Jack Centro

Chinese Whispers

Below is my attempt at decoding/interpreting Sam’s graphic score. For the group task in which we had to come up with a score to follow and then perform, my group decided on incorporating ‘Chinese Whispers’ into the process. Essentially the idea was for one person to draw a fairly complex score (this was Sam) , then each group member simplified it one after the other, there was no discussion during this process–this was important because we wanted each person to re-interpret the score naturally. The score below was intend to be read from left to write (landscape), clearly inspired by Cornelius Cardew I wanted to keep the original structure of Sams score but make it more minimal and bold, emphasising certain points and diminishing others.

Eventually by the final group member, the score had been reduced to a mere few lines and blobs. Each member than took a different score to use in our performance. We hoped that by doing this one person would essentially be leading the group (the person with the most complete score) and the other scores would result in strange improvised diversions away from the main sound.

Truthfully the end result was rather chaotic but the moments in which we listened and respected each others space worked well. I think the gaps in most of the scores forced blind improvising. It would be interesting to expand on this idea by using a score which is destroyed after a number of minutes and then the group has to reconstruct it? Or instead they perform attempting to remember the destroyed score?

Upon watching episode 1 of ‘The Living Dead’ by Adam Curtis, I have began to formulate a Plunderphonic concept in my head called Nuremberg Jazz (this is just a placeholder).

Essentially, the documentary examines the re-writing and burying of history Post-WW2 with particular emphasis on the Nuremberg Trials, and how the allies attempted to break down the horrific total war into simple terms; Good versus Evil.

Curtis who I regard as an expert documentary and film maker unearths facts not generally known within public knowledge and examines them in a lateral, all encompassing fashion. When watching his films I can’t help but notice the resemblance to an audio-paper, these could quite easily be without visuals instead carried by his narration, samples and excellent sonic choices. I must make note to examine Curtis’s work with a sound Artists ear for the future, I believe this could be a great help in constructing my own audio papers.

THE IDEA- NUREMBERG JAZZ or ECHOS OF NURMEMBERG or SWING16 ’46

Around the 24:00min mark of the documentary Curtis looks at the Nurmemberg Trials from the perspective of the many Allie judges, lawyers, secretaries and workers involved in the trial. In the general history books, the trials focus solely on the Nazi war criminals, the outcome (hanging or imprisonment) and the sentancing of justice. In true Curtis fashion however, he peels back the decades of post-war wallpaper revealing the absolute party everyone had whilst overseeing the ‘making of the new world’.

From interviews with the workers it seemed that the trials were a haven for sex and hedonism encouraged by the imported US jazz records of the 40s. Disregarding the rubble that was the city of Nuremberg (90% of the Cities innocent population were either dead or missing), the trials present a stark contrast to our view of post-war humility. Yes, the evil Nazis had been defeated, but at what cost? Apparently the cost was no longer important.

Taking inspiration from Plunderphonic artists such as The Caretaker, I would like to experiment with US jazz records from the 40s, mainly focused on releases nearing the end of the war and close to the trials-for added relevance. Then using techniques from glitch music and my own destructive collage technique I will create a dark narrative-designed to help people re-evaluate this particular moment in history.

Destroying/Cutting vinyl technique:

1. The first and probably the simplest method only uses two tools: an oven and a pair of scissors. The first step is to place your vinyl record in an oven heated to around 200-250 degrees Fahrenheit. Leave it in there for about two or three minutes. If you leave it much longer, it could start to melt the vinyl.
2. Using a firm pillow or object covering the width of your knees, press down on the record, bending it until it snaps. Can be quite dangerous as the pieces might fly everywhere.

RESOURCES:

Making Music, 74 Creative Strategies for Producers: Problems of beginning, Progressing and Finishing by DeSantis

• Interesting book that focus’ on the creative aspect of producing, intended for Ableton users.

Mixing Secrets by Mike Senior

1. Comping and Arranging
2. Building a raw balance
3. Compression for a reason
4. Beyond compression

Magazine: https://www.soundonsound.com

Write drunk; edit sober

Listening/Watching to Milos Testcard Piece; Hypnotic sound piece accompanied by a trippy, evolving testcard. The testcard was created using a AI algorithm, the music was then arranged relitevly precisely in conjunction with the visuals. Milo used the program; PLAYFORM

https://www.playform.io

Film to watch; Free Fire-Ben Wheatley, really good 5.1 sound for a shoot em up film.

COMPING AND ARRANGING

• Consider taking several recording then comping the best bits together. Lead vocals in particular are routinely comped from many different takes in a commercial context. Gather the material effectively.
• Reducing clutter in an arrangement nt only makes it easier to mix, but also helps the production appear more varies to the listener. One way is to think of using restrictions, imagine having a maximum of three main points. Bear in mind that the relative appeal of individual instruments can vary from moment to moment, so the identity of the three main parts may change frequently–evolving–this will maintain the listeners interest and support the buildup of production as a whole.
• Boring arrangements usually suffer from too much repetition-I personally feel this can be debated, repetition can sometimes offer a more introspective listen, the listener may slowly unravel sounds within the sounds. Consider adding some kind of fill if any part plays the same thing more than three times in a row.

From the Mana Website:

Mana is a record label established in 2017 by Andrea Zarza, curator at the British Library Sound Archive, and Blowing Up The Workshop founder Matthew Kent. 

Publishing works at the intersection of contemporary and archival sound, Mana is a platform redrawing narrative boundaries and perspectives through a playful, radical and unexpected approach.

1. Pretty Sneaky LP by Pretty Sneaky (2020); Going by the title and artist name, there is absolutely no information available about the producers of this project. Cloaked in secrecy this artist, duo or group have produced an LP that investigates the property of water and the sonic interpretations we can draw from it. Clever field recordings of river ambience are amplified by the repetitive splashes of water, replacing a standard kick drum or snare. Bright, dubby, warbling synth lines bring to mind the frothing and foaming of water in rock pools. In the high end the skipping of off-beat hi hats could be light rainfall whereas the low toms resemble the plop of bank-side branches. Split into four 15-18minute sides A, B, C, D. Listening consecutively comes very close to being a somewhat audio visual experience , it’ as if we the listener have taken a leisurely row down a countryside river.

NOTE: Experiment with water sounds, splashing, running water, attempt to extract high and low tones from movement with water.

Due to my new found interest in comics be it reading, writing and drawing, the last year has seen me shop in comic stores on par with my addictive record shopping habit. By doing this I have been able to expand my creative imagination often finding inspiration from the themes and topics discussed within the panels.

One particular find, although more of a zine than a comic is the fascinating ‘Weird Walk Series: A Journal of Wandering and Wonderings from the British Isles’. The introduction to Weird Walk reads;

“What is Weird Walk? It started as friends walking. For us walking is an active engagement with the British Landscape and its lore. Whether traversing the chalk paths of the South Downs, or the shifting landscape of the Black Mountains, we want to not just stretch the legs, but also get thinking and talking and creating around the land and its history both, both real and imagined.”

To me I couldn’t have found this magazine at a better time, for my current interests within sound and art are primarily focused on exploring a rather neglected part of my heritage, rural Britain and the folklore surrounding these grassy pastures.

WALKING INTO THE DUNGEON

One feature of the magazine is where an artist or genre suited to lone wanderings is examined. The genre for this issue is DUNGEON SYNTH. Dungeon Synth essentially pools its inspiration from the synthesised instrumental aspects of Black Metal and the world of High Fantasy.

Utilising cheap synth hardware, 8 bit RPG style melodies and song titles that sound more like quests from D&D, Dungeon Synth is a micro-genre aimed at guiding the listener to a forgotten mythical past we only really explore in games, literature and film. Drawing themes from Medieval and Renaissance compositions ‘Dungeon Synth is the perfect soundtrack for this kind of escapist fantasy. Think of the “intro” track to your favorite metal album, but stretched out to album length. Dungeon Synth is a rapidly expanding genre that includes artists working in a variety of styles, ranging from sparse solo performances on electronic keyboards to fully-orchestrated symphonic compositions. 

Another key point compositionally is that most Dungeon Synth artists revel in the limitations of the ‘factory settings’. It is rare for the artists to manipulate the original sound of the synth, possibly a nod to the simplicity of a romanticised past. I’m drawn to this aspect of DS because of its sonic limitations, I am a fond believer in the ‘less is more approach’ partly because it enables the listener to expand the music within there own head and imagination.

I will continue to explore this fascinating genre once I have delved into a number of the albums.

The first three albums I intend on listening too are;

Hedge Wizard-More True Than Time Thought

Fief-II

Thangorodrim-Tar Nu Fuin

(I would also like to note that up until a month ago I had never heard of this genre!)

UK, 2020

19 minutes, 40 seconds, B&W/colour, Stereo, 16:9

Original format: 2K Video

‘A So Called Archive’ is an experimental short film written and produced by Phd Student Onyeka Igwe. Aimed at revealing the historical neglect Commonwealth countries such as Nigeria have experienced since the British Empire. The name is all too fitting for these ‘archives’, supposedly containing a mass of well stored colonial history. However Igwe captures the internal rot and decay of these buildings and establishments. Archival footage lost, reel to reel’s spew intestine like tape all over the floor, now moth eaten and dead. She even suggests that a lot of the archive has been purposely destroyed, which makes sense considering the crimes against humanity overseen by the British Empire.

Igwe contrasts these opening shots of the archives with Commonwealth FM Radio Broadcasts. Lies upon lies roll from the tongue of the presenters, stating to listeners about the wealth of information stored in the archives, yet Igwe cleverly overlaps the audio with decrepit imagery, alternating between the cities of Bristol and Lagos.

From the perspective of a Sound Artist, Igwe’s film comes across as a form of audio paper. She ticks multiple boxes if we refer to the Audio Paper Manifesto. For example her film clearly affirms performative aesthetics by bridging a diverse knowledge with art film aesthetics. I would argue that although this bridge is clearly made, Igwe intentionally attempts to confuse the audience rather than offer a standard coherent piece. A potential reflection of her own clouded investigation into the subject, as I’m sure the foundation of her research stemmed from confusion; why are these places like this? Why does nobody know? Where have documents and footage gone?

Another point I would like to make is the decision for showing the film in Dartmouth Park Hill. Although this may have been out of necessity rather than a contextual nod, I find it interesting to contrast the natural, extremely well preserved greenery of the park with the archives. Parks are natural archives, they preserve and categories flowers, trees, birds etc. Most likely unintentional but still an interesting point to make, Igwe thrusts ‘A So Called Archive’ into a well maintained natural space or archive, but implores us to look deeper into the mouldy earth and diseased roots.