《奎》為結合樂器現場演出與即時影音處理的多媒體音樂作品,以宗教信仰與藝術的關聯為發想,將台西溪頂明聖宮魁星爺神像於日治時期遭日人查扣焚燒、歷劫歸來的過程,引申為逆境求生之精神並以多媒體音樂的方式呈現。樂曲共分四個樂段:正、修、克、復,是取構成魁星踢斗圖之八字-「正、心、修、身、克、己、復、禮」之奇數字,並以此四字的筆劃排序做為每段的樂曲架構,其中並擷取多個與魁星爺有關的文字、聲音符號應用於作品之中,包括廟宇的聲景、明聖宮魁星爺之遭遇時空背景,與魁星爺掌管科舉之相關符號。其中藉符號學學者Roland Barthes所著之《符號學原理》(Elements of Semiology)講述符號學於創作中的應用,並以宗教歷史學者Mercia Eliade所著之《聖與俗-宗教的本質》(The Sacred and the Profane–The Nature of Religion)比教音樂與宗教信仰對時空認知的相似處,並結合兩者做為作品創作的核心概念。 本論文說明原創作品《奎》之創作符號並以作曲手法建構成音樂作品,且將分章逐一分析說明樂曲架構、即時影像與聲音的設計與手法。
QUEI is a multimedia musical composition inspired by connection between religions and arts, based on the story of a religious idol– Kui-Xing in Ming-Sheng Temple, Yun-Lin County, Taiwan, which was meant to be burnt during Japanese Domination but somehow bumped out of the fire pit and was rescued by a local villager, a tale the author regarded as conquering obstacles of life, a main theme this composition inherits. Using number of strokes in calligraphy symbolizing abstractly the religious figure, the structure of the composition- including time signatures, movements and sound interpretations were formed. Other related symbols and its extension were applied, including soundscapes in temples of Taiwan, religious function of Kui-Xin and background of the burning crisis, etc. Theories of communication like Elements of semiology by Roland Barthes illustrating the application of semiotics, and The Sacred and the Profane- the Nature of Religion by Mercia Eliade to introduce the similarities between music and religion in the concept of time and space, together as a core of concept in the piece QUEI. This thesis shows how to use symbols as context, processed by compositional methods into structure, real-time sound and visual processing.