The role of metaphor in shaping the terminology of experimental musical instruments in the English language

The article explores the role of metaphor in shaping the terminology of experimental musical instruments in the English language. The relevance of this study stems from the growing interest in contemporary music and the need to understand the mechanisms underlying the creation and perception of new musical instruments. The aim of this work is to identify and analyze the metaphorical models used to designate experimental musical instruments and to determine their impact on the structure and development of terminology in this field. The study is based on the examination of a corpus of 304 terminological units, identified from various sources including scientific articles, books, music encyclopedias, online forums, and specialized websites. The work was conducted using conceptual-metaphorical, quantitative, and componential methods. The findings reveal that metaphor plays a key role in the development of terminology for experimental musical instruments, enriching it, making it more accessible and contributing to the formation of a holistic understanding of this subject area. The article identifies five fundamental metaphorical conceptual models reflecting experts’ perceptions of experimental instruments: “Instrument as Artifact», «Instrument as Abstract Concept”, “Instrument as Human», «Instrument as Non-Living Object or Plant”, and “Instrument as Real or Mythical Animal». The results demonstrate that metaphors based on the perceived similarity to human-made objects (artifacts) are the most effective way to create new names for instruments (46% of all metaphorical terms). The findings can be used for further research in the fields of terminology, cognitive linguistics, and musicology, as well as for developing more effective methods for teaching and popularizing contemporary music.

1. Alekseeva L.M., & Mishlanova S.L. (2002). Meditsinskiy diskurs: Teoreticheskiye osnovy i printsipy analiza [Medical discourse: Theoretical foundations and principles of analysis]. Perm: Izdatel’stvo Permskogo universiteta. 200 p.

2. Grinev-Grinevich S.V. (2008). Terminovedeniye: uchebnoye posobiye dlya studentov vysshikh uchebnykh zavedeniy [Terminology: A textbook for students of higher educational institutions]. Moscow: Akademiya. 304 p.

3. Leichik V.M. (2006). Terminovedeniye: predmet, metody, struktura [Terminology: subject, methods, structure]. Moscow: LIBROCOM. 248 p.

4. Sager J.C. (1990). A practical course in terminology processing. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamin Publishing Co. 254 p.

5. Grinev S.V. (1993). Vvedeniye v terminovedeniye [Introduction to Terminology]. Moscow: Moskovskiy Litsey. 309 p.

6. Vinogradov V.V. (1977). Osnovnyye tipy leksicheskikh znacheniy slova [The main types of lexical meanings of the word]. Izbrannyye Trudy [Selected Works]. Moscow: Nauka. 310 p.

7. Aristotle. (1983). Sochineniya: V 4-kh t. T. 4 [Works: In 4 volumes. Vol. 4] (A. I. Dovatur, Ed., Trans.). Moscow: Mysl’. pp. 645–680. 830 p.

8. Yartseva, V. N. (Ed.). (1990). Lingvisticheskiy entsiklopedicheskiy slovar’ [Linguistic encyclopedic dictionary]. Moscow: Sovetskaya entsiklopediya. 683 p.

9. de la Motte-Haber, H., Schwab-Felisch, O., & Utz, C. (Eds.). (2013). Lexikon der Systematischen Musikwissenschaft [Encyclopedia of Systematic Musicology]. Laaber: Laaber- Verlag. 795 p.

10. Nyman M. (1999). Experimental Music: Cage and Beyond. Cambridge University Press. 208 p. Retrieved January 21, 2025, from https://archive.org/details/experimentalmusi0000nyma/page/n9/mode/2up

11. Gioia, T. (2019). The End of Music. Pantheon Books. 336 p. Retrieved December 21, 2024, from https://archive.org/details/the-end-of-music_202109

12. Grove Music Online. (n.d.). Oxford University Press. Retrieved January 17, 2025, from https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/page/about-gmo

13. guitarplayer.ru. (n.d.). Retrieved April 21, 2025, from https://guitarplayer.ru/index.php

14. sequenza21.com. (n.d.). Retrieved April 29, 2025, from https://www.sequenza21.com/

15. Mishlanova S.L. (2002). Metafora v meditsinskom diskurse [Metaphor in medical discourse]. Perm: Izdatel’stvo Permskogo universiteta. 160 p.

16. Bass fan: A fan-based musical instrument. (2023, November 11). YouTube. Retrieved November 11, 2024, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omgbhGirTtY&t=4s

17. Musical saw: An introduction. (2023). Singende Saege. Retrieved November 11, 2024, from https://singende-saege.com/en/wikisaw.html

18. Musical fence: A unique musical installation. (2023). Singende Saege. Retrieved November 11, 2024, from https://singende-saege.com/en/wikisaw.html