Fausto Romitelli’s “Syntactic Pertinences” of Timbre: Analytical Notes on «Lesson II» of «Professor Bad Trip»

Abstract

This article focuses on Fausto Romitelli’s Professor Bad Trip: Lesson II, examining the interplay between harmonic and inharmonic spectra and how their alternation creates tension and resolution. Utilizing sources from the Fondo Fausto Romitelli at the Fondazione Cini, it also explores his theorisation of spectral morphology, distinguishing between the categorisation and aggregation of sounds. The discussion is contextualized by Romitelli’s analysis in Pertinence du timbre, where dissonance and consonance are contrasted to generate perceptual vectors and tensions. Additionally, the article investigates figural deformations in Romitelli’s music, where musical objects function as relational systems. These objects, including rhythmic-melodic figures, interact through vectorial oppositions, shaping the composition’s formal structure. Examples from Lesson II illustrate how harmonic modulations derived from spectral syntheses anticipate the harmonic frequency plan of later sections. This analysis underscores Romitelli’s innovative approach to sound and form, situating his work within the broader spectrum of contemporary spectral music.