alphabeta (2010) alphabeta takes the shape of three introductions and three episodes. In each introduction, an “alphabet” is defined by matching a limited number of percussion sounds with their piano “equivalents” (a low-resolution copy of the pitch content of the percussion sound, analyzed in software). This flattening out of the richness of the percussion timbres into equal-tempered piano chords is for me both stupid (due to the massive loss of information) and illuminating (as the connection between the two is actually perceptible, even so).
The episodes string these basic units together in a series of increasingly elaborate contexts, built on (extremely abstracted) metaphors of “song,” “speech,” and “music”.
instrumentation: piano 4-hands and 2 percussion
duration: 7'
date: 2010
recording:
performance history:
6.5.10- Yarn/Wire, Roulette, NYC
2.19.11- Yarn/Wire, Issue Project Room, Brooklyn