This paper aims at bringing to the fore what it means to consider the phenomenon of improvisation as both meaningful and not governed by any external criteria. Namely, I will assume that improvisation takes on a peculiar, or even “radical,” sense in so far as it is something strictly contingent but not merely accidental. Whether such a conception is possible, under which theoretical conditions and with which (if any) profitable implications are the issues that will be addressed here. Needless to say, I believe this conception is possible and fruitful. In my opinion, it allows us to grasp the aesthetic root of the meaningful interaction with the environment that characterizes human beings. The text is divided into three parts. The first part (§§ 1–3) revolves around cardinal features of radical improvisation, such as the intertwining of “form” and “content,” the interactional field structure that is proper to experience, and the “primality” of this kind of creativity. The second part (§ 4) deals with some reflections provided by Merleau-Ponty on the expressive language serving to introduce the key concept of resonance. Finally, the last part (§§ 5–7) follows the red thread of the resonance phenomenon, in order to show the main theoretical implications that can be drawn from the approach adopted here.
Improvisation as Resonance
MATTEUCCI, GIOVANNI
2021
Abstract
This paper aims at bringing to the fore what it means to consider the phenomenon of improvisation as both meaningful and not governed by any external criteria. Namely, I will assume that improvisation takes on a peculiar, or even “radical,” sense in so far as it is something strictly contingent but not merely accidental. Whether such a conception is possible, under which theoretical conditions and with which (if any) profitable implications are the issues that will be addressed here. Needless to say, I believe this conception is possible and fruitful. In my opinion, it allows us to grasp the aesthetic root of the meaningful interaction with the environment that characterizes human beings. The text is divided into three parts. The first part (§§ 1–3) revolves around cardinal features of radical improvisation, such as the intertwining of “form” and “content,” the interactional field structure that is proper to experience, and the “primality” of this kind of creativity. The second part (§ 4) deals with some reflections provided by Merleau-Ponty on the expressive language serving to introduce the key concept of resonance. Finally, the last part (§§ 5–7) follows the red thread of the resonance phenomenon, in order to show the main theoretical implications that can be drawn from the approach adopted here.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
