“People and trees are caught in irreversible histories of disturbance. But some kinds of disturbance have been followed by regrowth of a sort that nurtures many lives.”
Anna Tsing - The Mushroom at the End of the World
The notation for this piece is derived from processes seen in ecological systems including interdependence, symbiosis, simultaneous independence, decay, evolution, and erosion. Playing style should be straight-tone and delicate unless otherwise marked.
Players read from full score and should use a clock; the piece relies on cuing. One member of the ensemble should use a footswitch to facilitate clock resets for the sections containing proportional notation (marked with ticks across the top of the relevent pages).
Notation methods in this work allow for a blend of composer-specified material and performer agency informed by listening in the moment. When the performer see this
the performer can choose from the given pitches, rests, and durations to determine how to best contribute to the current texture. In the example above, the performer has three pitch choices (noteheads) as well as two durations (non-bold numbers) and two rests values (bold numbers). The pitches can be performed in any order and at either of the durations noted, followed by either of the rests values. Listening should inform these choices.
Non-bolded numbers alone indicate rest values may be freely chosen. Bolded numbers an extended rest value.
Notes should be played at the octave written unless the stave is followed by one of the these symbols - at the octave written or below + at the octave written or above -/+ at the octave written, above, or below
A colored box around material indicates subdivisions of multiple players within the ensemble. Players with the same colored boxes should direct their listening to one another to inform dynamics, blending, and pitch/rest/duration selection.
This symbol indicates feedback using the built-in microphone of a cassette dictophone. The performer points the microphone into their mouth and can change the feedback frequency by altering the shape of the mouth cavity. Pitch is indeterminate insofar as repeatability is difficult but single, sustained frequecies are the goal.
Indicates delicate, quiet, irregular noise or air sounds, open to the performer.
A firmata assigned to only one player indicates that that player is responsible for the duration the ensemble plays and should cue moving on.
v. or s.v.
t. or s.t.
With or without vibrato (regular sinusoidal frequency modulation).
With or without tremolo (regular sinusoidal amplitude modulation).
(3++) On page 5, where a number is followed by ++, the performer will rest for the value indicated by the number and add 1 count each repeat
Instrumentation
Players will play their standard instrument and variants but each will also have at least one additional instrument invented to contribute to the timbral landscape of the piece. Material notated in red indicates players should use this alternate instrument.
Voice:
The vocalist performs with:
- standard light amplification to blend with ensemble
- a cassette dictaphone routed through a local mixer
- a headset lavelier microphone routed to 3 loudspeaker instruments and a transducer placed on a bassdrum adjacent to the performer
- a bowed-pipe monocord amplified by a guitar amp
Flute:
The flute will perform with a standard C flute and an alto flute, as well as a pair of fan-powered slide whistles. The slide whistles should be tuned during set up and are controlled by an adjustable speed knob for the fan.
Clarinet:
The clarinet will perform with a standard Bb Clarinet and a bass clarinet, as well as a pair of fan-powered slide whistles. The slide whistles should be tuned during set up and are controlled by an adjustable speed knob for the fan.
Violin:
The violin will require a practice mute where indicated. The violinist is also responsible for the violin-uke 1 part (see below), bowing the instrument and placing or removing an ebow as indicated in the score.
Percussion:
The percussion battery consists of:
- vibraphone (both bowed and with soft mallets)
- crotales (as an extension of available metalophone pitches)
- bass drum
- floor tom
- a metallic spring instrument played with a spinning nylon-string on a milk frother (amplified by a contact mic)
- a rotating table (amplified by a contact mic)
- a bowed-pipe monocord (amplified by a contact mic)
- Violin-Uke 2 (with ebow, see below)
Violin-Uke:
The violin uke is a early 20th c. folk instrument with tuned chord strings resembling a zither or auto-harp and bowed strings resembing a psaltery. For this piece two of these, amplified by guitar pick-ups, provide droning pitch material. Though they are notated on the same staff, they are played by the violinist (in black) and percussionist (in red).
Tuning:
This piece should be tuned so that any local interval is just-intoned to a low number ratio, i.e. 5:4 thirds and 3:2 fifths. Microtones notated explicitly by accidentals are approximate and meant to demarcate beating frequencies against another note in the current chord or timbre.
off motor on music like flowers pressed into the pages of a favorite book
seamless continuation of previous page
choose one scale degree for each duration/rest pair play duration/rest pairs in sequence each repeat, then move on to the next cell avoid playing the same pitch more than twice in a row dynamic and articulation are your own following from the previous page and preparing for the next page. proceed to the next cell when the longer cell finishes, sit tacet if you end first.
vox minimal ad libitum in rests, vowels follow previous page
all ad libitum buried in rests
cues counter and start of next page
(3, 5; 2, 3)
(5; 2, 3)
(3; 2, 3)
(3; 1, 2)
(5, 7; 0, 1, 2)
(7, 5; 2, 3) ( )
(5; 1, 3)
(5; 2, 3) ( )
(3, 5; 2, 3)
(5; 2, 3)
(7; 1, 2)
(5, 7; 0, 1, 2)
(7. 9; 2, 3)
(3)
(3, 5)
ebow on violin uke
(3, 5) +/-
7
9
1 5 1 v.
motor off motor off motor on slight speed variation throughout page motor on
introspective self-reliance, interdependence along individual paths
place ebow on violin uke 2
, ,
(2++)
play phrase 6x, before 5th, 1° cue clarinet before 6th 2° cue ensemble to move on
collapse and rebuild
(2, 3; 1, 2)
(2++) (3++) (8)
(2, 3., 4; 1)
(30)
2°cue from percussion
(3, 4; 1, 3)
(45)
2°cue from percussion
1° cue from percussion
(5, 7; 2, 3)
(1++)
2°cue from percussion
towel on tom, soft mallet, dead thump +/-
(2, 3; 1, 2)
an ocean of starlings free vowel and slow vowel transitions, introduce speakers
(3, 4; 1, 3)
(3, 5; 1, 2, 3)
(2, 3., 4; 1)
(5, 7; 0, 1, 2)
(3, 4; 0, 1, 2)
(3, 4; 0, 1)
arco long tones throughout, simultaneous pitches ad. lib.
(3, 4; 0, 1, 2)
(3, 5; 0, 1, 2)
(3, 4; 0, 1, 2)
(4, 5; 0, 1, 2)
(5, 7; 2, 3, 5) +/-
(4, 5; 0, 1, 2)
finger-hole speaker, hiding inside the pitches of others with vowels matching timbre
vox/fl/cl/vln long tones, rest as needed conscious choices about tremolo and vibrato
bass drum repeat sparsely to 4’30” crest gently above group dynamics
subtle movement between sul p. and t. springs with milk frother
bowed pipe in parens
(3, 7, 9; 1, 2)
(1, 2, 3)
( ) ( ) ( )
free vowels to match other timbres
(7, 9; 1, 2, 3)
(7, 9; 1, 2, 3)
slidewhistles (instruments long tones freely ad. lib.)
(9, 11, 13) 4x 4x
slidewhistles (instruments long tones freely ad. lib.)
(9, 11, 13; 1, 2)
freely alternate with violin-uke bowing
bowed pipe, occasion rustle in box of leaves
(4, 5; 2, 3, 5)
(3, 5)
(3, 5, 7; 3, 5, 7)
subtle movement between sul p. and t.
(9, 11, 13)
9, 11)
(5; 2, 3)
9, 11)
very low but not off
crisp like a tree branch falling suddenly
unstable air sounds ad. lib.
unstable air sounds ad. lib.
very low but not off switch on motors crotales, barely present, irregularly rearticulate
motor with tissue paper and leaves adjust irregularly to create small disturbances
((3, 5) (2, 3); 2, 3, 5)
whistle mostly air
whistle tone
cicular breathing
mostly tone
unstable whistle 8va unison with vln
(5, 7, 9; 3, 5 occasional 2)
forget about tissue and leaves adjust occasionally (1, 2, 3)
((2, 3, 5) (3, 4); 3, 5)
whistle across mouthpiece
((5, 7) (3, 4); 5, 7, 9)
sim.
whistle across cassette mic air past mouthpiece ad. lib. air past microphone motor off motor off motor off
practice mute tacet
unstable between air and tone
((5, 7, 9) (3, 5); 5, 7, 9) sim.
entirely air
mostly tone entirely soft noise
ebows off
bass drum repeat sparsely to end barely audible