Nadir, prepared guitar by Apostolos Paraskevas, 2002

Apostolos Paraskevas performs his piece Nadir for prepared guitar at Berklee College of Music in 2002..Nadir (1994) is written for "prepared" guitar, a term usually associated with a piano in which certain objects have been placed on the strings in order to alter the conventional sound of the instrument. Many composers have written music for "prepared" piano, among them John Cage, who, according to Mr. Paraskevas, was the inspiration for his transferring of the same technique to the guitar. It is quite possible that nobody has used this kind of technique on the guitar before. After experimenting with various materials, he decided on the use of two metal paper clips, which he puts at specific locations on the fingerboard, so that they best produce the desired sound effect, a sound both harmonic and percussive. Nadir suggests the lowest point, here associated with the notion of death. The piece bears many programmatic references to the struggle between good and evil, life and death, musically portrayed in the persistent ostinato rhythms and the fragmented melodic phrases. Death cuts through in the form of an abrupt strike on the wood, the fingers continue to play but no sound is heard, until two more strikes make their movement stop. Little by little life and sound start again, but the final strike brings about the pessimistic message that fate and death predominate in the end. The piece ends with the inscription "...but sooner or later we live forever" - a final optimistic touch. Nadir was the outcome of continuous experimentation on the capabilities of the guitar as an instrument, and all the potential sound effects that one can draw from it.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Apostolos
• Paraskevas
• Greek-American
• composer/guitarist
• Nadir
• prepared
• guitar
• paper
• clips

[what567]

Is that a chapman I see on the stand next to the performer?

[classicalguild]

yes, indeed! it is Chapman guitar

[pinholedstars]

how did he prepare the guitar?

[classicalguild]

paper clips on the first 4 strings, near the bridge. the work is published by berben/Italy

[albbster]

Very beautiful.

[CodyRicheson]

@seanearnest, then listen to music that has a beat. If you think you're supposed to groove to this, you're missing the point. It's not the same kind of aesthetic as pop or dance or rock music.

[seanearnest]

....yeah, but give me a BEAT I can groove to.

[sdwilliams777]

put the headphones on and listen with your eyes shut... I saw this a month ago or so and didn't think too much about it. Ran into it again and listened without watching, its totally different.

[AmericanDiaz]

great piece!

[HerrDeLaney]

haven't you ever heard of Harry Partch?

[muaddib1st]

I love prepared guitar!

[bazookascrew]

John Cage???

[dadalaidou]

...also one could say, --it does not go anywhere --but not in a static way so that's a problem

[dadalaidou]

totally true, among other, concerning guitar improvisers --and I know what I speak about.

prepared sounds sound nice but I don't like too much the mix with composition with natural sounds --especially octavias and repetitive open idiomatic guitar string