Pulse: Journal for Music and Interdisciplinary Practices

REFERENCES TO EARLIER MUSICAL GENRES AND TOPICS IN SALVATORE SCIARRINO’S IL CANTO S’ATTRISTA, PERCHÉ?

Daniel Serrano — 2026-06-30

This paper examines Salvatore Sciarrino’s engagement with earlier musical genres in Il canto s’attrista, perché? (2019), focusing on two central references: the military march and the tempo notturno. Situated within a broader operatic tradition of mythological subjects and based on material derived from Aeschylus’s Agamemnon, Sciarrino’s opera reactivates historical genres not as direct quotations, but as transformed dramaturgical and compositional devices. The analysis first considers the march in Scene III, where Agamemnon’s return after the destruction of Troy is accompanied by a stylised and distorted march-like texture. Through rhythmic models such as dotted figures and triplets, as well as references to Verdi’s Marcia trionfale from Aida, Sciarrino evokes the genre’s ceremonial and military associations while subjecting them to fragmentation and theatrical deformation. The second part turns to the tempo notturno in Scene V, relating it to eighteenth- and nineteenth-century traditions of the notturno and nocturne, as well as to Sciarrino’s own sound worlds of darkness and heightened perception. Here, reduced instrumentation, fragile textures, air sounds, harmonic glissandi, and vocal writing create an atmosphere of suspended dramatic tension. The paper argues that Sciarrino fuses historical genre references with his distinctive compositional language in order to intensify dramatic situations and shape the listener’s perception of the action.

MAGIC TRICKS AND OTHER SPIELE: AN INTERDISCIPLINARY EXPLORATION OF THE PHENOMENON OF PERCEPTION AND ILLUSION IN MUSIC

Dhorn Taksinwarajan — 2026-06-30

Our perception of reality is often distorted. We tend to believe that the illusions we perceive are the truth, while in reality, everything is seen and heard differently by each individual. Magicians are the master manipulator of perception, illusion, and deception.

This paper takes a closer inspection to an interdisciplinary process leading to the creation of a series of pieces inspired by my exploration of music, magic, and illusions. Beginning from ancient magical practices to modern optical illusions, alongside auditory illusions and various techniques that were used to manipulate human perception.

ACCESS, BELONGING, AND JUSTICE: LESSONS FROM THE WHEEL-HARMONY ORCHESTRA IN SOUTH KOREA FOR INCLUSIVE MUSIC PEDAGOGY

Yoonil Auh — 2026-06-30

Inclusive music education is often assessed with developmental, therapeutic, or access-based metrics, yet these frameworks frequently overlook deeper questions of power, recognition, and cultural legitimacy. This article examines how inclusive ensemble practice can serve as a site of epistemic justice rather than mere accommodation, drawing on a qualitative case study of the Wheel-Harmony Orchestra, a community-based ensemble for children with disabilities in South Korea. Through analysis of student and parent narratives, the study shows that the most consequential outcomes of participation were not technical gains but shifts in belonging, authorship, and social visibility. Situating these findings within disability studies, community music, and critical pedagogy, the article identifies embodied pedagogy, digital mediation, and sonic diversity as structural conditions that determine whether inclusion remains symbolic or becomes transformative. The article argues that inclusive music education must be reconceptualized as a practice of cultural authorship, in which marginalized learners actively reshape what music education recognizes as legitimate knowledge, participation, and excellence.

THE KONTRATA AS A CULTURAL GIFT: A GADDANG MARCHING BAND IN THE FUNERAL RITUALS OF SOLANO, NUEVA VIZCAYA

Rachelle Ann Labasan — 2026-06-30

An ethno-linguistic group widely known as the lowland Gaddangs, located in a commercial town in Nueva Vizcaya, has maintained a musical tradition passed down to them since the early 1960s. This study on the emergence of brass bands in Solano and the loss of knowledge and utilization of indigenous traditional instruments calls for another ethnomusicological perspective, especially since the ethnography shows how the Gaddangs transformed the marching band instruments into mechanical agencies of social cohesion. Guided by the Maussian concept of the gift, the research problem seeks to answer the economic implications, social contribution, and the moral exchange that Gaddang musical performances facilitate in the community. Immersion in daily rehearsals captured the zeal of the younger ones as they honed their theoretical knowledge and musical skills, seeking a sense of accomplishment and, mainly, economic sustainability. Their performance as fulfillment of their obligation to the kontrata (contracts) provides first-hand information about how, in their predominantly Western repertoire, the folk songs they play represent constructs of kinship, flora, and the land. The degree of giving in the Gaddangs of Solano is observed to be binallay - Gaddang word for equally divided - reciprocally fair in organizing people and fees, even in musical components that maintained the banda tradition. The continuance of this peripheral activity manifests the town’s moral need to satisfy its aesthetic hunger through musicians who will not stop, because, for the Gaddangs, to disband would be to stop giving.

DEVELOPMENT OF A “STOP IT” CARD GAME AS A LEARNING MEDIUM TO PROMOTE UNDERSTANDING OF WESTERN MUSICAL INSTRUMENT FAMILIES FOR GRADE 7 STUDENTS AT NAMPONGSUKSA SCHOOL

Rujikarn Weerapong — 2026-06-30

This experimental research had three objectives: to develop the “Stop it” card game as a learning medium for enhancing knowledge of Western musical instrument classification among Matthayomsuksa 1 students at Nampongsuksa School; to compare students’ learning achievement before and after using the “Stop it” card game; and to investigate students’ satisfaction with the card game as a learning medium. The results demonstrated that students’ post-test scores were significantly higher than their pre-test scores at the .05 significant level. The finding further indicated that the card game improved understanding of the lesson, increased their interest and enjoyment in learning music, and promoted active participation, with the highest mean score (̅X = 4.50). In terms of satisfaction, students reported the highest level (̅X = 4.50), noting that the game was easy to understand, visually clear, and enjoyable to play. The sample 30 Matthayomsuksa 1 students from a single classroom at Nampongsuksa School during the second semester of the 2025 academic year, selected through purposive sampling. The study employed a quantitative research methodology. Research instruments included the “Stop it” card game on Western musical instrument classification, 2) pre- and post test achievement assessments, and 3) a questionnaire measuring students’ opinions and satisfaction with the instructional media. Data collection involved administering a pre-test, followed by learning activities utilizing the card game, which emphasized game-based learning, student participation, and an engaging learning environment. Upon completion to assess changes in learning achievement. Additionally, students’ opinions and satisfaction regarding the learning media were collected. The data were analyzed using a dependent-samples t-test, along with the mean, and standard deviation.

Pulse: Journal for Music and Interdisciplinary Practices

REFERENCES TO EARLIER MUSICAL GENRES AND TOPICS IN SALVATORE SCIARRINO’S IL CANTO S’ATTRISTA, PERCHÉ?

MAGIC TRICKS AND OTHER SPIELE: AN INTERDISCIPLINARY EXPLORATION OF THE PHENOMENON OF PERCEPTION AND ILLUSION IN MUSIC

POPULAR SONG AS ETHICAL DISCOURSE IN POST-INDEPENDENCE MYANMAR: LOVE, AFFECT, AND CULTURAL SOVEREIGNTY

ACCESS, BELONGING, AND JUSTICE: LESSONS FROM THE WHEEL-HARMONY ORCHESTRA IN SOUTH KOREA FOR INCLUSIVE MUSIC PEDAGOGY

THE KONTRATA AS A CULTURAL GIFT: A GADDANG MARCHING BAND IN THE FUNERAL RITUALS OF SOLANO, NUEVA VIZCAYA

DEVELOPMENT OF A “STOP IT” CARD GAME AS A LEARNING MEDIUM TO PROMOTE UNDERSTANDING OF WESTERN MUSICAL INSTRUMENT FAMILIES FOR GRADE 7 STUDENTS AT NAMPONGSUKSA SCHOOL