Nora A. Engebretsen
SUNY, Buffalo
Simplicity is commonly assumed to be a desirable characteristic of music-theoretical systems, yet few theorists have attempted to explain why this should be so, let alone to explore the nature of simplicity as related to theory and analysis in general. Numerous fundamental questions need to be answered, including, first and foremost, the questions of how simplicity is to be defined and, accordingly, how it is to be measured. As will be seen, the formulation of a precise definition or explication of simplicity is highly problematic; however, a body of literature exists in which logicians have grappled with the notion of theoretical simplicity in the context of the natural sciences, and this work will be of assistance in our investigation. Once we have a clearer account of what precisely is meant by " simplicity," we will begin to examine, through reference to various writings in music theory, the role simplicity can or should play in the construction and evaluation of music-theoretical systems. Questions to be addressed include: Is simplicity a formal or logical desideratum, or strictly an extra systemic aesthetic or pragmatic consideration? What is the status of simplicity as a criterion for choosing between competing theories and analyses? Do we value simplicity as just such a test of completed theories, or rather for the ways in which it informs the process of theory building? And with regard to analytically oriented theories in particular, does the notion of simplicity intersect with that of explanatory adequacy, and if so, how? Directions for future research will also be suggested.