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Painting Time with Sound

Work

Conceptual sound works performed on tape loopers, telling a story through the examination of sound objects. Each sample is created from custom SuperCollider patches to be processed live through a modular synthesizer system.

Invocation

Rules are set, constraints chosen.

Summoning

A set of sound objects is generated.

Transmutation

The objects are stressed and layered.

Emergence

A live structure appears: texture, pulse, and drift.

Run the commands in each terminal block to learn about the piece and play the samples that are used during its performance.

Observance

Documented live performances:

cat observance.json
{
  "title": "Observance",
  "desc": "Keeping something true when it can't be proven without being changed.",
  "movements": [
    {
      "title": "I. Opaque",
      "desc": "Before the mirror arrives."
    },
    {
      "title": "II. Poised",
      "desc": "Watching for the watcher. Phantom surveillance."
    },
    {
      "title": "III. Refracted",
      "desc": "Truth spoken through mask."
    },
    {
      "title": "IV. Constrained",
      "desc": "The boundary holds what openness destroys."
    },
    {
      "title": "V. Exiled",
      "desc": "Return to unknowing."
    },
    {
      "title": "VI. Dormant",
      "desc": "Sealed archive. The evidence kept."
    }
  ]
}
ls ./observance/
  • L1.1_pristine_sine_pulse.mp3
  • L1.2_soft_mallet_glass_resonator.mp3
  • L2.1_distant_industrial_hum.mp3
  • L2.2_ethereal_vocal_5ths_pad.mp3
  • L3.1_Complex_FM_Proxy_Voice.mp3
  • L3.2_staccato_square_pulses.mp3
  • L4.1_architectural_grid_pulse.mp3
  • L4.2_infinite_governed_ascension.mp3
  • L5.1_thick_murky_bass_texture.mp3
  • L5.2_delicate_detuned_piano_privacy.mp3
  • L6.1_slow_funeral_pulse.mp3
  • L6.2_data_center_flicker_intent.mp3
  • R1.1_single_monophonic_cello_tone.mp3
  • R1.2_plucked_string_granular_refusal.mp3
  • R2.1_oboe_reed_anxious.mp3
  • R2.2_ethereal_vocal_ooh_pad.mp3
  • R3.1_data_chirps_dminor_lush.mp3
  • R3.2_metallic_mechanical_hymn.mp3
  • R4.1_pure_sine_pluck_governance.mp3
  • R4.2_cold_quantized_harpsichord.mp3
  • R5.1_final_singular_sine_tone.mp3
  • R5.2_muted_horn_swell.mp3
  • R6.1_soft_resonant_hum_dissolve.mp3
  • R6.2_final_solitary_cello_fade.mp3

Borrowed Time

cat borrowed-time.json
{
  "title": "Borrowed Time",
  "desc": "Feeling the future as if it will be remembered.",
  "movements": [
    {
      "title": "I. Archive Dust",
      "desc": "Excavation. Fragments surface."
    },
    {
      "title": "II. Splice and Graft",
      "desc": "Two timelines sutured. The seam remains visible."
    },
    {
      "title": "III. Ghost-limb",
      "desc": "Warmth generated through reconstruction."
    },
    {
      "title": "IV. Hauntology",
      "desc": "The promise that expired."
    },
    {
      "title": "V. Long Threads",
      "desc": "Emotional persistence through material mutation."
    },
    {
      "title": "VI. Provenance",
      "desc": "Ancient and newborn, unverifiable and true."
    }
  ]
}
ls ./borrowed-time/
  • L1.1_Deep_Cavernous_Hum_Granular_Dust.mp3
  • L1.2_soft_metallic_resonance_C3.mp3
  • L2.1_interlocking_pulses_jagged_kinetic.mp3
  • L2.2_thick_analog_saw_FM_jitter.mp3
  • L3.1_Pristine_FM_Bass_Calibrated.mp3
  • L3.2_futuristic_metallic_harpsichord.mp3
  • L4.1_Bright_Optimistic_Arpeggio_Bell_Drone.mp3
  • L4.2_sci-fi_computer_pulse.mp3
  • L5.1_cello_mutated_circuitry.mp3
  • L5.2_steady_rhythmic_heartbeat_pulse.mp3
  • L6.1_ethereal_widescreen_wash.mp3
  • L6.2_subtle_looping_piano_tape_shimmer.mp3
  • R1.1_muffled_vocal_formant_sweep.mp3
  • R1.2_soft_flute_woodwind_tones.mp3
  • R2.1_staccato_brass_burst.mp3
  • R2.2_mangled_vocal_formants.mp3
  • R3.1_sharp_synth_harpsichord.mp3
  • R3.2_calibration_marks_precision.mp3
  • R4.1_triumphant_prophetic_lead.mp3
  • R4.2_low_brooding_jet_piano_drone.mp3
  • R5.1_soulful_violin_digital_collapse.mp3
  • R5.2_warm_rhodes_granular_halo.mp3
  • R6.3_soft_muted_bell_echo.mp3
  • R6.4_ethereal_vocal_pads.mp3

Keep Out

Documented live performances:

cat keep-out.json
{
  "title": "Keep Out",
  "desc": "Safety makes room for hidden experiments.",
  "movements": [
    {
      "title": "I. Manifest",
      "desc": "Initialization. Foundational logic."
    },
    {
      "title": "II. Shame",
      "desc": "Presence without access. The Shadow."
    },
    {
      "title": "III. Safety",
      "desc": "The perimeter protects what it contains."
    },
    {
      "title": "IV. Tenderness",
      "desc": "Unharvested softness. Intimacy kept private."
    },
    {
      "title": "V. Refusal",
      "desc": "Redaction. Strategic exit."
    },
    {
      "title": "VI. Play",
      "desc": "Hidden experiments in a kaleidoscope."
    }
  ]
}
ls ./keep-out/
  • L1.1_neutral_sine_pulse_admin_hum.mp3
  • L1.2_stable_square_breathing.mp3
  • L2.1_Dark_Muffled_Sub_Bass_Drone.mp3
  • L2.2_cyclical_scraping_tape_loop.mp3
  • L3.1_rhythmic_clock_ticking_resonant.mp3
  • L3.2_warm_mid-range_pad_sanctuary.mp3
  • L4.1_soft_breathing_noise_hum.mp3
  • L4.2_ethereal_piano_bloom.mp3
  • L5.1_metallic_clanging_refusal.mp3
  • L5.2_static_noise_redacted_bursts.mp3
  • L6.1_playful_bouncing_sines.mp3
  • L6.2_arpeggiated_sine_waves_microtonal.mp3
  • R1.1_cello_fm_drone_vast_space.mp3
  • R1.2_pure_harmonic_tones_static_sustain.mp3
  • R2.1_strained_vocal_formant_sweep.mp3
  • R2.2_sharp_percussive_click_noise_tail.mp3
  • R3.1_perfect_fifth_stability.mp3
  • R3.2_Short_bright_mallet_strike.mp3
  • R4.1_muted_kalimba_lullaby.mp3
  • R4.2_delicate_sine_whistle_lullaby.mp3
  • R5.1_piercing_high_frequency_strobe.mp3
  • R5.2_low_growling_drone_shutdown.mp3
  • R6.1_ascending_sine_crystalline_shimmer.mp3
  • R6.2_gentle_looping_humorous_pivot.mp3

Theurgist

cat theurgist.json
{
  "title": "Theurgist",
  "desc": "A signet drawn in light. The glamour answers, then collects.",
  "movements": [
    {
      "title": "I. Invocation",
      "desc": "A bright name spoken without permission."
    },
    {
      "title": "II. Backlash",
      "desc": "The mark replies in penalties and precision."
    }
  ]
}
ls ./theurgist/
  • L1.1_Pristine_Sine_Signet_Flash.mp3
  • L1.2_Rotating_Silver_Bells_Signet.mp3
  • L2.1_luminous_interlocking_strands.mp3
  • L2.2_tension_rising_5th_phaser.mp3
  • L3.1_final_invocation_syllable.mp3
  • L3.2_Complex_FM_Bells_Halo.mp3
  • L4.1_backlash_heavy_distorted_pulse.mp3
  • L4.2_Backlash_Signet_Flash_Stamp.mp3
  • L5.1_Signet-Flash_Accumulation.mp3
  • L5.2_Signet-Flash_Escalalation.mp3
  • L6.1_Signet_Flash_Final_Form.mp3
  • L6.2_decaying_echo_signet_flash.mp3
  • R1.1_crystal_bell_grounding_hum.mp3
  • R1.2_Mellotron_Flute_B4_Anchor.mp3
  • R2.1_crystalline_bells_glint.mp3
  • R2.2_sustained_vocal_ooh_pad.mp3
  • R3.1_heavy_glass_gavel_strike.mp3
  • R3.2_cold_metallic_vibrating_steel.mp3
  • R4.1_high_voltage_spark.mp3
  • R4.2_dark_heavy_cello_bureaucratic_dread.mp3
  • R5.1_shimmering_static_wall.mp3
  • R5.2_organ_glassy_luminous_texture.mp3
  • R6.1_pure_unmodulated_sine_descending.mp3
  • R6.2_pure_piercing_sine_G6.mp3

Iconoclast

cat iconoclast.json
{
  "title": "Iconoclast",
  "desc": "The idol breaks. The fragments keep working in new hands.",
  "movements": [
    {
      "title": "I. Strike",
      "desc": "A holy surface meets the hammer."
    },
    {
      "title": "II. Smear",
      "desc": "Radiance rubbed thin, traded, and worn."
    }
  ]
}
ls ./iconoclast/
  • L1.1_Ceremonial_glass_FM_synth.mp3
  • L1.2_poised_heavy_metallic_texture.mp3
  • L2.1_Shard-Choir_Muted_String.mp3
  • L2.2_Shard-Choir_Fragmented_Dust.mp3
  • L3.1_sigil_motif_redistributed.mp3
  • L3.2_social_busy_metallic_collisions.mp3
  • L4.1_complex_granular_sigil_loop.mp3
  • L4.2_counterfeit_icon_motif.mp3
  • L5.1_sigil_motif_reassemble.mp3
  • L5.2_thickening_sigil_shimmer.mp3
  • L6.1_The_mark_multiplied_granular_cloud.mp3
  • L6.2_fading_glints_plural_patina.mp3
  • R1.1_sharp_percussive_strike.mp3
  • R1.2_suspended_cathedral_texture.mp3
  • R2.1_crystalline_shards_glint.mp3
  • R2.2_Ethereal_Mellotron_Choir.mp3
  • R3.1_metallic_clinks_glass_taps.mp3
  • R3.2_worn_dusty_mellotron_organ.mp3
  • R4.1_percussive_metal_clink.mp3
  • R4.2_lush_devotion_mellotron.mp3
  • R5.1_distorted_kick_sub_tail.mp3
  • R5.2_shimmering_patina_mellotron.mp3
  • R6.1_final_soft_pluck.mp3
  • R6.2_reverent_mellotron_final_pad.mp3