What makes for interest of timbre has long been somewhat of an unsolved mystery. Allurement and poetic poignance in sound have often been thought of as the inviolable province of the composer. In truth, the orchestration of a master such as Debussy does seem almost sublimely and frustratingly beyond the reach of rational explanation. Nevertheless, one of man's great achievements has been, and is, the gradual penetration into all mysteries by means of objective understanding; and the art of timbre, with its limitless iridescences, offers analytical challenges still to be met.
To explain completely the tonal poetry used by such geniuses of orchestration as Debussy or Stravinsky would be almost impossible, since it would require such a particularized and elaborate theory; but a beginning can be made by observing the action of certain fundamental processes and formulating them into practical principles.
Part of the "allure" of timbre comes from its association with types of motion and structure. Contrast also plays a very creative role in tone-mixing. Consciousness of register seems
fundamental to choice of ingredients for tonal blend. When these three major sources (motion, contrast, and register) are studied as they combine into tonal phenomena, it will be noted that certain usages constantly recur. This frequent recurrence points to the existence of fundamental processes of creating timbre interest. These fundamental processes will now be explored and explained.
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