29 July 5-6pm underneath the north side of the Narrows Bridge by the Swan River, Perth
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Sage Pbbbt Narrows / Expands / Elides [2018]
For small to large ensemble, any instrumentation. Written for GreyWing, Breaking Waves and Gerygone as part of the Limited Hangout: In the Field project. Duration: ~45 minutes. The piece consist of two movements which attempt to explore ideas of (non)striated space and (de)colonization and another movement which points to how problematic my attempts seem to me.
As a starting point, the piece takes one of my favourite incidental sound (non)installations in Perth–the underpass of the Narrows Bridge over Mounts Bay Road. This space offers up an intersection of different modes of spatial division—roads, paths, cycle paths and trains lines—that themselves navigate the geographical terrain. (And these spatial divisions and physical incursions manifest over the dreaming, history and sense of place of the Whadjuk people of the Noongar nation; which I am mostly deaf to and ignorant of.) Soundwise, this space includes sounds of motor vehicles and trains overhead (emanating from a relatively straight flightpath, but affected by the Doppler effect), interacting with bicycles, pedestrians and other motor vehicles at ground level navigating curved trajectories determined somewhat by the terrain. The piece explores moving between ‘striated space’ and ‘non-striated’ (or, more problematically, ‘nomad space’) taking inspiration from the works of Deleuze and Guattari (in 10,000 Plateaus). How to attend
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PERFORMED BY
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i. Movement; through a clumsy musickal analogy of de-striatification / de-colonization [~20 minutes]
Grid map (Appendix 1.) Strictly chromatic, equal temperament. No vibrato or tremolo. Very strict rhythm. Interpret the map through a strict grid system using one axis for twelve tones (any registers, including moving between registers) and the other for time (twelve beats—any sub-divisions acceptable). This section lasts exactly four minutes (exactly one minute for each quarter). Everyone starts and finishes precisely together. Each performer plays each of the four quarters but in any order that they like.
Map, no grid (Appendix 2.) Stepped glissandi between notes in the twelve-tone, equal temperament scale. Clear (but less strict) rhythm. This section lasts about four minutes; start and finish at about the same time.
Terrain map (Appendix 3.) Explore the map, but orient yourself around the other players. About four minutes.
Imagined map—play following the lines of an imagined image of the space. Explore your own imagining of this world. Play for some time.
Play in the space, through the space, as the space. Duration: free (individual, but still listening).
Grid map (Appendix 1.) Strictly chromatic, equal temperament. No vibrato or tremolo. Very strict rhythm. Interpret the map through a strict grid system using one axis for twelve tones (any registers, including moving between registers) and the other for time (twelve beats—any sub-divisions acceptable). This section lasts exactly four minutes (exactly one minute for each quarter). Everyone starts and finishes precisely together. Each performer plays each of the four quarters but in any order that they like.
Map, no grid (Appendix 2.) Stepped glissandi between notes in the twelve-tone, equal temperament scale. Clear (but less strict) rhythm. This section lasts about four minutes; start and finish at about the same time.
Terrain map (Appendix 3.) Explore the map, but orient yourself around the other players. About four minutes.
Imagined map—play following the lines of an imagined image of the space. Explore your own imagining of this world. Play for some time.
Play in the space, through the space, as the space. Duration: free (individual, but still listening).
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ii. Movement; Too [~20 minutes]
play in lines;
lines that at first play mimetically with your soundlines
lines that move towards accentuating the sonic effects caused by the curves in the road, the interactions of sounds, the Doppler effect…
lines that move towards accentuating the sonic effects caused
lines that move towards accentuating the sonic effects
lines that move towards accentuating the sonic
lines that move towards accentuating
lines that move towards
lines that move
lines
play in lines;
lines that at first play mimetically with your soundlines
lines that move towards accentuating the sonic effects caused by the curves in the road, the interactions of sounds, the Doppler effect…
lines that move towards accentuating the sonic effects caused
lines that move towards accentuating the sonic effects
lines that move towards accentuating the sonic
lines that move towards accentuating
lines that move towards
lines that move
lines
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iii. Ellipsis…
The Old Swan Brewery sits on sacred Noongar land.
The Beedawong meeting place sits a little further back from the river.
The Rottnest Island Ferry service runs from Elizabeth Quay under the Narrows, taking non-indigenous people to Wadjemup: “place across the water where the spirits are”.
Wadjemup housed thousands of indigenous prisoners many of whom died of influenza.
The remains of many indigenous people lie in the ground on Wadjemup where school leavers drink themselves stupid every year and where white people go to frolic in the sun.
(Players are invited to engage with section three in any way that makes sense to them and respects Noongar culture including in ways that undermine the first two sections…)
The Old Swan Brewery sits on sacred Noongar land.
The Beedawong meeting place sits a little further back from the river.
The Rottnest Island Ferry service runs from Elizabeth Quay under the Narrows, taking non-indigenous people to Wadjemup: “place across the water where the spirits are”.
Wadjemup housed thousands of indigenous prisoners many of whom died of influenza.
The remains of many indigenous people lie in the ground on Wadjemup where school leavers drink themselves stupid every year and where white people go to frolic in the sun.
(Players are invited to engage with section three in any way that makes sense to them and respects Noongar culture including in ways that undermine the first two sections…)
