22:48 Minutes of Pure Moog

[emdot_ambient]

Realizations Of Absolutism, Vol. 1

I've owned a Minimoog Model D for decades. And this is what I always used it for . . . drone and SFX. There is an extended discussion of how I made these sounds in the tag info of the mp3 file, so if you're into that kind of thing, check it out there.

This track was recorded in 1991 and digitally remastered a few years back. It was included in the 'Field of Drones' at the OM Summer Solstice Festival in Canada.

The full title to this is Realizations Of Absolutism, Vol. 1: Minimoog With EQ System. It was my first attempt at realizing a philosophical idea that came to me one really, really late night while trying to loop a sample. I consider this a failure at achieving that idealistic goal, and I won't go into the whole story, but it led the creation of The Absolutist Manifesto, which begins:

Absolutism Defined:
Absolutism is sound. Sound both intentional and inexplicable: sound that strikes to the heart of perception, abandoning or circumventing the processes by which we classify one sound as noise and another as music. It is a vibration that rattles its way to the core of perception, defying categorization and evoking a direct mental and emotional response. It is sound without the burden of musical templates: transcendent experience achieved through music-beyond-composition, noise-beyond-chaos.

Yeah, I was in a rather idealistic mode at the time. Still, I consider this piece to be the most powerful and spiritual work I've ever done.

[Soniccat]

Cool sounds, would have liked it to evolve a bit more but there are some nice qualities that would make this suitable for an art installation, maybe along the lines of some sort of abstract video.

[daniel-b]

Great, i like it!

[bluedad]

gorgeous! it's going on the disk with your ambient work!

[emdot_ambient]

Cool sounds, would have liked it to evolve a bit more but there are some nice qualities that would make this suitable for an art installation, maybe along the lines of some sort of abstract video.

Thanks for the comments!

Yeah, I'd much rather see this piece used in an art installation or as an environmental sculpture (i.e., an art installation that's out in a public space rather than an art gallery) than I would have it on a CD. In fact, putting it on a CD or even posting it here as "music" kind of defeats the whole idea of Absolutism, but what can you do?

And it's only public appearance until now was in just that kind of setting. I mentioned it was played at the Om Summer Festival in Canada at an installation called Field of Drones. They had a big field with a sound system designed to focus the sound out into the field but not beyond the general confines of the space. People would walk out of the woods hearing very little and then suddenly walk into the sound field of the speakers and suddenly be overwhelmed with loud drone music. They had live shows, DJ's and pre-recorded tracks submitted from all over. The performance was 24 hours a day throughout the whole festival. People ended up camping in the field. Wish I could have gone to it, but I wasn't able to so my piece was used in absentia.

It has more in common, as far as pedigree goes, with the sound sculptures of Alvin Lucier (Music on a Long Thin Wire) or David Tudor (Rainforest) than it does the works of Eno or any other ambient artists. As such, it isn't really supposed to be a composition per se, thus its lack of musical variation. It's a process, and it's a state of mind. There are changes in the course of the piece, but it's on a longer scale than usual.

Blah, blah, blah.

[emdot_ambient]

Thanks, daniel-b and bluedad! I'm really very attached to this piece and it's so nice to hear others connect with it.

[herodotus]

A world in a wave.

An interesting world.

8)8)8)

[emdot_ambient]

A world in a wave.

An interesting world.

8)8)8)

but does it sound like a Mini?

[Soniccat]

Cool sounds, would have liked it to evolve a bit more but there are some nice qualities that would make this suitable for an art installation, maybe along the lines of some sort of abstract video.

Thanks for the comments!

Yeah, I'd much rather see this piece used in an art installation or as an environmental sculpture (i.e., an art installation that's out in a public space rather than an art gallery) than I would have it on a CD. In fact, putting it on a CD or even posting it here as "music" kind of defeats the whole idea of Absolutism, but what can you do?

And it's only public appearance until now was in just that kind of setting. I mentioned it was played at the Om Summer Festival in Canada at an installation called Field of Drones. They had a big field with a sound system designed to focus the sound out into the field but not beyond the general confines of the space. People would walk out of the woods hearing very little and then suddenly walk into the sound field of the speakers and suddenly be overwhelmed with loud drone music. They had live shows, DJ's and pre-recorded tracks submitted from all over. The performance was 24 hours a day throughout the whole festival. People ended up camping in the field. Wish I could have gone to it, but I wasn't able to so my piece was used in absentia.

It has more in common, as far as pedigree goes, with the sound sculptures of Alvin Lucier (Music on a Long Thin Wire) or David Tudor (Rainforest) than it does the works of Eno or any other ambient artists. As such, it isn't really supposed to be a composition per se, thus its lack of musical variation. It's a process, and it's a state of mind. There are changes in the course of the piece, but it's on a longer scale than usual.

Blah, blah, blah.

Yea I thought this had that kind of vibe. I am an enibition preparator/designer and have installed many pieces that included sound that was less compositional and more to do with sonic interactiveness. This reminds me a bit of a piece a couple of years ago that consisted of over a thousand light bulbs pulsing to the drone that was created from a mic put out on the street, picking up cars and people walking by, and then processed with multiple delays which created a weird droning wash that sounded like ambient synth music.

[herodotus]

A world in a wave.

An interesting world.

8)8)8)

but does it sound like a Mini?

Mini Ripperton?

[emdot_ambient]

A world in a wave.

An interesting world.

8)8)8)

but does it sound like a Mini?

Mini Ripperton?

Was thinking more like
But maybe Mini Ripperton sounds different than I thought

[emdot_ambient]

Cool sounds, would have liked it to evolve a bit more but there are some nice qualities that would make this suitable for an art installation, maybe along the lines of some sort of abstract video.

Thanks for the comments! Blah, blah, blah

Yea I thought this had that kind of vibe. I am an enibition preparator/designer and have installed many pieces that included sound that was less compositional and more to do with sonic interactiveness. This reminds me a bit of a piece a couple of years ago that consisted of over a thousand light bulbs pulsing to the drone that was created from a mic put out on the street, picking up cars and people walking by, and then processed with multiple delays which created a weird droning wash that sounded like ambient synth music.

Nearly missed this comment. Thanks for listening!

Cool! I've always wanted to do those kinds of installations. I started my creative life as a painter and sculptor, so gallery installations are always appealing. I really like the idea of using non-art related public spaces for sound installations. They surprise people with an aesthetic experience when they weren't expecting it. That's often the most rewarding type of experience, the unexpected.

[Amberience]

I'm really tired right now, gonna let this mellow me out and sleep. Will leave some comments after!

[Benedict]

Tagged for future listenin

[Amberience]

This kinda gave me the fear in a few places.

But I liked it Emdot. I listened to it as I was falling asleep. Made for an interesting dream, which has inspired a song, so thanks