Table Of ContentJohann
Friedrich
Wolfgang
Hasler
Towards Hermeticist Grammars of Music:
A Proposal for Systems of Composition Based on the Principles
of the Hermetic Tradition, with Musical Demonstrations
Submitted as fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy in Music (PhD in Music)
University of Newcastle upon Tyne
School of Arts and Cultures
November 2011
Abstract
This thesis is a composer‟s manual on how to select and appropriately use musical
materials in accordance with some of the parameters of the Hermetic Tradition.
It puts to the reader‟s consideration a few proposals for Hermeticist grammars of
musical composition. „Grammar‟ here is used in the sense of a set of rules which
govern the construction of musical discourse. Musical grammars thus comprise rules
pertaining to the construction and selection of both „lineal‟ musical materials such as
pitch rows, rhythms, motifs and timbres, as well as of simultaneous events such as
harmonic or contrapuntal textures.
The adjective „Hermeticist‟, derived from the noun Hermeticism, refers to a form of
traditional Western urban, learned and humanist occultism. This occultism is distinct
from folk, popular, or religious/devotional forms of magic, which also occur in the
West as well as in other cultures and societies. It is also distinct from other Western
occult movements that are either revivalist in their inspiration (such as Wicca or neo-
pagan religions) or related to the „pop culture‟ of the last quarter of the twentieth
century, such as the movements of New Age and Chaos Magick.
The first part of the thesis, the textual component, briefly examines the historical
encounters between Hermeticism and music theory, very few of which have produced
sounding pieces of music, while most of them have happened exclusively at the
theoretical, philosophical or mystical-speculative levels.
i
In the second part, the portfolio of musical compositions, I demonstrate the
application of the proposed methods through pieces of music I have composed using
the historical, theoretical and technical background presented at length in part 1. I
further comment on these musical results through annotations and description of pre-
compositional work, context research and composition processes used in each
individual piece.
ii
Dedication
Hoc opus dedicatus est ad amicum meum carissimum, compositor neogranatensis
Rodophus Adlitus [Hispanice Rodolfo Acosta dicitur], qui in decennium postremum
saeculo vigentessimo provocatio aesthetica creativitatisque mihi iecit: Hujus liber
eventus illi est.
iii
Acknowledgements
Since the focus of this thesis is a creative artistic proposal, I have not personally
consulted, translated, edited or interpreted any original historical archival material
which could be technically considered as primary sources. Nonetheless, I have
reviewed a substantial number of studies on the history of speculative music to
construct the first part of my thesis and so I am indebted to the arduous and
meticulous work of many musicologists and historians who have done all this
cataloguing and analysis, and whose work was the starting point of my own
proposals. The bibliography and references give credit to their work, which I have
consulted, but beyond credit, since their contributions are the basis for my theoretical
proposals, I feel they more deserved to be acknowledged than simply credited. Most
useful of them all was the substantial work on this direction carried out by Professor
Joscelyn Godwin since the 70s up to the present time, undoubtedly the most
systematic and meticulous historical analyses of speculative music that I came across
in over five years of research for this thesis. As a composer I have taken all of their
studies and contributions, and tried to build from them workable systems of musical
composition, which I adapted and later used to compose the musical works submitted
in the portfolio, as the second part of this thesis.
For their fascinating work which laid the foundations of my own proposals and
compositions, I am truly thankful.
iv
I am also very happy to be able to include a CD with the recording of eleven of the
twelve pieces from my portfolio, which were performed at a public concert thanks to
the support and interest of several students of the Department of Music of Newcastle
University (duly credited on the track list included in Appendix III to the portfolio),
and the logistic and financial support of the „Centre for Excellence in Teaching and
Learning – Music and Inclusivity‟ of the International Centre for Music Studies,
Newcastle University. This audio “bonus” to the written thesis and scores would not
have been possible without the support of the Centre and the interest of my fellow
students-performers, so their participation and faith in the project deserves
acknowledgement.
Regarding the day-to-day support and interaction which makes a research project
possible (even more so when embarking on one‟s first extended research project of
this kind), I would like to thank my supervisors, Professor Dr. Agustín Fernández and
Dr. Paul Attinello of Newcastle University, as well as the academic staff at the
International Centre for Music Studies of the same with whom I often held fruitful
discussions. Among them, those that had to put up most frequently with my peculiar
idea of esotericism and music deserve special mention: Drs. Ian Biddle, Richard
Wistreich, Bethany Lowe, Richard Elliott, and Professor David Clarke.
My dear wife Julia Premauer had to endure a seven-year-long research and writing
process, and this is quite a feat that I must thank her for, from the bottom of my heart.
To all of them, my heartfelt gratitude.
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Table of contents
Parts of the Chapters or sections of the thesis Page
thesis
FRONT MATTER Abstract i
Dedication iii
Acknowledgements iv
Table of contents vi
List of figures x
List of tables xii
Epigraph xiv
Introduction 1
I.1 Research questions 1
I.2 Aims and objectives of the thesis 2
I. 3 What this thesis is about and how it is strictured 2
PART I:
THE THESIS Chapter 1: Speculative Music and its Repertoires 22
1.1 Chapter Introduction 22
1.1.1 Speculative music as musical metaphysics 24
1.1.2 The „phenomena of metaphysics‟, or the pieces of 25
speculative music
1.2 A proposal for a model of cataloguing musical 28
repertoire
1.2.1 Speculative music as musical occultism – 28
expanding a definition
1.2.2 Approaches to defining „esoteric‟ and „occult‟ 34
when applied to music
1.2.3 The three levels of representation of the occult in 37
speculative music
Level 1 – The aesthetic, intuitional or inspired 38
level
Level 2 – The symbolic level 43
Level 3 – The Speculative level 47
1.3 Chapter Conclusions 54
Chapter 2: Alchemical and Astrological Grammars of Music 55
2.1 Astrology and alchemy: sister techniques 55
2.2 Astrological Grammars of Music 63
2.2.1 The four main components of the contemporary 63
astrological chart
2.2.2 Musical attributions of the planets 68
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2.2.2.1 Planetary attributions based on the orbital distances 70
between the planets
2.2.2.2 Planetary attributions based on the orbital speeds of 73
the planets
2.2.2.3 Planetary attributions based on the spheres 77
representing the full musical range
2.2.3 Musical attributions of the zodiac and the houses 88
2.2.3.1 The Henschels‟ zodiac system 91
2.2.3.2 McMullin‟s zodiac system 93
2.2.3.3 Rosicrucian zodiac system 95
2.2.3.4 Anthroposophical zodiac system 97
2.2.3.5 A short note on the astrological houses 99
2.2.4 Musical attributions of the angular aspects 101
2.2.4.1 What aspects are, and how they relate to music 101
2.2.4.2 Ptolemy‟s assignment of intervals to aspects 105
2.2.4.3 Haase‟s compromise between logarithmic and lineal 108
systems
2.3 Chapter conclusions 110
Chapter 3: Cabalistic Grammars of Music 114
3.1 Chapter Introduction 114
3.1.1 Issues on spelling and transliteration of the Hebrew term 117
הלבק
3.2 How Cabala can be applied to musical parameters 120
3.2.1 Constituent parts of cabala 120
3.2.2 Numerology applied to music 125
3.2.2.1 Hebrew numerology (gematria) applied to music 132
3.3 Theories of Cabalistic Pitch 135
3.3.1 Extracting pitch series from words, names, phrases or magical 135
sigilla
3.3.2 Extracting pitch series from the magical sigils of the Hermetic 138
Tradition
3.3.2.1 Planetary seals 139
3.3.2.2 Magic squares 143
3.3.2.2.1 Origin of magic squares 149
3.3.2.2.2 Numeric and literal magic squares 150
3.3.3 Transforming the numbers or letters in magical squares into 151
pitches
3.3.3.1The numeric approach and some proposed methods of 152
applying it
3.3.3.1.2 A practical application of the numerical 158
methods discussed
3.3.3.2 The alphabetical approach and three methods of 161
applying it
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3.3.3.2.1 Other classical Hermetic correspondences of 162
the letters
3.3.3.2.2 A proposal by a modern cabalist 165
3.3.3.2.3 A proposal by a nineteenth-century occultist 167
3.3.3.2.4 Proposals by modern Hermeticists 169
3.3.4 Conclusion to the section on pitch: Cabalistic pitch systems as 177
mystical serialism
3.4 Theories of cabalistic harmony and counterpoint 180
3.4.1 Chords 180
3.4.1.1 “Serialistically” derived chords 180
3.4.1.2 Cabalistically derived chords 181
3.4.2 Proposals for Cabalistic counterpoint 187
3.4.2.1 Dyads and “cabalistic first-species counterpoint” 187
3.4.2.2 „Contrapuntual units‟ derived from Hermetic material 190
3.5 Theories of cabalistic musical time: rhythm and metre 192
3.5.1 Rhythm 192
3.5.1.1 The rhythmic technique of addition 194
3.5.1.2 The rhythmic technique of equal subdivision 196
3.5.1.3 Problems with the techniques as proposed, and 199
cabalistic solutions to them
3.5.1.3.1 Examples of non-correspondence between 202
musical and cabalistic numeric correspondences when
applied to rhythm
3.5.1.3.2 Cabalistic solutions to these problems 205
3.6 A short note on timbre 207
3.7 Chapter conclusions 208
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PART II: Preface to the musical portfolio 213
PORTFOLIO OF
MUSICAL Section 1 - Pieces composed at the Intuitional, Inspired 219
COMPOSITIONS, WITH and Aesthetic Level of Speculative Music
COMMENTARIES
1.1. Dicta Hermetica, a choral song cycle for SATB 220
choir a capella
1.2. Prayer of Osiris, for solo baritone, sustaining 239
instrument and additional melodic instruments and
voices
Section 2 - Pieces composed at the Symbolic Level of 255
Speculative Music
2.1. Ascension, spiritual portrait of a striving soul, for 256
solo piano
2.2. Ararita, for male choir, vocal soloist, low idiophone 265
and sustaining instrument
2.3. HaShem (The Name), for several vocal layers and 271
idiophone(s)
2.4. The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistos, for 295
male vocal ensemble, organ, harp and three glass
goblets
Section 3 - Pieces Composed at the Speculative Level of 350
Speculative Music
3.1. The first astrological house, for solo piano 351
3.2. I: T 17^H, for piano four hands 360
Preliminary note on The Cabalistic Cross and The Lesser 386
Banishing Ritual of the Pentagam
3.3. The Cabalistic Cross, for voice and melodic 403
instrument
3.4. The Cabalistic Cross, for two voices and melodic 404
instrument
3.5. The Cabalistic Cross, for SATB choir a capella 405
3.6. The Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram for 406
SATB choir and organ.
APPENDICES TO THE Appendix I to the Portfolio: The Complete Text of The 409
Exercise of Permuting the Letters of The Tetragrammaton, as
PORTFOLIO OF MUSICAL
COMPOSITIONS Described in Abraham Abulafia‟s Or’HaShekhal (The Light
of the Intellect)
Appendix II to the Portfolio: The Lesser Banishing Ritual of 414
the Pentagram in Full
Appendix III to the Portfolio: Track list for the accompanying 421
CD, which registers live performances of several of the works
included in this portfolio
REFERENCES OF Bibliography 423
WORKS CITED
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