Hocket

Splitting a musical phrase between multiple performers

Wikipedia Definition Wikipedia article

In music, a hocket is the rhythmic linear technique using the alternation of notes, pitches, or chords. This is opposed to the alternation of phrases, or antiphony. In medieval practice of hocket, the melody in two voices moves (sometimes quickly) back and forth in such a manner that one voice is still while the other moves, and vice-versa.

Historical Context

In Europe – and particularly medieval England, the hocket was used in most vocal music – sacred in the 13th Century and secular in the 14th. The device was not simply used at all times. In the vocal music of the 13th and 14th centuries, there would be many parts singing and quite often, the small phrases of the hocket would overlap – cleverly disguising it within the piece.

African music is known for it’s polyphony and antiphony as well as hocketing – all making up aspects of African ‘multi-part’ technique. Hocketing can be used for drumming patterns – the rhythms being split between drums and connecting to form the overall pattern or more simply, with the ‘pan pipes’ used. The pan pipe technique requires each performer to have a pipe of different length and width which dictates the pitch. Then (usually over an 8 beat pattern), each performer is told to play on certain beats (or off beats) and when played together, a hocketed melody and harmonies is formed!

The Modern Hocket

Grove states: Grove article

In modern composers' works, hocket-like effects are the result of concern with texture or colour, while non-Western ‘hocketing’ generally results either from the necessity of allocating portions of a melody or of a complex sound pattern (as in the gamelan music of Bali) to more than one instrument because of limitations of range, or from the social partiality for rapid and colourful antiphonal interchange.

So the hocket is still used for artisitc purposes but the more interesting part of the Grove article what was stated about hockets being used due to the limitations of an instrument. Research on the medieval hocket (partiuclarly in the 13th/14th centuries) has mentioned no other reason for using the hocket other than artistic purposes.

Louis Andreissen

Louis Andreissen was born in 1939, is still alive and was essential to developing the contemporary art hocket. His was musically influenced by a number of talented family members but had formal compositional training with Kees van Baaren and also with Luciano Berio.

Andresissen founded a group in 1976 called “Hoketus” (which later disbanded in 1987) that aided the contemporary art movement. The group was comprised of: 2 panpipes, 2 alto saxophones, 2 bass guitars, 2 pianos, 2 electric pianos and 2 congas. He composed, especially for the group (and also the reason the group was formed) a piece called “Hocketus”.

The group ('Hoketus'), had very strigent rules in relation to their performances: Hoketus Rules

• The group always performed with amplification set at a high volume
• The two groups of instruments situated themselves as far apart as possible from one another on stage
• Personal expression was not permitted and
• Melodies could only be built through the interlocking of single notes or chords

Icebreaker and David Lang

Icebreaker was formed in 1989 (shortly after Hoketus disbanded), and have continued on with the Hoketus legacy by performing similar repertoire and using almost the same instrumentation. Icebreaker are currently still performing around the world.

David Lang is one of the many composers for Icebreaker. He was born in 1957 and has great personal achievements with two university degrees, a doctorate as well as many prestigious awards and prizes. His profile on the Icebreaker website Icebreaker quotes his music as a “distinct sound fusing the traditions of classical music with urban aggressiveness, where melodies accompanied by noise and subtle harmonies are pulled apart by pounding rhythms”.

Bibliography

SANDERS,E.H. 2006 "Hocket", http://www.grovemusic.com.ezp02.library.qut.edu.au/shared/views/article.html?from=search&session_search_id=628844465&hitnum=1§ion=music.13115 accessed on 29/09/06

The Living Composers Project http://composers21.com/compdocs/andriesl.htm accessed on 4/10/06

Hoketus, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoketus accessed on 29/09/06

Hocket, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hocket accessed on 29/09/06

Icebreaker, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icebreaker accessed on 3/10/06

Icebreaker Composers, David Lang, http://www.icebreaker.org.uk/ accessed on 3/10/06

• Representative composers:
  • Louis Andriessen
  • Meredith Monk
  • Stephen Scott
  • Steve Reich
  • James Macmillan
  • Steve Martland
  • James Tenney