virtual bodies

for piano and live-electronics
Year: 2017
Duration: 13:30 min
Studio: Harvard University Studios for Electroacoustic Composition
Date of first performance: March 27, 2018
By: H.T.
Place: Keller Hall, University of New Mexico

The relationship between instruments and electronics has been central to my work for the past 35 years. The piano has always held a unique place in this exploration, as it was my first instrument. Works such as Das Bleierne Klavier, Zellen-Linien, Shadow of Bells, and Irrgärten are large-scale compositions that focus intensely on specific compositional aspects, each acting like a magnifying glass on different musical questions.
Virtual Bodies is built upon an improvised piano part and a set of possibilities for shaping sound and time through electronics. In this work, real and virtual sonorities engage in a dialogue where clear boundaries dissolve, and the definitions of action and reaction are continuously redefined. The electronic part does not rely on pre-recorded layers but is entirely generated in real-time, fostering memory connections within the piece and creating a rich polyphonic texture.

Performance on May 11, 2019, Harvard University
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Premiere at UNM, Albuquerque on March 27, 2018
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Performance at CNMAT, October 22, 2021
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Electronics

2 microphones (e.g.Neumann 184)
8-channel loudspeaker system, sourrounding the public
laptop MacBook Pro
soundcard RME Fireface
1 MIDI-sustain pedal
1 MIDI-expression pedal
1 MIDI Expression converter (to MIDI)

The piece can be performed with a sound card only (without a mixer).
In that case the sound card provides phantom power to the microphones and
connects directly to the 8 loudspeakers.

explanation of the live-electronics