Tanjak – Mahkota Alam is a piece for flute and piano. It is inspired by the traditional malay male headgear worn daily by malay warriors, royal families, and the common people during the Malacca Sultanate. Nowadays, these headgears are less common and only worn during ceremonial functions. Mahkota Alam (Crown of Nature) is one of the many types of the Tanjak. This Tanjak is said to be worn by leaders who are so pious that they can govern two worlds (Humans and Jinn). 

The piece is a depiction of the composer’s interpretation of the Mahkota Alam Tanjak. The composer tries to give sound to a soundless object through the various possible colors produced by the flute and piano. In this piece, the composer uses extended techniques for the instruments, unconventional musical notations, and graphic score to realize his interpretation of what the Tanjak would sound like. Furthermore, he focuses on timbre (the character or quality of a musical sound) more than the other elements in music. The composer also believes that the score itself is a form of visual art which could also illustrate how he sees the Mahkota Alam Tanjak.

The piece was performed by the members of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (Ignacio de Nicolas Gaya - flute and Akiko Daniš - piano). Video recording of the performance can be viewed at @DFPMPOStagePlus - "MPOPlaysOn: Malaysian Composers Series - Chamber Concert" on Youtube.

Tanjak - Mahkota Alam by Raja Alif (2021)

Pink Noise is a “Sonic Ritual” a project on graphic and verbal notations conceived as a performance installation, about an extreme sonic sensitivity and being haunted by the sounds of the city (especially in times of public turmoil). The work starts from an imaginary sound inside the artist’s head that won’t stop no matter what, her relation with this sound, how she deals with it, how not to fight it but not to listen to it blindly. Most importantly, how her sensory overloaded body will interact with its surrounding (how it will walk, talk, move...) Considering it a poetic journey, this work is an invitation inside her haunted head, a way to reestablish her own safe space using an old-craft from her own super invasive culture to weave her own “refuge."

Graphic Score: Rana ALBABA
Sound Design: Carol Ohair

This project is part of ArtEvolution 2023 by Goethe-Institut Lebanon and supported by the German Federal Foreign Office

Pink Noise "Sonic Rituals"

Sagittarius A* (2024) for percussion trio

Performers: 
Brain Pocket Percussion Trio
Jimmy Stagnitti - Percussion
Olivia Cirisan - Marimba
Ancel Neeley - Vibraphone

Program Note:
Sagittarius A* is named after the black hole in the center of the Milky Way. The piece draws from a dream I had when I was young: a whimsical imagining of what it might’ve been like to play a role in the creation of the universe. The score is rendered in wholly colored pencil and gives agency to the performers. In the spirit of playful improvisation, no two performances of the piece will ever be exactly alike.

Sagittarius A*, for Percussion Trio (2024)

The piece "gelb" ("yellow") is the fifth part of my colour-series, which explores the cultural connotations and associations with different colours.

gelb (between feathers live 2021)

"von Blüten und Wind" ("of blossoms and wind") is the spring-pieace of my 4-seasons-cycle. It deals with growth in mathematical and philosophical ways and tells a little fable about what it means to be part of an ecosystem.

von Blüten und Wind (Milleflör live 2024)

music is inspired by choral music I recently performed, chaos is some kind of a dialougue between me and the world.

Home land (Graphic Notation)
		purpose and concept

The first voice represents the action of eyes closing and opening. Eyes are willing to close. It’s filled with uncertainty. It’s hard to get enough rest for a formal occasion. Eyes are turning red.

One
The voice of the car driving represents starting from the main road. Windy stage-1 and the sequence of voices represent the continuous operation.

Two
Windy Stage-2, a bit more challenging. The second voice represents religious and societal toxicity. The right ear accepts all these toxins from the outside without consideration. The sequence of voices become double harmony.

Three
Windy Stage-3 is even more challenging. The sequence of voices becomes a triple harmony, representing both the main road and the others.

Four
 Windy Stage-4 is stronger than the stage -3. The sequence of voices become a fourth harmony, representing Both the main road and the other.

Five
It's getting stronger. The sequence of voices becomes a single low-pitched sound, representing the main road once more. The voices of the train, fire alarm, and 'what is going on' represent signs of anger.

Six
It's getting stronger than stage-5. The sequence of voices becomes a single, low-pitched sound, representing the main road once more. The voices of ECG, explosion sounds, and please for mercy represent signs of intense anger.

Seven
It's getting stronger, like Stage-5. The sequence of voices becomes a single, low-pitched sound, representing the main road once more. The sound of ragtime music represents signs of negotiations and affirmation

Eight
Windy, like Stage-4.The sequence of voices become a fourth harmony, representing Both the main road and the other. The sound of metal hitting represents a sign of understanding and achievement of conversation.

Ninth
Windy, like Stage-3. The sequence of voices becomes a triple harmony, representing both the main road and the others. The sound of rain represents a sign of calming down.

Ten 
Windy, like Stage-2. The sequence of voices become double harmony. The human  voice represents religious and societal toxicity. The left ear deny  all these toxins from the outside.

Eleven
Windy, like Stage-1.The sequence of voice become fade out. The voice of Grandfather clock represents peace.


Twelve( Eyes) Clockwise 
The sound of firewood burning represents the end and peace.

YouTube Video link - https://youtu.be/qku4hcPX0Pc

#LinMyat #graphicnotation #myanmarartist 

Home land (Graphic Notation)

Nicole Knorr (b. 1999) is a composer, performer, and interdisciplinary artist based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Her work investigates transformation, change, and growth—often through the lens of the natural world. Her music has been described as having “remarkable command of melody” and is characterized by gleaming lyricism, sharp counterpoint, and a fundamental, underlying sense of whimsy.

Exploring the contrasting worlds of sound through an abstract approach that blends improvisation, field recordings, and live electronics. Transcending classical background, employing graphical notation that confronts conventional approaches in music. By integrating graphics, electronic equipment with traditional instruments, experimenting with meaning-creation, pushing the limits between sound and space to achieve abstract live musical forms.


for more artistic content follow me here:
Ig: @mikolajnizegorodcew

New tracks tagged #graphic notation