Pearls in the Plastic Trumpet

A quadraphonic live electronic piece created for the Overdrive festival at the CUNY Graduate Center on March 25, 2024.

It is performed with two microcassette recorders and a maxpatch. The tapes play a constant drone, which is interrupted by improvised percussive sounds of pausing, rewinding, and fast-forwarding. The maxpatch processes this sound with pitch shifters & accompanies it with general midi sounds. Driven by transient detectors, the patch gradually adds layers.

This semi-improvised piece was a sketch and an experiment, bringing together elements of many past projects: microcassette recorders, harmonies derived from pitch shifting, and phased rhythmic sequencing.

video clip
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