Index of Recollection is an experiment in a “cabinet of curiosities” approach to organizing different textures and atmospheres within a single composition. I wanted to include a smorgasbord of different sound sources, rhythmic ideas, and timbres into a fragmented but still cohesive piece. The macro structure is divided by strikes of a drum that are sparser at the beginning and become denser towards the end. The rule I created is that with every strike of this drum I would drastically change the style and mood of the sounds. I focused on creating smooth gestural transitions from one section to the next to avoid too much disconnection in the sounds. Around the 2/3 point in the structure, the drum hits become more frequent and other rhythmic textures are added that do not disappear with every new hit of the drum. During this movement, the rules of the piece change. Layers and textures start to build on top of one another and increase in density. This leads to the rhythmic crescendo that is followed by a less active, lower energy section that provides a moment of breath before the conclusive final articulation of the piece. Some of the source material includes a vinyl record player, birds, balloons, thunder, a music box, a car engine, church bells, and much more. This composition was an exploration of macro and micro rhythm dynamics and patterning. This was also a test for myself to see how many different “vibes” I could achieve in one musical composition. 

Index of Recollection

Ribbons

A live group performance in six channels mixed down to stereo. 

Phonosynthesis

Soundscape of an urban construction zone composed by Nick Daly, Sam Jones, and Andy Kim

Construction Zone

A mix of three one minute etudes representing different kinds of spatial motion.

Field Illusion

In this composition for the turntable I wanted to explore the potential of using a record player as a more conventional instrument for improvisation and composition. There are four sections in the composition that implement different untraditional techniques to produce different texture, melody, and rhythmic content. 

Frolic Record Romp

The title refers to the relative arbitrariness of the values and rules I assigned myself for the conception of the piece. I created a game with rules on sheet with characteristics and traits for each sound, depending on the category I would either roll one or two dice to determine the qualities of each sound and when they occur in the piece.

JamSones