Antichains and counterpoint dichotomies

We construct a special type of antichain (i. e., a family of subsets of a set, such that no subset is contained in another) using group-theoretical considerations, and obtain an upper bound on the cardinality of such an antichain. We apply the result to bound the number of strong counterpoint dichotomies up to affine isomorphisms

Point/Counterpoint: Insidious Cycle

Heather: In our last post, Bryan and I explored the unique challenges that the reenacting hobby poses to the interpretation and public understanding of the American Civil War. In it, we touched on just a few of the many motivations that inspire individuals to reenact. As we continue our Point/Counterpoint series below, we look to explore the relationship of the reenacting hobby with a particularly complex and problematic ideology–the Lost Cause. [excerpt

Point/Counterpoint: Blanks Fired

The following post is part of a series meant to conduct and spark a friendly philosophical discussion of broadly visible themes. It is not our intent to single out any one group or person, and by no means should the points expressed herein be regarded as any kind of attack on either the reenacting community or academia. [excerpt

A Projection-Oriented Mathematical Model for Second-Species Counterpoint

Drawing inspiration from both the classical Guerino Mazzola's symmetry-based model for first-species counterpoint (one note against one note) and Johann Joseph Fux's "Gradus ad Parnassum", we propose an extension for second-species (two notes against one note)

[Review of] Matibag, Eugenio. Haitian-Dominican Counterpoint

Those unfamiliar with the Dominican Republic and Haiti would probably think that the two countries with their different languages and cultures are distinct and separate historically as they are culturally. The French and African heritage of Haiti is often contrasted with the Spanish heritage of the Dominican Republic. Matibag demonstrates that the two cultures and nations are intertwined at a level that would surprise even the informed scholar

Point/Counterpoint: Anchoring Historical Memory

Wednesday, November 19, 2014 saw citizens and students of Gettysburg crowd into the Majestic Theater for the fifty-third annual Robert Fortenbaugh Memorial Lecture. The audience listened attentively as Dr. Nina Silber, a renowned historian of the American Civil War, explored the nuanced application of the memory of Abraham Lincoln during the 1930s and ‘40s, especially as associated with the figure of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. [excerpt

Unspell

Unspell, for voice and electronics, reflects my continuing interest in the musicality of speech. The “pre-text” for the composition is l’Attente (Waiting), by Roland Barthes, from the book Fragments d’un Discours Amoureux (Fragments from a Lover’s Discourse). Careful work on intonation and prosody is complemented by electronic sounds that function at times as accompaniment, at times as rhythmic or timbral counterpoint. Spoken language, to me, is always pregnant with music. I won’t say much more, hoping the piece will speak for itself