Method: Guitar (DADAAD. the 'lazy' tuning) - via pedals (Mel 9, Sabbra Cadabra and Ocean‘s 12) -  and Boss Dr 01s (played as the instrument it is) into Zoom R 20. Apart from the envelopes, the distortion and the modulation provided by the hardware pedals, there was no synthesis involved. Final assembly in samplitude when voice was added. Experiment with fast beats (116 bpm) and standard listening practices.
Narration: I tried to create as much contrast between what my poem says and how it is presented as possible – this is what some coping mechanisms do as well.
Note: I‘ve added an interlinear version of the poem below the original.

Poem / copyright jo richter:

wenn sie den schalter umlegt
wird der raum hell, einfach
so, als harre das dunkel nicht
hinter den möbeln aus, bereit
sie jederzeit zu umfangen

man darf den farben nicht trauen
das weiß sie schon lange, feist
lagern sie, trägen katzen gleich
auf den oberflächen und lauern
auf das moment der finsternis

wenn sie nicht schläft, so all-
mächtig ist wieder die furcht, spürt
sie manchmal bewegung im raum
hört geräusche, sieht etwas fast
das sich reckt, sich buckelt, leise faucht

nichts ist ohne leben und sie, sie
ist nicht ohne tod, den einen
der sich an ihr, in ihr festkrallt
und scharfweiße raubtierzähne
ins fahle fleisch ihrer kehle senkt

am morgen streicht sie die fransen
an den bezügen und teppichen glatt
blickt in den spiegel und sieht ihr gesicht
mit den pupillen, die sich allmählich
gemächlich verdichten

interlinear translation:
when she activates the switch / the room gets lit, just / like that, as though the dark / wouldn‘t linger behind the furniture, ready / to embrace her any moment //

you should not trust colours / she has known that for some time / they rest, like feisty, lazy cats / on the surfaces and prey on / the moment of darkness //

when she does not sleep, over- / come by the might of fright, she / sometimes feels movement in the room / hears sounds, very nearly sees something / stretching, bowing its spine, hissing silently //

nothing is without life and she, she / is not without death, the one / which claws onto, into her and / sinks its white and sharp teeth / into her throat‘s pale flesh //

in the morning, she straightens the fringes / of the covers and carpets / looks into the mirror and sees her face / with the pupils slowly / slowly contracting

fransen

method: layering, effects, etc ... and yes, most of the melody lines start out with mi mi re ....
narration: the lure of ancient lore derives partly from all the huge gaps in the stories that allow poets to fill in whatever they consider fit. nice.  this poem centers around the mythical figure of Wodan/Odin - often regarded as an older equivalent to Hermes/Mercury (who is supposed to be all youthful) due to their inspired furors - his visit to Mimir‘s well and his two ravens whose sight spans the globe … in the case of this poem, time as well .... 
image: copyright jo richter

poem / copyright jo richter: 

a double raven
tatooed in his mind
with a beak of dark silver
and a wingspan to blind

one eye pierces
all that has been
the other fills with
what will be seen

no-stone drops sharply
ripples in truth
that pass through the void
in invisible hues

mimir's mead

it is recommended to listen with good headphones or monitor speakers

method: loops playing off one another
narration: trying to narrow in on that dystopian yearning
image: copyright jo richter, based on a photograph of a sidewalk surface

poem / copyright jo richter:

we inhabit the engine rooms
moving in silence like tardigrade moss
albino wisdom, featureless hues
calcareous liquid on verdigris brass

we sleep in regeneration pods
designed by illustrious architects
there is no gain, there is no loss
make up your mind to love or neglect

fractal fixes

method: sound sources (field recording,contact microphones, meinl sonic energy pocket steel tongue drum, pss a50, voice) and recording and morphing devices (zoom H2, ehx grand canyon, zoom r20, samplitude)

narration: the cycle ON PRINTING deals with projection, representation, pattern recognition and the like. it consists of six poems: rubble - horse - relic - spawn - banner- offset. this poem sonified is relic and relic alone – born from static.

image: copyright jo richter

poem (as published in
A Single Loop of Fortunes) /
copyright jo richter: 



sifting through
lingering morsels
of bold statements
once uttered in pride

he came across
a tiny fragment
that rang of meaning:
no one could tell how

it fit in
right in the middle
of a gaping 
lack of reference

snugly it fit
into nowhere 
at all

relic

relic - on printing 3/6

method: sound sources (crave, voice, field recordings, behringer swing into samplitude – cello, choir, chapel organ ) and recording and morphing devices (zoom r20, samplitude)
narration: the cycle ON PRINTING deals with projections, representations, pattern recognition, the energy of awareness, objectification and the like. it consists of six poems: rubble - horse - relic - spawn - banner- offset. this poem sonified is banner and banner wards off intrusion. I remember writing this poem as an act of self-defence on a train ride with sonically extensive human beings …..  
image: copyright jo richter

poem (as published in
A Single Loop of Fortunes) /
copyright jo richter: 

the acoustic weaves hoisted
fold tightly around
this moment, this place -
envelop the traveller too weary
to cling to the counterpoint
of silence within

not composed
of anything but surfaces rough
and unaligned, these clusters
loudly crash
like bergs in the icy sea

oh for the mean me-ness
of every voice that
drowns out common
respite

banner

banner - on printing 5/6

method: sound sources (pss a50, vintage lemon drop, vst choir, voice) and recording and morphing devices (foxy tones, soulpress II, zoom r 20, samplitude)
narration: the cycle ON PRINTING deals with projections, representations, pattern recognition, the energy of awareness, objectification, transformation  and the like. it consists of six poems: rubble - horse - relic - spawn - banner- offset. there will also be a coda. this poem sonified is offset and easily washed off.
image: copyright jo richter

poem (as published in
A Single Loop of Fortunes) /
copyright jo richter: 

this is the any-stone
evenly smoothed, perfect

this is the any-stone
to which nothing attaches

this is the any stone
which lingers unaltered

this is the any-stone
ceaselessly printing desires

in lithographic precision
this is my wanton heart

offset

offset - on printing 6/6

method: field and other recordings from various occasions, some involving other people. two of the many sound sources: https://www.kosmos.de/de/rebotz-duke-der-skating-bot_1602598_4002051602598 and https://discordier.github.io/sam/
narration: facing the river. 
Image: concert announcements next to Friedrich Schiller‘s Lodge (Gartenhaus) in Jena, Germany, copyright jo richter.

poem / copyright jo richter:

stone is a liquid
that moves far too slowly

if river lethe asked you
would you offer your memories

if the primal river called you
would you go

floating in amniotic liquid
would you pretend to flow like a river

if the only river called you
would you go

((social thanks to YKMS (5ys) for the black-key-pentatonic piao loop and AIS (11ys) for gravel shovelling and toy robot Operation ))

would you go

I am overjoyed to partake in sounds beautiful:
https://youtu.be/1TnalFltP_Q?si=VidMVZ9VDKGZiNUm  by Dan and
https://stonerjazz.bandcamp.com/album/up-up-out by Jeff.

Jeff also gifted me a visiting role on his previous album: 
https://stonerjazz.bandcamp.com/album/quintessential

.... and here is my own test account:
https://sonicstructuresandsilentstretches.bandcamp.com/track/eliza

POETRY IS VITAL

This threshold space exists for those who feel like listening to some of my quite professional poetry embedded in rather amateurishly recorded but judiciously arranged sound, a modicum of purely acoustic work notwithstanding.  Fortunately, some other artists have also transformed the symbolic expression of my words into the tangible beauty of real songs and soundscapes - just listen to Sympoetic Ultrasounds: https://soundcloud.com/sonic-textures/sets/sympoetic-ultrasounds !

SOUND, SPACE AND TIME

Tend your listening senses gently. Even though my general approach welcomes and embraces lo-fi concepts like the precision of spontaneously occuring imprecisions, headphones worth their membranes are recommended - unless you like your sounds flat, mangled, battered and helpless. You don't, do you? Be kind to these soundscapes.

STRUCTURING IMPULSE

Due to the nature of "poetry soundscapes", your listening expectations regarding traditionally structured "songs", sonically purified "raw wildlife soundscapes", keyboard-laden "ambient recordings" or voice-centered "readings" might not be met. You will find some of those in my list of /likes/. "Noise" is a recurring structural element like any other. This is what this sounds like - within its own rights, limitations, tangents and interconnections. Sonic structures. Silent stretches. Poetry emerges from the gaps between the ruts, seeps in from the undergrowth, sweeps down.

CARVING, CHISELLING, KNEADING, MORPHING

A quick glance into my toolshed rests on Zoom recorders, Samplitude software and a dizzying array of diverse sonic machinery.

LARGE AND SMALL GIFTS

-----------------------------
Small Gifts

the less to remember, the more to listen
gifts from the ice age reverberate
a simple story, a forest, a coastline
entangled in silence, one starts to relate
---------------------------------------------

In case you have read up to this point, you might be a sonic creator yourself. May I ask you for a helping ear? Above, there is a tiny poem of mine that I do not understand how to translate into sound. If you do - please act on it. It is a matter of common decency, of course, to keep the title (Small Gifts) and to credit the lyrics to me (jo richter). And please do notify me of your version via a soundcloud message. One bewilderingly beautiful version crafted by mono-lux has already gone public, as well as an amazing version by cthonicist.  You'll find both in my playlist Sympoetic Ultrasounds. This is just a small gift, not a challenge - life already has more than enough of those on offer, doesn't it? Treat it this way.

POETRY IS VITAL
sound, space and time
structuring impulse
carving, chiselling, kneading, morphing
large and small gifts
poetry is vital

GENERAL POLICY regarding the use of LIKES, REPOSTS and FOLLOWS:
I like what I like and want to hear again.
I only repost what I've had a hand in creating.
I follow when I see directions or arrivals I like, not when followed (though I might peek in to get an idea of what your sounds are about). I have set myself a limit of accounts I follow not to be all too overwhelmed. Not following does therefore not mean I do not appreciate what you contribute to the enjoyments of soundcloud.
Do not expect other behaviour from me.
(jo richter)

New tracks tagged #reading by author