Les instruments du quatuor augmenté

For fifteen years, research on increasing the sonic possibilities of musical instruments at Ircam focused on quartet instruments. This research focused on the analysis of interpretation, gesture, the creation of augmented instruments, hybrid instruments, “smart instruments”, active sound control and the development of sensors as well as the creation of musical works using the results of these researches. In this retrospective article, I propose to present as exhaustively as possible the work carried out at Ircam in this field and the works produced between 2005 and 2016. We can approach these devices and these works from many points of view: that of the musicologist, that of the composer, that of the performer, or even that of the luthier, that of the engineer or even the music lover. In this article I will try to discuss the products of this research and creation from these different perspectives.