Prototype clarinet tested in a semi-anechoic room
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Music, maestro!
Music is an art, but it cannot exist without science. To celebrate the Fête de la musique which we can inevitably expect to be different from all others, you can follow the ethnologists, physicists and mathematicians in their attempt to unravel its secrets.
Indeed, the Fête de la musique certainly has a special atmosphere this year, with collective freedom and the required restraints linked to the continuation of lingering remnants of sanitary measures. Nevertheless, it has the benefit, as it does every year, of reminding us of the extent to which music is a constant, and a universal asset which transcends geographical and social boundaries.
Beyond its purely artistic aspect, it is above all a culture shared throughout the world, despite the extreme diversity in which it is expressed. "Tell me what music you make, and I'll tell you who you are...". In essence, this is what ethnologists have been telling us for decades, travelling the world to study all the subtlety of the intertwining relationship between musical practices and cultures, whether local or global. On every continent, music is inseparable from many rituals, festivals and ceremonies. It holds societies together, just as much as language does. It is constantly evolving, just like societies do, sometimes breaking away from its religious and symbolic origins to take on new forms while continuing to weave connections between the old and new. It then becomes folklore, like the gongs played by the Vietnamese ethnic groups in the highlands. And sometimes, on the other hand, it is an anchor in history, like the religious hymns that can be heard throughout Andalusia every year during Holy Week. Closer to home, the emergence of the punk movement both crystallised, and catalysed young people's aspirations for more freedom from overly restrictive rules.
Having said that, sociology, ethnology and history are not the only scientific disciplines used to understand what makes music such a unique art. See, for example, how neuroscience researchers are using ingenious creativity to understand the underlying rules of musical improvisation, similar to those of language. You will be amazed by the piano that can reproduce Chopin's distinctive style on its own, thanks to the work of mathematicians and computer scientists. And be grateful to those physicists who endeavour to unravel the secrets of the instruments to constantly improve them, following in the footsteps of the greatest instrument makers of the Renaissance.
Music is therefore also a matter of science, and on 21 June we have a wide selection of reports on the subject for you to explore before you go and listen to your local musicians demonstrate their talent again after a long silence.
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