TimeTexture
Leon Milo
About this work:
In “Time Texture “ for solo piano and electro-acoustic sounds, the pianist and the taped electronic “orchestra” are equal partners. They are inseperable.
The sounds on the tape were derived from a variety of sources: Sampled pianos (including recorded extracts from the pianist’s part), percussion instruments, wind instruments, strings, synthetic sounds, bird song and other sources have been used alone, cross synthesised , granulated or otherwise modified to create Time Texture’s sound world.
At times, these hybrid instruments (piano strikes and sustains, metal instruments, wood instruments, granulated waveforms, etc., ) were loaded into samplers and performed directly into the piece, contrasting with a sometimes strictly (algoryhtmic) structured piano writing. At other times the electronics being the structured element serves as the basis for an improvisational piano style.
The Piece was commissioned by Leonard Stein’s “Piano Spheres” concert series in Los Angeles for the pianist Gloria Cheng.
Some of the synthesis tools to create this piece come from IRCAM in Paris and my thanks to composer Curtis Roads for granular synthesis and other valuable techniques, software developer Nicolas Deichner for his technical assistance, Leonard Stein, Betty Freeman... and to Gloria Cheng, to whom this piece is dedicated.
Leon Milo.
Paris, 2002.
Year composed: 1997
Duration: 08:00:20
Ensemble type: Keyboard:Piano
Instrumentation:
Instrumentation notes: Piano and electronics via playback