anOtherOne
Duration: 4'16"
Instrumentation: marimba, vibraphone, xylephone, toms, crotales and break drums (or other metals)
Composed: 2011
Details: The ensemble is comprised of three percussionists. Each player has a set of 3 toms, tuned low medium and high. Player one has 3 toms and a vibraphone. Player two has 3 toms, xylophone, 2 brakes one high and one low and two crotales one high and one low. Player three has 3 toms and a marimba.
The work is derived from several Grateful Dead concert recordings of The Other One, the central ones being the August 13, 1975 show at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco and the May 22, 1977 show at the Sportatorium in Pembroke Pines Florida. To produce the score, audio is selected and segmented. These clips are then translated into a list of frequencies and amplitudes through the use of a Fast Fourier transform. The resulting material is used as the basis for the score. The direct translation and interpolations between different sections pitch and rhythmic collections was assembled. This material has been manipulated with algorithms and by hand. The resulting score is not identifiable as derivative. Still the unique acoustic characteristics that define the performance, the acoustics of the venue and the recording serve to constrain the end result. Just a black and white photograph captures light and form this work investigates the acoustic characteristics of a place and a series of sounds.
This recording is a midi mock up of the composition.