Compositions
July to September 2017.
Composition One:
Kontakt: Sound Stone: Composition (5.38)
Composition One was written with my Kontakt sound stone. The main focus of this piece
was to explore texture. I did this by creating a number different loops and layering them together. I was inspired by György Ligeti’s Lux Aeterna. This is one of many mid-period works by Ligeti that explores micropolyphony to create slowly shifting textures. Ligeti’s polyphonic technique in Lux Aeterna creates a “flow in which the harmonies do not change suddenly, but merge into one another; one clearly discernible interval combination is gradually blurred, and from this cloudiness, it is possible to discern a new interval combination taking shape.” Paul Griffiths Modern Music and After p.243, OUP, 2010 ISBN 978-0-19-974050-5
Composition Two:
Granite: Sound Stone: Composition (8.08)
Having discovered how to utilise the sound of the transitions between the lamellas, I set about extending these pieces of audio to create a collage of different sounds and frequencies.By adjusting the amount of reverb and overdrive, I was able to manipulate the transitions to create a cohesive whole.
Composition Three:
Live Sound Stone Recording: Phipps Hall (3.58)
This recording was made at Huddersfield University’s Phipps Hall. I had conducted a number of rehearsals prior to this recording to investigate some new ideas and playing techniques. Normally a sound stone performance would just unfold without too much planning. I wanted to explore the possibilities of having some predefined parameters in place before you started.
Composition Four:
Steven Halliday: Live performance at the YSP (6.06)
As part of the Yorkshire Sculpture Park performance, I played a solo on my virtual (granite) sound stone. I had spent a lot of time preparing the acoustics of the chapel to ensure the whole space would come into vibration. The actual performance was split into three parts. I starting with the mid- range frequencies slowly moving my way through the sample, using the sustain pedal to hold the notes. With every pass I added a further octave until I had a wall of sound that brought the whole whole chapel into vibration.
Composition Five:
Steven Halliday and Hannes Fessmann: Live collaboration at the YSP (10.50)
This was the first time myself and Hannes had played together. During the rehearsal
process, we decided the best course of action would be for Hannes to follow my lead and play along to the virtual (granite) sound stone. I was very conscious not to play any notes that the real sound stone could not replicate and concentrated mainly on the low-end frequencies.
Composition Six:
Hears Wishing: Virtual Sound Stone Composition (8.15)
This piece of music represents the end of this academic research and forms the starting point for my new project. Created with my virtual (granite) sound stone, I utilised the skills and techniques I had discovered for manipulating the sound stone samples. I took a stone sample and layered it with a female vocal, consistently re- tuning the voice to match the note variations of the sound stone. To do this I used the waves sound shifter
plugin manipulating the pitch changes in real time. I compiled the two takes together and imported them into granite and played it as a live performance. Conceptually this
piece represents the spaces in between the sounds and is inspired by the Wishing Hole at the Aya Sofya Cathedral in Istanbul.