Modelling tonal context dynamics by temporal multi-scale analysis

This work explores the multidimensional, ambiguous and temporal characteristics of tonality from a holistic perspective. The approach relies on interfacing pitch-spaces with time vs. time-scale descriptions. In this combined representation, the spatial and temporal hierarchies of tonality are evidenced simultaneously and in relation to each other. A visual exploration method is proposed for the analysis of tonal context in music works, using a simple model of tonal induction. A geometrical colouring solution, based on the topology of the pitch-space, approaches the perceptual correlation between the tonal properties and the visual representation. A relational taxonomy is proposed for describing tonal ambiguity, which leads to extending the method for the analysis of music based on tonal systems beyond the major-minor paradigm. Two perceptual studies are approached from this descriptive framework. The first study evidences the impact of time-scale in a simple model of tonal induction, and analyses the mathematical artefacts introduced by evaluations in scaled spaces. In the second study, a model of contextual instability is proposed and discussed in relation to the modelling of tonal tension. The analysis and representation methods are then generalised, through a set-class theoretical domain, in order to be applied with any pitch-based music.