Earthquake Quartet #1 is a concept piece that starts by describing the earthquake cycle in which plate motions build up strain until it is suddenly released during earthquakes. The latter part of the piece is based on the idea that society and culture, including music, takes place with the earthquakes as an often ignored backdrop. However, the geologic processes are an instrinsic part of our existence and ignoring them can have its consequences. Listeners may recognize that one theme from the second section is a rhythmically distorted quote from the Allemande of Bach's second "Suite for Unaccompanied Cello" which is then further inverted and modified.

The seismograms  used in creating Earthquake Quartet #1 are the following;

* The 1992 magnitude 7.3 Landers earthquake in southern California as recorded at Parkfield, California This is the large rumble heard near the beginning.

* Two recordings of a magnitude 2 earthquake at Parkfield and recorded at Parkfield on two different stations (beats 1 and 3).

*Two recordings of a magnitude 5.1 earthquake at Parkfield recorded at both Parkfield (beat 2) and at Hollister, California (beat 4). Note that the fourth beat is the slower moving S wave while the pickup to the fourth beat is the faster moving P wave.

Earthquake Quartet #1 was composed during November and December, 1999 and had its premiere at a presentation of "The Music of Earthquakes" on December 16 at Moscone Hall in San Francisco as part of the annual Fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union. The musicians at the premiere were:

*Soprano and USGS Geophysicist Stephanie Ross
*Cellist and Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory Geophysicist  Graduate David Schaff 
*Trombonist and USGS Geophysicist Andrew Michael

Earthquake Quartet #1 Web Page
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/music/

Earthquake Quartet #1 - Andy Michael

"Philosophical and psychological research results show that there is a substantial difference between seeing and hearing a data set, because both evolve and accentuate different aspects of a phenomenon. From a philosophical point of view the eye is good for recognizing structure, surface and steadiness, whereas the ear is good for recognizing time, continuum, remembrance and expectation. In studying aspects like tectonic structure, surface deformation and regional seismic risk the visual modes of depiction are hard to surpass. But in questions of timely development, of characterization of a fault's continuum and of tension between past and expected events the acoustic mode of representation seems to be very suitable." - Florian Dombois

http://www.auditory-seismology.org

http://www.icad.org/icad2016/proceedings2/posters/ICAD2016_paper_21.pdf

Earthquake Quartet #1 - Andy Michael

SeismicSounds

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