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EXPERIMENTAL/NOISE MUSIC
There she stood is an electroacoustic piece written for cello, contrabass, and electronics performed with a game controller. The electronic sounds represent the composer’s voice and the piece is a conversation with her past relationships, which is represented by the cello and contrabass. The textures and tones from the instruments are live processed using Max/MSP through the PS4 game controller. The piece begins with the electronics starting on its own, but is soon interrupted by the acoustic instruments. Because the controller also has the ability to live-record the instruments, the music sounds like everything is under control at first. However, as all three instruments begin to play out more, the string instruments begin to interrupt and mock the electronic sounds, which evidently turns the conversation into an argument. Eventually, the electronics become completely dominated by the strings, which shows how things become out of control. All electronic sounds are prerecorded compositions performed by various instruments including the Doepfer A-100 Modular Synthesizer, acoustic piano, and singing bowls. They are live-processed in Max and triggered by the PS4 game controller. The cello and contrabass are both mic’d and connected to the same Max patch, which is then live-processed through various delays that are also manipulated with the controller.
“She saw the world with fairy tales and magic. She believed this world will treat her right. That a prince charming will appear and help her live happily ever after. The books and bedtime stories never prepared her to see what was really out there waiting for her. No stories showed that. But she wasn’t a victim, or at least she told herself so. She continued to believe that it was her bad luck that had brought her to be with the wrong people at the wrong times.”
Who drives climate change? We do. And what would the world be like if we continue to do what we do every day? Population will continue to rise and as a result, we will need more land and CO2 emissions will continue to rise. This piece explores through those three variables: population, land area, and C02 emissions. They are treated as three separate sound sources to represent when and how much they increase in data in the span of years 1880 to 2080. The sounds were recorded by the composer at various places in the city, from engines and sirens that represent land area, voices for population increase, and electric sounds for C02 emissions. They were then processed through Max using a configured video game controller. There is nothing natural about these sounds. They are all made my us, humans. We ultimately have the power to decide what happens to our environment. The word “Kikai” is a Japanese word for “machines”. However, it also means “opportunity”. If we had so much power to destroy our homes, we certainly have the power to improve it. Today you will see the piece performed with a single game controller, exploring through the timeline of years with various sounds made by us: Kikai.
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