aleatorismn.
/ˌeɪlɪəˈtɒrɪz(ə)m/, /ˌalɪəˈtɒrɪz(ə)m/, U.S. /ˌeɪliəˈtɔrɪz(ə)m/, /ˌæliəˈtɔrɪz(ə)m/ Music.
Dependence on chance in the composition and performance of music.
ΚΠ
1964 Listener 30 Apr. 734/2 There is a strange parallel between the aleatorism of our avant-garde, and the impatience of the pioneers of the Nuove musiche with polyphony.
1984 J. Casken in Listener 15 Mar. 32/1 His use of what he describes as ‘controlled aleatorism’ to compose his orchestral blocks is, by now, well known.
1988 Music & Musicians Internat. Feb. 37/1 An accompaniment of rapid woodwind figurations, similar in style to the controlled aleatorism Lutoslawski was to adopt in his later works.
2009 Winnipeg Free Press 29 May (Arts & Life section) d6/3 A smattering of compositional influences—including effective sections of aleatorism—blended well together in this intriguing nine-minute piece.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, September 2012; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1964