5 Action Notation

Instead of a tonal result such as the one specified by aural scores, action notations are verbal or graphic instructions for the performance of an action that creates a sounding result. Their similarity to movement notation becomes apparent above all in experimental musical theater, such as in compositions by Mauricio Kagel. Mikrophonie by Karlheinz Stockhausen is an example of an action notation of live electronic music. Action notations were used in the form of tablatures, notations denoting the fingerings for instruments such as lutes, between the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries. There are also action notations in traditional staff notation, such as sul ponticello, which refers to placement of the bow on string instruments.