The book of scenes
SR224
novembre 2005
David Shea, sampler
Vincent Royer, alto
Jean-Philippe Collard-Neven, piano
1. 01 Air 1:07
02 Vertical Shapes 2:39
03 OM Chapelle 2:57
04 Prepared 3:15
05 Cadenza Piano 1:08
06 Cadenza Violin 1:49
07 Radio Weekend 1:49
08 Wood 1:34
09 Metal 2:02
10 Water / Fire 1:24
11 Time 0:53
12 Crossings 0:44
13 Walkabout 0:50
14 Machines 0:51
15 I C 0:49
16 Spaces 3:06
17 Air Jungle 1:03
18 Exotique 1:12
19 Alternation 2:08
20 Memory Lane 1:17
21 Sunrise 2:16
22 Drumming 2:02
23 Spaces 1:29
24 Heartbeat 1:05
25 Bows 1:42
26 Dangerous Ground 2:18
27 Chase 2:17
28 Harmony 2:02
29 Elegy 2:20
The Book of Scenes is a collection of pieces for Viola and Piano. Each piece is a single scene and scored on a single page and places the players and the instrument in different situations and relationships to each other and sampled recordings of themselves as well as the electronic environment the duo perform in. Thework can be played in any order and the sequence is chosen before hand by the the players. The scenes explore solo and duo playing, and musical roles inside of shifting contexts many related to visual references, films and iconic memories. This record presents Book I the first 29 pieces performed live with some scenes constructed electronically from samples and memories of other scenes. Many of the sections are visual in nature, for example where the alto player bows his instrument while the pianist places his hands on the viola neck and chooses the notes to be played followed by the alto player placing his hands inside the piano to mute the pianist notes as well as a scene where the players are blindfolded. These scenes have been replaced by electronic manipulations of the live performance. The result is a flow of relationships and scored or scripted scenes living between the orchestration of the acoustic instruments and the electronic characters they engage with.