As part of @sarah Belle Reid 's Learning Sound and Synthesis class, we have group discussions around “what is music” or “what is an instrument?”  We were introduced to some experimental composers that push the boundaries of the first answers that might come to our minds.  One such composer is Pauline Oliveros.  You can read an essay about her work here:  
https://archive.iarp.wisc.edu/pauline...   Oliveros’ practice of Deep Listening encourages us to stop for a moment, be present and truly listen to the world around us.  As a person with very low vision, considered legally blind, this has been the main way I’ve gained information from the environment around me.  Growing up, I could identify people I knew very well by their voices, their gait, how they opened or shut doors, and how they picked up or set down objects, and I could immediately adjust my behavior according to who was in the room.  Quickly ascertaining this information through the sounds around me was sometimes a matter of safety.
I was so taken by one particular piece, titled Noise – Silence - Noise.  Normally, we think of a musical score as having five-line staves, with clefs defining the range, and specific notes to play at specific times, by specific instruments.  Oliveros’ score, however, is just a set of vague instructions which the musician(s) and audience can interpret how they will.  Visit the following link for one interpretation of the original piece that inspired mine.  
   • Francesca Naibo - Noise / Silence (2005) P...    It’s interesting how the intervals of silence bring the environment into becoming part of the music, or part of the listening experience.  

I had so much fun bringing this piece together.  I felt just like a kid again!  There was much laughter and some experimentation and learning along the way.  Many of the sounds in my composition were what first sprang to mind when I read Oliveros’ original score.  To avoid getting lost in endless mazes of indecision, I decided to begin by using only my bag of small hand percussion, an acoustic bass guitar and a large djembe which I’m currently “babysitting” for a friend, and some prior synth dabblings that had already been recorded on my computer.  Though I’ve had some success learning to play the bass guitar “the right way”, I found it much more interesting at this particular moment to gently waggle my fingernails across the strings right where they connect to the tuning pegs.  This thin, plucky sound can be heard at the beginning and end of the noise section.  I ultimately decided not to use the djembe at all, feeling that the noise section was already noisy enough without it.

silence noise silence

This is my first ever submission for the KVR One-Synth Challenge.  This was created using 13 instances of Primer 2.  

Serenity at Sunset [OSC Primer 2]

This is a stepping stone along my synthesis journey.  I began by exploring FM sounds that could be made on the Moog Matriarch; started the arpeggiator and changed parameters slowly.  I then added a pad which wanders near the Eat major / C# minor scale.  When  the FM sounds grow more dissonant, I veer off to other harmonies.  After that, I added a third track in my DAW and simply began adding goofy noises!  These noises are supposed to interrupt otherwise boring or repetitive sections, and draw the mind back to the sound meditation and away from the "hamster wheel" thoughts which typically arise while one is trying to meditate.  

Three Part Meditation for Matriarch

This was a challenge created for #beatober 2025.  So far, most of these sounds are from the Arturia Minifreak.  Though I was only recording its audio output, I learned to send MIDI clock from my DAW to the Minifreak so that when I created a patch or loaded a preset that contained a sequence, or tempo-synced elements, they'd stay in time without me having to do a lot of extra fussing around.  Now, I just have to turn it into a finished composition by adding a lead, or finding some other artist who wants to do a top line. :) 

Beatober 2025:  whoomp whoomp whoomp

This little exercise for #beatober was built around a sequence preset on the Arturia Minifreak.  I played some drums to go with it using the free Monster Drums plugin.  The bass line is Surge XT because it's familiar and comfortable.  It was good practice balancing levels and keeping everything in time. 

beatober #2

This is a piece I composed over 20 years ago as a teenager  with multiple cassettes and a little Peavey mixer.  I guess that officially makes it "tape music!"  I had a Baldwin electronic organ with a full AGO pedalboard.  Back then, I thought to create a version without the organ so maybe I can add synth sounds and refresh the vibe a little. 

Creepy Halloween

This is my first offering for the month of noise-vember.  I was exploring just to see what kinds of noisy textures I could create with the Moog Matriarch.  Some of the more "popcorn-like" sounds are just LFOs going through the DC-Coupled mixer and becoming little clicks, and sometimes pinging the filter.  I recorded a lot of various sounds into Reaper and then took to cutting / pasting / moving them around.  

noisevember textures

This is Jessica's space where she shares her journey with experimental, synth-based music.  To find more of what she does, please visit https://linktr.ee/the_vi_artist  To find her solo piano arrangements, please visit her other account at https://soundcloud.com/user-667594917

Jessica the VI Artist

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