R h y t h m i c S t u d y 4b for two Toy Pianos and one Player
D A N I E L
M O R E I R A
“Ludvan ven Beethowig”
R h y t h m i c S t u d y 4b“Ludvan ven Beethowig” For two Toy Pianos and one Player
PROGRAM
NOTES
English 1: The “Rhythmic Study 4” is music about music. It is entirely build with materials extracted from the (in)famous prelude “Für Elise” from Beethoven and deconstructs this oversaturated monument leaving little place for identification. Unfulfilled expectations perpetrate the work and transform this object, which was once so intimate to us, into an odd, not always welcome, stranger. However, there are fugitive moments where this object regains its lost resemblance and we can feel ourselves once more in a safe, familiar place. These momentary – but ephemeral - pleasures are a source of relief and apparent satisfaction… but only because they soon will be abandoned.
PERFORMANCE
English 2: Even though scored for an acoustic instrument (the Toy Piano), the piece Rhythmic Study 4 is largely composed based on digital audio techniques as sampling, cutting, pasting and splicing. It resembles the effect of a scratched CD, with unforeseeable loops and sudden jumping points. The piece is dedicated to John Oswald who in the 80’s – even before the break of the digital revolution – created the Plunderphonics, who quoted and subverted known pop tunes into new compositions. Rhythmic Study 4 applies this compositional approach to an acoustic, classical medium. The subtitle - Ludvan ven Beethowig – is an allusion to Oswald’s practice of creating titles based on anagrams of the artists he quoted.
Deutsch: Dieses Werk ist eine Hommage an John Oswald, der am Anfang der 80er Jahre - noch vor dem Ausbruch der digitalen Revolution sich mit Mashups, Cutting&Pasting, Sampling sowie mit Fragen des geistigen Eigentums in der Popkultur kreativ und humorvoll beschäftigt hat. Diese von ihm behandelten Themen und Techniken würden fast dreißig Jahre später eine ganze Generation von Komponisten - auch wenn manchmal indirekt - sehr stark prägen. Die Titel seiner Werke (die oft aus überbekannten Pop Liedern von u.a. Michael Jackson, Beatles, James Brown gebaut oder "mashed up" sind) bestehen aus Anagrammen, die dem Publikum die Ausgangsmaterialien bzw. die Zitatquellen verraten. Der noch lebende John Oswald weiß selbst noch nicht von dieser Hommage. Hier ist seine E-Mail Adresse, falls ihr, lieber Zuschauer, ihn darauf aufmerksam machen möchtet: sales@pfony.com
INSTRUCTIONS (moderate)
Three main Tempi are presented in the piece in constant interchange:
(fast) (presto)
A number inside a square indicates how many times a bar should be played:
= Play the bar 4 times
The piece should be performed on two identical toy pianos with at least the following range:
For rhythmical guidance a recording of the piece can be send upon request at daniel@daniel-moreira.com
(ex. Schoenhut’s 37 Key Concert Grand)