The Genealogy of Transfigured Wind

Home | Introduction
I. Sources II. Form & Process III. Computer Cues IV. Combinations & Conclusions

IV. Combinations and Conclusions

Recordings of two of the Transfigured Wind series are provided in their entirety in this section:

Transfigured Wind III, for solo flute, chamber orchestra, and computer sound, and
Transfigured Wind IV, for solo flute and computer sound.

The Computer Cues in Musical Context

Aligned with these recordings at precisely the correct moments in time, are the computer cues (or what the documentation refers to as Tape cues: I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IVa, and IVb) meant to be joined with either a solo flutist or a chamber orchestra and soloist in order to evoke the composer's imagined result. The visitor can listen to particular sections, comparing the computer sound alone with the way it functions musically in two contrasting contexts (chamber orchestra and solo flute).

Complete Recording: Transfigured Wind IV

113 - A complete recording of Transfigured Wind IV
[As recorded by Harvey Sollberger and released on Neuma CD 450-74]

The computer materials participate in a performance of Transfigured Wind IV during five passages. These are precisely aligned with the flute and computer sound composite so that a visitor can compare the computer sound in isolation with its effect in the parallel musical context.

The five cues follow, in isolation, and then in context with their parallel instrumental passages:

@ 1:26.850

114 - Cue 1 (1:57)
115 - Cue 1 in context (1:57)

@ 3:36.117

116 - Cue 2 (2:14)
117 - Cue 2 in context (2:13)

@ 8:33.5

118 - Cue 3 (2:01.5)
119 - Cue 3 in context (2:01.5)

@ 11:25.526

120 - Cue 4 (3:57)
121 - Cue 4 in context (3:57)

@ 15:22.333

122 - Cue 5 (2:34)
123 - Cue 5 in context (2:34)

Complete Recording: Transfigured Wind III

124 - A complete recording of Transfigured Wind III
[As recorded by soloist Rachel Rudich, conductor Harvey Sollberger, and the June-in-Buffalo Sinfonietta. Released on Neuma CD 450-102]

The computer materials participate in a performance of Transfigured Wind III during six passages.

These are precisely aligned with the flute and computer sound composite so that a visitor can compare the computer sound in isolation with its effect in the parallel musical context.

@ 1:44.717

125 - Tape Cue I (1:31.5)
126 - Tape Cue I in context (1:31.5)

@ 6:03.389

127 - Tape Cue II (2:14.5)
128 - Tape Cue II in context (2:14.5)

@ 10:58.258

129 - Tape Cue IIIa (2:56.5)
130 - Tape Cue IIIa in context (2:56.5)

@ 14:39.139

131 - Tape Cue IIIb (2:04)
132 - Tape Cue IIIb in context (2:04)

@ 18:47.537

133 - Tape Cue IVa (3:58)
134 - Tape Cue IVa in context (3:59.5)

@ 23:22.904

135 - Tape Cue IVb (10:35.5)
136 - Tape Cue IVb in context (11:21)

[NB: As a result of the complex history of the Transfigured Wind series, several versions of each cue were computed at different times and these have slight differences. The computer segments aligned with the two full recordings above have been adjusted from their "ideal" form, as presented in the previous section (see III. Computer Cues).]

The Transfigured Wind Project

The documents below describe the creative and administrative task undertaken then -- in medias res -- as well as the resources required. It is accurate and also revealing to note that this work was undertaken at a moment in history when the collaborative and multi-disciplinary field of computer music was in its relative infancy. Many processes (such as sound file editing) that now seem elementary and are available on almost any computer were then – in the time-sharing world of the DEC PDP 11-55 computer -- still inaccurate and clumsy.

Figure 95 - A sketched out budget proposal. The project was funded by a large grant to CARL at UCSD from the Systems Development Foundation.
Figure 96 - A document that served as an interim review of the project with commentary. [page 2 - page 3 - page 4 - page 5 - page 6] The addressees here are UCSD Music Department Professor F. Richard Moore (frm) and CARL Systems Manager, Dr. Gareth Loy (dgl). The text includes new comments and questions as well as quotes from prior email communications. One can get some sense of the procedural complexity of our situation: building and equipping a facility, establishing a staff and its normative procedures, while at the same time learning how to organize and actually accomplish musical goals for which there was very little precedent.
Figure 97 - An informal final report submitted to CARL and CME Director, F. R. Moore.

Credits

Restoration and transfers from analog tapes to the digital domain: Josef Kucera and Tom Erbe.

Strategic consultation: Trevor Henthorn.

Binaural encoding: Pei Xiang.

Original sound materials performed by Harvey Sollberger.

Recordings (1983): Ron Quillin.

Neuma Records permissions: Shirish Korde

C. F. Peters Corporation copyright owners of Transfigured Wind III and IV.