Music Building–the stone foundation means that the building stays cool

Caldissimo…that’s the word of the day–very hot. I’m spending as much time as possible in some of the cooler buildings on campus.

The composers are all working hard to get their pieces in shape for our Friday morning deadline. As previously mentioned, I have been working on a project myself, “Among the Angels,” for voice and electronics. I’m using the first line of Rilke’s first Duino Elegy, in the original German as well as English and Italian translations. I’m using PureData (PD), an open source, interactive music program that I’ve used in the past. Most of what happens during the piece consists of taking Andy Whitfield’s voice and gently manipulating it, using delay lines and reverb. I’ve also used a recording of the local church bells, which have a particular sound:

[esplayer url=”https://brookejoyce.com/wp-content/uploads/chimes.mp3″ width=”200″ height=”25″]

Below is a screen shot of the PD patch I’ve created, for all those tech enthusiasts out there.

Tonight, the composition studio and other interested persons will watch a video on the life and music of Hans Werner Henze, a German composer that Stefano has been introducing to us us this week.

Part of the PD patch for my new composition