BEGINS SOFTLY!
Harrison Birtwistle's tape piece Chronometer, realized by Peter Zinovieff, was composed for eight channel sound projection from two half-inch four track tapes to be played simultaneously. Zinovieff wriites: "Chronometer 71 is a 1971 piece that comprises recordings of clocks in London's Big Ben and Wells Cathedral in Somerset. These were sequenced to a graphical score by Birtwistle using Zinovieff's studio system to control several tape machines, much like an early sampler. The piece was created in Zinovieff’s second Putney studio, Musys, set up in the basement of 49 Deodar Road."
In its first performance in the Queen Elizabeth Hall on 24 Apr.1972, equipment malfunction forced a four channel version to be played as a substitute. And so, as sound designer/projectionist for London Sinfonietta in the 90s, I was privileged to present the first and only live public performance of the eight-track version in St. John's Smith Square, a perfect location with its generous acoustic and its two long facing side balconies for the speakers. I recorded the performance with a centrally located Calrec Soundfield Ambisonic microphone, with the surround ultimately encoded to two channel UHJ. This is the recording, which I have produced as a video. Thanks as always to Phil Keymer for technical assistance.
A stereo reduction of the eight tracks is here: • Chronometer '71
21 авг 2024
