing these skill bases, Zappa's oeuvre is now gradually beginning to be recognized as one of the most prolific and original in the history of popular music. Using these factors as creative mediums, Zappa can be considered the only rock musician to consciously and consistently engage with time, space and place throughout his entire career, having a compulsive fascination with ensuring his entire life's work was considered part of his Big Note philosophy, with many of his performances, compositions, arrangements and productions being part of an overarching organisational structure he sub texted conceptual continuity. He also developed the terminology project/object to describe the difference between the completed work of art and the process of redefining it, and made countless rearrangements of many of his compositions, clearly considering individual works of art as being in a constant state of development. To achieve these aims, he utilised available studio technology to create highly original 'virtual studio' and 'virtual live performances', which comprise of clues alluding to both his own music and popular culture at large. Examples range from the experimental employment of Xenochonic and cut and paste techniques,1[1] to alluding to figures such as Frank Sinatra, Richard Strauss and The Beatles. This paper examines how Zappa pushed the boundaries of available studio technology to develop compositions, (re)arrangements and performances/virtual performances of his work, while creatively engaging with time, space and place through blurring the distinction between studio and live environments.
Original languageEnglish
Publication statusPublished - 1 Nov 2009
Event The Fifth Annual Art of Record Production Conference - University of Glamorgan, Cardiff
Duration: 1 Nov 20091 Nov 2009

Presentation

Presentation The Fifth Annual Art of Record Production Conference
Period1/11/091/11/09

Keywords

  • frank zappa
  • popular music
  • music technology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The Big Note: The Ultimate Gesture: The incorporation of time and space in performing, composing, arranging and producing Frank Zappa’s music'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this