Durham E-Theses Commentary on the Portfolio of ... · Music Tracklist Page 7 Chapter 1 1. Introduction Page 9 Chapter 2 2. Literature Review Page 11 Chapter 3 3. Methodology Page

Durham E-Theses

Commentary on the Portfolio of Compositions

submitted for the degree of PhD in Music Composition,

University of Durham by Mariam Rezaei, 2016

REZAEI, MARIAM

How to cite:

REZAEI, MARIAM (2017) Commentary on the Portfolio of Compositions submitted for the degree of PhD

in Music Composition, University of Durham by Mariam Rezaei, 2016, Durham theses, DurhamUniversity. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/11968/

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http://etheses.dur.ac.uk

Commentaryonthe

PortfolioofCompositions

submittedforthedegreeofPhDinMusicCompositionUniversityofDurham

by

MariamRezaei

2016

2

Thecopyrightofthisworkrestswiththeauthor.Noquotationfromitshouldbepublishedwithoutherpriorwrittenconsentandinformationderivedfromitshouldbeacknowledged.AcknowledgementsSpecialthanksto:Prof.RichardRijnvos,supervisor,UniversityofDurhamDr.JohnHails,supervisor,EdinburghNapierUniversityDr.FabriceFitch,formersupervisoratUniversityofDurhamMrRhodriDavies,harpistandprofessionalmentorMrsNazliTabatabai-Khatambhaksh,professionalmentorMusicDepartment,UniversityofDurhamApartmentHouseDrMichaelDuchandMrJohnTilburyDrNeilDavidsonDrMatthewShlomowitzArtsCouncilEnglandAwardsforAllNEGenerationStaffandstudentsatNewcastleUniversityMusicDepartmentandCultureLabLiteraryandPhilosophicalLibrary,NewcastleHuddersfieldContemporaryMusicFestivalTUSKFestivalTomyfamilyandfriendsfortheirconstantsupport.Manythankstotheperformersrecordedforthissubmission:ApartmentHouse,JohnTilbury,MichaelDuchandRhodriDavies,NoizeChoir,JoeMurray(WaxMagnetic)KathrynTickellandFolkestra(sampled)AllofthemembersofNOISESTRA.

3

ContentsofPortfolio ListofCompositions Page5

MusicTracklist Page7

Chapter1

1. Introduction Page9

Chapter2

2. LiteratureReview Page11

Chapter3

3. Methodology Page22

3.1Proposing/ReceivingaCommission Page23

3.2ResearchintoaNewCommissionandEnsemble Page23

3.3TheCompositionProcessinViewofResearch Page25

3.4 SkillsSharingwithEnsemble Page27

3.5Performance Page30

3.6CompositionalEvaluationandReflection Page32

Chapter4

4. AuthorshipInAParticipatorySetting Page33

Chapter5

5. Works Page41

5.1NOISESTRA Page42

5.2NOISESTRA:TRAX Page46

5.3NOISESTRA:NOISEstra Page51

5.4FUMP Page52

5.5ESFA Page54

5.6NOST Page58

4

5.7ANCE Page62

5.8BAWWWY Page65

Chapter6

6. Conclusion Page75

Chapter7

7. Bibliography Page78

5

ListofCompositions

1. NOISESTRA:TRAX duration:

June2012 0h08’04”

TurntableEnsemble,StringQuartet,Synth,Percussion,Harp,HorninF,

Accordion,BassGuitar.

VideoGraphicScoreincludesAudioRecording

2. NOISESTRA:NOISEstra duration:

June2012 0h07’12”




3. NOISESTRA:FUMP duration:

June2012 0h08’28”

TurntableEnsemble,solo‘cello.


4. NOST duration:

December2013 0h09’09”

TwoTurntables,DictaphoneCassettes,NOIZEChoir(12performers)

GraphicScoreandAudioRecording.

6

5. ESFAQuartet duration:

May2013 0h14’30”

Turntables,Harp,Piano,DoubleBass.

NotatedScoreandAudioRecording

6. ANCE duration:

September2013 0h10’00”

8Turntables,8Dictaphones.

GraphicScoreandAudioRecording

7. BAWWWY duration:

April2014 0h32’55”

TurntableQuartet

TextScoreandAudioRecording

Totallength duration:

1h30’18”

7

MusicTrackListTrack1

NOISESTRA:TRAX duration:0h08’04”



ApartmentHouseandNOISESTRA

Track2

NOISESTRA:NOISEstra duration:0h07’12”




Track3

NOISESTRA:FUMP duration:0h08’28”

TurntableEnsemble,solo‘cello.


Track4

NOST duration:0h09’09”

TwoTurntables,DictaphoneCassettes,NOIZEChoir(12performers)

NOIZECHOIRandWAXMAGNETIC(JoeMurray(a.k.a.Posset)andMariam

Rezaei)

Track5

ESFAQuartet duration:0h14’30”

Turntables,Harp,Piano,DoubleBass.

MariamRezaei,RhodriDavies,JohnTilbury,MichaelDuch.

8

Track6

ANCE duration:0h10’00”

8Turntables,8Dictaphones.

WAXMAGNETIC(JoeMurrayandMariamRezaei)

Track7

BAWWWY duration:0h32’55”

TurntableQuartet

MariamRezaei

Totallength duration:

1h30’18”

9

Chapter1:Introduction

Thecompositionalpracticesinturntablewritingasasoloandensemble

instrumentintheworksofthisportfolioareresearchbased,exploringavarietyof

methodstonotateworkinresponsetoexperiments.Thechallengesand

opportunitiesthathavearisenthroughoutthisdevelopmentofcompositionhave

directedtheresearchalongdifferentroutes,promotingtheturntableasamusical

instrumentindifferentinstrumentalensembles.Devisingarepertoirethatdid

notpreviouslyexisthasinpartdevelopedtheturntableasaninstrumentwhere

therearegapsinitshistoryandalsohelpedfirmlyestablisheditsplacewithin

contemporarymusicinstrumentalensembles.

Withinthiscommentary,thedefinedtechniquesemployedintheturntableworks

arenotsimplyderivedeitherfromhiphopturntablismorNewArtturntablism,

butinsteadestablishasyntheticpractice.Skillsfrombothtraditionsaremixed

togetherwithfluidityinordertoestablishanewrepertoireforturntablethrough

taughtskillsbydevelopinganewensembleofturntablists,NOISESTRA.This

approach,combinedwithexperimentsingraphicnotation,bringstogether

performersinanewway,whereestablishedandhighlyskilledmusicianswork

withyoungperformersinacommunitymusicsetting,willingtoexperimentand

failinsearchofsuccessfullycreatingnewsoundswithturntables.

Theresearchincludesaworkingmethodologyofcompositionalprocessthat

relatestopopularteachingtheoriesofRogerHart,DavidHolb,JohnStevensand

NeilFleming.Observationsfromconventionallynotatedandgraphicscores,

analysedwritingsofKatz,SmithalongsideBrewsterandBroughtonbroadenthe

searchfortheappropriatemeansforwhichtonotateforturntablesbothwithand

withoutinstrumentalensembles.

10

Concludingthatthereisnoonecorrectwaytonotateforturntable,I

demonstrateseveralnotationalmethodsincludinganadaptationofthe5-line

systeminsomecompositions,andexperimentwith2D,and3Dvideographic

scoresinothers,provingthatthereareadvantagesanddisadvantagesineach

individualcontext.

Ievaluatemycompositionalpracticeandassessthesuccessofstrategiesin

writingforturntableensemblebycomparingmyinitialtheoreticalideaswiththe

practicalexperimentsandresults.

Itisrecommendedthatperformersandreadersofthisworkreadtheglossary

andnotesinAGuidetoTurntablismandTurntableNotationsforPerformers1found

intheappendicesbeforereadingthiscommentary.

1Pleaseseepage4intheAppendicesforAGuidetoTurntablismandTurntableNotation.

11

Chapter2.LiteratureReview

InmypreviousresearchintoDJingandturntablismaspartofmyundergraduate

study2,Iexplainedhowcassettes,VHSvideosandhiphop3magazineswerekey

learningtoolsforturntablisttechniquesinthe1990’sandearly2000’s.There

wasverylittleacademicliteratureaboutturntablismatthattimeandIwas

referencingmaterialsthathadn’tbeenthoughtofinanacademiccontextbefore.

Theseformatswerethemainevidenceusedforreferencingtogiveanhonest

accountanddescriptionofthehistoryandtechnicaldevelopmentofDJsin

turntablism.Sincethen,withthedevelopmentoftheinternetallowingDJsto

shareinformationgloballyviasoundfilesandvideos,therehavebeenseveral

DJingmanualsandacademicstudiesreleased.

Ihavechosenadiverserangeofauthors,frompopularandacademicbookswith

authorsfromtheUK,USA,somewithhighrankingbooksalesandothers,

reputableacademics.

DannyRampling’sEverythingYouNeedToKnowaboutDJing&Success4isan

exampleofabookthatdescribesbasicDJingskillswithageneralizedoverviewof

howtoDJsuccessfully,withlargeautobiographicalquotes.Ononehandthebook

isn’tparticularlyuniqueinitscontent,onlybasicselementsofDJingarecovered

andithasrelativelylittlenewinformationthatisn’tconveyedinolderDJing

tutorials/manuals.Ontheotherhand,Ramplingdoeshavethecreditofbeing

writtenbyasuccessfulDanceMusicDJanditisimportanttonotethatanumber

2Rezaei,M.2006.TurntablePerformancePractice:DevelopmentofPerformancePracticeandTechniques.BAThesis,UniversityofLeeds.3HiphopspellingtakenfromBrewster,B&Broughton,F.2006.LastNightADJSavedMyLife.London:Headline.p120.4Rampling,D.2010.TheEssentialGuidetoDjingandSuccess.London:AurumPressLtd.

12

ofbooksonDJingarewrittenbykeenandenthusiasticobserversnotsuccessful

careerDJs.RamplingtalksaboutcompositionwithturntablesinthecontextofDJ

mixesandmixtapes.ThisisthefirstpieceofwritingthatIhavefoundthat

analysessuccessfulmixinginsuchdetail,awayfrom‘readingthecrowd’

technique(whichBrewsterandBroughtonrelyheavilyon)andgivesaclear

analysis,formulaandvisualaids.Thereareslightmusicalmisgivingsbut

Rampling’sintentionsareinagenuineplace.

Workingalongaprincipleknowas‘GoldenSection’usedbyClassicalComposerssuchasDebussy,trytoaimforthe2/3pointfortheclimaxofthemix.Thisispossiblythemostsatisfyingshapeforanyart-form,asitallowstheconcluding1/3toserveasa‘cooldown’period,wherethemixcanbebroughtbackdown.5

Thoughitisdebatablewherethe‘GoldenSection’ofanyworkisinfactatthetwo

thirdsthroughpointofawork,IbelieveRamplingiscorrecttoadvisealearning

DJtoputthoughtintocontent,formanddynamicstructurewhenassemblinga

mix/mixtape.ThisfurtherthinkinganddevelopmentofthemusicianshipofDJing

ispredominantlymissedoutbyanumberoftextswhichmaylinkbacktoauthors

notbeingDJsthemselves.

DJingforDummies6byJohnSteventonispredominantlyaninstructionmanual,

withexamplesofhowtosetupbasicDJingkitalongsidelearningbasicDJ

techniques.Irealiseinthetitlethatthereisanimplicationthatthebookwill

provideclearexplanations,howeverIthinkthebookismorepatronisingthan

necessary,asmuchasitispackagedtobeafriendlyguide.13outof26chapters

areaboutequipmentwiththeremainingchaptersfocusingonlifestyle,for

5Ibid.p736Steventon,J.2006.DJingforDUMMIES.London:JohnWileyandSonsLtd.

13

example‘GettingDrunkWhenPlaying’7,‘HowDoIGoToTheToilet’8and‘Make

Friends’9.ThereareplentydetailstohowtolookandappeartobeaDJwithone

chapteronhowtobeatmatchandonechapteronskratching.Itisinthechapter

onskratchingthatSteventonshowshislackofunderstandingontheprinciplesof

skratchtechnique,orinfactturntablesetuptechniqueswhichhehastalkedfor

solongaboutthusfar.

Thetwowaystocontrolthestabilityofyourneedlearethroughthedownforceactingontheneedle,andtheanglethatit‘digs’intothegroove.Simplysettheneedlesothatitanglesintothegrooveby10degreesandit’llsticktothegroovelikeglue.Thedownside,though,isthattheneedlewearsoutthegroovelikeahotknifethroughbutter10

Ifaturntableneedlehasbeensetcorrectly,somewearandtearwillinfactoccur,

butonlyafterhighlyexcessiveuse(yearsofcloseuseofcertainrecordgroovesby

askratchDJ)shouldtherebethewornout‘hiss’effectthatSteventonalludesto

butthereisnoneedtosettheneedleataheavierweight.Hefurtherworsensthis

advicebytellingtheDJto‘addaweight,suchasacoinorBluetac’11toDJneedles

worthhundredsofpounds.Thatreallywillmeanyoucutintoyourrecordslikea

hotknifeintobutter.Ican’thonestlyagreewithsomeoftheadviceinthisbook,

someofitismatteroffactmanualtypeinformationbuttheemphasison‘lifestyle’

andincorrectadviceaboutequipmentisalarming.

7Ibid.,3508Ibid.,3429Ibid.,30910Ibid.p24211Ibid.p242

14

OftheotherhighprofileDJbooksavailable,IreadSophySmithsHip-Hop

Turntablism,CreativityandCollaboration12,BillBrewsterandFrankBroughton’s

LastNightADJSavedMyLife13andMarkKatz’sGrooveMusic14.

LastNightADJSavedMyLifemakesfordifficultreadingforacomposerand

turntablist.Themostjournalisticofthethreebooks,thereisastrongly

misogynisticandcolloquialtonethroughoutthewholebook.Fromthebeginning

ofthebook,BrewsterandBroughtondepictaninaccuratestereotypeofDJs,

immediatelylikeningDJstospiritualleaderssuchas‘shaman’sand

witchdoctor’s’15.TheconstantreferencetomusicasareligionandtheDJasa

spiritualleaderisexcessivefromthebeginningandhasnorealbasisinanything

otherthanahedonisticopinion.Therearealsoseveralconflictingstatements

throughoutthebook.Inthecaseofthe‘ArtoftheDJ’16chapter,Brewsterand

BroughtondefinethattheDJcanbelikeamusician.

TheDJisamusician.Itjusthappensthatinplaceofnotesheusessongs.Whereaguitaristcanimpressanaudiencebyplayingathirtysecondsequenceofchords,whataDJdoestakeslonger–ADJneedstobejudgedonatwoorthree-hournarrativeoftracks.17

Anargumentthatisconstantlyreassertedthroughoutthebookisthatasuccessful

DJ’sskillsareintheirchoiceofrecordsandtheirabilityto‘readthecrowd’.DJ

FatboySlimexplains

12Smith,S.2013.Hip-HopTurntablism,CreativityandCollaboration.London:Ashgate.13Brewster,B&Broughton,F.2006.LastNightADJSavedMyLife.London:Headline.14Katz,M.2012.GrooveMusic.TheArtandCultureoftheHip-HopDJ.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress.15Brewster,B&Broughton,F.2006.LastNightADJSavedMyLife.London:Headline.p2.16Ibid.p1417Ibid.p15

15

agoodDJisalwayslookingatthecrowd,seeingwhattheylike,seeingwhetherit’sworking;communicatingwiththem,smilingatthem.18

Thisisfurtherreinforced,wherethereaderistolda

greatDJshouldbeabletomoveacrowdonprimitiveequipment…itsmuchmoreaboutfindingamazingnewsongsandbeingabletopullthemoutattherightmoment.

Threecriticalargumentsaremadehere,whereagoodDJcanbedefinedbyan

audience’simmediateresponse,thatagoodDJcanonlybejudgedbya2to3hour

longmixandthatagoodDJcanbejudgedfromamomentarychoiceoftheone

correcttrackatthecorrectmoment.Thebookisfullofcontradictorystatements

likethisandleavesacriticalreaderwithlittlemorethanskepticismofthesources

andauthors.Idon’tbelievethattheansweristhatallthreeofthesestatements

aretrue,thesignofagoodDJissignificantlymorecomplexthanchoosingone

record,readingacrowdorhowtheymakealongmix.Theonethingthatthis

bookconstantlyavoidsdiscussing,musicalskills,isthegluethatbindstogether

thethreetechnicalskillsBrewsterandBroughtontalkabout.

Throughoutthebook,thereisalwaysadetourawayfromdescribingDJing

techniquesorapedagogyofDJdevelopmentbutalwaysreferencetopopular

trackswithinterviewsfromDJsandProducers.ThereareanecdotalstoriesofDJs

workingontechniques,forexample,GrandmasterFlashperfectinga‘quickmix

fortheAdventuresofGrandmasterFlashontheWheelsofSteel’19butlacking

explicittechnicalexplanationsofwhataquickmixisorhowFlashcomposedthe

18Ibid.p1719Ibid.p93.

16

mix.20Thereisanemphasisonmusicalgenresthroughoutthistext,with

informationaboutgenresIhavelittleexperiencein.ThoughIhavelearnedan

interestingoverviewofmusicandnamesofDJsassociatedwiththesegenres,very

littleinsidethesechaptersdoesmorethansimplyconfirmtheover-sexualized,

substanceheavylifestylesthatarethederogatoryandnegativestereotypes

attachedtoDJsofallgenresacrosstheworld.

SophySmithhasaninterestinglookintogroupturntablecomposition,commonly

knowas‘team’composition,analysingroutinescomposedspecificallyfortheUK

DMCTeambattle21byTheDMUCrew22,TheMixologists23andTheScratch

Perverts24.Shebreaksdowntheelementsoftheturntablecompositioninto

technique,timbre,typeofturntablism(beatjugglingorskratching)andanalyses

theturntableroutinesofthethreetechnicallydifferentteamsforsimilaritiesand

differences.Smith’sapproachisverymatteroffactandlooksatthe

compositionalprocessintermsofbalanceoftimeeachperformerspendsoneach

structuralsection,alwaysrankingtheperformersinorderofimportance,further

breakingdownheranalysisintoelementsofgeneralisedtimbre/genreintowhat

mightbeaconclusive‘winning’formulaforteamcomposition.Smithexplains

thatitwasimperativetoworkwiththreeteamswithinhergeographicalgraspso

thatshewasabletomeetwiththem,analysetheircompositionalprocessfirst

hand,tointerviewthemfirstandseetheworkperformedfirsthandinateam

20A‘quickmix’isaDJmixwheretracksareplayedforshortbursts,sometimesonlyahandfulofbeatsbeforeanothertrackismixedin.21Smith,S.2013.Hip-HopTurntablism,CreativityandCollaboration.London:Ashgate.p1122Ibid.p14323RedbullMusicAcademy.2006.RBMALectures:Mixologists[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://www.redbullthre3style.com24Smith,S.2013.Hip-HopTurntablism,CreativityandCollaboration.London:Ashgate.p57

17

battle/DJcompetitionscenario.Iagree,thatalloftheelementsarevitally

important,howeverIthinkthattherearelargeareasofteambattlingthatare

missedoutofSmith’sresearch.TheDMCChampionshipsareviewedwithinthe

turntablistsceneasthe‘lesstechnical’ofbattles,withtheInternational

TurntablistFederation25,theGongBattle26andRedBullTHR3EStyle

Competitions27ratingmuchhigherontechnicalities,explicitlyannouncingtheir

judge’sresultswhicharebasedontechnicalprowessalone.Nepotismand

conflictinginterestsofteninfluencetheDMCbattles,particularlywhenjudgesare

inthesameteamsorclosefriendsofDJs.PartofthecamaraderieoftheDJ

battlingsceneinvolvestheheckling,inlifeandonline,ofthejudgesopinions,the

performersandthecompetitionorganisers.Asaresultofthis,thecompetitions

havebeenforcedtomakescoresheetsmoreaccessibletoaudienceswithsome

makingtheircompetitionsmoredifficulttogettoenter.Forexample,the

InternationalTurntablistFederation(ITF)isbyinvitationonly.OfalltheDJ

teamsintheworld,Smithhaschosentoanalysejustthreeandshehasonly

touchedthesurface.

Smithspendsalargeproportionofherbooksettingupawellresearched

turntablistcompositionhistory,withanalysisoftextsbyPoschardt28,Schloss29

andKatz30butdoesn’tuseofanyofthisresearchtobackuporanalyseherown

25IDA.2000.IDA[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://www.idaworld.org/about26GONGBATTLE.2005.GONGBATTLE.[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://www.allmusic.com27RedbullMusicAcademy.2006.RBMA[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://www.redbullthre3style.com28Poschardt,U.1998.DJCulture.London:QuartetBooks29Scholss,J.G.2004.MakingBeats:TheArtofSample-BasedHip-Hop.Connecticut:WesleyanUniversityPress.30Katz,M.2005.CapturingSound.California:UniversityofCaliforniaPress,2005.

18

researchasdetailedmusictheoryorcompositionresearch.Smithhasanalysed

modelsofformandstructureinmusicanddrawnupchartsforanalysisofform

butthisisoflittleuseforcompositionresearchandlackingthedetailthatIhad

hopedtofindinthislevelofpublication.Thistext,whichinitsintroductiontells

readersitwilldevelop‘ananalyticalmethodologyspecificallyforturntable

music’31goesontocompletelydismissthemorecomplextranscriptionand

notationofDJRadar’sconcertoashehas‘adisregardforthecompositional

practicesusedbythemajorityofturntablistmusicians.’32Radarisnotanaverage

turntablist,hepushesboundariesbycomposingnewmusicandnotatesthemusic

notjusttocreatesomethingnew,buttoalsopreserveturntablecompositionina

waythatisaccessibletoothermusicians.Innovationisonevitalpartofthe

turntablistethosthatisforgotteninherargument.

Smithdoesprovideasmallfigureofthemainfunctionsofhip-hopturntable

notation33;communication,documentation,composition,legitimization,

analysis/understandingandpedagogy/learning.Howeverusefulthischartisfor

basicanalysis,itsisn’tcriticalandlacksthemusicalbreakdownofspecificskratch

techniquesandbasicrhythmicanalysis,whichIhadhopeditwouldhave

included.

Bearinginmindthatthisisoneofthefirstworksonthesubjectofturntable

composition,IcanonlyimagineSmithwillgoontofurtherresearchandIhope

therewillbeanalysisofteambattlesfromthecriticaldevelopmentofturntablism

31Smith,S.2013.Hip-HopTurntablism,CreativityandCollaboration.London:Ashgate.p232Ibid.p9433Ibid.p95

19

overthelasttwentyyearsincludingtheworkofBeatJunkies34,TheInvisibl

SkratchPiklz35,C2C36andmorefromaroundEurope.Britishturntablismhasa

strongchapterinturntablistandDJinghistorybutthemajorityofdevelopmentin

musictechniqueandequipmenthasbeenfromtheUSA.Furtheranalysisintothe

developmentofteamcompositionisvitalanditisnowbecominganevenmore

interestingareawheredigitalvinylsystemsanddrummachinesarenowusedas

partofDJbattling,reflectingthedevelopmentofnewDJtechnology.

MarkKatzprovidesacolourfulanddetailedhistoryofturntablismandDJculture

fromthebirthofhiphopwithanecdotalsnapshotthroughtofirsthand

interviewsbyawiderangeofDJs.Hisresearchandwritingiscomprehensiveon

thehistoricalanddevelopmentalstagesofturntablism,withaheavyfocusonthe

NorthandSouthAmericancontributions.Thelargestchapterofthebook

explorestherelevanceandcompositionalimportanceofthedevelopmentofthe

‘break’inhiphopandclearlyillustratestheimportanceofthisintertwined

developmentofturntablismandbreakdancing.

Thedemandsoftheb-boysandb-girlsencouragedtheisolationofthebreaks,andthehip-hopDJsdidsomethingthatvirtuallynodiscoDJwoulddo,atleastonpurpose:theyscratchedrecords37

ThisisalongchapterbutIagreewithKatzthatthedevelopmentofthebreakand

itsimportanceinhiphopissignificantanddeservesthismuchfocus.His

historicalresearchisthoroughthroughoutallthechaptertopicsbutIamagain

34BeatJunkies.1996.BeatJunkiesWebsite.[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:https://www.beatjunkies.com35InvisiblSkratchPiklz.1996.InvisblSkratchPiklzWikipedia[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:https://en.wikipedia.org36C2C.2009.C2CWebsite.[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://www.c2cmusic.fr37Katz,M.2012.GrooveMusic.TheArtandCultureoftheHip-HopDJ.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress.p10

20

consciousthatKatzisnotaDJhimself,missingoutsomeoftheexciting,and

criticaldetailsofthedevelopmentinskratchtechniques.Thereisanexploration

intothedevelopmentofturntablistalbums,namelyQ-Bert’sWaveTwisters38,Kid

Koala’sCarpalTunnelSyndrome39andD-Styles’Phantazmagorea40withonlya

briefanalysisofsoundmaterialsusedinthealbums,discussingcompositional

process

Qberttakessomethingsimple-thesyllable‘fresh’forexample-andcreatesacomplexmusicalworldoutofit.KidKoala,ontheotherhand,takesbitsofcompletelyunrelatedrecordsandstitchesthemintonearlyseamless,deceptivelysimplesongs41

ItisatthispointthatIwouldliketolearnmoreabouttheuseofskratchesthat

bothDJsuse,howbothDJsdifferintheirapproachtoworkingwithsamplesand

furtheranalysisintothelayeringofseveralturntablesatatime,aspartofthe

composition.LikeSmith,Katzisreferringtocompositionalformandstructure

andmissingtheintricatedetailsthatarethesignifiersthatdifferentiateDJsall

aroundtheworld.Q-BertandKidKoalacouldperformthesameskratcheswith

identicalsourcematerialsandequipmentbuttheirturntablistcharactersand

soundsaresouniquethatyoucouldtelltheDJsapartfromjustsimpleskratching.

BothKatzandSmithhaveskirtedaroundthetopicsofturntablecomposition,

providingwritingaboutthecompositionofDJRadar’sTurntableConcerto

process42whichistakenstraightoutofthereleasedLP’slinernotes,butnever

articulateoranalysethemusicaldetailsofworks,missinganyconstructive

38WaveTwisters.2001.[DVD]Q-Bert.USA:ThudRumble39KidKoala.2000.CarpalTunnelSyndrome.[Vinyl]London:NinjaTune.40D-Styles.2009.Phantazmagorea.[CD]California:BeatJunkieSound.41Katz,M.2012.GrooveMusic.TheArtandCultureoftheHip-HopDJ.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress.p57342Ibid.p614

21

criticismoftheturntablismormusiccomposition.Katz’chapteronturntable

compositionprovidesampleevidencethatmusichasbeencomposedtolegitimise

theturntableasaninstrumentwithfurtherelaborationonthecompositionand

rehearsalroomprocesses.HeacknowledgesanumberofcomposersandDJsin

theUK43,includingmyself,butreferencesthereareonlyafewscoresor

recordingsavailablewithoutprovidinganyevidenceofthis.HasKatzlistenedto

theseworksandishiswritingwellinformedonthissubject?

OfthebooksthatareavailableonDJing,mostfallintothecategoriesof

tutorials/manualandhiphophistory.Astherearenowseveralbooksonthese

subjects,Ihopethattherewillbemoreliteraturewrittenonthedevelopmentof

turntablistskillsalongsidetheprogressionofDJequipmentandturntable

composition.KatzhasillustratedthedevelopmentofthetwochannelDJmixer

throughdevelopmentofskratchtechniquebyGrandmasterFlash

FlashtookthesamemethodicalapproachtohisDJingashedidtohis

equipment.Hisgoalwastofindawaytoconnectthebreakwithout

everlosingthebeat..44

Inthefuture,Ihopewecanlearnmoreaboutthedevelopmentofturntable

equipmentandturntablecompositiontwentyyearson,forexample,writingabout

andwiththeultrapitchandmidiVestaxControllerOneturntable45(whichIuse

43Ibid.p61444Ibid.p61545VESTAX.2001.VESTAX[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vestax

22

inmycompositions)andDJmixerswithintegratedmidicontrolsandeffects,like

theRaneTTM57.46

Chapter3Methodology

Thereisaclear6-stepprocesstomycompositionalmethodology.

1. Proposing/receivingacommission

2. Researchintoanewcommissionandensemble

3. Thecompositionprocessinviewofresearch

4. Skillssharingwithensemble

5. Performance

6. Compositionalevaluationandreflection

3.1Proposing/ReceivingaCommission

ThefirststepisacommissionfromwhichIbegintodrawalistofcriteriaanda

stepbystepplantofulfiltheartisticandpragmaticelementsofthecommission.

ThisisclearlydemonstratedintheNOISESTRA47projectwhere,inthefirst

instance,Iwastoworkintensivelywithanensemblethatdidnotyetexist48.To

fulfiltheperformanceandcompositionalaspectsofthecommission,Ihadto

recruitaminimumof8youngpeoplefromtheNorthEastofEnglandanddrawup

alearningstrategyandrehearsalschedulethatwouldbepracticalandrealisticin

46RANE.1998.RANE[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://dj.rane.com/products47Rezaei,M.2012.NOISESTRA:FromtheDJSofNOISESTRA.[Online].[Accessed1stOctober2016].Availablefrom:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIQGHbnXmi4

23

termsofcommunitymusicpracticeandworkingwithyoungpeople.The

commissionoutlinedthattheperformancewastobeover30minutesinlength,to

workwiththeyoungpeoplecloselytodemonstratetheirskillsasperformersand

toshareskills.Theprocessbywhichthiscommissionwasdevelopedinvolveda

commissioningpanelthatwroteaspecificlistofcriteria.Thecriteriawasbased

onasetofinitialideasthatIpresentedaspartofthecommissioningprocess;to

composeandusegraphicscores,DJworkshopstoshareskillswithayoung

generationtohelppreserveturntablismandexploringexperimentalmusic

performanceskillsforasetperformancewithanestablishedmusicensemble.

Leadinguptotheperformancewouldincludeasetofintensiveworkshops

exploringtheexperimentaland‘traditional’hiphopsettingsofturntablism

throughtheskillsofbeatmatching,mixing,skratching,beatjuggling,turntable

tonesandfreeimprovisation.Thispresentedanopportunitytoshareskillsand

workwithbothnewandoldturntablistskills.

3.2ResearchintoaNewCommissionandEnsemble

Researchintothenewcommissioniscarriedoutbothintermsofmusicandalso

theperformers/performance.Inmanycases,thiswillinvolveworkshopsand

experimentationwiththeensemble.ForNOISESTRAthistooktheformofa

teachingprocesswiththeperformers,includingmini-presentations,experiments

andgraphicscoresusingturntables,forexample,aworkshoponFebruary1st

2012focusingonturntabletonesandtheforwardcutskratch.Mostturntable

techniquesaretransferableskills,forexampletheforwardcutisamethodof

samplingpartofaforwardplayingsound,withoutthereversesoundheard,toa

24

specifictempo(oftenin4/4).Theforwardcutisalsothetechniquefromwhich

thebasicbeatjugglingtechniquebackspinningisderived.Theforwardcutisa

skillthatcanalsobefurtherappliedtoturntabletones,whereasmalltunecanbe

playedby‘loopingup’orrewindingsoundswhilstthepitchadjusteronthe

turntableisadjusted.Usingtheforwardcutskratchaspartoftheprocessforthe

turntabletonesisanearly,highlyskilledandcoordinatedtechniquewhichI

challengedthegroupwith.Oncethegrouplearnedtoplay‘MaryHadALittle

Lamb’ontheturntablefollowingtheexampleofthe1991DMCWorldChampion

DJQbert49,wethenlookedatagraphicscoreanddiscussedhowwecouldbegin

tofollowonebasicruletomakesoundandhaveimpact.Thisrepertoireincluded

textandgraphicscoressuchasMatthewShlomowitz’sLetterPieces50,Jennifer

Walshe’sWhyPeopleODonPills/JumpofftheGoldenGateBridge51,Stockhausen’s

HelicopterStringQuartet,52JohnCage’sRocks53andCorneliusCardew’sTreatise54

whichweexperimentedwithonturntables.

Thishands-onapproachtoteachingwithyoungpeopleidentifiedvariousskills

involvedthatareneededtocommunicateinworkshopsaboutgroupperforming,

improvisationandinterpretinggraphicscores.

Anotherpartoftheresearchhasincludedcataloguingotherturntable

compositionsandarticlesformyownresearchwhilstlookingattheroleofthe

turntableasaninstrumentwithincomposedmusic.LookingatJohnCage’s

491991DMCWorldChampionships.1991.[VHS]London:DMC.50Shlomowitz,M.2007.LetterPiece#1:NorthernCities,Arsenal,Bahrain,Chihuahua,Darjeeling&Eisenhower.[MusicScore]Unpublished.51Walshe,J.2004.THISISWHYPEOPLEODONPILLS/ANDJUMPFROMTHEGOLDENGATEBRIDGE.[MusicScore]NewYork:MilkerCorporation.52Helikopter-Streichquartett.:ArdittiStringQuartet.1999.[DVD]Paris:MediciArts53Cage,J.1986.ACollectionofRocks.[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.54Cardew,C.1970.Treatise.[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.

25

ImaginaryLandscapeNo.1,employedneedledroppingandtesttoneswithpitch

adjustments,ImaginaryLandscapeNo.5withfortytwodifferentrecordsusedand

Schaeffer’sEtudeAuxCheminsdeFer55samplingrecords,making‘silonfermé’

(closedgrooves)56onrecords.Therepertoirecontemporarywiththeriseofhip

Hop,J.O.MallanderwithDecompositionswithitsminimalistrepetition57andJohn

Zorn’sLocusSolus58featuringChristianMarclayonturntableswasalsovery

useful.RecentworkswerealsostudiedincludingGabrielProkofiev’sTurntable

Concerto59,wherealiveorchestrajuxtaposeswithaliveturntablistandDJQbert’s

‘WaveTwisters’60,acompletehipHopturntablistworkwithathroughcomposed

narrativeofcharacters,musicalthemesandradicalturntablisttechniques.I

playedandsharednumerousturntableworkswiththegroupthroughoutour

workshopsandhaveresearchedthepurpose,roleandidentityoftheturntable

throughouttheseworks,usingthisresearchtoinformmycompositional

decisions.

Researchintonewworkisalsothroughregularlisteningtomusicandattendance

atmusicconcerts,theatreanddanceshows.OftennewideasarepresentedandI

learnaboutinstrumentaltechnique,ensembletimbres,compositionalformand

howbesttocommunicate/notateforperformersfromconcerts.

55Schaeffer,P.2013.1948.EtudeAuxCheminsDeFer.[CD]London:PuzzleRecords56Emmerson,S.2007.LivingElectronicMusic.London:Ashgate.p6757Mallander,J.O.1983.Decompositions.[CD]Helsinki:AnoemaRecordings.58Zorn,J.1983.LocusSolus.[CD]London:TzadikRecords.59BBC.2011.ConcertoforTurntables.[Online].[Accessed1stOctober2016.]Availablefrom:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38atRejUORM60WaveTwisters.2001.[DVD]Q-Bert.USA:ThudRumble.

26

3.3TheCompositionProcessinViewofResearch

Thethirdstepofthemethodologyistheprocessofwritingthecomposition.

Whencomposingforturntables,Iammostoftencomposingwithaspecific

ensemble,soundortechniqueinmindthatIhavebeenexperimentingwith,

usuallythroughturntableimprovisation.Forexample,inNOISESTRA’sFUMP,I

intentionallywantedtocomposeagraphicscorewithadirectpitchcorrelationto

theturntablesasanensembleandspecifically,exploitingthelimitationofusing

only+8%and-8%pitchon13turntables.Multipleturntablescanchangepitch

throughsmallcontrolledmovementsoftheturntable’spitchadjusterandthe

unpredictable,erraticanduniquesoundsproducedbymovingtherecordsonthe

turntablesbyhand.Thiseffectwasthenmultipliedby13turntablesandlayered

withtimedsoloentriesandpointsofunison.WhencomposingNOST,Iwas

interestedinemployingsubbassoscillatorsoundsincloseproximityandhowthe

rhythmicpatternsoftheoscillatorsclashingcanhaveaphysicalandsoniceffect

withnewaddeddimensionofclickingonvinyl.Iwantedtoexplorethedepths

andclosenessofthelimitedsoundmaterialthroughbasstones,especiallywhen

incloseproximityandwhenfarapart.ThismeantthatIhadtousedifferent

equipment:aTechnics1200turntable61withanoverallpitchrangeof16%,and

theVestaxControllerOneturntable62witha120%ultrapitchrangewithtwosub

woofersintheperformance.

Oneissuethatconstantlyarisesinmyperformancepracticeisthebalanceof

electronicsandacousticinstruments.Whatsolutionworksbestwhentryingto

61TechnicsSL-1200MK2Turntable.[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://shop.panasonic.com/shop62VestaxControllerOneTurntable[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://cdm.link

27

balancethesoundifoneinstrumentmustbeamplified?Isitimportanttoamplify

theacousticinstrumentstoo?IattendedaperformanceoftheRoyalNorthern

SinfoniaperformingSteveReich’sDifferentTrainsinMarch2013inHall2ofthe

SageGateshead.Thebalanceoftheacousticstringquartetandtheamplified

cassettetapeworkedwellintheperformancespaceasanaudiencemember,

howeverthestringquartetwerewearingearpiecesthatplayedametronome

alongwiththetaperecording.Itbecameapparentthatthemusiciansfoundit

difficulttofollowascorethatincludesataperecordingwhichisimmersiveand

playedavitalrolefortheperformers.Electronicmusiccanbemuchlouderthan

acousticinstrumentswouldbeheardinthecontextofasharedperformance

spaceandsomemusicianscanfinditconfusing,especiallyifitsdistractingthe

performerfromastricttempo.Thisisanexampleofonepiecewherethe

pragmaticsofapiecearen’taseasyastheyappeartobe,wherescoringawork

differently(agraphicscore,orevenlackofdetailinascorerelevanttootherparts

forotherperformers)couldpossiblymakeitmoredifficultforaperformerto

understand.WithNOISESTRA,Iworkedcloselyintheperformancespacewithall

oftheDJsandApartmentHousewithasoundtechnician,usingavarietyoffold

backthroughmonitorsforDJsandmusicians.Thisissuehasbeenaconstantand

consciousissuethatIhavethoughtaboutthroughoutallofmywriting.

3.4SkillsSharingwithEnsemble

Alargeelementofthisresearchintocomposingforturntablehascomefromdaily

practiceasaperformer,composerandteacher.Giventhatformalteachingisnot

partofmostturntablists’experienceandthattherearestilllimitedresourcesfor

28

advancedturntablistskillsworldwide,establishingtaughtskillsbecomesacritical

partoftheprocessofdevelopingworkwithanensemble.Inordertowritefor

andworkwithotherturntablists,participantshadtobetrainedwithaspecific

skillsbase.IhadanopencallforyoungpeopletojointheNOISESTRAensemble

andasaresult,therewasahugevariationinabilitiesandunderstandingofmusic

thoughnooneparticipanthadusedvinyltoDJwithorlearnedanyturntablist

specificskills.Withthisinmind,itwasimportanttodeviseaseriesofworkshops

thatcrossedovervariousskillsinturntableperformanceandDJingincluding

repertoire,basicbeatmatching,mixing,beatjugglingandskratchesbefore

developingintoturntabletones.Iresearchedseveraldifferentmethodsof

teachingskratchingtechniquesincludingDJQ-bert’sonlineSkratchUniversity63,

theBerkleeCollegeofMusicSkratchcoursewithStephenWebber64,DJShort-ee’s

StudioScratchesvideotutorials65andChrisKwote’sonlinetutorials66.Addingto

thismyownexperiencesasaDJinstructor,Ihavedevelopedmyown

methodology,includingelementsofyouthleadershipassharedlearningand

participantresearch/homework.UnliketheQSUandBerkleeCollegeofMusic

courses,theNOISESTRAprojectwasnotsetupasanacademiccoursefor

musicianstolearn,butasanopenaccessprojecttoyoungpeoplewhowantto

learnDJingandturntablecompositionwithperformanceopportunities.

63DJQbert’sSkratchUniversity.2011.QSU.[Online].[Accessed1October2016].Availablefrom:http://artistworks.com64Webber,S.2007.DJSkills:TheEssentialGuidetoMixingandScratching.NewYork:FocalPress.65StudioScratches.2013.StudioScratches.[Online].[Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:https://www.youtube.com/user/studioscratches66Kwote,C.2013.KwoteMusic.[Online]{Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://kwotemusic.com

29

TheNOISESTRAworkshopswereinitiallysetupwiththreeDJsetups,onefor

everyfourparticipants(atotalofsixturntablesandthreeDJmixersfortwelve

participants).Theparticipantslearnedingroupsoffour,helpingeachotherby

learningskratchingandbeatjugglinginduos,swappingpositionstolearnskillson

bothleftandrighthandswhilstalsoworkingtogetheronsmallerturntablist

challenges.

Bearinginmindthegroupneededtoperformwithliveinstruments,Idevelopeda

shortseriesofskratchexercises67,writtenwithpartlymusicandpartlyturntable

techniqueascriteria.Putintopractice,theseexerciseslookatbasicmusicianship,

tobuildgroupmusicianship,basichandcontrol,crossfadertechniqueandto

encourageimprovisationandinterpretationwhilstmaintainingaccuracyand

clarity.MuchliketheideologyinBartok’sMikrokosmos68seriesofpiano

technique,theexercisesareprogressiveintechniquewithadualpurposeof

graduallydevelopingtechnicalturntablistskills,introducingnewideasalongthe

waywhilstexistingasshortpiecestoperform.

Thereisacleardevelopmentofturntablisttechniquealongsidebasicmusical

skillsintheshortexercises.Bynotatingtheexercises,Ihavedocumentedthem–

documentationisanongoingissueforturntablists–whilstalsoprovidinga

teachingtoolforparticipantstoworkfrom.Iwouldarguethatnotatingthe

exercisesisimportant,astherearemanyvariouswaysinwhichpeoplelearnlike

Fleming’sVisualAuditoryReadingandKinaesthetic(furthermorereferredtoas

67Theseexercisesarediscussedinmoredetailintheappendices.68Bartok,B.1926-39.Mikrokosmos,Volume6.[MusicalScore]London:BooseyandHawkes.

30

VARK)modeloutlines69.Byusingmeansofvisualaids,auditoryaids,readingand

writingandappliedpractice(kinaesthetic),Ihavebeenabletosuccessfullyteach

exercisestoparticipants,allwithvaryingskills.Theuseofwrittenexercisesin

teachingalsorelatestoDavidKolb’sLearningStyles70wherethereisafourstage

learningcycle:

Learningistheprocesswherebyknowledgeiscreatedthroughthe

transformationofexperience.71

Kolb’stheoryisinfoursteps:Stepone,ConcreteExperience,whereanew

experienceisencountered;Steptwo,ReflectiveObservation,ofthenew

experience;Stepthree,wherereflectionleadstonewideas;Stepfour,wherethe

learnerappliesthechangestofindresults.Exercise8haspointswhere

participantsareabletoreflectontheirlearningandapplytheirown

interpretationofthescore.72

Ihavelearnedaboutandappliedthistheorytomycommunitypracticeasa

freelancemusicianinanumberofworkingrolesandprojectsandfoundthisa

clearandusefulstructuretocomplimentmyworkshopplanning.

3.5Performance

Thenextstepinmycompositionalmethodologyincludesmypragmaticapproach

tocomposingmusic.Icomposemusicthatwillchallengemyabilities(evenifit

69Fleming,N.2001.TeachingandLearningStyles:VARKStrategiesWebsite.[Online].[Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://vark-learn.com/70Kolb,D.1984.ExperientialLearning:Experienceasthesourceoflearninganddevelopment.NewJersey:Prentice-Hall.71Ibid.72PleaseseeAppendicesforSkratchExercises.

31

meansnottouchingtheturntable),lookingtoexplorenewwaysofcreating

soundsthroughdifferenttechniquesandapplyingseveraldifferentskillsinboth

turntableensembleperformancesandperformanceforturntableand

instrumentalensemble.AnexampleofthisisTRAXfromNOISESTRA,wherea

soloturntablistandsoloharpistimprovisewithoutreferencetoanynotationand

areaccompaniedbyascoredensembleofturntablistsandinstrumentalists.Much

likeMauricioKagel’sPrimavista73,symbolswereemployedandspecific

boundarieswithinwhichtointerpretthesesymbols.WorkingwithNOISESTRAin

workshops,weexperimentedanddevelopedaspecificsetofsymbolswith

specifictechniquesandchanges.Thiswasanartisticdecisiononmypart,whereI

wantedaconsistencyinsoundsproducedbytheparticipants.Thisneedfor

claritywasfurtherreinforcedbyfeedbackreceivedfromtheperformers,asthey

wereuncomfortablewithoutaspecificsetofperformancenotestoplayfrom.

Thusthenotationservedtwopurposes,thefirstartistic,thesecond,pragmatic

anddidactic.

Usinggraphicscoresallowsroomforinterpretationasasoloistandasan

ensemble,bearinginmindthevaryinglevelsofmusicalabilityandunderstanding

intheturntableensemblecomparedtothatofApartmentHouse.

Incontrast,whenwritingEsfa,Iemployednotationforallinstruments.Inpart3

ofEsfa,borrowingideasfromAlvinLucier’soscillatordronesinMusicForCello

WithOneOrMoreAmplifiedVases(1993)74andPeterAblinger’sclickingrecords

73Kagel,M.1964.PrimaVista[MusicScore]London:UniversalEdition.74Lucier,A.2005.MusicForCelloWithOneOrMoreAmplifiedVases.AnthonyBurrandCharlesCurtis.AlvinLucier:[CD]London:Antiopic.

32

ofWeisslich1375,IusedasampledoscillatortrackonawarpedSeratorecordto

playalongsidethesustainedsoundsofsilkribbonedelectricfansusedonthe

pianostringsandharp.Iwantedtouseanoscillatorsoundwithaslittle

interactionontheturntableforthetexturalqualityofthewarpedrecordand

sample.Isetmyselfthechallengeasaperformertoconstrainandwithhold

manipulationoftheturntablewhenusedasaninstrument,muchlikeOttorino

Respighi’suseoftheturntableinPinidiRoma(1924)whereitisusedtoplaya

nightingale’ssongwithnomanipulation.

3.6Compositionalevaluationandreflection

Thefinalstepinmycompositionalmethodologyisevaluation.Lookingbackon

theturntableworksI’vecomposedsince2008,therearepointsoflearning,areas

toadjustandmusicalmomentsthathaveworkedwell.UsingKolb’sprocessof

learning,step4,reflection,23fromNOISESTRAisadifficultworkformeto

evaluate.Reflectingontheperformancewasmoreproductivethanlookingatthe

score.Whenrehearsing,Iwasunhappyandunsureoftheworkhowever,there

wasadeadlineandIultimatelyhadtohandoverthescoretotheperformersand

rehearsetogetthemostoutofthesituation.Thefocusonmovingmelodic

materialthroughtheinstrumentationinthisworkisimitativeofsamplingandthe

samplebasednatureofturntablism.Manypracticalissuesarosefromthe

rehearsalofthispiece.Theseincludeddirectingandconductingtheturntable

ensemblewhilstalsoperforming,workingwithhighlyskilledperformersthat

75Ablinger,P.1995.Weisslich13[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://ablinger.mur.at

33

couldnotreadmusic,conductingtheinstrumentalensemblewithcuepointsand

thelivesoundbalanceofacousticinstruments,amplifiedacousticinstruments

andaturntableensemble.Thefixednatureoftherhythmstylisticallyisatoddsto

theharmoniclanguageandtexturalintentionsIinitiallyhad.Thispiecewasfully

notatedusing5linestavesforallinstrumentsandIamunsurewhethernotating

inthisformatwasunsuitableoriftheideasforthepieceitselfwerenotstrong

enoughinitially.

Chapter4.AuthorshipinaParticipatorySetting

Methodsofwritingpercussionmusichaveastheirgoaltherhythmicstructureofacomposition.Assoonasthesemethodsarecrystallizedintooneorseveralwidelyacceptedmethods,themeanswillexistforgroupimprovisationofunwrittenbutculturallyimportantmusic.76

Acriticalpartofmycompositionalprocessincludesthenotationofmy

compositionforturntables.Usinggraphicscoresinvariousformatshas

advantagesanddisadvantagesingroupsettings.

Iresearchedvariousmethodsofcommunitymusicpracticetoadaptfor

NOISESTRA,primarilyusingJohnStevens’handbookSearchandReflect77.One

exampleofadaptinghisexercisesincludedaworkshopwhereNOISESTRAwere

skratchingindividuallyatdifferenttimestoformachainofskratches,neededfor

SqrinchSqratchOrquestra.Thiswasthencontrastedwithindependentfree

rhythmskratchesusedinTRAX.OnespecificexerciseIusedbyStevensisClick

76Cage,J.1961.Silence:LecturesandWritingsbyJohnCageHanover:UniversityPressofNewEngland/WesleyanUniversityPress.77Stevens,J.1985.SearchandReflect–AMusicWorkshopHandbook.London:BPCommunityMusicLtd.

34

Piece78.Theaimofthisexerciseisto‘producetheshortest,mostprecisesound

possible.’Iadaptedexerciseonetoachieveasimilaraim,toproduceadistinctive,

articulateandaccuratesound’withturntablesusingspecificskratches.Stevens

asksthatthegroupbegininsilenceandindividually,producetheshortestsounds

theycan,usingseveralattemptsuntiltheperfectsoundisproduced.Iadapted

thissothatwithinthegroup,theDJswouldalldovariationsofthebabyskratch

withtheirownchosensound,butlookingfortheirown‘signature’babyskratch

soundsothatina‘collage’ofskratches,theirownwouldstandout.Thiswasthen

furtherelaborated,muchlikeStevens’secondexercise,the‘signature’baby

skratcheswererepeated,eachtimeexactlythesameandprecisely.Thislinked

neatlyintothethirdexercise,wherephysicalgestureandplacementofthe

instruments/soundsourceisfocusedon.Thefinalexerciseemphasisesindividual

playingwithfreerhythminagroupsetting.Iinitiallythoughtthiswouldbeof

greatdifficultyforthegroup,however,thestepsintheexercisesmeantthat

sufficientfocusandskillwasbuiltbytheindividualparticipantsthattheywere

thenabletoworkindividually,focusingonthemselves,andthinkindependently

ofagroupdynamicandrhythm.Thisexerciseisalsoaninterestingreflectionon

howIhaveworkedwithNOISESTRAasamusicleader,lookingfroma

macroscopicperspectiveofthegroupperformance,allowingtheparticipantsto

findtheirownindividualsoundandcharacterwithinboundariesofthepieces.

Inthespringof2012,Iwasinvitedtoworkwithanensembleofimprovisersto

performJohnCage’sImprovisationIV79oncassettesforBBCRadio3atCityHalls,

78Ibid.p6379Cage,J.1983.ImprovisationIV.[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.

35

Glasgow.PartoftheconcertincludedaperformanceofCage’sChildofTree80by

IlanVolkov.ThiswasthefirsttimeIhadseenaworkwithliveplantsandsuch

extensiveuseoftheIChingwithinacomplicatedtextscore.Thispieceisagood

introductiontoanin-depthmethodologyofindeterminacythatwillsolely

determinetheeventualoutcomeoftheworkandthescorewasatopicthata

numberofperformersdiscussedinformally.Cagehand-wrotethepiece,makingit

difficulttoreadinthefirstinstance,thentherearedifficultrulestofollowand

interpret.VerymuchlikeStockhausen’sPlusMinus81,theperformermustwork

outtheirownroleandperformanceinadvanceandthescoreisnotalwaysclear.

SomepeoplewouldarguethatadeepunderstandingofJohnCage’sworksis

essentialwheninterpretingsuchascore,howeverIwouldarguethatthisshould

notbethecase.Anycomposershouldbeabletoclearlycommunicatetoany

performerexactlywhattheywishtoseeinaperformancewithoutany

backgroundresearchintothecomposersandtheirpreviousworks.Whetherthey

achievethisornotisadifferentmatter.Asacomposer,IliketothinkthatIwrite

pragmaticallyforperformers,andrehearsaltimesareagoodtimetoeaseoutany

ambiguitiesorissuesinawork.Atthispointinmycompositionalcareer,Idon’t

believeinmakingaprocessdifficultforaperformerforthesakeofmakingit

difficult.DidCageintentionallywritedifficultinstructionsoristhereanunvoiced

lessonwrittenintothescorethatadeeperphilosophicalargumentneedstobe

learnedinasubversivemanner?WeknowthatCagewasaprofoundphilosopher

andthinker,challengingothermusiciansandcomposersashislectureTheFuture

80Cage,J.1975.ChildofTree[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.81Stockhausen,K.1963.PlusMinus[MusicScore]London:UniversalEdition.

36

ofMusic(Credo)82explicitlydemonstrates.Couldthescorehavebeenwrittenin

anotherwaysothatitisn’tasdifficulttounderstand?Lookingathislaterworks,

especiallytherelationshipofBranches83toChildofTree84,Ithinkthatthiswas

oneofmanyexperimentswhereCagewasdevelopinganarrativeandhisideas

were‘notaflashofinspiration,fullyformed.’85InMusicofChanges86,Cageused

theIChingaspartofhiscompositionprocessandby1976,inBranches,heopens

uphispiecetotheperformers,furtherdevelopingtheuseofindeterminacyby

lawsofprobability,increasingthelikelihoodofaradicallydifferentperformance

witheveryperformerandconcert.NeatlysummarizedbyChristophCox87from

JohnCage’sSilence:LecturesandWritings88,Cagesortedopencompositionsinto

‘twogeneralcategories…indeterminatewithrespecttocomposition,determinate

withrespecttoitsperformanceanddeterminatewithrespecttocomposition,

indeterminatewithrespecttoperformance’.Branches,ChildofTreeandMusicof

Changesaredeterminatewithrespecttocomposition.Thoughpartofthe

performanceofBranchesandChildofTreeinvolvesinterpretationbythe

performer,thereneedstobesignificantdetailintheinstructionsforthe

performerstoworkouttheirpartsthoroughly.Theperformancewillbe

indeterminateasthedurationsandinstrumentswillbeopentointerpretation

basedonthecompositionalstructureandtherelianceontheIChingtodefine

82Cage,J.1961.Silence:LecturesandWritingsbyJohnCageHanover:UniversityPressofNewEngland/WesleyanUniversityPress.83Cage,J.1976.Branches[MusicScore]NewYork:EditionPeters.84Cage,J.1975.ChildOfTree[MusicScore]NewYork:EditionPeters.85Prendergast,M.2000.TheAmbientCentury.London:BloomsburyPublishing.p4486Cage,J.2951.MusicOfChanges[MusicScore]NewYork:EditionPeters.87Cox,CandWarner,D.2004.AudioCulture:ReadingsinModernMusic.London:TheContinuumInternationalPublishingGroup.p16588Cage,J.1961.Silence:LecturesandWritingsbyJohnCageHanover:UniversityPressofNewEngland/WesleyanUniversityPress.

37

compositionalelements.ItiscredittoCagethattheprocessitselfiscomplicated

andhehasexplainedthestepsinawaythatcommunicateshiscomplexideas

clearlyandIdon’tthinkrequiresadeepgroundinginpreviousworksofCage’s.

AsthedirectoroftheNOISESTRAensembleandthecomposerofthegraphic

scores,IwasabletochoosehowmuchcontrolIhadoverallaspectsofthe

performersskillsbase,interpretationsanddecisionswhenfacilitatinggroup

decisions.IhadinitialthoughtsabouthowmuchinputandinterpretationIwould

allowperformerstohave,thoughthisevolvedastheworkshopsranandthe

demandsofeachgraphicscorewererefinedthroughmypersonalevaluation.

NOISESTRAwerestillrelativelynewtointerpretinggraphicscoresandthis

juxtaposedwithApartmentHouse’sexperiences.Thisimmediatelychallenged

measacomposer,astherearecertainexpectationsforandfromaprofessional

improviser.

DavidTooptalksabout‘Seasonedimprovisers–musicianswhoarefamiliarand

comfortablewithanad-hocwayofworking–tendtooperatewithunspoken,

evenunconscioussetsofconditionsthatdifferaccordingtotheplayersandthe

overallenvironment.Atitsmostbasictheformulais:rule=norules.’89

Anexpectationofanopenmindtoworkwithgraphicscores,orworkingwith

anotherensemblepresentschallenges,particularlywhenanensembleare

amateurswishingtobeandneedingtobedirectedinperformances.

Theyareusedtovariationsinqualitybutattheirsophisticatedlevel,disastersareunusual.Musicianswhoprefertoworkfromclearlydefinedstructuresbutwhoinvolvethemselvesperiodicallyinstructuredperformancesoftenexpressextremereservationsaboutthechaosthatcanensue.

89Toop,D.2004.HauntedWeather;Music,SilenceandMemory.London:SerpentsTail.p35

38

Inotherwords,workingwithinexperiencedplayersriskspublichumiliation90

Asanimprovisermyself,Iamawareoftherisksyoutakeworkingwithanynew

ensemble,buttherisksaresignificantlyhigherwhenworkinginaprofessional

contextwithyoungpeoplewithnewandlimitedgroupimprovisationskills.

Onewayoftacklingthisapprehensionandanxietywastoapproachthegraphic

scoreswithasetofperformancedirectionsthatwouldappeasetheworriesof

NOISESTRAperforming,defineasetframeworkforApartmentHouse,andstill

affordspaceforindividualcreativitywithinagroupcontext.

Authorityingroupimprovisationsisimportant.Ifsomeonedoesn’ttakethefirst

stepandleadthegroup,therecanbealargegroupofpeoplewaitingfornothing

tohappen.

Atworst,itcanleadtoanamorphousmesswherenoonehasthecouragetotakealead,soeveryoneendsupposedontheedgeofexplosionwithoutconsummatingtherelationship91

Havingworkedandtrainedincommunitymusicpractice,IhaveusedRoger

Hart’sLadderofYoungPeople’sParticipation92consciouslyinparticipatory

settingsandwantedtoapplyelementsofhistheorytomyplanningandwork

withNOISESTRA.Theladdermodelhas8rungs93;Rung1,youngpeopleare

manipulated;Rung2,youngpeoplearedecoration;Rung3,Youngpeopleare

tokenized;Rung4,Youngpeopleareassignedandinformed;Rung5,Young

peopleareconsultedandinformedoffinalresults;Rung6,adultinitiated,shared

decisionswithyoungpeople;Rung7,Youngpeopleleadandinitiateaction;Rung

90Ibid.p3491Ibid.p3292Hart,R.1992.Children’sParticipation:TheTheoryandPracticeofInvolvingYoungCitizensinCommunityDevelopmentandEnvironmentalCare.London:Earthscan.93Ibid.

39

8,Youngpeopleandadultssharedecisionmaking.Thismodelleadsmetodebate

whichoftheselevelsofparticipationismostmeaningfulinthecontextofthe

NOISESTRAensemble.Hartexplainsthat,ultimatelyineverysituation,adifferent

rungoftheladderiscorrect,towhichIagreeandwouldaddthat,itisalso

constantlychanging.

FUMPisanexampleofagraphicscorewhereIspecificallydesignedandmodelled

thegraphicstorelatetomydesiredmusicaloutput.Inthiswork,the

experimentationlayswiththecellist,nottheturntableensemblewhoaredirected

throughout.Initialsketchesofthegraphicscorewere2Donpaper,similartothat

ofCardew’sTreatise94.Treatiselacksexplicitinstructionininterpretingthe

scoresand,instead,suggeststhatinterpretersdeviserulesforthemselvesin

advance.ThisideologyjuxtaposeswiththeideasofFUMP,whereIwasexplicitin

theexactdetailsoftheturntablesinterpretationfollowinggroupdiscussions,

whichcorrespondstorung4ofHart’sLadder,whereyoungpeopleareassigneda

specificrolebutinformedofwhyandhowtheyareinvolved.

Thelightsshiningontheneckofthe’cellowereinspiredbythecontoursoflight

graffitiworksbyLichtfaktorandtheirlightpaintingphotos,wherecolouredlights

areusedtodrawmultiplelinesandoutlines95,similartothatofstringsona’cello

ora5-linemusicalstave.

InfluencedbythedarkbackgroundandlightlinesoflightpaintingartistBarbara

Morgan’sPureEnergyandNeuroticMan96,Idevelopeda3Dvideoscore,using

94Cardew,C.1970.Treatise.[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.95Lichtfaktor.2013.Lichtfaktor.[Online].[Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://www.lichtfaktor.com96Morgan,B.1940.PureEnergyandNeuroticMan.[GelatinSilverPrint].AtNewYork:MOMA.

40

CorelMotionStudio3D97,withlinesslowlyappearingandevolvingintoatreeto

representtheindividualturntables.Inotedthatallturntablesweretousestring

sounds,however,afterinitialrehearsals,Ilaterspecifiedthatarangeofstring

soundsrecordedonCindifferentoctavesweretobeused.Thisdecisionwas

pragmatic,toensureabreadthofrangeinthepitches,tosoftenthe‘screaming’

qualityof12high-pitchedrecordswhenmanuallyspeededupandtoaddanextra

dimensioninthesoundqualityoftheturntablesinthefirststagesofthescore.

JohnBlacking’sresearchin‘HowMusicalisMan’isafascinatingpaperinwhich

partofmybeliefinparticipatoryandcommunityworklies.

Testsofmusicalabilityareclearlyrelevantonlytotheculturewhosemusical

systemsaresimilartothatofthetester98

Removingtheideaofa‘taught’musicianwhilstapproachingnewmusicalskills

throughturntablism,everyoneinthegrouphashadtheirownstrengthsand

talents.

97CORELSTUDIO.2010.[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://www.corel.com98Blacking,J.1973.HowMusicalIsMan?Washington:UniversityOfWashingtonPress.p9

41

Chapter5.Works

With a phonograph it is now possible to control any one of thesesounds and give it rhythms within or beyond the reach ofimagination.Givenfourphonographswecancomposeandperformaquartetforexplosivemotor,wind,heartbeatandlandslide.99

Theturntableisnowacceptedasaninstrumentwithinpopularandcontemporary

music practices, with thanks to the compositions and writings of John Cage

throughtoKatzandSmith.Alargeproportionofrepertoireforturntablelacksa

core grounding in basic skills progressing to intermediate and advanced skills,

framing the turntable as a ‘gimmick’ inmost instances.Thispresentednotonly

just problem but also an opportunity to develop some simple exercises for

teaching purposes. Looking back at the history ofmusic tutelage and how the

rudimentsofmusicaretaughtthroughtraditionalandacademicmeans,Idecided

to borrow principals and construct a standard set of exercises and workshops

that can be used to formally teach core music skills alongside DJ skills. The

skratchexercisescanbefoundintheAppendices.

Mydevelopmentofturntablerepertoirealsoincludesresearchintoturntable

notationwhichIhaveconstantlyexploredthroughoutmycompositionalcareer

andprocesses.Mypreviousresearchintoturntablenotationinmy

undergraduateBA100andMasters101degreestudyisalsoechoedintheworksof

99Cage,J.1961.Silence:LecturesandWritingsbyJohnCageHanover:UniversityPressofNewEngland/WesleyanUniversityPress.100Rezaei,M.2006.TurntablePerformancePractice:DevelopmentofTechniquesandNotation.BAThesis,UniversityofLeeds.101Rezaei,M.2007.TurntableComposition.MAThesis,UniversityofDurham.

42

Katz102andSmith103.BothmakereferencetoDJRadar’sConcertoFor

Turntable104,TheTurntableTranscriptMethodology105byJohnCarluccio,Ethan

ImbodenandRaymondPirtleandDJATrak’snotetakinggraphicnotation106.As

partofmyexplorationintonotation,Ihavealsoaskedtoseeanumberofother

worksforturntablesandhowtheyhavebeenwritten.Ihavepreviouslyworked

alongsideGabrielProkofiev,outsideofaturntablistcontext,andincasual

conversationwetalkedabouthisTurntableConcerto107.Prokofievhasnotated

hisscoreswithlargeopenandblanksectionsfortheturntables.Therestofthe

orchestralscoreisfilledwiththeblankturntablesectionsleftasapart-

improvisedopportunityfortheturntablistinnegotiationwithProkofiev.Ithink

thatthisapproachtonotationindicatesthatProkofievishappytoacceptthefull

historicaltraditionofturntablismasanimprovisatorypractice,thatturntable

notationsaredifficultandthatonesizedoesnotfitall.Ifurtherexploretheidea

thatonenotationalsystemdoesnotfitallturntablecompositionthroughoutmy

works.

5.1NOISESTRA

TheNOISETRAproject–boththenamefortheensembleandthework–isa

102Katz,M.2012.GrooveMusic.TheArtandCultureoftheHip-HopDJ.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress.103Smith,S.2013.Hip-HopTurntablism,CreativityandCollaboration.London:Ashgate.104DJRadar.2000.Antimatter.[Vinyl]California:OMRecords.105Carluccio,J.Imboden,E.Pirtle,R.2000.TheTurntablistTranscriptionMethodologywebsite[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:www.battlesounds.com106TurntableTVVolume6:ReverseOysterBeard.1998.[Film]Qbert.dir.USA.ThudRumble.107BBC.2011.ConcertoforTurntables.[Online].[Accessed1stOctober2016.]Availablefrom:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38atRejUORM

43

communitymusicensembleandacompositionprojectwithaunique,

experimentalandbespokeworkingstyle,bringingtogetheracommunity

turntablistensemblewithaprofessionalcontemporarynewmusicensemble.

Workingwiththeyoungpeopleinthegroup,theworkNOISESTRAevolvedovera

largenumberofweeklyworkshops.Usingyouthleadershipskillsanddeveloping

newskillswiththeyoungpeopleinthegroup,theensembledeveloped

performanceideasfromvinylrecordings,penandpaperdrawingsandopen

discussionsaboutmusicaltimbres.Iworkedcloselywiththeturntableensemble

discussingthecompositionideasIhadfortheworksandhowIwantedtousethe

turntableindifferentwaysasanensemble.

Overtheinitialninemonthsofworkshops,theturntableensemblelearneda

combinationofbasicDJmixingskills,basicbeatjugglingandbasicskratches

includingbaby,laser,rub,patting,forwardandreversecut,flareandchirps.

Alongsidethis,theensembleexperimentedperformingtext/graphicscores,

includingscoressuchasCageACollectionofRocks108,WalsheThisisWhyPeople

ODonPills109andJumpOfftheGoldenGateBridge...,,Shlomowitz’sLetterPiece

#1110,Stockhausen’sHelicopterStringQuartet111,Cardew’sTreatise112andCage’s

ImprovisationsIV113.Idecidedtoruntheworkshopprocessoveralongerperiod

forpracticallearningreasons.DerekBaileydiscussedthemeritsoflongterm,

108Cage,J.1986.ACollectionofRocks.[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.109Walshe,J.2004.THISISWHYPEOPLEODONPILLS/ANDJUMPFROMTHEGOLDENGATEBRIDGE.[MusicScore]NewYork:MilkerCorporation.110Shlomowitz,M.2007.LetterPiece#1:NorthernCities,Arsenal,Bahrain,Chihuahua,Darjeeling&Eisenhower.[MusicScore]Unpublished.111Helikopter-Streichquartett.:ArdittiStringQuartet.1999.[DVD]Paris:MediciArts112Cardew,C.1970.Treatise.[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.113Cage,J.1983.ImprovisationIV.[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.

44

practicalworkwithateacherasthisdevelopsmusicalunderstandingthrough

trialanderrorandhowthisisexemplifiedinIndianmusic.

Appreciatingandunderstandinghowimprovisationworksisachievedthroughthefailuresandsuccessesinvolvedinattemptingtodoit.Indianmusicwithitslongcomplexrelationshipbetweenteacherandpupilhastheonlymethodologyorsystemwhichacknowledgesthesebasiccharacteristicsofimprovisations.114

IagreewithBaileyonthispracticeandchosetoadaptthe‘traditional’methodsof

howturntablismhasbeentaught.Ilearnedmyturntablistskillsthroughvideo

tutorials,decipheringcassettetaperecordingsandtheoccasionalmagazine

interviewaffordinganaccuratedescriptionofaskratch.Throughthese

inaccurateandabstractedprocesses,mostDJswillinterprettechniques

incorrectly,thoughthiserrorhasbeenknowntosparkabrilliantcreative

process,creatingnewskratchcombinationsandpatterns.Thesemethodsof

sharingareaclearreflectionoftheeraandthedemographicofpeopleinvolved;

turntablismwasalittle-knownhobbywithasmallgroupofinterestedpeople

spreadoutglobally,predominantlythroughoutthe1990s.Itisnowmore

commonforturntablismtobetaught,withmanycolleges,musicclassesand

academiccoursesnowexisting.Whetherthisnewformalisedacademicmethodof

teachingisstillcorrectlyinformingparticipantsisstillupfordebate.

Workingwithyoungpeopleischallenginginanumberofrespects.Iknewbefore

theprojectstartedthatitwouldbechallengingtokeepeveryoneuptodateand

ontopofallthegroupdecisionsasattendanceisalwaysachallenge.Toovercome

thisIusedaprivateFacebookgroup,YouTube(videoingofgroup

114Bailey,D.1975.Improvisation:ItsNatureandPracticeinMusic.London:DaCapoPress.p8

45

rehearsals/ideas/progress)andemailstokeepincontactwiththewholegroup.

Bydocumentingevidenceofwork,participantsregularlyupdated,allowedtime

forreflectionandevaluationwhilstgivingyoungpeopletheopportunitytotakea

stepbackandlistentothemusiccreated115.

ThefulldebutperformanceofNOISESTRAincludedtwofulldaysofrehearsals

withApartmentHouse,ademandingscheduleofanyprofessionalletaloneyoung

people.ThetouringperformanceoftheNOISESTRAprojectsettledatEdinburgh

NapierUniversityinJanuary2013.Workingwithadifferentensembleinformed

myunderstandingofhowthegraphicscoresworkwithadifferentsetof

musicians.WorkingfortwodaysinEdinburghwiththehelpofDrJohnHails,

NOISESTRAworkshoppedtheself-titledworkwithanensembleofstudent

musicians,anotherinterestingcommunitymusicsettingwherethegroupwere

sharingmoreskillsandexploringthechallengesofanewmusicalensembleto

workwith.

ThesuccessoftwolongdayswithNOISESTRA(12and14hoursrespectively)

showsthededicationandpridethegrouptookinthesuccessofNOISESTRAasa

project.Iamstillinregularcontactwiththeindividualsfromthegroupina

professionalcapacityandthegroup,likemyself,wouldliketocontinueandwork

togetherondifferentmusicalprojectsasNOISESTRA.Forme,thisisthereal

successofNOISESTRA.

TheworkNOISESTRAisin6parts.ForeachworkIexperimentedwithdifferent

waysofvisualisingthescoresfortheturntableensemble,ofwhomonly3outof

12weremusicians,theinstrumentalensemble,ofwhichtwocouldnotread

115Rezaei,M.2012.NOISESTRARehearsals[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefromhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXrc4NAnnkE

46

music.

5.2NOISESTRA:TRAX

InMarch2011,IattendedaconcertbyexperimentalharpistRhodriDavies,atthe

MordenTowerinNewcastle.Davieswasperforminghisnewestalbumatthe

time,WoundResponse116,aheadofitsofficialrelease,foraround6hourswith

short,intermittentbreaks.ThiswasthefirsttimeI’dseenDaviesmoveaway

fromimprovisingwithauxiliaryobjectsontheelectricandacousticharpand

couldseehiscompositionalprocessupcloseonthelapharp.Therearestrong

elementsofminimalismwithrepetitionofmotifsandvariationsonthemes.The

harpsoundsverymuchlikeanelectricguitarthroughampsbuthasaunique

timbrewhereyoucanhearthestringsarepluckedbyfingerswitharticulation

anddynamicsakintothetraditionalharp.SeeingDaviesperformandcomposein

thismannermademethinkofhowbesttoworkwithhimwhenitcameto

workingwithNOISESTRAonTRAX.ForTRAX,IwantedDaviestoworkwiththe

electricharp,howeverIdidn’twanthimtoperformthescore,Iwantedthetwoof

ustochallengeeachotherasanimprovisingduoandseehowthiswouldwork

paralleltothecomposedgraphicscoreoftheturntableensembleandthe

instrumentalensemble.

Thepresentmethodofwritingmusic,principallythosewhichemploytheharmonyanditsreferencetoparticularstepsinthefieldofsound,willbeinadequateforthecomposer,whowillbefacedwiththeentirefieldofsound117

116Davies,R.2014.WoundResponse[Vinyl]Newcastle:AltVinyl.117Cage,J.1961.Silence:LecturesandWritingsbyJohnCageHanover:UniversityPressofNewEngland/WesleyanUniversityPress.

47

ForsoloControllerOneTurntable,soloAmplifiedHarp,NOISESTRAand

ApartmentHouse.Thisgraphicscoremixedtogethertheturntableensembleand

instrumentalensemblethensplitthemintotwoequallymixedgroups.

An‘anti-concerto’ofsorts,thetwosoloists,ControllerOneturntableand

AmplifiedHarp,playthroughoutthewholework,startingandendingthework.

Themixedanddividedensemblegroupswereassignedeitherthetoporbottom

slide.Fourdifferentcoloursusedintheslidesofthescoredenoteachange

betweenfourchosengesturesforeachindividualperformer.

Knowinglycomposingthisworkwithaspecificgraphicnotationinmind,I

adaptedworkshopsandintroducedideasmuchlikeDerekBaileytalksabout.

Simplestatements,someideas,onwhichwecanworktoprovokethem.Thiswas(sic.)freeimprov,thenwelookedatsemi-improvisedmusicfromgraphicscores.118

Byworkingwiththismethod,thegroupwerecomfortableworkingtogetherto

assigngesturestosymbolsthatweretranslatedintosimilargesturesfor

instruments.

Therearegeneralinstructionsforinterpretingthescore,forexample,aline

representssustainedpitches.Astraightlinerepresentsasinglesustained

pitch.Acurvedlinerepresentsasustainedpitchthatglissandos/changes.

Eachperformerisabletochoosewhichdirectiontoreadthescore;thereforethe

pitchrangeisinterpretedindividuallybyeachperformer.

NOISESTRAworkedtogetherasagroupandagreedoninterpretationsofthe

symbols.Mostofthespecificinterpretationsfocusonpitchandrhythm.An

exampleofthisutilisesthebuttonsoftheturntable,changingbetween331/3

118Bailey,D.1975.Improvisation:ItsNatureandPracticeinMusic.London:DaCapoPress.p123

48

rpmand45rpmwhenlinesofdottedsquaresappearinthescore.Another

exampleofthisisanexaggerateddownwardsglissandoof45rpm,+8%downto-

8%,then33rpm+8%downto-8%,followedbythepowerswitchedoff

representedbyarhombusshape.Astheturntablesarepoweredby

electromagnets,theslowdownspeedoftheturntablesisuniqueeverytimethe

turntablesareswitchedoff.

TakinginfluencefromKagel’sPrimaVista119score,Iwantedtheperformersto

reacttowhateverappearedonthescreen,workingoutwhatthesymbolsmeant,

performingthemandsuddenlystoppingwhenthescreenchanged.Iallowedthe

performerstojoininwhenevertheychosehoweverIfoundthatallperformers

playedalmostimmediately,assoonastherewasaslidefortheirgroupto

perform.

IresearchedCage’sButWhatAboutTheNoiseofCrumplingPaper…120where

systemsofsymbolsareusedasagraphicscore.Thisvisualaestheticsofthis

scorecontrastsclearlytoChildofTree,121whereasimplekeytogesturesandthe

rulesforthosegesturesareexplicitandtheperformanceisdeterminate.Within

thegestures,thereisroomforinterpretationbytheperformersbuttherewill

alwaysbestrikingsimilaritiesineachperformance.Forme,thisisagreat

exampleofhowsimplicityingraphicsandclearinstructionsscoreworkwellfor

performersofallcalibresandgenres.Cageisgivingtheindividualsboundaries

withinwhichtheyhavefreedomtochoosetheirownideaandtoformtheirown

119Kagel,M.1964.PrimaVista.[MusicScore]London:UniversalEdition.120Cage,J.1986.Butwhataboutthenoiseofcrumplingpaperwhichheusedtodoinordertopainttheseriesof"papiersfroisses"ortearinguppapertomake"papiersdechires?"Arpwasstimulatedbywater(sea,lake,andflowingwaterslikerivers),forests.[MusicScore]London,EditionPeters.121Cage,J.1975.ChildOfTree.[MusicScore]NewYork:EditionPeters.

49

identity.Partofmyworkwithsymbolsandrelatingthistoturntablegestures

wasexploredinworkshopswithNOISESTRA.Therewasaprimaryconcernthat

gesturesandusingsymbolsmightmaketheperformancedifficult,however,after

afewrehearsalswithonlyahandfulofgesturestoremember,NOISESTRAwere

fluentandcapableofworkingwiththegraphicscore.Insteadofchanging

mediumlikeCagedoes(forexample,betweenstrikingmetalandawaterbased

gesture),wedecidetoswitchbetweensoundssourcesandusing

crossfader/faderlessskratches.

Theshapesinthescoresarebasedonelementsfromtheenvironmentaround

NewcastleandGatesheadcentralbuildingsandlandmarks,muchliketheworkof

Villa-LobosinNewYorkSkyline122.Iaskedtheyoungpeopleintheensembleto

bringinpicturesoftheNorthEast.UsingAdobePhotoshoptomanipulatethe

photos,highlightingshapes,texturesandcoloursofinterest,wechose20shapes

andusedtheminaworkshopwithRhodriDavies,improvisingusing

predominantlyrhythm,pitchandchanginggestureswithNOISESTRA.Fromthe

resultingworkshops,Ipickedtheshapes/symbolsIthoughtwereofmost

interestandcontrastfromtheirsonicinterpretationsreadyforrehearsalswith

ApartmentHouse.

122Villa-Lobos,H.1957.NewYorkSkyline:pourpianosolo.[MusicScore]Paris:EditionsMaxEschig.

50

ExampleofNOISESTRA’scontributionstoresearchandTRAXgraphicscore.

ExampleofTRAXgraphicscore.

5.3NOISESTRA:NOISEstra

InfluencedbythelocalnoisesceneandtheensembleTapeThatandtheirtape

51

catalogueperformances,NOISEstraisabluntcontrastoftwovideoworksthat

serveasascoretotheturntableandinstrumentalensemble.Buildingawallof

soundwithvariousrecordscollectedfromallovertheworld,theturntable

ensemblestartwithonerecordthatismanipulated,tryingtomakethemusical

contentunrecognisable.Usingborrowedmusic,theturntableensembleusebasic

skratchingskillsonanindividualbasistolayerupsamplesandsoundsuntilthey

areundecipherable.Watchingthevideoonthelefthandsideofthescreen,on

cueofarecordbeingremoved,theleadturntablistmustremovetherecordon

theirturntable,passittotheperformerontheirleftandpickuparecordfrom

theperformerontheirrighthandside.Thiswascarefullychoreographedsothat

itformedachainofsoundandwasrehearsedforthisreason.Intuitionisusedby

theperformerstomakesurethattherearen’tanygapsinthesoundasthe

recordsarepassedalongthegroup,aunanimousdecisionmadebytheensemble

ininterpretingthescore.Inworkshops,weexperimentedwitheveryDJ

followingthevideoscorecuestoremovetherecord,andtheresultingsilenceand

auxiliarysoundsofthelogisticalchangesofrecordsinterruptedtheperformance.

ThegrouprehearsedseveralversionsofthechainofsoundsandIdecidedto

workwithintuitionandsmallpartnershipsbetweenDJs.Thismeantthatthere

wasnowaconstantflowofsoundthatalsowouldbuildinvolume,timbreand

changeofgenre.Interestingly,thegenreofrecordsrangedandwereconsciously

orderedbyNOISESTRAfromBaroqueandClassicalmusic,jazz,instructional

records,easylistening,popmusicandhiphop.Thebettermanufacturingquality

ofthenewerrecordsmeanttherewasanaturalriseinthevolumeofthe

ensemblealongsidethepragmaticriseinvolumeinplayingmorerecordsina

52

chain(asteadyincreaseof1to14recordsbytheend).

OntherighthandsideisavideocollagemadeupofTVsnowandprotestfootage

fromaroundtheworld.Theinstrumentalensemblearetobeginperformingas

soonastheTVsnowvideochangestoprotestfootage.Throughouttheprotest

footage,imagesarehighlighted.Theseimagesindicateachangeofmusical

gesturefortheensemble.Theonlyperformanceinstructionwastochange

musicalgesture.ThemusicalgesturesfromApartmentHouseareclearand

intrusiveontheturntableensembleatthebeginningoftheworkandbytheend,

arealmostunheardastheturntableensembleareoverpowering.Thisstruggle

betweenthetwoensemblesisintentionalandreflectsthefrustrationsand

rebellionoftheyouthculturetodayagainsttheinstitutionalised,agedand

historicaltraditionsofgovernmentinplacetoday.

5.4NOISESTRA:FUMP

Thereisratheraninevitablenaturalcomplexityinthings(i.e.thestructureofatree)anditcannotfinallybepreciselyindicated,controlledorisolated.Toinsistondeterminingittotallyistocreateadeadobject123

Thisworkisforsolocelloandturntableensemble,usingarangeofsampledand

loopedstringensemblesounds.Usingfingerlightsaspartoftheperformance

andpartofthemusicmaking,thisworkfollowsananimatedgraphicscore.

Createdfromaseriesof2Dsketches,the3DvideographicscoreforFUMPclearly

denotestheconstructionofatreefromtubes.Theslowprogressionand

appearanceoflines/tubesthroughthevideoistobeinterpretedasturntable

voicesfortheensemble.

FUMPasksthecellisttowearfourdifferentcolouredlightsontheirlefthand,to

123Wolff,C.1965.OnForm.DieReihe.7.p48.

53

shineontheneckoftheinstrument.Correlatingtothecolouredshapesonthe

screen,thecellistshinesthelightonthecelloandwherethecorrespondinglight

hitsfirstisthestartingpointforanimprovisation.Turningintoacatandmouse

chasealongthecelloneck,thecellistmustkeepshiningthelightontheneckand

followingthis.

Theturntableensembleareeachfollowingindividualtubesonthescreen,with

individualentriesstaggeredatthebeginning.Followingworkshopsand

discussions,theturntableensembleinterpretedthelinesasspecificskratches

usingspecificstringssoundstocompliment,i.e.notcontrastthecellist.

Usingpredominantlyfaderlessskratcheswiththeimportancerestingonthe

tonalityoftheturntables,thereisabreadthoftonalmaterialgenerated.

Glissandosandslidesusingthepitchadjustersontheturntablesallowthesounds

totrulyglissandothroughquarter,thirdandeighthpitches.Contrastingsonically

withtheotherNOISESTRApiecessofar,thisworkisthemost‘instrumental’

basedofallontheturntables.

Thereisaclearinterpretationofthepitchoftheturntablescorrelatingtothe

upwardsbuildingofthegraphics/treeintheanimation.Thisinterpretation

deviatesandtheturntablestakeontheirowninterpretationoftheirindividual

‘branches’.

Thisgraphicscoreisanothercombinationofstrictdirectionswithabalanceof

interpretation,byboththecellosoloistandturntableensemble.Likethe

AmericancomposerChristianWolffdescribes,toprescribeeveryelementofthis

workwouldtakeawaytheintriguingcomplexityandunexpectedsonicevents

thatoccurred.Withincertainboundaries,auniformtreecanbedrawnbutthe

54

individualbranchesandcharacteroftheperformerscanstillberecognized.The

additionofthesolocellocontrastedintimbre,pitchandrhythmagainstthetree,

achievingwhatIhadsetouttomake.Thefreeflowingofthecelloagainstthe

differingstrandsoftheturntableswasunifiedthroughtheuseofstringsamples

butthenjuxtaposedwiththeelectronicsamplesandtheliveharmonicsand

acoustics.Thissettingandcombinationofmultipleturntablesisnotpossibleto

achievebyonepersonaloneandplayedtothestrengthsoftheperformersand

NOISESTRAasanensemble.

AntonLukosviezeandNOISESTRAperformingFUMP.

5.5ESFAOriginallyasketchforturntables,harpanddoublebass,ESFAbecamea

commissionforharp,pianoanddoublebass.Premieredin2011byJohnTilbury,

MichaelDuchandRhodriDavies,Ihaverewrittenthisworkwiththeinitial

55

turntablesketchideasinmind,returningtothesonicideasforturntablesthatI

wantedtoimitatewithpiano,harpanddoublebass.

Takingitsnameandharmonicidentityfromdastgah-eBayat-eEsfahan,ESFA

worksthroughprinciplesofthedastgahwhilstdeconstructingelementsand

reappropriatingfunctionsofpitchsothatthedastgahisunrecognisablyeastern.

DastgaharederivedfromRadif,largecollectionsofmusicalstructuresand

compositionsinIranianmusic.Thereareseveralmaintypesofdastgah,including

thatofDastgah-eBayat-eEsfahan.

Eachdastgahisacollectionofmelodies,havingitsowntonalityandmusicalmotifthatfunctionasitssignaturetodifferentiateitfromotherdastgah.124

Inthedastgahprinciple,therearethreefunctioningharmonicpivots,theForud,

theSahedandtheAqaz.Inshort,theForud,isthenotechosentobeusedasa

transitionorcadencewhenswappingbetweendastgahs.TheSahedisthedastgah

versionofatonicnoteandtheAqazisthetoneonimprovisation125.InEsfahan,

thisnoteisthesameandIdecideddeconstructthisprinciplethroughoutESFA.

OtherfundamentalelementsofthedastgahthatIhavemanipulatedincludethe

diatonicnatureofthemelodicmovement,theensembleandlackofopen

improvisationinthiswork,andalsotointroduceastrongglissandofeature

throughoutthework.

124Nettl,B.1980.MusicalValuesandSocialValues:SymbolsinIran.AsianMusic,Vol.12,No.1,Symposium,onArtMusicsinMuslimNations.p132. 125Farhat,H.1990.TheDastgahConceptinPersianMusic.Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress.p76

&Dastgah-e Bayat-e Esfahan

F,S,A

˙ ˙B ˙˜ ˙ ˙ ˙b ˙ ˙ ˙B ˙# ˙

56

ESFAisinthreeshortpartsandtheturntableusedinthispieceistheVestax

Controller1.Theturntableusesloopedsamples,recordedonCataspeedof33

1/3rpmat0%pitch.UsingtheCmajorscaleonthecontrollerone,Ihadaccessto

performallofthenotesIneededplusasmallbendingcontroltoglissando

betweenasemitoneaboveandbelowthenotesontheturntable.

Asthisworkiswrittenforaturntablethatcanplaynotes,Ihavescoredthe

ControllerOnepartaswesternnotation.Thepitchesarechangedusinga

combinationofthemidibuttonsandsemitonepitchadjuster.

Theworkisbasedon9chords;borrowingpitchfromDastgahandstretching

rules,itwascomposedatthepianowiththeharmonicsofthebowedharp,harp

pedalling,doublebassandebowonthepianostringsinmind.

Thesechordsaremostrecognisableinthepianopart,howevertheyare

deconstructedandrecycledthroughoutthedifferentinstruments,withgreater

emphasisonquarterpitchesfoundinDastgah-eBayat-eEsfahanintheController

OneturntableandDoubleBassparts.

PartITheturntableplaysasupportingroletothebowedharpedatthebeginningofthis

workwithabasstrombonesample.

Thereissubtleuseofdynamicsfortheturntablehere.Theresultingsoundsare

preparedincludechangingpitchontheturntable,loopingtherecord,changing

&?

œœ# œœ œœ# œœœ# œœœ#n# œœœ## œœœ œœœ# œœœ

œœœœ# œœœ

œ# œœœ

œ# œœœ

œœœœœœ## œœœ œœœ œœœ

57

frombuttontopitchadjustercontrol,changingthe%ofpitchadjusterfrom8%to

60%andsoon.

Inthispiece,theupfaderoftheturntableisbeingusedtocontrolthedynamics.

Amixtureofskratchesandtechniquesareusedontheturntables,including

poweringdowntheturntablemotorforasharpglissandoeffect(e.g.bar9).

Atrilleffectismadebythetrillskratch,tappingfingerslightlyontherecord

surfacemakingasubtlewhirringeffect.

Bar34,quietandsubtletransformerskratchesperform,mirroringtheshoestring

fansplayinginsidethepiano.Usingalowerpitchsampleforthisworkleavesan

openspacefortheharpanddoublebasstofillwhilstcontrastingthedelicatefans

soundingonthepianostrings.

PartII

Theturntableperformssolowithincellsofthetrio.Followingthenominated

leaderofthepianist,theturntableperformsasolowhilstwatchingforasubtle

indicationfromthepianotomoveontothenextsection.

Thethreeinstrumentschaseeachotherintermsofpitch,wherepitchesare

swappedbetweenpartsandoctavesthroughoutthedevelopmentofthecells.

Thereisaclearinstructionthattheperformersaretoperformnoteswithinacell

structurethenwaittomoveontothenextcelltogetherasanensemble.

Usingacellorecordedbowingatthebridge,theControllerOneplaysarecorded

sample.Theturntableplaysindependentlyofthis.

Withtheconstraintsofplayingasanensemble,waitingtomoveforwardtothe

nextsectionwiththefreedomtoglissandobetweenpitchesandfreerhythms

withinthecellbrackets,performingthisworkraisesthequestionwhetherornot

58

thereshouldbeanyfreedomtointerpretpitchmaterialorrhythmwhenthereare

clearideasrelatingtospecifictimbres.

PartIII

ThethirdandfinalpartofESFAhasadroneeffect,wheretheDoubleBassisthe

soloinstrument.

Mirroringtheebowsinthepianoandharp,theControllerOneturntableplaysan

oscillatortoneusedtocomplimentthedelicatetimbre.

ThedoublebasssolointhisworkborrowsideasfromthetraditionalDastgah,

whereanarrativeisfoundinthemelodicline.Unlikethetraditionofdastgah,the

doublebasspartjumpsbetweenoctavesandhasalargerange,including

harmonics;therearesimilaritiesbetweenelementsofthemelodicshape,

includingswoopingbetweenthetonictothirds,fourthsandsixth.

5.6NOST

Thispiecewaswrittenwithafewmainideasinmind;toimproviseonturntables

withlimitedsamples,asetthemeworkingwithpre-composedsoundswitha

communitychoirtodeveloptheirskillsbase,todevelopmychoralwritingin

respecttocommunitymusic,workingwithuntrainedmusiciansandtolookat

vocaltimbreinrelationtosmallbodypercussionparts.Itwaswrittenspecifically

forexperimentalcommunitychoir,NOIZECHOIR,basedattheStarandShadow

CinemaandTheOldPoliceHouse,withimprovisingturntablesand

cassettes/DictaphonesperformedbymyselfandJoeMurray,respectively.

Theonlydescriptionforthesamplebasedinstruments,turntablesandcassettes

improvisationsweretwowords:birdsandnostalgia.Thetwoimprovisersare

59

allowedtoseeandusethescoreinanywaythattheylike.Thechoirperformin

smallgroupsoftwoorthreearoundmicrophonesandthechoirscoreis

conductedbyachoirleader,whichprovedtobeavitalroleintheworkshop

process.

Theperformancebeginswitha30secondsilencewiththechoirandbeginswith

improvisationonturntablesandcassettes,alltimedwithstopwatches.Thescore

isnumberedinfoursectionswhicharesanginnumericalorder.

ThroughouttheworkIwantedthechoirtoreplicatesoundsofbirdsinbirdsong,

birdbodysounds,asindividualsandasaflock,soundsofbirdsinflightandbirds

communicatingwitheachother.IlookedatworksbyMessiaen126andTulikkito

informthetimbreandvocalpaletteforvocalimprovisationworkshopswith

NoizeChoir127.

Graphic1,basedontheshapeandgroovesofrecord,usescirclesasacleflessstaff

withmultiplelines.Thepitchesareapproximatedinrelativeproximitytoeach

other,changingthroughsustainedsoundstoglissandos,whicharereiteratedin

theimprovisationoftheturntableandcassettes.Ihavemixedtogetherglissandos

ofvowelsoundsatvariouspitchestocreatesoundsthatarereminiscentofbirds–

morespecificallyowls–hootingandtweeting.Owlsdothisingroupsandthe

choirimitatethis.Thevocalpartsarefreefromstrictrhythmandareopento

interpretation.Theconductorcontrolswhenthechoirstarts,stopsandmoves

fromonesectiontoanother.Thescorehasquietdynamicsatthebeginning,with

thechoirblendinginwiththesamplesofoscillatorsandthedistortedlive

bendingofthetapesinthecassettes.

126Messiaen,O.1944.VingtRegards.[MusicScore]London:UnitedMusic.127Tulikki,H.2010.AwayWithTheBirds.[InteractiveMusicScore][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://score.awaywiththebirds.co.uk

60

Graphic2seesachangeoftimbrefromsustainedsoundsinthevoicestoshorter,

variedrhythmicalandglottalsounds.

At0h01’40”intherecording,thereisachangeoftimbrewithsubbasses

introducedbytheturntables.Thecassettesaresamplingthesoundsofthechoir

andturntables.Thereisashortbird-likediscussionbythechoiratthispointwith

shortpitchessustainedandlayeringovereachother,again,reminiscentof

hooting.

At0h02’20”,thechoirbeginexploringtheshortglissando-ingvowelsoundsof

graphictwo.Withstaggeredentriesacrossthegroup,thechoirbuildsupand

fadesoutsounds.

At0h03’15”intherecording,thechoiraremid-waythroughgraphictwo.Thereis

acombinationofclicks,pops,ingressivevocalsandwhistlesfromthechoir,

reminiscentofbirdsskratchingaroundwiththeirfeet,contrastedwithtwosub

bassesclashingintheturntablescreatingasubtlerhythmicpulse.Movinginto

whistlingmelodicmaterialtranscribedfromnightingalesong,thechoirare

performingwithstaggeredentriesagainandsubtlytransformsthetimbrefrom

whistlingtosustainedamplifiedvocaltrillsandtonguerollsatvariousbutclose

pitches.Findingawaytocombiningthesevocalsoundswasaninterestingtopicin

workshopsandstaggeringtheentriesphasedthesoundssubtlety.Theextreme

contrastinphysicalmouthshapeofwhistlingtovoicetrillsandtonguerollswas

interestingtoovercome.Ichosethesetwoextremesofsounds,asIoftenthink

musicusingbirdsandbirdsongsalwaysborrowthe‘prettier’birdsoundsandI’m

interestedinallaspectsofthesoundsabirdmakes.Thinkingofpigeonsgurgling

onthestreet,flyingaroundfromposttopostandoftenwalkingintopeoplewitha

crazedsound,Iwantedtoapplytensionandworkwithalessobviousbirdsound.

61

Itisatthispointthatcassettesplayreallifebirdsong.Hereisaninstancewhere

thechoirandinstrumentshaveswappedrolesmomentarily.Thisisan

interestingpointtodiscussintermsoftherelationshipbetweencombining

notatedmusicandimprovisationinthesameperformance.Thecassettes

performerwasnotawarethatthechoirwouldbeatthispointinthescoreor

makingthesesounds,asthisisthefirstrehearsalofthisworkhewasinvolvedin.

Givingaloosedirectionofbirdandnostalgiatoturntablesandcassettesgavethe

performersanideaofmaterialtoprepareinadvanceoftherehearsal.Itwasby

chancethatthecassettesplayedthismaterialatthispoint.

Tonguerollsfurtherdeveloptoincludeaglissandotoneandareinterspersed

withwhistling.Theturntablesarestillfocusedonplayingtwosubbasseswhilst

thebirdsoundsdevelop.Buildingtension,around,repeated10timeswith

staggeredentriesandconstantlyaccelerating,isintroduced.Whatstartsas

randomsoundsbyindividualsquicklyformsintoamenagerieofbirds,hysterical

andmanic.

Atthefinalcrescendoingchord–theturntablesbreakfromsubbassesandthe

cassettesreturntoabirdsoundscape.Turntablesskratchbirdwingssounds

swooping.

Thechoirthenactasindividuals,singingtheirownbirdsongs,combining

whistlingwithbasicbodypercussionoftapping,clicking,mouthpoppingand

hittingthechest.Thetimbreofthechoirchangessignificantlyasthepiecefades

out,havingreturnedtoaversionofthepitterpatterandrandombirdsongwe

heardatthebeginningofthework.

62

5.7Ance

Writtenfor8turntablesand8cassetteplayers,Anceisa20metrelong,paper

graphicscoreofwhichonlytwometreswereinterpretedfora26-minute

performanceatTUSKFestival,October2013.Thisgraphicscoredoesn’thave

explicitperformancedirections,thusrelyingonperformerstousetheir

experiencewithgraphicscoresandimprovisationintheirinterpretation.Like

Cardew’sTreatise128,therearenopublishedperformancedirections,asIdidn’t

wanttheretobeadirecttranslationofshapesassymbolicmusicalgestures,

musicalinstructionsorperformancedirections.Theshapesareinspiredby

mechanicalpartsfoundinaTechnicsSL-1200turntable,cassettesandrecords.

Myinterestintheinterpretationofthisscoreliesinthephysicalrealisationofthe

scorethroughmultipleinstrumentsinanimprovisatorysettingwheretheremust

bepreparedmaterialsreadytomanipulate.Thisisonetraitthatbothturntables

andcassetteplayershavethatmostotherinstrumentsdon’tandisuniquetoour

duoasWaxMagnetic.

ListeningbacktotheTuskperformanceofthiswork,Ihaveanalysedtheprinciple

elementsofmusicthroughthisparticularinterpretationofthescore.

Thefirststepofinterpretingthescorewaschoosingwhereinthescoretofocus

on,ifnot,thewholeofthescore.Myperformancepartner,JoeMurray(a.k.a.

Posset)choseatwometresectionofthework.Iaskedhimwhyhechosesucha

smallsectionandheexplainedthatpartofmakingthisdecisionwasthevisual

aesthetics,theamountofsmalldetailandhowthedirectionsofthescorechanged

somuchinasmallerarea.Heparticularlylikedthecirclesandthoughtthe

contrastofafewcirclesbuildinguptovariationsinsize,colour,shade,placement

128Cardew,C.1970.Treatise.[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.

63

onthepaper(direction,angle,high,low,etc.)anddensitywasappealing.The

placementonthepageimmediatelyremindedmeofMortonFeldman’sProjection

I129forsolocellowhereFeldman‘dividestherangeoftheinstrumentintohigh,

middleandlow,allowingforvariouschoicesofpitchwithintheranges

indicated’130.Thisfocusonpitchrangewithintheconstraintsofaninstrument’s

register–orrather,howpitchchangesareproducedthroughelectronics–isa

simpleandobviouswaytointerpretthescore.Joedecidedtoperformthis

throughmanipulationofthetapeplayersandalso,throughuseofspecifictapes

forparticularpitchesandmaterial/sampleshewanted.Thisinterpretation

workedwellasthecassetteplayersaretactileandcanbecustomisedsothatthe

speedoftheplayerscanbeadjustedinstantly.

Joechosetoperformthechosensectionofthescorefromrighttoleft,incontrast

tomyinterpretation,readinglefttoright.Thismeantthatwewouldmeetinthe

middlewithapredicted‘cacophony’ofsound.Thisactuallymanifestedasa

simplerhythmicframework,whichwasbuiltfrom8oscillatorson8turntables,

usingpitchslidersandupfadersforvolumecontrol,withfeedbackonseveral

walkmansandaclearchangeofmaterialoncassettes.

Withthe8turntables,Ichosetoworkwiththesamesmallselectionofsounds,

takinginfluencefromAlvinLucier’suseofoscillatorsandspokewithJoeabout

mixingupcassette‘skratching’withturntableskratchingtechniques,namely

needledropping,trills,patting,scrapingtheneedle,babyskratchesandquick

pitchadjustments.Thismixingofthecassetteandvinylskratchingtechniquewas

129Feldman,M.1951.Projections1[MusicScore]New York: C F Peters Corporation.130Sutherland,R.1994.NewPerspectivesInMusic.London:SunTavernFields.p140

64

certainlyachieved(14minutes)andtheconstantchangingofsoundswas

sustainedforseveralminutesasalargecrescendoacrossallinstrumentsensued.

Onreflectionofourperformance,myimproviser’sinstincttellmethatthedrones

ontheturntablesandcassetteswerenotsustainedlongenough.ToreallydoAnce

justiceasaperformance,Ithinkthedurationshouldhavebeendoubledand

choralgesturesshouldhavebeenmoreclearlyarticulated.Iamkeenon

durationalworks/performancesandwishtopickoutsmallandarticulatedetails

withinimprovisations,anideaIamfocusingoninmyownimprovisational

practice.

Theoneturntablesustainedforsixminutesatthebeginningcouldhavebeen

easilylengthened,howevermyinstinctatthetimeasanimproviserinfrontofa

largecrowdwastocarryon,moveforwardquickerandimprovisemorewiththe

8turntablesinfrontofme!

TheopennessanddifferinginterpretationsofthegraphicscorebymyselfandJoe

andmyuncertaintyofdurationhasledmetothinkaboutwhetherIshouldwrite

anyperformancedirectionsforanothergraphicscore,similartothis,inthe

future.Itfeelsasthoughallowingimproviserstodowhatevertheylikewiththe

scoreisactuallythemostpowerfulandcontrollingdecisionofall.Ihavewilfully

handedoverallassumptionsandallresponsibilitytotheperformers,wipingmy

handscleanofallresponsibilityforthemusicalgestures.Nonetheless,Iamstill

intrinsicallyboundtothemusicinterpreted,asthegraphicscomposeddidhavea

sonicimageinmind(asmuchasIwouldliketodenythis),hencethevisual

constructionofthegraphics.Willmysubvertedmusicalgesturesbecorrectly

interpretedbytheperformersandperformed?DoesitreallymatterwhatIwant?

65

Thejuxtaposingreflectionsofthispieceasthecomposerandthenasan

improviseroftheperformanceareunnerving.Iamerringonthesideofcaution

withtheargumentinside,asaperformer,theopennessofthescoreinstinctively

leadstometothinkthatIcanandwilldowhateverIlikefortheperformance,

withtheinstrumentationgiven.Theuseofcircles,inmy‘improviser’mind,does

clearlyrepresentrecordsandtapewheelsandeveryinstanceoftherecurring

shapesignalsanewgesturewithadifferentturntable.Asliteralasitmayseem,

thiswashowbothJoeandIchosetointerpretthescorethroughoutthe

performance.

Leavingascorecompletelyopentointerpretationisaboldchoice,butonethatI

standby.IbelieveinthepoweroftheimproviserandtheirinterpretationandI’m

willingtoaccepttheopeninterpretationsofthescore.Ihavefoundthat,given

theopenopportunitytointerpret,improviserssurprisemeandwillperform

somethinginawayImightneverhaveimagineorhadinitiallyconceived.Ican

learnmorefromimprovisersandfrommyowncompositionalpracticeinthis

instance.

5.8BAWWWY

BAWWWYiswrittenforoneperformerwith4turntables,usingtwooscillators

overtwoturntableduos,setupwithtwoDJmixerswithadjustable/smoothly

graduatingupfaderstouseasvolumecontrols.Itisthemostsophisticatedofthe

turntablecompositionsdiscussedinthisthesesandistheresultofaninteresting

compositionalperiod,includingresearchfromconcertsandcomposerslookedat

inthebeginningstagesofthisportfolio.

66

Drawingtogetherexperiencefromimprovisingwithmultipleturntables,drones

andthedisciplineusedasaperformerindurationalandmixedmedia

performances,thescorewasinitiallycomposedfromapracticalperspective.The

piecereliesheavilyontheperformerknowingandunderstandingthelimitations

andcapabilitiesofturntablesandoscillators.Icomposedthispieceusing

oscillatorsonvinyl,soastoplaywithandpullontherhythmicandtonal

propertiesoftwocontrastingduosofoscillatorswithalimited+/-8%pitchrange

ontheturntables.Therewereaddedexperimentswithoscillatorsplayedoutof

syncbyloopingupsamplesonvinyl.Thischanceelementisimperativetothe

work,makingituniquetotheturntableatthesametimeasacceptingnewsonic

possibilitiesuncontrollablebyeithertheperformerorthecomposer.John

Butcherwritesaboutthisaspartoffreeimprovisatorypractice,

Thephysicalityofsoundproductionisinescapablyconnectedwiththecreation,notjusttheexecution,ofthemusic.131

Thisisoneofthemostexcitingelementsofworkingwithturntablesin

performance.Istruggledwiththechanceanderrornotionsofperformingfora

numberofyearswithinimprovisationandcompositionforturntables.However,

having‘matured’asimproviser,InowembracethisnotiontothepointwhereI

amnowcomfortablewritingforthistooccur.

MyresearchintothemusicofElianeRadiguehasbeenaccidentaland

predominantlythroughliveperformances.Heruseofdroneshashadaprofound

effectonthispiece.IfirstcameacrossElianeRadigue’sworkwhilstworking

alongsideRhodriDavies.‘OccamI’wasacommissionedworkwritten

131Butcher,J.2014.FreeImprovisation.[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://ahadmaster.blogspot.co.uk

67

specificallyforDaviesandsincethen,anumberoffurtherOccamworkshave

beencommissioned.MyconversationswithDavieshaveincludedtalkingabout

thenotationofnewworksthatarewrittenspecificallyforperformersthatcan

resultinthemostsublimeandarticulateperformances.Iwaspresentata

performanceatGlasgowTectonicsFestival2015atCityHallsofOccamX,Occam

RiverX,OccamRiverIV,andOccamDeltaVIII,performedbycellistCharlesCurtis,

harpistRhodriDavies,tubaplayerRobinHaywardandbassoonistDafneVicente-

SandovalandbroadcastontheBBCRadio3132.IndiscussionwithbothRhodri

DaviesandCharlesCurtis,bothrevelaedthatthemusicisnottypicallynotated

butinfactaverbalcommunication,whichcouldbedescribedasthe‘essence’of

Haikupoetry.Radiguehasbeenworkingwiththesespecificmusiciansinperson

atherhomeinParisovervaryinglengthsoftime,workingwithspecific

instrumentstoexplorehermethodofcommunicatingnotjustthecomposition,

buttheotherworldlyandetherealpresenceofthemusicshewrites.AsmuchasI

admiretheRadigue’smethodofcompositionalongwithitsresults,inthecontext

ofwritingforotherperformers,thatmaybefromacommunitysetting,to

communicatethespecificideasIhaveIneedtousewrittennotation.Insearchof

the‘otherworldly’soundsRadigueemploys,Iresearchedextendedinstrumental

techniquestobegintounderstandthesoundworldandhowexperimentation

developsnewsounds.IspokewithexperiemtnalguitaristandcomposersNeil

Davidsonabouthisuseofstones,spatulas,dowelsandebowonanacousticguitar

tomakenewsounds.Ihadpreviouslyseenglimpsesofperformersworkingwith

132BBCRadio3.2015.BBCRadio3Website.[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b063zphx

68

auxiliaryobjectsontheirinstrumentsbutlisteningtoNeilDavidson’sGrain133

wasthefirsttimethatIhadheardinstrumentalsoundsthatIwasn’tableto

immediatelyrecognise.ItmademethinkaboutJohnStevens’Triangle134,where

threeperformerssatinatriangleareaskedtoperformfreeimprovisationwith

theirrighthandonaninstrument,divertingtheirattentionfromthispracticeand

instead,listentotheperformerontheirleftside,andreacttotheirperforming

withtheirlefthand.Bydividingtheperformer’sattentionfromfree

improvisationandfocusingontheleftsidewheretheyareclearlyrespondingto

anotherperformer,thereisaremovalofattentionfromtherighthandsideand

thismakesacuriousmixtureofconsciousandunconsciousperforming,ina

circularmanner.Frommyexperimentsofthisexercise,thisresultsinabizarre

echoeffectofbeatingrhythmsandanincreaseintempo.Triangleiscertainlya

differentwayofplacingimportanceongestureratherthantheresultingsoundfor

aperformerincomparisontohowNeilDavidsonperformswithhisguitar,but

theybothinfluencedmyworkwiththeturntables,inparticularBAWWWY.

OnefurtherelementthatintriguedmewasDavidson’suseofgestureandhis

patienceanddeterminationtorepeatthegesturetocreateadrone.Assimpleas

itmaysound,hismeasureandjudgmentofdurationbroughttolifethecoloursof

thegesturethroughrepetition,whichIchosetoborrowbyloopingtheoscillators

usedinBAWWWY.

133Davidson,N.2006.Grain.NeilDavidson.Grain.[CD]Glasgow:NeverComeAshore.134Stevens,J.1985.SearchandReflect–AMusicWorkshopHandbook.London:BPCommunityMusicLtd.

69

WhensketchingBAWWWY,Iinitiallyusedseveraldifferentdrawingsand

notationalsystemstonotemywork135.OnesystemissimilartothatofCathy

Berbarian’sStripsody136.Aftercomposingthepiece,Isettotask,writingthescore

buthadtodecidetheboundariesandrules.Idebatedwhichelementsofthe

workwereopentointerpretation,tryingasmallsetofsimplerulesforeach

turntable,calculatingiftheprobabilityofthedesiredrhythmicpatterns,subbass

rumblingsandhighpitchtuningontheturntableswouldbeachieved.Ithentook

thegesturesfromthescoreandadaptedthemtoafourpartgraphicscore.This

presentedanumberofoptionsforthepiece.Thedurationofthewholeworkwas

nowflexible,thetimingoftheentriesopen,withahighprobabilitythatthe

desiredgestures(madebetweeneachpairoftwoturntables/twooscillators

interacting)willoccur,thoughnotguaranteed.Thisscorealsopresentstheoption

oftheworktobeperformedonotherinstrumentsandthepossibilityofa

predominantlysilentperformancewithanumberofsmalldurationalgestures,

similartothedirectionsofJohnCage’sImprovisationIV137.

Throughoutmyresearch,Ihaveaddressednotatingforturntablesandhowthisis

differentforeverypiece.Inthecaseofthiswork,Iconsideredwhetherthe

turntablistcouldbeaperformerthatdoesn’treadmusic,withlittleexperiencein

turntableworkbutstrongmusicalskills.Thispiecedoesnotfunctionwithan

ensembleorteaminmind,itisnotdesignedtoexplicitlyteachturntablistskills

(liketheskratchexercisesdo)sinceitsfocusisonthesonicqualitiesofthe

oscillators.Ialsoconsideredanddiscussedtheworkwithanumberof

participantsfromNOISESTRA,oneofwhomdidperformtheworkandpreferred

135PleaseseeAppendicesforbothgraphicscoresketches.136Berberian,C.1966.Stripsody[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.137Cage,J.1980-2.ImprovisationIV[MusicScore]London:EditionPeters.

70

theinitialsketchedgraphicscorewithasetdurationandvisualdirections.There

wasageneralpreferenceforgraphicsthatleavesomeroomforinterpretation.

Workingwithanundefineddurationmadethegroupunsureandtheyfelt

uncomfortableperformingthis.Theywereworriedthattheirinterpretationmay

be‘wrong’or‘unsuccessful’andfoundtheresponsibilityofperformingwithfour

turntablesintimidating.Confidencewaskeyinthisdiscussion,thoughthegroup

havebeenpreviouslycomfortableusinggraphicscoresandimprovisingwith

skratchingandbeatjuggling.BAWWWYdemandsmoreoftheperformers,so

despitethesimplicityofthegestures(incomparisontointricateskratches),the

longerdurationalnatureofthegesturesplusthecoordinationoffourturntables

andtwomixersforvolumecontrolwasoverwhelming.

OneinterestingpointfromthediscussionswithNOISESTRAwasthattheuseof

wordstodescribethegesturesalongsidere-appropriatedmusicalsymbolsfelt

welcomingand‘user-friendly’.Thoughthisisn’timprovisatory,therearea

numberofelementstobededucedinthescoreforafinalizedperformanceand

thisremindedmeofJohnButcher’s15SimpleStatementsonFreeImprovisation:

Freeimprovisedmusicisnecessarilyspontaneous,butisbuiltonabackgroundofyearsofstudy,experiment,thoughtandexperience.138

Butcher’spointcanbereversedtofurtherreinforcethegroup’sopinion,i.e.that

thefamiliarityandrelationtomusicalsymbolsinagraphicscoregavethemthe

confidencetoimprovisefromthegraphicscore.

138Butcher,J.2014.FreeImprovisation.[Online][Accessed1October2016]Availablefrom:http://ahadmaster.blogspot.co.uk

71

DespitetheclarificationfromNOISESTRAandtheircomfortusingthegraphic

score,thesketchdoesnotspecificallycapturethedesiredsonicgesturesandthe

riskofthesegesturesnotbeingachievedwoulddefeatthecompositionofthis

work.

Ihavelookedatnumerousgraphicscoresandalongsidethemusicaland

philosophicalideas,havefoundthevisualaestheticsofEarleBrown’swork

appealing.Thedichotomyofcontrolasacomposerandfreedomasaperformeris

atplayhereandIhaveadmiredBrown’sargumentsthroughhisworks.Inthe

prefatorynotesto4Systems,Browndiscussestheimmeasurablequalitiesoftime,

frequency,timbre,modesofattack,andhowthiscannotbeaccuratelycontrolled

ormeasuredthroughnotationoraperformer.

Nometricsystemornotationbasedonmetricsisabletoindicateallofthepossiblepointsinthecontinuum,yetsoundmaybeginorendanywherealongthisdimension.139

Hefurtherelaborates:

Anambiguousbutimplicitlyinclusivegraphic‘notation’,andalert,sympatheticperformers,areconceivablecatalystsforactivatingthis‘process’withincontinua140

Withthisinmind,Iexperimentedwithagraphicnotation,wherethenumberof

eventsperturntableoccurredwithinaclearlydefinedspaceonpaper.Idecided

thattherhythmicbeatingelementsneededtoberepresentedandusedlineswith

varyinglengthstorepresentthis.Alongcontinuous,thickerlinerepresents

continuityandsmall,blackenedshapesrepresentedgestureswithadefinitive

beginningandend.Thesizesoftheshapesarerelativetotheirduration(small=

shorterduration,large=longerduration),thoughtheseideasonceputinto

139Brown,E.1986.4Systems[MusicScore]London:AssociatedMusicPublishers.140Ibid.

72

practice,leftmethinkingthescorestilllackedmydesiredclarity.Iagreewith

Brown’snecessityforaperformertobealertandsympathetic,howeverIstill

thinkthatthisversionofagraphicscoreistooopen,particularlyindurationand

rhythmtoachievespecificgestures

Iinitiallydrewtheturntablesastwoseparateduets,whichIbroughttogetherin

anexperimenttousemultipleinstancesofthesameoscillatoronseveral

turntablesatdifferingspeedstoexplorerhythmicbeatings.Ithencombinedtwo

differentoscillators/frequenciesastwoturntableduostofurtherdevelopand

broadenthenarrative,asIhavepreviouslyexperimentedwithonesoundon

severalturntablesinAnceandinliveimprovisations.

Thesesketchesareroughchartsthataccuratelyclarifydurations,dynamics,pitch

onturntables,butpurelyserveafunctionalpurpose.Theydonotspecifythe

rhythmicbeatingsthatoccurwithmultipleoscillators,butsetupthecorrectand

specificconditionsinwhichthiswoulddefinitelyoccur.Goingbacktothe

previousdiscussionsIhadwithNOISESTRA,thechartiscomplicatedanddifficult

toread,especiallyasitisanumberofpageslong,readingfourlinesatatime

throughoutforfourturntables.Thereisanargumenttobemadethatperforming

withfourturntablesisdifficultinperformancepractice,whichIwouldarguein

thecaseofNOISESTRA’scomments.Thegraphicscoreisclearandservesa

straightforwardfunction;however,Isketchedthemusicinthisway,initiallyasan

improviser,wantingtorememberhowImadespecificsounds,hence,the

functionalpurposeofthegraphics.Thechartsdonotsatisfymeaestheticallyasa

composer,nordotheyconveythesoundtobemade.Ihavethereforecontinued

tolookforabettermeanstonotate.

73

IfrequentlycomebacktothemusicofAlvinLucier,mostoftenatlive

performancesandrecordings,notthroughhisscores.WhenIdidexplorehis

scores,whatIhavefoundmostinterestingistheclarityandarticulatenatureof

hisinstructionsinhistextscores,whereheisexplicitandcoherentwithheadings

anddesiredeffectsfromtheinstructionsgiven.

InMusicforPianowithMagneticStrings,underthe‘Performance’heading,he

writes:

Listenforharmonics,audiblebeating,occasionalrhythmsproducedbymagnetsvibratingagainstadjacentstring,andotheracousticphenomena.Formsingletones,intervals,chordsandclusters.Fromtimetotime,createunisons(byplacingmagneticontwostringofasingletone),fifths,octavesandtwelfths,whichmayproduceaudiblebeatingduetoslightdiscrepanciesintuning141

SimilartoBrown,Lucierisexpectinganinformedandalertperformertobe

involved,thusallowingspaceforinterpretationalongsidespecificinstructionsfor

desiredgestures.IadmirethedetailandaccuracyofLucierhere;however,Iwish

toconveysimilardetailwhilstatthesametimeaddingelementofdurationand

boundariesforspecificgestures.

RobertAshley’sWolfman142textscoreislongerthantypicalLucierscoresandhas

manymorespecificdescriptionsofgesturesandvocaltechnique.LikeLucier,he

hasbrokendownthescoreunderspecifictitles,includingvocalpart,

amplification,procedureandperformance,andpresentation.Thesubdivisionof

instructionsbringsclarityandcohesiontothescorewhilstofferingpersonal

141Lucier,A.1995.MusicforPianowithMagneticStrings.[MusicScore]FrankfurtamMain:MaterialPress.142Austin,LandKahn,D.2011.Source–MusicoftheAvant-Garde,1966-73Berkley:UniversityofCaliforniaPress,Berkeley.p143.

74

insightsfromthecomposer,hisexperiencesinperformanceandvisualdiagrams,

astofurtherexplainthetext.

InmytextscoreforBAWWWY,Ihaveusedfourtitles,description,preparation,

diagramofturntablesandperformance.Ibelievethatthisaccuratelyconveysmy

intentionsasacomposer.

Ispecifythatthetotaldurationoftheperformanceistobebetween30to60

minutesandrefertodurationsofturntables2,3and4toberelativeto

turntable1.Byusingatimelineastherelativecomparativemeansforthe

durationwithoutusingastopwatch,thisallowsaperformertodeterminetheir

owndurationandworkflexiblywhilstperformingthescore.Theinstructions

haveanaddedelementofworkingdurationandtimingofgesturesonthe

turntables,however,ithasbeenwrittenfromapragmaticperspectiveand

previouslyperformedlive.

Inhisscore,Ashleyelaboratesonthereasonsbehindspecificgesturesandsound

sources,suchasexploringthevocalbeatings.InpreviousdraftsIhadincluded

notessimilartothis,forexample,‘exploretheimpactthatmultipleturntables

withtwoduosofsinetoneswillhavelive’.Onreflection,thesenoteswere

omittedasIwanttheperformertodiscover,exploreandexperimenttherichness

oftheresultingsoundsintheperformanceexperience.

Thespecificationofaperformersympathetictoaspecificgenreorperspectiveof

performingisimportanttoLucier,however,unliketheinitialgraphicsthatI

sketchedforBAWWWY,theinstructionsarestillfunctional,settingthecorrect

circumstancesandconditionsforthedesiredgestureswithanaddeddescription

fortheperformertounderstandthatthemusicalgesturesachievedshouldbe

specificallyexplored.

75

Chapter6.Conclusion

Workingthroughthisportfoliohasledmetoseveralconclusionswithrespectto

thetopicscoveredinthepreviouschapters:Participatoryworkisavalidand

usefulmethodwithincompositionthatIwillcontinuetoworkwith.Ihave

attendedanumberofconferencesconcerningparticipatorywork,itsbenefitsto

participants,toartistsanditsvalidityinthearts.Asmycommentaryandwork

reflects,IamkeenonJohnStevensandhisapproachtoparticipatorywork;

however,IknowItakeforgrantedthatStevens’doesn’tbelieveinsimplifyinghis

musicalgoalsormissingoutdifficultmusicalconcepts.Hesuccessfullyproves

thatcomplex,experimentaland‘highart’ideascanbetranslatedinto

participatoryworkwithoutbeingpatronisingorsimplistic.Heacceptsthat

participantsareequalsandthatitisonlyamatterofunderstanding,methodof

communicatingandideathatwillleadtosuccess.Iagreewhole-heartedlywith

hismethodology.

Bylearningmoreabouttheautomaticcomplexityofthehumanbody,wemaybeabletoproveconclusivelythatallmenarebornwithpotentiallybrilliantintellect,oratleastaveryhighdegreeofcognitivecompetence,andthatthesourceofculturalcreativityistheconsciousnessthatspringsfromsocialcooperationandlovinginteraction.143

JohnBlacking’sresearchintohowmusicalpeoplearewithandwithouttraining

fromallovertheworldsupportsmybeliefthateveryoneismusical,we’rejustnot

alltrained.

Thereisevidencewhichsuggeststhat,althoughhumancreativitymayappeartobetheresultofindividualeffort,itisinfactacollectiveeffortthatisexpressedinthebehaviourofindividuals.144

143Blacking,J.1973.HowMusicalIsMan?Washington:UniversityOfWashingtonPress.p115144Blacking,J.1973.HowMusicalIsMan?Washington:UniversityOfWashingtonPress.p106

76

LikeBlackingIalsobelievethatgroupworkandcommunityservetoenhance

people’smusicalabilities.Bysharingskillsandspendingtimetogetherinan

ensemble,mynewworksandresearchintoideashasbecomemorepragmatic

andknowledgeableofperformancepracticesfromdifferingperspectives.Iam

nowwritingandperformingsoloandgroupturntableworksthatarefromthe

differingperspectives,ideasandpracticesofdifferentmembersofNOISESTRA,in

awayIcouldneverhaveimaginedbefore.

ThebenefitsofthisworkhavebeenunpredictableandIknowthatthisportfoliois

contributingtotherepertoireandfutureofturntablisminawaythatIcouldn’t

haveimaginedbeforehand.Iamnowabletoworkwithothercontemporariesin

collaborativework,involvingbothcommunityparticipantsandprofessionals

fromawiderangeofdisciplines,includingtheatreanddance.

ThroughouttheportfolioIhaveexploreddifferentnotationsandexperimented

withwhichnotationalmethodsbestsuiteachindividualcomposition.Iconclude

thatforeveryturntablework,thereisadifferentnotationalsystemthatwillwork

successfullyandwillclearlyarticulatemyintentionstoperformers.When

evaluatinghowbesttowriteapiece,thereneedstobeanevaluationofwhothe

performersareandhowbesttonotateforthem.Havingaflexibleapproachtomy

writing,inlieuofmycurrentcareerincomposition,isarealityofworkinginthe

Artsindustry.Ibelieveitisimportantthatmusicisplayed,performed,consumed

andmaderelevanttotheperformersandaudienceofthattime.Musicwillbe

writtenformanyvaryingcircumstancesandsettings,butparticipationanda

participatoryapproachisjustasequallyvalidintheRoyalOperaHouseorthe

communitycentre.

77

Whilstresearchinganddevelopingnewworks,sketchesthathaven’tbeen

finishedhaveoftenbroughtmanymoreideasforward,sometimeideasIhad

previouslyconceivedorthoughtof.Oneofthoseideaswastheuseofmultiple

turntablesbyoneperformerandhowtothentranslatethatintodifferentcontexts

withdifferentinstruments.Iamnowcontinuingtoworkonnewworksfor

multipleturntablesandvaryingprofessionalensembles.Inaprofessional

context,thoseensemblesarenowexpandingandtheroleofthemultiple

turntablesisbecomingmoresophisticated.

Thereisastrongfutureaheadfornewmusiccompositionwithturntables,butit

isuncertainwhetherornotitwillbereliantonnewtechnology.Frommy

perspective,thereisanappetitefromensemblesandaudienceswithrespectto

analogueinstrumentsanddifferingsoundmediaformats.Thereisadesiretosee

amixtureofmediausedasinstruments,andinthisscenario,Ithinkacasecanbe

madethatwewillnowenteranewphaseinmusicwhereformats,oldandnew,

willbeusedtogethertotheirstrengths.Thecomplicatedloops,combinationsand

methodsthatperformersarenowconspiringarebecomingmoreandmore

sophisticated.Thereareunderlyingnarrativesininstrumentalchoicesand

playingstylesthathaveasmuchdepthintheirintegrityasthecompositionsthey

areperformingtoo,andIbelievethatthiswillalsobesymptomaticofthiscurrent

generationofcomposersandperformers.

78

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