When discussing my project with my tutor I have been asked whether I want the project to deal with Sound or Music? I immediately answered Music- without even taking a minute to think about it.
Exploring music and sound as concepts made me wonder what makes the sound become music, or perhaps I should be asking when is that happening. There are certain combinations of different sounds we automatically identify as music, but what about those sounds which are not that simple to read as music. Can we train our mind to 'read' music within the different noises around us?
In the next song from the film "Dancer in the dark" Bjork is using the industrial noises to create an exiting musical experience.
This is not the first time Bjork is using 'everyday sounds' for her music, in her song 'in the musicals' she is using sounds from a basketball court to create music. I'm wondering whether she was looking for those sounds while writing songs, or was she inspired to write the song when she herd the random sounds.
I have mentioned the Harmonograph in a different post a few weeks ago, when I have just discovered what its all about. Since then, I have managed to make an actual two-pendulums harmonograph. It took a while but it was defiantly worth it.
I've never been a big fan of classical music. I found it a bit boring and lack of meaning . It is only the last few months that I started listening to classical music and I already became adicted to it.
Listening to Wilhelm Kempff playing Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 17 in D minor, Opus 31 No.2 made me so moved by it that I felt obligated to share it with the world.
Find the time to listen to the music- no background noises, no disruptions- just you and Beethoven.
It is hard to say precisely what a musical gesture is. Some may say that it is the actual action of playing, like pressing the piano keys or blowing the trombone. Others may say that musical gestures are the additional movements, which are not necessary for the production of the sound- but take a fundamental part of the musical piece.
An interesting definition of musical gestures given by Francois Delalande's is described in the book 'MUSICAL GESTURES-sound movement and meaning': "Francois Delalande (1988) defines musical gestures as the intersection of observable actions and mental images. He further argues that musical gestures may be studied at various levels, ranging from the purely functional to the purely symbolic, using the terms effectiveaccompanying and figurative gestures. The term effective gestures denotes what we would call a sound- producing gestures, while the term accompanying gestures is used for the movement that supports the effective gesture in various ways. Delalande suggest the term figurative gesture to refer to a mental image that is not directly related to any physical movement, but which could be conveyed through sound."
Watching three hours of different pianists play Beethoven I must suggest that whichever of the musical gestures described by Delalande, they all play a major role in the musical piece. Whether it is the way the musician presses the keys on the piano, the way he moves on the chair, his facial expression or the actual musical composition- they all take part in differing a good musical piece from an extraordinary one.
An interesting question that arises is: Are these musical gestures being taught? and if so, is there any guidance to the musician while he plays (like a musical score for gestures..)?
I chose to finish off with an incredible comedy bit by Rowan Atkinson.
In the chapter 'Music on the brain: Imagery and imagination' from his book 'Musicophilia', Oliver Sacks describes a situation when the music is played in our mind in the same way an image will appear in our head- without actually seeing it: "With music I know well, such as Chopins' mazurkas, which I learned by heart sixty years ago and continued to love ever since, I only to glance at a score or think of a particular mazurka (an opus number will set me off) and the mazurka will start to play in my mind. I not only 'hear' the music but i also 'see' my hands on the keyboard before me, and 'feel' them playing the piece- a virtual performance which, once started, seemed to unfold or proceed by itself."
This phenomenon of playing music in our mind is very common- and we can all remember ourselves playing a musical piece in our head. Sacks claims that "Professional musicians, in general possess what most of us would regard as remarkable powers of musical imagery." This claim makes me wonder weather being a 'better' musician makes your imagery clearer and more intense and weather practicing in some way the imagery might improve ones musical skills.
Not too long ago I came across a project by Finn Peters, who is practically exploring the connection between music and the mind. Inspired by the brain-mapping experiments of Dr Mick Grierson at Goldsmith's University, composer Finn Peters has translated brainwaves into notes and tones. The result is an album called 'Music Of The Mind' - a literal transcription of Peters' brainwaves, as well as improvisational compositions.
Last week I went to see "Shadow catchers": Camera-less Photography presents the work of five international contemporary artists, at the V&A. The exhibition is exiting and inspiring, but what intrigued me the most was a series of pieces made by Susan Derges, called 'Chladni'.
This is one image from a series of 8 photograms which were made by recording the vibration patterns created when eight sheets of photographic paper were vibrated by eight different sound frequencies of different pitch. Carborundum powder on the surface of the paper formed into configurations printed onto the paper by exposure to light. The light areas are where the powder has settled. The regular and creative pattern which is formed seems almost unbelievable, because of the lack of human intervention and the unpredictability of the pattern formed.
For this series Derges used process called photogram- 'A photogram is a kind of photograph, although made without a camera or a lens by placing an object or objects on top of a piece of paper or film coated with light sensitive material and then exposing the paper or film to light. Where the object covers the paper, the paper remains unexposed and light in tone; where it does not cover, the paper darkens. If the object is translucent, midtones appear. After exposure, the paper is developed and fixed.' Gordon Baldwin, 'Looking at Photographs', J. Paul Getty Museum, 1991.
Derges work was useful in two aspects-
1. Throughout my research and process I've been looking for way to translate the 'music language' into a 'visual language'. My challenge was to find a way to do it objectively and not subjectively. The process Derges use visualises a physical reaction to the music and its not effected by human touch, motion or felling.
2. Photogram is an amazing process of producing photograph- without a camera- a process I wasn't aware of. weather I will actually try to produce the same images or not- I found a new tool to communicate my ideas and developments.
On the 26th of October I was at the design museum's "LONGLUNCH WITH UNITED VISUAL ARTISTS". The Design Museum hosted a talk by Matt Clark of United Visual Artists.
As a part of the talk we were introduced to 'Chorus', an array of motor-assisted pendulums, which are suspended from the roof of the Boiler House. Mounted on each of the pendulums are a light and a speaker. Together these pendulums form a single instrument that explores the relationship between performance, sculpture and installation.
The way I see it, 'Chorus' is not aiming to connect light and sound in a logical way, nor to give it a deeper meaning. It is a great example of a well-made combination between visuals and sounds, which gives an intense impact on the viewer- even without being there. This is definitely something I would want to accomplish!
Throughout the exploration of my project, I constantly try to identify the user and purpose of my design thesis. The (currently) abstract activity of visualising music is not linked directly to a certain need or a problem that needs to be solved. Looking at Jean Tinguely work makes me wonder whether the 'useless object' still have reason to be.
