H21

Music Technology Julian Phatarfod | CID: 00595979 Due: Thursday, January 10, 2013. Written Response for Composition 1 Work in Progress My previous experience in composition has been very classical as such, and was entirely acoustic. I had a very theoretical IB Music class which is why using technology to compose my first piece has been both interesting and demanding this term. This is also why the piece sounds very orchestral at the beginning. My initial ideas were all very instrument-based rather than anything electronic, which I have attempted to progressively add electronic sounds as the piece progresses. In this way, I have attempted to make a type of fusion piece, which should bridge an orchestral timbre with more synthesised and electronic sounds. A significant piece of inspiration was in October when I saw the latest James Bond movie, Skyfall. I admired the use of slightly mysterious, perhaps dark, music combined with sweeping panorama scenes to create a magnificent atmosphere. I generally do enjoy a range of soundtrack music, and throughout my composition I have always thought of what I would be looking at should this be underscoring a film. Particularly James Bond movies and composers like John Williams and Hans Zimmer use a remarkable fusion of orchestra and synthesis, which I admire and wish to recreate. What I have learned so far is that this is much more difficult to do in practice, however I aim to perfect it over the course of the next term. One of the electronic additions is the Subtractor. The Subtractor was my first experience with using the software this term and is essentially the foundation of all electronic sounds and synthesisers. This is why I awarded it the initial electronic entry. From then on, more electronic effects appear, particularly the bass drum line using the Kong synthesiser, and other features such as the triangle. Then, the orchestral tracks from the beginning re-emerge in different ways and, in my opinion, fuse with the electronics. As said, this is the current weakness of the piece and will be what I will progressively work on this term, particularly with newly learned concepts such as panning and reverb, and finishing the ending of the piece off. Over the Autumn term I have jotted down and compiled different ideas and thoughts in a little log book, for example if I hear something that I like or find interesting or curious, not only for this composition but also for the other two later in the year. For example, particularly after the lecture on unusual time signatures, I wanted to compose in 5/4. But I also wanted to avoid the piece sounding just like Dave Brubecks Take Five which is why I chose the beat sub-structure (the 1-3-5 beat heard from the very beginning). Other inspirations include the claves (which also open America from the West Side Story), the pizzicato strings (which open Lady Gagas Bloody Mary) and the solo cello (which provide the melancholy mood in Kate Nashs Nicest Thing). Probably the most significant and memorable characteristic of the piece is the repetitive piano, which is similar yet more even that the piano in Nina Simones Sinnerman. I find that, although this might simply seem like a compilation of existing ideas, I have combined these attributes into a piece which a little strange, has a touch of mystery and could be considered a little unsettling, but is not disjointed or paining to listen to and the listener can nevertheless enjoy.