re: [microsound] smile*

[stephan mathieu <sssst@xxxxxxxxxx>]

thanks everyone for all the comments i found in my inbox this morning.
it's good to receive a feedback on this very new piece which was really a challenge to create.

i got back to some of you in a personal mail but also wanted to answer to the list, using some of the things i wrote personally in copy/paste mode here -

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>   I liked your Da Vinci piece 'smile*' though it might be kind of
> theatrical.
>  
>    -had some luck with guitars today , almost sounds like music.

thats the point with the leo piece (whereof smile is one part out of 4) - 

its for a large scale exhibition (they are counting on 200.000 visitors until march) so this was a good occasion to work on something that has to be pop in a very basic sense (without selling my soul to the bastard named "cheap compromise"). so yes, it is theatrical. i'm thinking of it as a movie for the ears.

> i think this is a very nice piece. the vocal/spoken aspect kinda throws  
> me off the listening a little but there is so much to listen too. so many 
> fragile little melodies.

after re listening to the stereo mix i also find the voice is a little loud, its different in the original surround version. in the end i'm happy the stereo version works at all.
in fact i dont think the other 3 parts will work without the expierience of being there.

> What did you use to do this work? Did you play any real instrument?
> And I have understood this track is hearable on an installation in
> Germany, can you tell me how long will it available there?

for smile i played the harmonium, the 2nd half of the piece consists of several recordings i made with single instrumentalists (cembalo, violin, viola, cello, bagpipes), three voices (soprano, alto, tenor) and field recordings from a ("silent") chapel. i processed the second part by making several entropy generations which have been arranged and then played back in realtime through a max/msp patch by david stevens  -> http://www.resonant.demon.co.uk   (but the "sandpaper" patch seems to be unavailable at the moment. check out the others instead). 
the rest of the whole soundtrack is also based on the recordings mentioned above (plus a "scanned" maserati spyder*)

the "leonardo da vinci - man/machine" exhibition will be opened this friday, nov.01st and runs until march16th 2003 in the cultural heritage voelklinger huette, an old ironworks close to my hometown saarbruecken, germany. my piece runs permanently.
the region is located in the saar/loire/lux triangle, 200km from frankfurt, 80 km from metz/france, 80km from luxembourg.
you'll find some pictures of the location at -

ironworks
http://www.voelklinger-huette.org/geschichte_pic.php3?id=1&lang=de

blowerhouse (where the exhibition will be)
http://www.voelklinger-huette.org/geschichte_pic.php3?id=3&lang=de

http://www.voelklinger-huette.org/popup.php3?id=17&pic=1
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the exhibitions architecture will be quiet special, they are still working on it like crazy. my favourite parts are finished, a mirrorhall close to my surround setup and a 1:1 reconstruction of the "last supper" room (in bright orange) with its very twisted perspective.

should somebody be around this area before march16th and interested in visiting the exhibition, dont hesitate to drop me a line.

thanks again for your feedback
(and sorry for being so talkactive, thats me in spin-off mode)
 - stephan


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   stephan mathieu
   www.bitsteam.de