Couple of ear-bending slabs of early tape music today, courtesy of French musique concrète pioneer Pierre Henry (1927-2017). Taking up most of this 80s CD is the 48 minute Variations Pour Une Porte Et Un Soupir - it's in 25 sections but all runs as one track, so can be a bit daunting to approach, but it's well worth getting immersed in. The 'variations for a door and a sigh', with a musical saw in there too, were assembled in 1963 from Henry using this small group of basic sounds, manipulating them on tape and with various effects, to turn a squeaky attic door into a veritable orchestra of different tonal qualities.
Skipping back a decade for the second track on the disc, Voile D'Orphee (Veil of Orpheus) is one of the primordial pieces of tape music that still sounds extraordinary today - it's like a proto-Nurse With Wound track, but dates back to a time when Steven Stapleton was only four years old. Voices, orchestration and a harpsichord are twisted out of shape over 15 minutes of stunning, groundbreaking sound-shifting, to evoke the epic tragedy of the Greek myth that gives the piece its title.
pw: sgtg
Thanks for posting this, Alan - I can't get enough Pierre Henry. Funnily enough, I've recently been remembering my trip to Liverpool's Catholic Cathedral in 2017 to hear the 'Messe De Liverpool' performed in its entirety for the first time (things didn't work out properly for its performance at the building's opening in 1967). It was great stuff, sound blasting out of 40 speakers arranged in a circle as the evening sun filtered through the stained glass.
ReplyDeleteSounds like an incredible experience! Must explore Henry more, I'm still just scratching the surface.
Deleteand its a big surface to scratch, i can't keep trackof what i have and what i don't.
ReplyDeletethanks forthe poet of the creaking door
roberth