l’après monde

those that know me may have noticed i have been in full hermit mode. this may be to compensate for what i should have done during lockdowns. instead of using the period for stillness, with no gig in view, i occupied the time to produce and publish a large amount of work. i mastered and prepared the entire live archive for my band inclusion principle, created another bandcamp site for my own work and prepared albums for release, compiled all my solo electroacoustic performances for the series résonance, created albums from various field recordings, etc. this can be found on my bandcamp page.

during that time, i also produced three albums and released two of them: a wonderful duo with gus garside published by 377, and Inclusion Principle’s fourth. this is the third composition which has not yet been heard.

‘l’après monde’ started with henry recording piano and trombone at his home in the south of france. we have played as a duo for several years. henry is a wonderful pianist who took up the trombone around the same time as i switched to saxophone. we were part of an amazing network of improvisers and have played acoustic improvisation and gigged during many of my visits in the area. here, we use a very different approach while working from separate countries. plus, this collaboration takes on a new colour with the addition of electronic sounds and treatment. some of the things i was exploring in this piece paved the way to compositions for the Inclusion Principle album i worked on next.

i cut up the recordings henry sent me, drawing sections of improvisation, and shorter clips to create space and dynamic flow, radical changes between tableaux that organically unfold. i used samplers for the trombone, looped riffs, layered harmonic sections, processed the piano to create spectral clouds, etc. and thus, using henry’s material as building blocks, i arranged the structure for four pieces.

in all four, i gradually added electronic rhythms, field recordings and sound sculptures that are part of my palette, enjoying the possibilities found in ableton live 10 and creating new sounds. i then added alto sax improvisations, at times duetting with henry’s phrasing, at time playing in contrast, and flying off over loops or beats. the interplay, i hope, portrays the energy and excitement typical of our duo, and yet feels very different with added studio time and wide soundscapes. i rather like the balance between the raw energy of improvisation and the playful compositional techniques i have used.

this work seems to explore many areas of contemporary music, including jazz, improvisation, electronic, new music and electroacoustic composition. imagine a car crash between rothko and pollock. cezanne cries in a corner. the scene, smudged in the rain. 

 

 

i am very pleased to share this work with you, and i hope you enjoy listening. drop us a line and let us know… pass the word, and please support the artists featured.

three voices

after a long period spent in the electroacoustic universe, i return to recording saxophone and revisit live processing on a different system. over time, i recorded improvisations using a limited set of plug-ins to inspire a certain soundscape. the three voices correspond to three sound worlds and three types of plug-ins: spectral, granular and tonal.

with the saxophone, i explore abstract textures and sound techniques that can be found in free improv and contemporary music. but mostly, i replicate the fractal approach of this sonic explosion, and play with symmetrical shapes using a harmonic system i have been developing.

the last improvisation, in contrast is free from wild tweakery, and sits in the vast space of a gentle reverb. i am using a minor scale with major seven, a very powerful and dramatic colour used by ravi shankar in his ode to gandhi.

 

this album reflects some of the sounds and techniques i have been playing with. i hope you enjoy this journey…

 

Sounding Out – the Peak District

The Peak District on my doorstep, it is easy to nip out and see so much beauty. A little further afield, the limestone valleys offer a different type of landscape. i don’t often go that far and so missed the area and decided to return to known places, in the south peaks.

It was wet in wetton. Storm was on the menu, and it did not disappoint. But first, in the day, it was really hot and sunny. Walking up the hills was fairly taxing and many people were out swimming in the rivers.

By the evening, the distant lightning provided a spectacular display; with stars above, flashes lit up gorgeous cloud formations. The flashes were relentless, it was like watching fireworks and the storm being so distant, it was completely silent. Quite a surreal scene. And it took a while for the rain to arrive. And here too, it did not disappoint.

Another magic moment, in the morning, from a nearby bridge, i watched the empty and dry river bed fill up with rain water that slowly had filtered throught the limestone and started flowing, making this most amazing trickle sound, like pebbles coming to life.

But let’s rewind a little to the end of the day, after a wonderful walk in blazing sunshire, and as the weather was slowly turning, i climbed into the imposive stature of Thor’s Cave. Possibly due to the radiant weather, and also to a long period of lockdown, i found the area more busy than usual, and it was a while until there was a quiet moment. i had time to enjoy the golden glowing of slanting light that came into the cave from the side opening. Taking the time to get back in touch with the space i once knew well (a scroll through previous sounding out recordings will show many visits to this site), i could get into the vibe and ready for some improvisation.

As soon as i got the saxophone out and sounded out a few notes into the space, to warm up, the music started to flow. At the end of the session, as the light was diminishing, a single wood pigeon was singing outside the entrance of the cave. I picked up the melody and recorded one last piece.

 

 

the fifth step
alto saxophone, 11 august 2020
thor’s cave

 

 

shadow theatre
alto saxophone, 11 august 2020
thor’s cave

 

 

spin the riff
alto saxophone, 11 august 2020
thor’s cave

 

 

the wood pigeon song
alto saxophone, 11 august 2020
thor’s cave

 

 

 

After a little break, i continued on down the valley, to a tunnel of incredible property. The sound there is just outstanding. After playing in the cave, my lips were starting to tire, but i could not help sending a few notes spinning down that long tube a watch the frequencies merge. Each set of notes shimmers in its own way, creating further overtones, bending notes to align with the tunnel resonance. I could have played triads forever, just listening to the long tail slowly fade. With circular breathing, the tones eventually blend into a mass of sound that slowly modulates overtones. This place has always been a treat.

 

infinite
alto saxophone, 11 august 2020
swainsley tunnel

 

 

merger
alto saxophone, 11 august 2020
swainsley tunnel

 

 

scats o’long tails
alto saxophone, 11 august 2020
swainsley tunnel

 

 

dark skies ahead
alto saxophone, 11 august 2020
swainsley tunnel

 

 

 

On the second day, i wanted to go back to the cave and record some more, explore different textures. I am not sure if the deliberate approach was wise, in any case, i could not really force any ideas as is usually true with this project. I just had to go with the flow. And on that second day, the vibe was quite different. There were many distractions and it took quite a while for things to settle down, and even while playing, there were a few interruptions. Still, even though i found it more difficult to get into the zone, some interesting material came out. And indeed, the results were more high energy flow and abstract than the first session which was predominently melodic. In places like this, i find the vibe and the music that comes out a lot more free and raw than in churches, for obvious reasons.

 

 

another round
alto saxophone, 12 august 2020
thor’s cave

 

 

bustle in the valley
alto saxophone, 12 august 2020
thor’s cave

 

 

waltzing wood in the wind
alto saxophone, 12 august 2020
thor’s cave

 

Sounding Out – back to the beginning

There is something intimate about the forest. This is where Sounding Out started out. And in the current situation, accessing churches or any type of public architecture is difficult. Playing outdoors has an immediate quality. The sound of the saxophone is pure. Just dry, dead pan, as it is, no embelishment, no phase tweaking and bounce reflections. In the cool air, it is also slightly raw. Raunchy is the mood.

I’ve just had a series of powerful meditations lately, and i’ve been reflecting on a phenomena with light hitting a waterfall (see my video on reflections on a weir called moving lines). Such reflections took me back to symmetrical figures and the fractal approach to music i have been developing. After meditation, i walked out into the forest with my saxophone and continued my reflections, this time it is the instrument that leads me into similar figures i had seen. Inspired by this experience, i later returned to the same spot and recorded some improvisations.

From the open space immediate sound, i gradually step deeper into the trees and the sounds change. It comes as no surprise our ancestors believed that trees had spirits. As i play in the midst of this thick woods, the trees come alive and respond to the saxophone sounds. There’s calls in the night, shrieks and hullulations, and there’s some jazz licks too, abstract and angular, that all come out into the deep, the dark, impenetrable lush texture of trees.

 

On the return journey, after walking in Northumberland through splendid scenery and lush forests, i stopped in the well known church in Newby. This place never disappoints. The doors are always open, and the acoustics always gives. I have spent much time here, and always had such inspiration in this very quiet space.

Here again, carried by the flow, i play uninterrrupted for 45 minutes.

 

 

 

vajra light
alto saxophone, 24 july 2020
holystone forest

 

 

 

conseil des sages
alto saxophone, 26 july 2020
newby church

 

 

 

un sage conseil
alto saxophone, 26 july 2020
newby church

de quatre mers de quatre vents nt008

i am very pleased to present my first large scale compostion as number eight in the nexTTime production series.

 

There was an old piano in a corner of the studio, and one day I just had this drive to dig it open, and start putting things in the strings. I was into Cage, obviously, but never saw any of his instructions, or knew how to go about it. I don’t really play piano, but I have years of experience as an improviser on prepared guitar, and so I had an army or crocodile clips at hand and a few other tricks. At first, I wanted to create a database of samples to place into compositions or performing live. This project turned out to be rather different.

I spent a day in the studio working at the piano and preparing all the strings, playing by ear, and aiming for a whole range of sounds, textures, percussive tones.
The second day, I started recording individual notes for sampling, but very quickly I found myself improvising on this new instrument I had created. I came up with motifs, runs, hits and whole sections that were just playing and enjoying the sounds, coming up with rhythmical patterns and so on.
By the end of the day, I had plenty of material to take home.

The next stage was spent doing was I do best, editing, processing, sculpting, and creating yet another database of new samples where the piano had turned electro. Here again, I created textures, harmonic samples, rhythmical patterns and individual hits. And so, the track called ‘empty piano’ came first.

But I did not stop there; while playing with the recordings, I started arranging sections of piano, and just with skeletons of tracks, I knew I had something quite special. For me it was a unique opportunity to use what was an unusual instrumentation and a change from electric guitar and electroacoustic pieces.

Working on the set of short films as sound recordist, I met Carrie who is a trained classical singer as well as actress. I managed to record a few short samples off set, but later approached her asking if she would record in a studio for me. And so I prepared sets of instructions for her so I could harvest more samples, short motifs and single notes in a range of styles to later rework in computer, and integrate all this into the compositions I had.

And this is pretty much the making of this work. Add to this some field recordings, and electronics, programmed beats and sines…
It is an unusual approach to the format of the symphony; in four movements and with four classes of instruments.

Looking back, I still rather like the sweetness of this piece, and it still feels fresh. Somehow, the themes that play out through the movements of nature versus urbanisation, also illustrated in the contrasting sounds that make the line up, are still relevant to me.

 

A symphony for prepared piano, voice, field recordings and electronics, in four movements.

 

the concept:

The prepared piano symphony follows the traditional arch narrative of the form. In parallel of the evolution of music, the sounds follow a historical trajectory of technology in relation to mankind and nature.

 

In the first movement, the four classes of instruments – prepared piano, voice, field recordings, electronics – set the scene. The piano echoes the state of technology and design of the time. It is metaphorically the birth of the industrial revolution and the machine.

 

In the second movement, there is a shift in sound quality and atmosphere as modernism hits a stride, and the technology becomes altered in need of the new, of progress. The instrument / technology is ‘prepared’ in ways that reflect more modern soundscapes with the appearance of pulses and drones in contrast to the more mechanical and dramatic opening section. The second movement is already bridging the modern sound of the ‘prepared piano’ into the digital age, a further alteration of the industrial age and its resulting soundscapes:

As we follow the evolution in struggle between man, machine and nature, into a post materialist rebirth, past the explosion of the atom and the advance in granular synthesis, into a quantum world of digital jungle, we also follow a different narrative of how the piano (here representative of a certain technological advancement) is gradually prepared and transformed further still as we delve deeper into its resonance and sonic architecture at the digital atomic level.

 

 

There is a parallel between the history of the industrial landscape and the evolution of musical instruments and their uses to reflect social changes. We delve deeper into the texture and atomic resonance of matter, of the physical world, of the musical object in ways that deconstructs its original technological advancement.

 

By the third movement, it is the age of doubt and there is a looming, brooding turmoil in the balance of the world and it reaches a climax with uncertainty and existentialism. It is the end of history, the loss of meaning, and even of the purpose of materialism and the quantum field of emptiness where grains of reality and pulverised to conditioned compounded vibrations.

 

This is only resolved in the fourth movement when after a dramatic discharge of energy in the form of a lightening storm when life is stilled into suspension, electronic entities, prepared piano, voice and nature all navigate around a more coherent system of interactions which has its own rhythms, cycles and its own logic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the hanged swordsman nt007

Let’s go back in time to have a look at early electronic compositions as release number seven in the series of nexTTime production.

This album marks a significant turning point in my work in sound design, digital processing, composition and approach to sound in general. I was still working on a pc at the time and focused all my efforts in sculpting sounds, often using a single source or limited amount of material to create an entire piece.

For example, the opening track is made from a single short sample from Kenneth Kirschner, inspired by a competition organised by Deupree’s 12K label following the release of seminal work post piano. Unessentialists and minimalism has been an important inspiration and yet, I am very much interested in texture, harmony and spectral composition, and in this case, getting deep into the textural and timbral quality of the sounds I used.

Often unrecognisable, the sound sources are still very present, and inform the nature of the compositions. The last piece is another example, with limited source samples recorded in a derelict mill in the peak district. I spent a lot of time in the area taking photos. Soon after, the mill was restored and now has been transformed into luxury accommodations. And yet I cannot help thinking about the many children who died there, working in awful conditions. I think this place has always kept a very weird vibe.

The track diamond is made from guitar samples and the title describes the process the original sounds went through to emerge as they are now.
Cell Breakdown was the soundtrack used for a video installation, diffused in a reverberant gallery space when I was studying at art school.

I am pleased to share this work now, and hope you enjoy its documentary value and its significance in relation to influential electronic music.

Milarepa and Rechungpa nt006

The fantastic stories and songs of Milarepa continue with release number six in the series of nexTTime production new label.

The relationship between the wise guru Milarepa and his main disciple Rechungpa is difficult to say the least. This very poignant and touching story details how their relationship evolves, and there are many opportunities for deep teachings and thus wisdom abounds. This is possibly the most intense, and intensely rich of this collaboration with Suvarnagarbha, our highest achievement in weaving spoken word and electroacoustic narratives that support each other without necessarily examplifying or mimicking.

This is a stunning performances that sustains incredible energy and focus throughout and pays much respect to the absolutely incredible stories that unfold.

We hope that this will bring much benefit and enjoyment to the listener.

 

The live performance took place at the Sheffield Buddhist Centre on 12 october 2019.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Songs of Milarepa nt005

Building on the stregth of the collaboration with Suvarnagarbha, this fifth release in the series of nexTTime production explores the songs and stories of Milarepa.

Here, Milarepa uses wits and wisdom to battle demons and spirits. And of course, Suvarnagarbha’s impressive translation of the text and perfect delivery underlines the humour that balances the tensions in this compelling narrative.

The music is mostly improvised, apart from some short composed sequences that were prepared in advance to provide a contrast between significant songs and the flow of the narration.

Electroacoustic and experimental electronics, this piece is as eventful and it gets (for the accompaniment of Bhuddist texts…) and features broken beats, glitch electronics and granular randomness as well as more ambient spectral sections. Meditation bowls and bells are augmented with the addition of shakuhachi, and even saxophone appears in places to support the changes in mood of this amazing text.

 

The live performance took place at the Sheffield Buddhist Centre on 15 june 2019.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sukhavati Sutra nt004

Fourth in the series of nexTTime production releases is a collaboration with Buddhist friend Suvarnagarbha.

I am very pleased to be sharing this recording which is the culmination of much work done together. This collaboration has been very exciting from the beginning and has taken many forms. For the first time, we are exploring buddhist texts, and i think this is the point where we really are touching on something great.

Suvarnagarbha’s narration is as ever splendid and inspires me to accompany the text with mininalist electronics, and electroacoustic soundscapes. This translation of the traditional text was prepared especially for the performance which took place at the Sheffield Buddhist Centre on 23 february 2019.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Garden of Secrets nt003/Discus97

This third release from the new nexTTime production site is a collaboration with multi instrumentalist Alexandru Hegyesi.

This is our second collaboration, and i wanted to use a similar compositional process, build upon previous material, and yet end up with totally different results.

Still, using techniques of electroacoustic music, processing and sound design, i wanted to have more of an immediate feel for this album, to create music that could be played by a live band, and this involved more complex arrangements of instruments as well as electronic sources and samples. There is even some beats programming and percussion, voice samples but mostly, more prominence for sections freely improvised.

 

This time, as well as receiving a range of recordings from Alex with his wonderful performance on instruments such as dulcimer, gusla, Bavarian zither, prepared chord-harp, psaltery, prepared cymbalum (see album page for an impressive comprehensive list)… i directed some of the playing, or requested pieces in a particular key etc in order to fit in with compositional ideas, harmonically but also texturally, using extended techniques and focusing on sound and grain.

The process of producing and composing this album was much more complex than our first collaboration, and this relied less on digital ‘sculpture’, and instead, focused on layered arrangements of multiple sources.

The result is quite varied and represents many stylistic approaches based around sections of improvised music, including jazz, avant-folk, noise, prog and hopefully, you will find more…