Initial Reaction
ABSTRACTION is the art of distorting media or commonly understood articles of society in order to give them new meaning. Abstract arts comes in various different forms, often adopting different labels, the most prominent being experimental film, expressionist painting, and most of that which is often referred to as the "avant garde". Typically abstraction is characterized as something that goes against the mainstream, also euphemised as "poetic".
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QUESTIONS FOR ANALYSIS OF ABSTRACT SOUND
Focusing on : "Tyler_M_Rhythm2_Fri.wav"
1) This rhythm piece definitely emphasizes sequentiality. It establishes a couple simple study sounds that a student might hear and then adds to the sequences by slowly tacking on more sounds through 45 seconds of playtime. The structure is very simple but effective, as it's clear that one element was added to the sequence of already established sounds in order to build the rhythm.
2) For about two thirds of the piece, there are several small gaps of silent that break up the repeated sequences. The silences are more noticeable at first, as they slowly become unnoticeable after more elements are aded to the sequence. The dynamic range is quite diverse, since the levels of the sound bytes start small and insignificant and then grow louder and more prevalent as new elements are added. Although the beat remains constant through the whole piece, the illusion that it's getting faster is created as the more clips and added and the sounds becomes much busier.
The sound quality of several of the sounds is slightly distorted, probably because the mic was held too close. The duration also feels quite short, as a gradual build in the sequence never comes to a full climax and ends abruptly.
3) I don't feel too strongly about this piece. I appreciate the obvious concentration that went into pacing and the gradual layering of sounds, but ultimately the piece was too short and too cluttered to compel me or to communicate clearly the artist's motive. I came to the conclusion through the sighs and the crumpling of paper that there was a message of frustration in school work. If I had to guess, the piece is an abstraction of the emotions that a college student might go through during a late night of heavy schoolwork. Althoguh I do believe this message would be stronger if there was a more eclectic choice of sounds, in particular a shift of tone. All the sounds are very harsh sounding, which made it redundant.
4) Despite my above sentiments, the project did meet the criteria of objective 1-3. It's emphasis is clear, it experimented with variations of of silences, range, pace, and accent, and it transitioned well, with no glaring gaps that disrupted my listening experiences.
BONUS QUESTION
My thoughts and beliefs on abstraction are still the same, but I have been exposed to a wide variety of examples of abstractions since class began. It have given me some new ideas and has made me very excited to complete this project!
The idea of the spectrum, ranging between rhythmic based abstraction and ones based on pitch/tone/timbre are interesting, but I confess that I am not completely clear, and wish that I was! I have done my fair share of dabbling in the rhythmic side of the spectrum, and I sincerely want to do something on the other side. At this point in my career, if possible, I'd like to make something that I could one day use.
Question for Anne…
The idea of using harmonic tones or pitches and juxtaposing them with other sound abstractions is very appealing to me. I want to make something that is smooth and flowing and easy to listen to, but I feel like there will still be a rhythm, a specific succession, of the piece no matter what end of the spectrum I emphasize. I want to make sure my emphasis is clear. Am I thinking too much about this?
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