under

for flute, oboe, clarinet, two violins, viola, violoncello, percussion, piano and electronics

Year: 2013

Duration: 14:40 min

Studio: Harvard University Studio for Electroacoustic Composition

Dedicated to: my sister Ute

Date of first performance: October 22, 2013

Place: Electronic Musik Week Shanghai

Under depicts the unseen forces beneath the surface of a living organism—whether the earth’s crust, human skin, or the seemingly still reflection of a lake at night.

Piano and percussion act as outer, interacting forces, closely intertwined with the electronic sounds. Wind and string instruments shift between brief melodic fragments and evolving sonic textures. Recurring motifs shape a slowly unfolding yet non-linear narrative.

Talea Ensemble, James Baker: conductor, Roulette New York, 09/26/2014

Score

https://www.babelscores.com/catalogs/instrument-electronics/under

Electronics

The electronic part is implemented as a Max/MSP patch for Max 8, designed to run on an Apple Macintosh computer.

There are several options for operating the electronic part:

The pianist triggers the sequences using a foot pedal with the left foot.
The conductor triggers the sequences using a foot pedal.
An additional musician, seated between the piano and percussion, operates the computer manually.

The Macintosh computer's output is connected to two loudspeakers:

One placed on the floor in front of the piano.
One positioned in front of the percussion setup.

The sound output from the computer can be connected directly to the two stage loudspeakers without requiring an audio mixer.

Startup & Operation
After launching the Max/MSP patch, follow the preparation steps on the left side of the window.
To start an individual sound file, press the [SPACE] bar on the computer or use a MIDI foot pedal.
The exact moments when each sound file should be triggered are indicated in the score and the piano part.

Download Electronics