Alternative Title

OR, A Little Beach Music (British Columbia, September 2022)

Publication Date

Fall 12-18-2022

Abstract

1. Bone & Stone Sonata;

2. Jellyfish & Seaweed Suite;

3. Bonfire Bay Sonata;

Three works of experimental music and notation are included in Scores of Nature (Volume 1), which include pieces written on beaches with fishbone and pebbles, a bonfire and bay in Sointula, and a piece recommended for solo 'cello, where the score is an image of a beached jellyfish in a bedding of seaweed, in which the musician needs to react to the image and play what they are imagining from that image. From the description provided in the score text: "In this piece, Jellyfish & Seaweed Suite, I found this image I took to be so intense in its color and physical composition that I felt it would evoke powerful reactions from performers. On the following page, I’ve enhanced the image so that the performer can see the structures of the jellyfish and seaweed more closely and have added a “repeat bar” to the right of it. The design of the piece now forces the viewer to distinguish between image, score, notation, and emotion. The “music” then is for the solo 'cellist to interpret whatever they feel in seeing this, from silence to sound and back, if desired. The piece may repeat or be in many movements, as I have designated it a suite. What emotion or musical feeling does it elicit from you when you look at this image of nature?" Possible articulations of these scores are given in traditional notation for performers to play.

Document Type

Other

Keywords

Experimental Music; Experimental Notation; Environmental History; Environmental Scores; Environmental Notation; Musical Scores; Avant garde; Nature and Music; Natural Music; Natural Notation; Nature Scores; Jellyfish; Seaweed; Beaches and Music; British Columbia; Sointula; Malcolm Island (Canada);

Disciplines

Composition | Musicology | Music Performance | Music Theory | Other Music

Notes

Performances may include instruments such as piano, harp, cello, violin, etc. And even human voice.

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