Conscious Pilots (2019)

collaborative multimedia with Kyle Burkart

In the fall of 2019, my friend Kyle Burkart - a visual artist based in Illinois - reached out to me about this collaborative project. Kyle served as the artistic director for what would be a display of sculpture, animation, space, and sound. The exhibition would focus on the superficial, sometimes artificial nature of human expression - the idea that we, as humans, tend to put up an emotional façade in unknown or professional situations, only revealing our truest selves to loved ones.

The live event was unfortunately cancelled, but it was meant to proceed as follows: four metal sculptures of contrasting form, each suggesting a gesture or mask reminiscent of the human face, would be positioned at opposing corners of one room. Animated textures of light would be projected onto the sculptures, giving them a new sense of motion and composite visual impression. My role was to “score” each sculpture, providing each with a different audio track to loop throughout the duration of the event.

Standing at any point in the room, one would be able hear all four tracks at any time; however, the observer’s physical orientation and proximity to any given sculpture would determine which ones were heard more strongly. The result is a complex counterpoint of sound: each sculpture with its own distinct sonic identity, yet all four tracks always contributing to the experience. No two tracks are the same duration, so the looping does not line up from one track to any other at any time - thus, each moment in time is fully unique.

Though this experience cannot be fully reproduced online, a one-hour, spatialized stereo mix of the full score is presented below, together with a playlist of each individual component. Artwork by Kyle Burkart: www.kyleburkart.com.

These Sound Woods (2019/2020)

8-channel fixed media; scratchboard animation by Anya Vaughn

Originally, These Sounds Woods was an electronic work I wrote for 8-channel surround sound to be presented on a recital at Indiana University. Some months later, one of my longest-standing friends - Anya Vaughn - reached out about creating a visual work out of the piece. Anya is an accomplished animator and illustrator, so after an enthusiastic “yes” from me, she created the following visual rendition using experimental scratchboard techniques for her senior thesis at MICA. Note that the piece has been mixed down to stereo format for web playback, losing the effect of depth that would be experienced in person.

Program note for the original 8-channel piece:

These Sound Woods came about through a particular musical obsession of mine. In certain songs within the popular music umbrella, the voice is processed in such a way that it attains a mechanical, inhuman quality (through vocoding and pitch tracking). Artists who utilize these techniques usually do so to add an alienated yet, paradoxically, intimate character to their songs.

Thus, this piece revolves around exploring such techniques. After an ethereal introduction, we hear strange, glitchy melodic lines emerging one by one. Eventually, we experience a full chorus of these peculiar “voices”. Then, these lines are further processed, bent, and distorted until the opening chorus returns in a shout.

These “voices” are, indeed, derived from recordings of my own voice. After singing the individual lines (ripped directly from a choral work of mine), these sounds were processed with DSP software which tracks the pitch and amplitude of my voice. The resultant data was used to generate sine tones following the contour of my voice, which were further processed to attain the odd, synth-like tone heard in the final piece.

This method resulted in some peculiar glitches and blatant intonation errors. Eventually, I decided not to reject those imperfections, but to embrace them. I find them endearing, and they add a lot to the raw, intimate character of the piece.

The title contains a threefold meaning. Firstly, it is meant to reflect the peculiar ambiences heard in the work, as though we are in the midst of some alien woods. Secondly, on a metaphorical level, it might reflect the mind of the artist, thoughts running rampant yet falling into some semblance of order (“sound” meaning “secure”). Finally, it is meant as an homage to two tunes whose sounds inspired the piece: “Sound” by Sylvan Esso and “Woods” by Bon Iver.

Stereo mix of the piece for web playback:

A Dose of Black (2018)

film by Sanyam Dawar, scored for live chamber ensemble by Matt Ridge

From filmmaker Sanyam Dawar:

"Victoria wakes up from a nightmare after a heavy night of intoxication. As she puts different pieces of the puzzle together, they dissolve into a horrific reality. A Dose of Black merges imagination, memory, and reality, drawing upon the power of mind and, perhaps, its frailty."

**CONTENT WARNING: Depictions of self-harm and depression**

Recorded February 17, 2018 at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music - Georgina Joshi Recording Studio