projects...
1(a
Video Bandcamp Cycling 74 Interview
l(a [pronounced ‘wuhn ey'] is a catchall for all of my various ventures as a solo performer, which usually entails me, some drums, and some electronics. It began in 2016 as a max/msp patch engineered for the roland spd-sx sampling pad, which is normally used to integrate electronic drum sounds into an acoustic drum setting (think claps and snaps). i found myself frustrated with the limited built-in capabilities of the device and started to explore ways that it could be used as the core of a solo acoustic drum and electronics performance.
What I ended up with was an incredibly compelling performance environment oriented around randomized sequential microsampling that has single-handedly revolutionized the way that I perform and think about music, challenging me technically and emotionally, and pushing me past what I thought was possible as a solo performer.
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My practice is heavily influenced by Deantoni Parks' Technoself School of Philosophy, which I would summarize as the practice of conceiving of and building custom meta-instruments that become their own distinct conceptual frameworks for further research. This practice then becomes a lifelong conceptual + technical + research oriented feedback loop.
In a way, this approach is not so different from the century-long tradition of the [“Trap Kit,”] the earliest iteration of a drum set: building a completely unique and utilitarian “contraption” of any instrument that can fit in front of you, all to serve the needs of whatever the music and context call for.
Digital audio, portable computers, and applications like [max/msp] have made the quick prototyping, thorough testing, and eventual mastery of completely new instruments more accessible than ever. And I have embraced the opportunity.
The majority of the instruments I have created demand a technical proficiency on some level or another — in this way the instrument always require growth and keeps me endlessly curious about what *could be* possible. Leaving a little room for “error” makes for a much more compelling live experience. And these “errors” can lead to completely new sonic opportunities.
Realtree
Realtree is a band made up of cello (Michelle Kinney), cornet (Noah Ophoven-Baldwin), clarinet(Carley Olson Kokal), electric guitar (Adam Zahller), and laptop (me). We focus on performing songs that use monophonic and timer-controlled compositions as temporal structures for improvisations.
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Material for each song originates from previous performances, miscellaneous audio, or simply other songs. Noah transcribes excerpts and uses them as building blocks for the compositions. Realtree's previous release, "Splendor Falls on Everything Around" (Public Eyesore Records), has been described as “quite orderly” (The Wire) and “totally captivating” (Vital Weekly).
I developed a suite of stand-alone max-msp patches applications that can be used on their own, or in tandem as an expressive meta-instrument ideal for improvised settings. I'm able to capture live input for processing, visceral sonic sculpting, and novel synthesis techniques on the fly. I also recorded and mixed Realtree's debut record and recently released “Shake the Hourglass About.”
Slo Dance
Founded by Artistic Director and Choreographer Laura Osterhaus, Slo Dance Company finds its footing in the importance of Slowness, a practice of slowing down the speed of our lives in contrast with the fast-pace of society, and finding a space for performers to explore their own authentic presence. In collaboration with Laura, I apply the Slo Practice to my music making process, generating novel collaborative sonic scores for slo dance company's live performances.
The Slo Practice works to reclaim the institutionalized perception of time through hypersensitivity to our own embodiment in any given context and expresses itself through movement. Practicing intentional slowness encourages us to feel our internal pace in contrast to the demands of capitalism. In this way, we can utilize slowness in relationships as a countercultural practice that allows time to be an elusive variable, focusing on care in any given process of building, creating, or being together.
ANOMALOUS_U
“Every moment in your life has led to this moment. Embrace the ANOMALOUS and relish in the infinite depths of YOU with ANOMALOUS_U.”
Created in partnership with Alana Horton and commissioned by Red Eye Theater as part of New Works 4 Weeks Festival 2021, ANOMALOUS_U is a participatory performance experience exploring self-help and self-understanding through several perception-of-perception guided meditation modules.
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For the festival iteration, participants received texts that included links and instructions which guided them through the “performance” over the course of 10 days, which unfolded through phone calls, websites, and audio experiences.
As a piece created during a time when it seemed like everything was being mediated through a screen (aka ~*Peak COVID*~), we very much enjoyed making a work that encouraged and enabled participants to look and explore within and be as authentically present as possible, requiring as little active screen time as possible through the use of phone calls and embedded web audio, and allowing them to access the material at any time that was convenient for them.
Fitter Perception
“If our perceptual systems evolved by natural selection, then the probability that we see reality as it actually is, in any way, is zero. Precisely zero.” — Cognitive Scientist Donald Hoffman
Reality isn't shaped like a story — but we can't help but perceive it as one. This constant dissonance was at the question at the root of fitter perception, a performance that explored the contradictions embedded in the liminal space between our minds, bodies, and machines. This is a piece about storylessness, a journey without a destination, a practice of abstraction, a metaphor of self. Created in partnership with Alana Horton and commissioned by Red Eye Theater as part of New Works 4 Weeks Festival 2018
Alone-a
An ever evolving max/msp patch commissioned by and developed in partnership with Alana Horton, Alone-a is a solo exploratory sonic project that explores the limits of memory and moment through vast tapestries of digital delays, small found objects and voice, and densely rich signal processing. every audible sound generated by this application is derived solely from the Alana's live input to surprising, chaotic, and ecstatic ends.