Concept & Process

The graphic scoring technique used by artist Karlheinz Stockhausen inspired the first part of my composition process, in the sense that it allowed me to understand the concepts of experimental music, and therefore, accept that the graphic score can be continuously reinterpreted. However, I did not use the graphic score I created when recording the saxophonist, it was used as a reference when creating the surrounding elements of the composition.

‘Rhythmless’ composition can be identified as a key characteristic of experimental music, in the sense that the term can be defined as the abandonment of traditional structures of rhythm, melody, tempo and timbre that other classical genres inherit. Experimental improvisation in music is about “discovery without intent” and allows innovation and playfulness.

The work of Alvin Lucier inspired an idea to create a similar effect to his work “I am Sitting in a Room’ using a handful of found sounds I had recorded on my phone of people talking and applauding in a church in Sloane Square and a musician playing the violin in a church in Archway that I spontaneously captured. Choosing an interesting section of each recording, I began experimenting with creating a convolution reverb loop within Ableton.