Embedded blends and meaning construction in Modest Musorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition

Abstract

Conceptual blending is a cognitive theory positing the combination of diverse conceptual spaces for the creation of novel blended spaces. Musical conceptual blending can be intra-musical, pertaining to the combination of diverse structural elements for the creation of new melodies, harmonies or textures, as well as cross-domain, involving the integration of musical and non-musical spaces for the creation of novel analogies or metaphors. This article presents a structural and hermeneutical analysis of “Il vecchio castello” and “Samuel Goldenberg und Schmuÿle” from Modest Musorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition in an attempt to disclose both the intra-musical (combination of modal, tonal or coloristic harmonic spaces and rhythmic/textural structure) and extra-musical (contextual, symbolic and programmatic aspects) conceptual blending that the works incorporate. The reductional/prolongational analyses provide input for two distinct Conceptual Integration Networks, the first describing the intra-musical blending of melodic harmonization and the second proposing the cross-domain blending of the musical and pictorial input spaces into a blended hermeneutical space that projects the works’ narrative/programmatic/emotional potential. The proposed analyses show how musical structure promotes creative listening and meaning construction through complex cross-domain integration. This research suggests that conceptual blending theory as an analytical tool can promote a richer structural interpretation and experience of music, even in cases of instrumental, non-vocal compositions.