The Art of Interpretation

A collaboration between Stephen Emmerson (pianist) and Paul Draper (sound producer), this excerpt from Schoenbergs 3 Piano Pieces Op. 11 draws upon on various interpretive strategies including analysis, reflection, and the use of Schoenbergs paintings to highlight certain aspects of the performance and recording. The project is based on the premise that a recording is not music itself, rather, is a virtual artefact through which an interpretation can be manipulated and enhanced through deliberate interference in the recording and post-production processes.

The piano itself was tracked using some sixteen microphones spaced at different positions throughout the hall which enabled multiple perspectives to be attained, then in post-production was 'vertically arranged' and through the use of Digital Signal Processing (DSP) in ways similar to that of orchestration. In contrast to the usual practice where classical piano recordings maintain a single sound and perspective, this project explores the ways in the researcher's interpretation of the music can be expanded and communicated through these manipulations of the sound recordings.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• music
• research
• paul draper
• stephen emmerson