We’re delighted to hand over the reins this month to composer and current Making Waves Intern Marlene Radice, who has curated this Space-themed playlist. About the works chosen and the over-arching theme, Marlene writes:
This playlist centres around compositions with a relationship to space. Space as a tangible area of existence, space as a gestural device, spacialisation of music and the idea of space in relation to places outside of our immediate consciousness.
Listening to this playlist and exploring how composers address these themes made me think of concepts such as wabi-sabi and the importance of the spaces between elements, and accepting sounds for their imperfections. What we don’t hear is just as important as the sounds we observe. These pieces all somehow explore what lies between what we hear and what we see.
We love discovering the resonances among these works: instrumental – several string quartets, various uses of electronics including Peter Anthony Smith on the Akai Electronic Wind Instrument (EWI); thematic – auras, aliens and nature; and stylistic – there is an expansiveness and dimension evoked by each work in its own way. Many thanks to Marlene for her care in compiling this playlist. You can find out more about Marlene here.
Also, dear listeners, thank you for your patience with us as we took last month off from playlists to focus on the launch of the Making Conversation: Australian Podcast. As at 1 June, we’ve released 6 shows from this 30-episode series, conversations between talented emerging music journalists and composers Anne Cawrse (SA), Michael Sollis (ACT), Annie Hsieh (USA), May Lyon (VIC), Alex Turley (WA) & Jenna Cave (NSW). If you’re already a subscriber, we thank you for joining us over at iTunes, via RSS or other podcast apps at this link, or via Making Waves e-bulletins. If you’re not, do join us at your preferred platform so that you don’t miss a thing!
Hear something that catches your attention? To find out more about a musical work, click on the track name in the playlist and then again on ‘view track’. To find out more about a particular composer, click on their name in the ‘Details’ section below.
DETAILS
- Jesse Budel, Sirenity
for string quartet. Performed by the Australian String Quartet – Kristian Winther, Ioana Tache, Stephen King, Sharon Draper – as part of the National Composers’ Forum 2013 in Elder Hall on 17 October 2013. Recorded by Kym Wilson, with technical assistance from Iran Sanadzadeh.
- Michelle Nguyen, Cobralingus Art Run 1
for flute and violin with electronic processing. Performed by Maddie Remont and Harry Nguyen using Jeff Noon’s Cobralingus Engine.
- Sam Gillespie, Requiem… for those lost in cyberspace
for Electronic Wind Instrument (EWI) and tape. Performed by Peter Anthony Smith, recorded by Jayson McBride.
- Sam Gillies, The Aura Implicit
for small ensemble and electronics. Performed by Decibel New Music ensemble: Cat Hope (Bass Flute), Linsday Vickery (Bass Clarinet), Aaron Wyatt (Violin), Tristen Parr (Cello), Stuart James (Electronics).
- Jamie Lawson, 6. Selective Analysis: Life-form 1b.
fixed media, field recordings, and digital processing - Cassie To, Auras, First movement
for string quartet. Performed by students of Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
- Jasmin Leung, Five Observations in Nature
a structured improvisation Performed by Caleb Colledge, Eunice Goh, Courtney Cook, Conall O’Neill, Isabel McCafferty, Vanessa Tomlinson, Jasmin Leung.
- Cameron Lam, Three Landscapes I. Alien Sunrise
for Electronic Wind Instrument (EWI) duo. Performerd by Peter Anthony Smith.
- Matthew Horsley, Spaces Without
for flute, cor anglais, bass clarinet and 2 percussion. Performed by Thea Rossen & Kaylie Melville (percussion), Jennifer Timmins (flute), Emmanuel Cassimatis (cor anglais), Kenny Keppel (bass clarinet).
We’d love to hear about your listening experience! Share your thoughts or send messages of support to our featured composers and performers in the comment box below. We also encourage you to click through to Soundcloud to like, comment and subscribe to Making Waves as well as the composers, performers, and presenters featured.
The Space Waves playlist will be featured until 1 July 2017. All previous playlists from 2015 to present are available in our blog archives for the life of the project, so please do explore the website for previously featured sounds.
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