The Universal Grammar of Music

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The Universal Grammar of Music

• by
• Kristen Gattian
• Taryn ONeill
• Daniel Sternberg

2
Underlying Arguments

• Parallels exist between language and music.
• Theories of linguistic development and language
  acquisition can be applied to music.
• Similarly to language, there exist certain
  cross-cultural universal elements in music.
• Linguistic choices, based on the universal
  grammar, are similar to choices made in musical
  interpretation. Both are usually based on
  identical cultural values.

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Chomskys Linguistic Theory

• Chomsky proposed a generative theory of
  linguistics. Its focus is on how human beings
  are able to create and organize linguistic
  expressions.
• There exists a language organ, a region of the
  brain, that contains the information necessary to
  understand and generate linguistic structures.
• Humans have a genetic predisposition to learn
  language. Language learning during childhood is
  part of the bodys preprogrammed pattern of
  growth.
• Humans have explicit and highly articulate
  linguistic knowledge that has no basis in
  linguistic experience.
• There is a Universal Grammar from which all
  aspects of every human language can be derived.
  The universal grammar is the set of principles
  that all languages have in common. The
  principles cover grammar, speech sounds, and
  meaning. The universal grammar is the inherited
  genetic endowment that makes it possible for us
  to speak and learn human languages.

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Jackendoff and Lerdahl

• Lerdahl and Jackendoff proposed a formal theory
  of tonal music based on the generative linguistic
  theory of Chomsky.
• The primary parallel between the generative
  theory of linguistics and the generative music
  theory is the combination of psychological
  concerns and the formal nature of the theory.
• There exist musical intuitions, unconscious
  principles by which the listener experienced in
  the idiom organizes what he hears beyond surface
  features (pitch, attack, duration, volume,
  timbre).
• The creation of an analytic system capable of
  expressing what a listener hears, a system of
  organization of musical events, is based on what
  the listener already knows intuitively.
• There exists a system of rules, or a musical
  grammar, that humans have a genetic
  predisposition to perceive.
• The formal organization of the grammar is
  universal, and the rules are largely universal.
  All that varies is the specific pitch relations
  that are mentioned in the rules.

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Five Universals of Music

• The existence of structures for grouping and
  phrasing.
• Organization via metrical structure, beat, or
  pulse.
• Pitch matter derived from some range of the
  overtone series.
• Form delineated through patterns of tension and
  relaxation.
• Functional ties to specific cultural activities,
  traditions, or values.

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Grouping and Phrasing

• The method of organizing short passages or
  melodic segments to form part of a larger unit.
• This parallels the grammar term phrase, which
  is defined as Two or more words in sequence
  that form a syntactic unit that is less than a
  complete sentence. (dictionary.com)

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Metrical Organization

• The division of time into measured units to
  create a steady beat or pulse.
• The organizational function of steady beat
  parallels the role of syntax rules.
• Accents that are implied by metrical organization
  parallel patterns of emphasis in speech.

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Pitch and the Overtone Series

• The overtone series refers to the naturally
  occurring pitches that are produced by the
  division of a sound wave.
• The size of the interval between two adjacent
  pitches is determined by the range of the
  overtone series used in various cultures.
• All possible pitches can be extracted from the
  overtone series. This is similar to Chomskys
  theory that all aspects of language can be
  extracted from within the mental language organ.

9
Tension and Relaxation

• Specific patterns of pitch relationships convey
  specific meanings. In particular, patterns of
  organizing pitched and/or rhythmic units convey
  various degrees of closure.
• This parallels the patterns of tension and
  relaxation in languagethe use of punctuation
  (period, comma, semi-colon) denotes varying
  degrees of closure.

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Cultural Function

• The stylistic techniques of the previous four
  universals are reflected in the way that music is
  used within a specific culture.
• For example, a specific rhythmic or melodic idea
  may reflect a specific traditional, religious, or
  ideological value shared by a community.
• In language, specific cultural values and norms
  are identified in the labels assigned to objects
  and/or actions.
• For example, Eskimos have twelve different words
  for snow because it is such a pervasive part of
  their daily lives.

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Western Tonal Music
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Hungarian Music
13
African Tribal Music
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Indian Ragas
15
Korean Traditional Music
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Parallels in Cultural Linguistic and Musical
Patterns

• Certain melodic or rhythmic features of a
  specific culture mirror speech patterns found in
  the same culture.
• These features come into existence because they
  are preferred over others by a given society.
• Oral traditions plays a key role in sustaining
  and creating a connection between both linguistic
  and musical preferences.
• For example, Hungarian and Scottish speech
  typically consists of words with a short-long
  syllable pattern.
• This speech rhythm is often mimicked in the
  rhythmic pattern

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Theoretical Implications

• Musical constructs exist within the human mind.
  Humans have a predisposition to organize and
  analyze music according to certain specific rules
• The close parallels between language and music
  that become clear when a generative theory is
  applied to each imply that methods of language
  instruction based on linguistic theories other
  than Chomskys generative theory may be validly
  applied to music education.
• Spoken language and music are closely related in
  the human brain. If a child developed in an
  environment as rich in musical stimuli as our
  environment is in linguistic stimuli, musical
  fluency might develop naturally.

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Limitations

• While events in language have specific meanings
  that are not open for interpretation, musical
  events do not have the same specific meaning. As
  such, rules for organization and analysis of
  music are broader and more abstract than those of
  language.
• A direct translation of aspects of language
  (syntax, semantics, phonology, etc.) to music
  terms is not entirely accurate. Due to the
  different nature of expression in language and
  music, each has characteristics that can be
  organized and analyzed within the context of
  language or of music, but they will not
  necessarily be parallel to each other.

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The End
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