| Soundcombing One of my favorite activities growing up on Long Island was beachcombing. I would wander up and down the shore of Jones Beach looking for shells, rocks, driftwood, dried-up hermit crabs and jellyfish and other mysterious beasts, whatever excited my imagination. One of my favorite activities these days is soundcombing. I fire up one of my DSP programs -- Reaktor, Sonar, Acid, VSTs of all persuasions -- and go hunting for sounds. I proceed in pure explorer mode, open for anything, my ears my guide. If a sonic object intrigues me, I record it and file it away for posterity; if not, I toss it back into the ocean. Just me and my canvas sack combing the beach. I used to think that my soundcombed objects were only viable musically if they could be incorporated in a larger formal piece. But now I see each object as a miniature piece unto itself, an independent musical "moment" that resonates into the silence beyond its final waveform. A highly condensed composition, sonic haiku. The challenge lies in how to present these standalone objects to listeners.
A CD with 100 20-second piecelets is a tough sell. My latest solution:
an online, interactive Sound Garden filled with exotic soundcombed organisms.
Listeners visit the garden and click its sonic flora to hear them in action.
In effect, the listener "creates" a piece by choosing an order,
timing, and so on. Interactive composition. |