Page 113 - Composing Processes and Artistic Agency

102 Orchestrating different forms of knowledge

absorb different scholarly texts dealing with music history and theory, musical
analysis, aesthetics and philosophy, the psychology of listening, organo-
logy, acoustics and much more. This knowledge is propositional, in other
words, it is articulated in conceptual, mathematical and technical languages.
Its acquisition is preconditionally dependent on composers’ being highly, text-
specifically competent in reading and understanding. Some composers also
took academic degrees alongside their composition studies, usually in musi-
cology or philosophy. Their access to scholarly knowledge thus oscillates
from a professional grasp of meaning to more associative links and tentative
interpretations of scholarly texts.
We use the expression “local knowledge” to encompass, for instance,
knowledge of the professional networks in the local art world, of music
agencies, publishers and funding organisations, of the activities of colleagues,
contents of newspaper articles and information about performances and
festivals. Such knowledge not only relates to discursive aspects, but also
influences practical actions. Local knowledge is distinct from systematic
scholarly knowledge because it primarily evolves out of social participation
and communication in everyday contexts and not academic scholarly contexts.
Practitioners judge its validity and relevance based not on the differentiation
categories true/false or justified/speculative, but on their own involvement,
interests and collectively established “regimes of competence” (Wenger 2002:
136f.). Local knowledge includes key information for everyday conversations
and professional interactions. It guides composers in their everyday lives,
shapes their identity and consolidates their belonging to their professional
practice community.
By formal technical knowledge, we do not mean practical technical skills,
but explicit knowledge of the way objects function and of their technical
characteristics, for example knowledge of the range of notes and volume
levels of individual instruments, possible ways of combining different instru-
mental sounds, the various types and possible applications of music software
for certain tasks, and various devices. This knowledge is largely formal and
propositional, meaning that there are corresponding texts, instructions and
descriptions. Knowledge of technical contents by itself does not generate
practical technical competence. Formal technical knowledge is important to
be able to write for specific instruments, use the instruments’ sound potential
and possible play techniques in a differentiated manner, accommodate room
acoustics, and communicate with other specialists.
All forms of formal propositional knowledge that we have mentioned
are codified by language or symbols. They are general knowledge since people
have not necessarily gained them through personal experience. People acquire
scholarly, local and formal technical knowledge through reading, commu-
nication and other researches. As with artistic practical knowing, these three
forms of knowledge are also simultaneous. Our conception of formal propo-
sitional knowledge as encompassing scholarly, local and formal technical
knowledge is therefore not hierarchical.