THE INTERVIEW by Luca Michetti: When Numbers Sound: Mathematics Reveals Musical Interpretation. From Pythagoras to Neuroscience: The Pianist and Guest Professor at the ‘Music and Intelligence’ Conference.

“Music and Mathematics: The Rigor That Unravels the Mysteries of Interpretation” is the title of the lecture that Ingrid Carbone (pianist, mathematician, and music communicator) will give on April 17th at 3:00 PM in the Carini Dainotti Conference Room of the Cremona State Library, during the Music and Intelligence conference. Carbone will present a talk dedicated to her unique approach to combining mathematics and music, born from the intersection of academic research in Mathematical Analysis and her international concert career. You can read the full interview (in italian) on the website>>

Here’s a translated excerpt.

What exactly will you talk about?

“I have a dual background, as a mathematician and a musician: I will discuss the state of the art in mathematics applied to music, with particular reference to 21st-century research. Mathematical tools exist to help musicians memorize complex music, such as atonal music. Research into the musician’s brain began in 1990. I will start with Pythagoras and Plato and continue up to the present day, but the central point of my lecture will be the advancement of my research.”

What?

“That a structural and mathematical analysis of the score can be used not only for memorization but also for the interpretation of the piece itself. It’s an innovative shift because it moves from a mathematical tool for memorization to a mathematical tool for interpretation: it’s a shift in vision, even a cultural one, a different point of view.”

How will you explain it?

“I won’t have the opportunity to play a piano: I’ll take a small section of a score and demonstrate the various layers of mathematics I see in that excerpt, which can guide my interpretation. I’ll use some slides and video recordings of the same piece.”

What has been the response to your studies?

“When some of my albums were released, many authoritative critics highlighted the quality of my interpretation, and this encouraged me to continue.”

It’s a fascinating topic even for those who aren’t musicians but have a great passion for music: is it a topic for everyone?

“Yes, it’s something for everyone: over the years, I’ve realized that these investigations are part of a trend called artistic research. This maintains that there is no opposition between scientist and artist. Those who create art conduct research: at the end of the journey, there is a performance, intended as the culmination of a process and a moment accessible to the public. In the case of a musician, obviously, this moment is the concert. As for those who had a five in math or gave up music because of solfeggio… I’m afraid it’s a teaching problem. It doesn’t take a special brain to do math. However, it does take special skills to make music at a very high level.