Reciprocess is about collaborating!
A series featuring the work(s) of two or more sound-designers and documenting the process of musical reciprocality between them and this is our sixth entry. The work is called A1-C8, composed by Martin Eriksson.
A1-C8 consists of five parts and was produced at Elektronmusikstudion in Stockholm in 2022.My Hellgren plays cello and Håkan Strandhag plays trumpet.
Martin Eriksson plays modular synth, processing the recordings.Martin Eriksson is an architect working in many different fields. He is also a composer connected to EMS.
The main idea is to create music in dialogue. Starting with graphic notations that were made on the fly title pages of Peter Englunds novel Onda nätters drömmar on a long and rough bus journey from Stockholm to Berlin.
It is three pages A, B, C.
Each paper is divided inte 8 sections, hence A1-C8.aThese notations were transcribed by musicians My Hellgren, cello, and Håkan Strandhag, trumpet, who have collaborated with Martin Eriksson in earlier projects.
My is often seen in contemporary chamber music projects in Sweden + internationally.
Håkan and Martin have been making music together for a long time in the band Överklassen.
Photo: Jonas Knape
The acoustics were manipulated by a modular that mainly consists of three Clouds module (Émilie Gillet’s Mutable instruments) and a Touch Activated Keyboard Sequencer (TKB from SERGE modular) that locks and unlocks the clouds.
Following Pierre Schaeffer and other early electro acoustic pioneers, the electronics are used as tools to reinforce the acoustic instruments. Making them do things they cannot do on their own. Bringing out their true or hidden tones.
In this work we wanted to make something that is not conceptual, but the opposite. Perhaps it could be called perceptual (a term originally used by composer Daniel M. Karlsson). A process that resembles a conversation. That allows itself to be winding. You start in the garden and (like Jorge Luis Borges) follow a path that forks and forks until you find yourself deep in the forest. The path is gone since long but on the other hand you experience something completely unforeseen.
To be conceptual when creating has a lot of advantages of course. Especially when working on comission. It gives the clients a chance to know what they are getting before the work is done.
But when trying to make something that did not exist before it is counter productive.
In A1-C8 we are trying to make something that exists on its own, by its own rules and because of itself.
Something that hasn’t been before.
https://oeverklassen.bandcamp.com
https://myhellgren.com
Fig. 1 Method of composing
—————————————————————————————————————————
Conditions —-> Results —-> Revised conditions —-> New results
^ ^_____NEW IDEA_____ v
IDEA RECORDING ——————–> EDITING
—————————————————————————————————————-
In A1-C8 and ABC i have tried to find a similar method but in dialogue with musicians instead of modulars.
Håkan Strandhag plays trumpet and My Hellgren plays cello.
They got a graphic notation (see below that they recorded.)
Then i processed their work with a modular setup consisting of a complex sample player, three Mutable Instruments Clouds and a Serge ARC TKB programmer.
Fig. 2. Modular principle
—————————————————————————————————————-
Recordings —-> MI Clouds (pitched up) —————————> 3
^ —-> MI Clouds (no pitch shift) —————-> stereo
I ^ —-> MI Clouds (pitched down) ——> tracks
Freeze I ^
I Freeze I
I I Freeze
____________
Serge TKB Programmer
—————————————————————————————————————-
Fig 3. Notation
I went on a bus to Berlin and bought Peter Englunds novel Onda nätters drömmar (bad nights dreams/dreams of bad nights/dreams for bad nights) to read. It is a snapshot compilation of accurate smaller /private / family events around the world during world war two. I draw the notations for this work on that bus journey on the backs of the half-title.
If i was more interested in titles i would title this one bad nights dreams.
https://peterenglundsnyawebb.wordpress.com
Reciprocess is documenting the process of reciprocity !
A series based on collaborations. Some of us collaborating with other from our Modulisme community…
Giving a new life to the series initiated in the early 2000s on my defunct label BiP_HOp, in collaboration with Fällt Publishing.
Bas Mantel is in charge of designing cover artworks… See his page please:
https://www.revlaboratories.com
PREVIOUSLY in Reciprocess…
Doug Lynner & Philippe Petit : Thrilling Pathways
https://modulisme.info/session/87
W.E.B. (Warren Burt + Ernie Morgan + Bruce Rittenbach)
https://modulisme.info/session/67
Klauss : Kapow
https://modulisme.info/session/61
Pax-Art Ensemble (Leo Nilsson & friends)
https://modulisme.info/session/55
Control Voltage Therapy (Todd Barton & Bruce Bayard)
https://modulisme.info/session/52
Komet +/vs. Bovine Life – Reciprocess + / vs. 01
https://www.discogs.com/release/51672-Komet-vs-Bovine-Life-Reciprocess–vs-01
si-cut.db* + / vs. Stephan Mathieu – Reciprocess + / vs. 02
https://www.discogs.com/release/195332-si-cutdb-And-Full-Swing–vs-Stephan-Mathieu-Und-Douglas-Benford-Reciprocess–vs-02
Philippe Petit & Friends – (Reciprocess: +/VS.) – Documenting The Process Of Musical Reciprocality Between Philippe Petit & Friends
https://www.discogs.com/release/1641283-Philippe-Petit-Friends-Reciprocess-VS-Documenting-The-Process-Of-Musical-Reciprocality-Between-Phili