Memory, expectation and the temporal flux of acousmatic music

This article concerns the temporal experience of acousmatic music, how the music can impact a listener's sense of time passing and the implications of memory and expectations of auditory events and their perceived connections to one another. It will outline how memory and schemas lead to predictions in the immediate future and larger expectations of a work's form. An overview of the temporal listening framework for acousmatic music will be provided to show the interrelationship between memory and expectations and how they influence one's listening focus in the present. Trevor Wishart's Imago (2002) will be used to illustrate how one might compose an acousmatic work to promote active listening using compositional techniques that engage personal schemas and those built through the course of experiencing the piece.