Alfonso Benetti and Francisco Monteiro, integrated researchers at INET-md, are co-authors, alongside Øyvind Brandtsegg and Trond Engum, of the chapter TransVariations: Radical Interpretations of a Classical Piece by Means of Live Audio Processing, included in the book Innovation in Music: Innovative Creative Practice (Routledge, 2026), edited by Claus Sohn Andersen, Jan-Olof Gullö, Russ Hepworth-Sawyer, Mark Marrington, Justin Paterson and Rob Toulson.
This chapter reflects on the interpretative potential of Beethoven’s 32 Variations in C Minor (WoO 80), exploring the creative possibilities of integrating real-time electroacoustic processing into the work. Through the dialogue between piano and electronics, it investigates how contemporary technological resources can expand the instrument’s timbral possibilities and open up new perspectives on the interpretation of Western classical music. The study also addresses the technical and acoustic challenges of this interaction, examining its impact on musical expressiveness, phrasing and the pianist’s performative approach, within a context that brings solo performance closer to the collaborative dynamics of chamber music.