Etude: Being and Becoming(2010)for improvising ensembleLou BunkPerformance Notes This is an advanced etude for an improvising ensemble made up of 2 or more players, using any instrumentation or sound making method. This etude explores possible performance roles and formal structures that may naturally occur in a successful freely improvised performance. Members of the ensemble will have to practice balancing predetermined material with improvisation, all the while remaining within the limits of assigned roles, and holding up the principles and aesthetics of "Being and Becoming" as defined below. Towards aesthetics, subtle changes in timbre, rhythm and pitch are explored, which can often be difficult to effectively control and perform in larger improvising ensembles. As the piece can be long, and the pacing of events unhurried, restraint and endurance are practiced and necessary. This helps make possible the appropriate mindset for extensive contemplation of how subtle change can both lead to and be structural transformation. On Being and Becoming "Being and Becoming" is a lifelong composition of mine that has taken multiple forms, and has played out through many instruments. This etude explores and studies the Principles and Aesthetics of "Being and Becoming", and when performed according to the following rules, will be/become "Being". In preparation for performing this composition, it may be useful to listen to other versions of "Being and ...