Jeremy Rosenstock
the stone and the shred for electric guitar and stone
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Program Notes This work is part of an investigation into the use of natural objects in acoustic music. Within this, it is also part of a series of pieces in which Classical instruments are played and prepared with stones. In this piece, a stone is allowed to drift down the strings of an electric guitar. EBows are placed on two strings, creating a loud drone. When a stone is placed on the droning strings, a sound similar to guitar “shredding” (as found in heavy metal) emerges. Since the guitar is laid at an angle to the ground, the stone and the EBows begin drifting down the instrument. The stone produces a slow, descending glissando, interrupted by bouts of feedback-laden stasis; the EBows’ gradual change in position produces subtle changes in timbre, as different points on the strings become nodes of excitement. Altogether, these descending objects produce an unpredictable balance between flux and stillness, a stillness that prepares the listener for the noise to come. This piece was premiered at the soundpedro Annual Sound Art Festival in 2022.
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Tuning
Performance Notes All accidentals are borrowed from Helmholtz-Ellis JI Pitch Notation, as designed by Marc Sabat and Wolfgang Von Schweinitz. All cent values are in deviation from equal temperament. While the A string of the guitar is traditionally tuned to 110 Hz, it is particularly imperative in this piece so as to induce the proper justly tuned natural seventh that is created when the G string is tuned to 192.5 Hz. The guitar’s body should be placed immediately in front of the amplifier, so as to incite feedback. The body should then be elevated above the head of the guitar, allowing the neck to be somewhat diagonal to the ground. A partial example is included under “Performance Setup Documentation.” The elevation of the body (in relation to the neck and the head) will determine the speed at which the stone drifts down the instrument; the greater the elevation, the faster the glissando and therefore the shorter the performance. For best results, stack books underneath the body to produce whatever elevation/performance length is desired. Regular and long fermatas are used in this piece; regular fermatas are used for all actions other than the stone’s glissandi to the nut. All fermatas without specific durations are left intentionally vague; the only rule regarding fermatas without specific durations is that regular fermatas MUST be shorter than the long fermata. The volume and tone knobs on the amplifier should both be set to whatever levels best induce feedback. It is also acceptable to use an amplifier without a tone knob. Two EBows and one stone are required for this piece. This stone should have a narrow (about 0.5” in length), relatively flat surface whose width is equal to that of the guitar’s neck (about 2”). An example is included under “Stone Documentation.”
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Performance Setup Documentation
Stone Documentation
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the stone and the shred By Jeremy Rosenstock 1. Turn on the amplifier, inducing feedback:
2. Place EBows (in “standard” mode) on the A and G strings. Both EBows should be situated on the neck pickup; if both EBows don’t fit next to one another, allow the G EBow to be closer to the fretboard than the A EBow. Hold both EBows in place to prevent them from drifting down the neck. This action is notated as such:
3. Place the stone on the 12th fret, an octave above the sounding open strings. Let go of the EBows and the stone at the same time, allowing both to drift down the neck. Let the stone slide to the nut (or as close as possible). Do NOT touch the guitar unless the EBows or the stone falls off the instrument; if any of those objects fall off, swiftly return them to their last location on the instrument. Throughout the glissandi, allow for periods of stasis, usually saturated with feedback. This action is notated as such:
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4. Once the stone has drifted to the nut (or as close as possible), lift the guitar body. The neck should now be steeply diagonal to the ground and the head should touch the ground. This will cause the EBows to slide down and off the instrument with haste, knocking the stone off the neck while hitting the nut on the way down. Once this action is completed, return the guitar to its last position. After a moment of feedback, turn off the amplifier to end the piece. This action is notated as such: