Note-by-note analysis of the influence of expressive intentions and musical structure in violin performance

This paper describes an analysis of how the performance of a score differs when musicians are requested to play with differing expression. A professional violinist was asked to play short pieces of music in different versions expressing light, heavy, soft, hard, bright, and dark. For comparison, a normal, standard performance was recorded. Note-by-note analysis allowed us to identify the variations of the main acoustic parameters as a consequence of varying the expressive intentions. It was possible to identify two distinct expressive sources. The first refers the musical structure of the period, its division into phrases and the continuous alternation of tension and relaxation points. The second depends on the expressive intentions that the musician wants to convey to the listeners.