Alan Irwin 

69669124
 
08/12/11 

MU370 - Final composition. 
    In this short write up I'm only going to address and give information about elements I think are necessary to be stated and explained in order to fully understand and appreciate my composition. These elements are: the sounds used, the processing done on these sounds, the idea and inspiration for the piece and finally the structure.
    The piece has been developed from 24 raw tracks all recorded by myself. Many of which are alternate takes of the same action or object. These actions and objects are as follows:
1.	My front door latch opening and closing followed by my door opening and closing.
2.	Moderate marching on the spot.
3.	Blowing over a mic membrane to create artificial wind.
4.	The atmosphere outside my house, at night-time. Cars, wind, leafs rustling and natural life.
5.	My cat meowing.
6.	My own vocal sounds and noises.
7.	Pick scrapes along a guitar string.
8.	My washing machine.
9.	My microwave.
10.	My kettle boiling.
11.	Scraping a delph bowl with a fork.

    The idea and inspiration for the piece is basically to be able to take your mind to places it can be free and open. The listener starts in an everyday natural environment. You can hear the world around you as you approach a door. The journey through this door leads you to another dimension of endless possibilities, freeing your imagination and opening your mind. You then venture about this dimension experiencing what it has to offer and taking the sounds for what you imagine them to represent before finally exiting through the same door ,in which you entered, leaving you back in the same natural everyday world. However you take with you some of the interesting aspects you’ve just experienced signifying that this imagination and open mindedness can be present in every aspect of life.
	There is a huge amount of structure to the piece despite the emphasis on freedom and sense of a rule less dimension. The whole piece is tightly linked together by the initial closing of the door. This sample is in every section of the composition and appears numerous times in different interesting ways, always moving about the stereo field and never static.
	Another aspect of the pieces solid structure is evident from how the finale echoes the intro section while also incorporating various musical aspects picked up in the body of the piece. 
	The piece is consisted of seven parts in total. For each part I’m going to give a brief account of aim of it, the raw sounds used in that part and the processing tools used on these sounds. There are four sounds that act as almost accompaniment to the sections, as they change so does the atmosphere and section. These sounds are the outside atmosphere, the guitar pick scrape, the kettle and the washing machine.


00:00-00:53 – The intro
Aim:  To introduce a natural environment that everyone can recognise. To give the sense of a journey starting to something or somewhere.

Sounds:  Marching on the spot, outside atmosphere, artificial wind (blowing mic), door latch opening and closing.

Processing:  Panning, Small amount of amplitude enveloping.

00:53-01:05 – Transformation to other dimension

Aim: To introduce the changing of the medium and atmosphere. Heavy signal processing occurring as soon as the door to this dimension closes. To give a sense of an un-common space, limitless and free.

Sounds: Door closing.

Processing:  Tempo changes of -60 and -49 percent, moderate amount of amplitude enveloping, speed changes of -40 percent, panning.

01:05-01:38 - Section 1 part 1

Aim:  To give a sense of mixed environments. Mixing the natural with the un-natural, the heavy processed door closing sound with the boiling kettle which gradually becomes more and more un-natural sounding. 

Sounds:  Door closing, kettle boiling.

Processing: Tempo changes of -60 and- 48 percent, speed change of +20 percent, moderate amount of amplitude enveloping, tremolo, panning.

01:38-03:04 – Section 1 part 2

Aim:  To expand of the previous part, using the same sounds and building up the sound scape, widening our imagination and holding interest.

Sounds:  My voice, Cat meowing, guitar pick scrape, door slam, kettle boiling.

Processing:  Tempo changes of-60, -49, -80 and -40 percent, speed change of +20, equalization, panning, heavy amount of amplitude enveloping, pitch shift +4 and +5 semitones, tremolo.

03:04 – 04:12 Section 2 part 1

Aim: To change the atmosphere once again. The signal processing on the washing machine makes it sound almost robotic. Give a dynamic change to the listener, begins with a build-up.

Sounds: Door closing, washing machine, my voice.

Processing: Tempo changes of-60 and -49 percent, speed change of -40, equalization, panning, heavy amount of amplitude enveloping, tremolo.

04:12 – 05:35 Section 2 part 2

Aim:  To build on part one (as to parallel the changes in section 1 between part 1 and 2). To shift the frequency range to the higher region of the spectrum, holding ones interest.

Sounds: Door closing, washing machine, scraping delph bowl with fork, 
Processing: Tempo changes of -80,-60 and -49 percent, speed change of -40, equalization (ease the harsh very high pitched frequencies), panning, heavy amount of amplitude enveloping, tremolo.

05:35 – 06:14 – Finale

Aim: To bring the focus back to the start of the piece and to the natural environment. Also to incorporate specific aspects of the body of the composition into the natural environment, combining the un-natural with the natural.

Sounds:  Door closing, guitar string pick scrape, marching on the spot, artificial wind blowing, outside atmosphere, scraping delph bowl with a fork.

Processing: Reversing audio, tremolo, heavy amplitude enveloping, panning, tempo changes of -80,-60 and -49 percent, speed change of -40, equalization.

	


"A closing door"- Mu370 final composition

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