New Student Works Concert reserved

A program of melancholic and safe works holds no surprises

The New Student Works concert on Wednesday night proved to be a mellow experience with relatively few surprises, as compared to previous concerts. With three recitals of student works left in the semester, this concert presented pieces that showed a creative development over the course of the year. Pieces ranged from spoken word to tape, lacing the evening with a variety of interesting textures.

The first piece of the evening was senior Jarred McAdam's for voice, wind chimes, and electric fan. Additional information about the piece was read by the performer, and this turned out to be the piece itself. The text resembled a passage from an instruction book on the art of breathing. The performer, who was Jarred himself, altered his voice when speaking as the "instructor" and then as the pupil. The audience was strongly encouraged to add to the music as well as being pupils themselves. Different ranges of dynamics, tempo, rhythm and vocal quality held the audience's interest with changing timbres. However, these ideas were presented and repeated for too long a time. The audience eventually began to lose interest in listening as well as participating. The sometimes-humorous piece which included snippets of the popular song "Take My Breath Away" and anecdotes on halitosis amused the audience even though McAdams instructed that there was to be "no silliness." The piece was effective in its presentation, but tedious in its repetitive nature.

Guitar samples were the basis of the next piece, "Shatter" by junior Jim Altieri. The manipulation of a string sample produced mechanical motor sounds, which ultimately built a granular texture. These harsh sounds developed and thickened in a bell-curve form. The sound was the most dense in the middle of the piece and the notes were interspersed with more and more silence towards the end. Near the final, long rests became more important than the pitches as the audience waited out the gradual decay. Texturally the piece had a strong form, but left the audience in the dark in the areas of harmonic and melodic development.

Senior Manu Vimalassery's On the Cut (Aceyalone-Guidelines, Dr. Octagon-Earth People Boogie Down Productions-The Bridge is Over, Reflection Eternal-Fortified Live), was not nearly as complicated as its title. The piece, written for amplified harpsichord, grew more complex and melodically interesting throughout. The start of the piece consisted of a three-note motive, which was manipulated by changing the order of the pitches with few of the other elements changing. A five-note motive was then heard in a canon style between the left and right hand. Slowly the motives became denser, creating a beautiful rich texture of interlocking of melodies. The development of rhythms different from the beginning captured the audience's attention. Overall, the piece was effective especially near the conclusion when it grew farthest away from the original formless three-note motive.

Messages were being fired off everywhere inside the audiences' bodies and minds during College Junior Rajarshi Das's "Axon Release" for tape. The tonal composition consisted of a definite bass line with breathy colors including flute sounds. With the addition of percussion, the piece took on a driving feeling with a danceable techno rhythm. However, the rhythm was not so repetitive like a traditional discotheque dance tune. It had wonderfully morphing rhythmic patterns, which could represent Das's idea of nerve cells releasing. Overall, the piece had an eerie quality, which was evoked by disjunct, minor, descending melodies in the flute sounds and bells. The melodies seemed formless and lost the listener. The regular rhythms and tonalities gave the audience a sense of familiarity, which ultimately made the piece very effective.

The next piece was very calculated in design. Sophomore Joshua McFadden built Todestanz der Beutelmause upon simple functions, as well as layering complex functions. The piece consisted of experimentation of register and timbre with modulating pitch patterns. The experimentation of register was very effective in showing off extreme spectrals in the upper range which buzzed beautifully in the listener's ear and did the opposite in the lower range. Organ-like electronic sounds formed the basis of the pitches. Overall, the extreme registers interlaced with overlapping and unfolding melodic patterns (functions) produced a treat for the ear as well as the mind.

Junior Katherine Miller's selected transmissions, was a taped piece was a tasteful presentation of "a continuously morphing texture," as described by the composer. Miller built the piece entirely of saxophone samples, which were manipulated to the point that they sounded like flutes, basses, and even a type of percussion. The flowing wash of sound with a repetitive bass, and slightly changing dissonant chords induced a sort of trance state. The listener became enveloped by a warm watery pool with rain-stick like sounds creating a sort of percussion. The texture became denser throughout the piece and constantly pushed forward towards the middle where all elements increased in dynamics and "business." An air of exoticism flowed thorough the entire piece. Finally the listener is led to a state of rest in Miller's very effective work.

Finally, the evening was concluded with sophomore Vin Calianno's Neptuna Voluptuosa, a piece for four pianos. The sequel to a modern day Kama Sutra consisted of tonal chords flowing in a Debussy-like manner. A far-away, dream-like quality was produced by the "muted" pianos, which were played behind the wooden wall on the stage in Warner Concert Hall. The sensuality of the piece was spoiled with the added banging which was produced by dropping objects behind and in front of the audience. This came as a disconcerting jolting surprise to the listener who was just becoming intoxicated by the beautiful harmonies and a clear, melancholic bass line. The minimalist piece spun out a more detached-dreamy quality rather than erotic. Brushing the strings and sprinkling objects into the open pianos produced a smoky texture interspersed with tinkling harp-like effects. The haunting conclusion tastefully buttoned up this intoxicating, but still disturbing piece.

The concert was an effective experience overall, providing a treat for the senses by interweaving the tonal, the melodic, as well as acoustic and taped pieces. The concert was tasteful and mellow; it was a meditation for the listener. The evening presented intense musical creativity but it was not heavily attended, although it should have been. The concert had some very commanding moments, with too much repetition in some pieces being the only downfall.