Polish Contemporary Art

12 IX 2014, Paris
Espace de Projection, IRCAM - Centre Pompidou
Openinig concert of the season IRCAM 2014/2015
Création: Les solistes de l'Ensemble Intercontemporain 
(Samuel Favre, Hervé Trovel).
Ircam, Cursus II composition et informatique musicale 
RIM (réalisateur(s) en informatique musicale): 
Marcin Stanczyk, Mikhail Malt (encadrement pédagogique) 
Livret: Bruno Schulz, Les boutiques de cannelle.

Marcin Stańczyk - Aftersounds (2013-2014) Part I

"Hyloflex αβ" for string orchestra and electronics (2007-09)
10 vln, 4 vl, 4 vc, 2 cb | comp

Performed by:
Orkiestra Polskiego Radia w Warszawie, Rafał Janiak – conductor, Paweł Hendrich – computer

Recording, mix, mastering:
Ewa Guziołek-Tubelewicz

The name of the work could be translated as "built from curves". This title reflects the main idea of the composition, which is about a permanent lack of vertical consonances, although the pitch material is homophonic. Any "upright structures" are curved, "points" are scattered, creating a complex texture. Articulation and dynamics are subject to similar movements. These elements, similarly to the pitch and rhythm, move asynchronously in relation to each other, creating crescendos, diminuendos, modulating the tone of string instruments.

Commissioned by ZAiKS The Polish Society of Authors and Composers.

Hyloflex αβ

Hyloflex αβ (2007-2009)

"Liolit" for chamber orchestra (2009-2010)
dedicated to Szymon Bywalec and Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej
fl, ob, cl, bsn | tpt, hrn, trbn, tba | 2 perc | acc, gtr, hrp, pno | 4 vln, 2 vl, 2 vc, cb

Performed by:
Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej, Szymon Bywalec – conductor

Recording, mix, mastering:
Marcin Guz

Diffused stone. That might be the closest translation of a title of this work. The piece begins with strict pulsation and develops to the first climax in which all instruments gradually start to play in one of two tempos and in different rhythms. That is for the first time in this composition when solid structure begins to bust and distract itself. Then in the next episode the texture is too complex to hear individual rhythms but what can be clearly audible is that the density of the texture is accumulating. Every wave of the orchestra is stronger and contains more sounds. After this fragment the narration goes back to the more or less clear rhythms, which in a moment will occur in two temporal layers (heterochrony) related in simple ratio (4:5, 3:4). This techniques leads back to the feeling that the texture starts to disperse. Like in the title, the rock is scattered again.

Liolit (2009-2010)

"Emergon αβ" for chamber ensemble and computer (2011)
fl, ob, cl, bsn | tpt, hrn, trbn | 2 perc | pno | comp

The word emergere in Latin means “to emerge”, “to arise”, “to appear”. In a composition, individual sounds, as well as whole groups of sounds, may “emerge”. Specific articulation means that they may also gradually arise, slowly modulating the sound material of a composition. The slow emergence also concerns the higher level of organization of form. 

The title's source has associations with yet another concept, that of emergence. Emergence is a phenomenon, which was being described by the natural sciences as early as the 1920s and 1930s. It refers to a particular property of systems, which consists in the fact that the properties of the system as a whole cannot be deduced from the properties of its parts examined individually. In other words, when a system evolves and moves to another level of organization, it acquires new properties, which do not result from the combination of the properties of the system's individual elements (for example, the physical properties of the individual elements of air do not indicate that their mixture will enable sound waves to travel). 

In a composition based on the phenomenon of emergence, the superimposition of consecutive layers creates new sound qualities, which do not result from hearing them separately. Hence the concept of creating, at a global level of the composition, two layers α, and β, which sound by themselves compared to the way they sound combined. Layer α – Emergon α – is intended as an acoustic composition. The ensemble performs a fully autonomous composition based on the principles described above. Layer β – Emergon β – is composed using electroacoustic means. To this end, a computer software was written which transforms the algorithms used previously to build the score of layer α in real time. The use of more or less analogous compositional techniques unites the two layers, α and β, while the use of different performance apparatus clearly separates one from the other. In accordance with the title's etymology, as well as the conception of the work, these layers penetrate each other, and the 'emergence' of the title concerns the micro-, the macro- and the metaform. 

The concept of emergence has proved relevant mainly in natural sciences, but its influence can also be seen in human (philosophy) or social sciences (sociology, economics). The use of ideas fundamental to this phenomenon makes Emergon αβ; part of the 'art & science' trend - a creative attitude with the aim of commenting on science through art. 

Commissioned by the 54th Warsaw Autumn International Festival of Contemporary Music for Ensemble Musikfabrik.

Emergon αβ  (2011)

"Metasolidus I" for symphony orchestra (2005-07)
2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bsn | 2 tpt, 2 hrn, 2 trbn | 2 perc | 18 vln, 6 vl, 6 vc, 4 cb

Performed by:
Beethoven Academy Orchestra, Michał Dworzyński – conductor

Recording, Mix & Mastering: Ewa Guziołek-Tubelewicz

The piece begins the cycle of two compositions – Metasolidus I and II. From Greek metá means “among”, “between”, “including” and from Latin solidus signifies something “permanent”, “durable”, “stable”. So, combination of these words should be translated as a form of a higher order, which is solid even if it’s build from various pieces.

In this work pitch, rhythmical and timbral material of two pieces – Diversicorium and Multivalentis – was a starting point in a very long process of transformation. The aim was to morph the original structure of chamber compositions to change it into the orchestral sonority and to blur the connection between initial pieces and a new one.

Metasolidus I (2005-2007)

"Metasolidus II / Cryptoscript" for large symphony orchestra and computer (2011-12)
3 fl, 3 ob, 3 cl, 3 bsn | 2 tpt, 2 hrn, 2 trbn | 4 perc | 2 hrp, pno | 14 vln, 6 vl, 5 vc, 3 cb

The piece belongs to the cycle of two compositions – Metasolidus I and II. From Greek  metá means “among”, “between”, “including” and from Latin solidus signifies something “permanent”, “durable”, “stable”. So, combination of these words should be translated as a form of a higher order, which is solid even if it’s build from various pieces. 

In this work pitch, rhythmical and timbral material of two pieces – Diaphanoid and Cyclostratus – was a starting point in a very long process of transformation. The aim was to morph the original structure of chamber compositions to change it into the orchestral sonority and to blur the connection between initial pieces and a new one.

Commissioned by Municipality of Wrocław.