World premiere performance by Ealing Youth Orchestra, conducted by Leon Gee.

Dark Matter is the terra incognita in the mapping of space.

Invisible to the human eye and scientific instruments, Dark Matter emits no light, scatters no light, and is transparent. 

Dark Matter remains elusive to astronomers and physicists, who have been working to illuminate its make-up for nearly eighty years. 

Dark Matter does not consist of atoms, and is not formed of substances currently known on Earth.  Numerous theories suggest it may variously consist of particles such as neutrinos, MACHOs (Massive Compact Halo Objects), WIMPs (Weakly Interacting Massive Particles) and supersymmetric particles. Many of these particles are not (yet) proven to exist.

In a series of workshops, we asked:

What is the sound of Dark Matter?
-	If we can’t see it, could we hear it? And what would it sound like?
	
Working with images and text from scientific research into Dark Matter, the orchestra explored sounds, textures, characters, interactions and trajectories. Following these experiments with the sonic potential of the science, Dark Matter Sounding took shape with a focus on ‘translating’ the properties of mysterious/imaginary particles into sound:

WIMPs interact weakly
MACHOs bend light
Neutrinos oscillate
Supersymmetric particles can only be created or annihilated in pairs

Images from the ground-breaking research of scientist Vera Rubin, provided visual impetus, and were used to generate the structure of the piece. Her diagram of galaxy rotation (the earliest proof of the existence of Dark Matter) appears as a graphic score in Dark Matter Sounding. The players in this section interpret lines, curves, and dots in place of standard music notation.

Dark Matter Sounding is a voyage into the unknown…a journey through an impossible landscape…an exploration of imagined possibility… 

©Nina Whiteman 2014



Dark Matter Sounding was commissioned by Ealing Youth Orchestra and the London College of Music, supported with funds from the Ambache Charitable Trust, the Leathersellers’ Charitable Fund, the Penny Trust, and RNCM Research. 
The work was first performed on 1 March 2014 at St. Barnabas Church, Pitshanger Lane, Ealing, London.


Dark Matter Sounding

'Thread' by Nina Whiteman is a labyrinth to navigate in a single breath, with an in-ear click track dictating the moments to inhale and exhale. Beginning with inhalation sounds with the head joint completely turned in, the exhale sounds span sharp bursts of air, flutter tongue, lip pizzicato, and tongue pizzicato as the head joint is gradually turned back out.

Nina Whiteman: Thread

Vocals // Akemi Fox
Production // Matteo Rawlinson

disposable

‘Mosaico' delves into the various elements of the accordion’s soundworld that the composer and performer explored together in numerous sessions, and can be heard either as a fragmented concert extemporization, or as a conceptual recording of the collaborative process.

Performed by 
Pietro Roffi - accordion, Italy.

Recorded at Raudondvaris Castle, Lithuania during the Composers+Summer Academy on 25 August 2017.

Recording produced by Dainius Kazilionis.

More info at www.composersplus.com.

Joshua Brown – Mosaico (for solo accordion)

MAN is the third and last piece of the trilogy WOMAN, CHILD, MAN composed for organ & soundtrack, dedicated to Michael Bonaventure who has premièred all of them. 
MAN suggests chaos, creation and order coming through the word.

Voice sample courtesy of www.freesound.org
Soundtrack created in collaboration with Michael Bonaventure

---------------------------------------------

MAN (2017) 
for fixed media electronics and organ

Michael Bonaventure, organ 

AUTOMATRONICS
Waves of Sound - New Music for Organ & Electronics 
13 OCT 2018 
Pembroke College Chapel, Cambridge - UK

MAN (Michael Bonaventure, organ)

´the worlds within out petty voids´ for flute, oboe, violin, viola and cello.

Written for and premiered by ensemble recherche.

Recorded by Chloe Deng.

the worlds within our petty voids

Playlist:


Aldo Clementi
"Es"
from Es
(Fonit Cetra)

László Sáry
"Tango"
from Incitation to Desire
(New Albion Records)

László Vidovszky
"Szóló obligát kísérettel"
from Contemporary Hungarian Music for Bassoon and Piano
(Hungaroton)

Masayuki Takayanagi and New Directions
"Herdsman's Pipe of Spain"
from Independence
(Tiliqua Records)

Lulu Shama
"ya ringi ya ringi"
from The Musical Heritage of Iraqi Jews
(The Babylonian Jewry Heritage Center)

Valentin Clastrier
"Organistrum"
from the Great Masters of the Hurdy-Gurdy
(Auvidis)

Luigi Nono
"Omaggio a Emilio Vedova"
from Complete works for Solo Tape
(Stradivarius)

Carola Bauckholt
"Schraubdichtung"
from Carola Bauckholt
(Wergo)

Hlynur Adils Vilmarsson
"nixin"
from Roto con moto
(Smekkleysa)

Hlynur Adils Vilmarsson
"maxam"
from Roto con moto
(Smekkleysa)

Ilan Volkov - At Home  03

My arrangement of my version of the Bedfordshire May Carol, inspired by the singing of Shirley Collins. With a gothic twist. Hope you like it. Happy Beltane!

Dark Matter Sounding

ninawhiteman