Bergsland’s natural premise and central zone, and Lane’s real-world experience, seem to overlap, to some extent. It seems that Bergsland’s natural premise is somewhat stronger; you can probably move away from the intelligibly speaking radio voice and still perceive a voice sound as a real world sound. Still, the movement from the central zone towards the peripheral zone is also, for me, experienced as moving from the real world towards a more abstract world. The range between these two zones or ‘worlds’, and the potential for play within it, is something that I recognise as being a musical parameter in my own work. I will exemplify this by looking at the improvisation “Spring is like a perhaps hand” and focusing on these zones.
Example III, 3: “Spring is like a perhaps hand”, from the CD Numb, number BOL + Snah & Westerhus 2012
This improvisation has a text, a poem by E.E. Cummins, as a starting point. I work with the words of the text in four different ways:
– 0.20: The text (meaning) spoken in a natural real world mode, a central zone.
– 1.18 A more sound-oriented use of the text, repeating it, reciting it more rapidly and floating, and also using a pitch-shift effect that makes it less natural, less meaningful, and more peripheral.
– 2.07 A more traditional, musical element: a melodic “refrain” using a repeated line from the text (meaning). Using unnatural pitch-shifting, and singing the words instead of talking, I experience this as a step away from the natural/real world. I am somewhere between; moving towards the peripheral, but still with a very recognisable voice sound.
– 4.02 A whispered natural text (meaning) brought “close” by using a compressor, resembles the real world, moving towards the central zone.
This improvisation, in my experience, moves between different zones/worlds, and with a varied perception of text/meaning throughout the piece. It is obvious that this improvisation would be very different without my use of effects and a compressor. It is also clear that the use of effects cannot be understood as an isolated parameter, but is strongly interrelated with how I use my voice. Finally, the interplay with the band is of great importance as regards both the choice of sounds and the way I use my voice. Still, it is clear to me that the experience of unnaturalness, or abstraction, and also the experience of nearness, relates to the perceived meaning and real world.
08/02/2012
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