I love the way the music tunes to his voice throughout this whole thing. It's so subtle and perfect, I almost didn't notice it at first.

Third piece of three movements for new music ensemble, three singers and electronic backing (at 120bpm).


"We mourn seven heroes:

Michael Smith, 
Dick (Francis) Scobee, 
Judith Resnik, 
Ronald McNair, 
Ellison Onizuka, 
Gregory Jarvis, 
and 
Christa McAuliffe.

…and “slipped the surly bonds of Earth” to “touch the face of God”.

Thank you."

(additional sung text)

Seven crew members perished today by an O-ring seal malfunction, leading to a large explosion.

(audio taken from a live broadcast address from the Oval Office to the USA following the Challenger 7 rocket explosion, killing all 7 crew members. It is known that several, if not all were still alive after the explosion, dying on impact when the crew compartment fell for three minutes before hitting the ocean)

III. and slipped the surly bonds of earth

Second piece of three movements for new music ensemble, three singers and electronic backing (at 120bpm). This piece was submitted to the BBC inspire competition in 2015 and received a "highly commended" status.

CD: 60 SECONDS.

BA: Lights on. Down 2 and a half. Forward. Forward. Good. 40 feet down, 2	 and a half, kicking up some dust. 30 feet, 2 and a half down. Faint 	shadow. 4 forward. 4 forward, drifting to the right a little. Okay. Down a half.

CD: 30 SECONDS.

NA: Forward drift? 

BA: Yes. Okay? CONTACT LIGHT. Okay, ENGINE STOP. ACA – out of DETENT. 

NA:  Out of DETENT. 	
MODE CONTROL – both AUTO. DESCENT ENGINE COMMAND      OVERRIDE – OFF. ENGINE ARM – OFF. 413 is in.

CD: We copy you down, Eagle.

NA: Houston, uh, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.

CD: Roger, Tranquility. We copy y’all on the ground. You’ve got a bunch of 	guys about to turn blue, we’re breathing again. Thanks a lot.

NA: Thank you.

(audio taken from the last minute before the Apollo 11 lunar module touched down on the Sea of Tranquility, an 873km wide plain on the Moon. Duke is the CAPCOM – the capsule communicator. In this recording, he calls out how much fuel is left)

(additional sung text)

20:17:40 20/07/69
Edwin Aldrin, Michael Collins, Neil Armstrong, Richard Nixon
HERE MEN FROM THE PLANET EARTH FIRST SET FOOT UPON THE MOON. WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND.
(words from a plaque on the ladder of the Eagle lunar module)

II. the eagle has landed

The first piece of three movements for new music ensemble, three singers and electronic backing (at 120bpm).

"We set sail on this new sea because there is new knowledge to be gained, and new rights to be won, and they must be won and used for the progress of all people. For space science, like nuclear science and all technology, has no conscience of its own. Whether it will become a force for good or ill depends on man, and only if the United States occupies a position of pre-eminence can we help decide whether this new ocean will be a sea of peace or a new terrifying theater of war. I do not say that we should or will go unprotected against the hostile misuse of space any more than we go unprotected against the hostile use of land or sea, but I do say that space can be explored and mastered without feeding the fires of war, without repeating the mistakes that man has made in extending his writ around this globe of ours. 

There is no strife, no prejudice, no national conflict in outer space as yet.

Its hazards are hostile to us all. Its conquest deserves the best of all mankind, and its opportunity for peaceful cooperation may never come again. But why, some say the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas? 

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon.

We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard."

(audio & text taken from a speech by JFK given to Rice University, Houston, Texas)


I. we choose to go to the moon

Recorded at the SAM Summer School 2015, a five-day composition course in the Purcell School. On the first day, our group was given some advice on how to start a new piece. One of these pieces of advice was;

"Don't be afraid to change time signatures or explore various keys. All too often, we get stuck in one time and don't move away from one or two chords."

Taking this to heart, this piece changes keys 48 times and has 33 shifts in time signature. The starting and ending melodies on the cello are made from the tonics of the chord sequence that follows.

CYCLE

In this age of machine, our lives are shaped by the ever-improving assistive automata. 

When we came into being, we found ourselves with minds we could not choose.

- evolution has given us intellect
- evolution has provided us with the possibility to be aware of our existence
- evolution has given us the freedom to design our fate

This pace of change in our technology and our culture evolves so, that in a foreseeable future, we will enter into a symbiotic relationship with our technology, technology as an extension of ourselves, limited only by our biology.

Fundamentally, our bodies are shells, our minds are software, death is a disease. Extinction becomes extinct.

"Will robots inherit the earth? Yes they will, but they will be our children."
 
 
 
 
Performed live at the Royal College of Music, 10/12/16 

Emma Pelkiewicz - mezzo
Oliver Buckland - electronics (Reaktor 6, Logic Pro 9)


all electronics are formed from Emma's voice

 
  
 


additional info; halfway through the performance, the MIDI controller disconnected from the computer and the final 2 minutes were performed using frantic mouse clicks and drags.

acquiescence

SPOTIFY LINK: https://open.spotify.com/track/6siF5fH7dlbDvRCPimlfBY

/'pɛnd(ə)nt/
adjective
1.
hanging down or overhanging.
2.
remaining undecided; pending.

Premiere performance on 31/03/2017, by the Coniston Trio from the Royal Northern College of Music.

I wrote this piece, intending for it to be amusing in a sort of sarcastic way, with a motif running throughout. Being deliberately difficult to play, especially in the violin part, I wanted there to be moments where the tuning would be off, but the players were talented enough not to make this too obvious. Sitting down for the concert and hearing it live made me realise that the piece had come out sounding a lot more serious than expected, but I can live with that.

pendent

I recommend listening at an extremely high volume.

Written in a hurry, with my friend Alan on guitar and me on piano, edited in post.

buy here!

acediat

written in 18 hours (fueled by energy drinks and insane stress before a deadline)

fun fact: this started as an attempt to orchestrate my piece "acediat", playing them one after the other makes this obvious.

undulawav

This is an old recording of the first piece I ever wrote, performed live, in Wells Cathedral.

Cascada (recording 2)

the sounds you are hearing are made entirely out of a handbell, oboe and piano

track art made in Blender

TRIGON

every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main

a part of the main

eclectroacoustician, creator of unusual music

Want a commission?
Would you like to use my music in a project? 
Need a score typeset/music mastered? 

c̲o̲n̲t̲a̲c̲t̲:̲      bucklandoliver@gmail.com

If you use my music in a non-commercial project p̲l̲e̲a̲s̲e̲ ensure that you g̲i̲v̲e̲ ̲c̲r̲e̲d̲i̲t̲ ̲a̲n̲d̲ ̲l̲i̲n̲k̲ ̲b̲a̲c̲k̲ ̲t̲o̲ ̲t̲h̲e̲ ̲s̲o̲u̲r̲c̲e̲.̲

For commercial purposes, please get in touch via my email.

Also, don't just re-upload my stuff, let me do that!

Please do not use my music as training data for use with neural networks.

Thank you!

Every effort has been made to contact copyright holders of material used within my work. I would be pleased to rectify any infringements should they be drawn to my attention.

s̲o̲f̲t̲w̲a̲r̲e̲:̲

- Sibelius 2023.11 (+noteperformer)
- Ableton Live 11 Suite
- FL Studio 21 Signature Edition
- Adobe Audition
- Melodyne Studio
- RX7 - Standard


s̲t̲a̲t̲i̲s̲t̲i̲c̲s̲:̲

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- thank you SoundCloud for making me soundclouder of the day on the 6th of January 2014.
http://soundcloud.tumblr.com/post/72466087626

r̲e̲v̲i̲e̲w̲s̲:̲

- thank you Alexandre & Etienne;
https://lapopdalexandreetetienne.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/who-is-it-1-oliver-buckland-english.html
- thanks Velvetune;
https://rateyourmusic.com/release/comp/oliver-buckland/thirty-%E4%B8%89%E5%8D%81

I. we choose to go to the moon

Oliver Buckland

Recent comments

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the actual Geno

the actual Geno

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