music for prepared piano

[FreakAnimalFinland]

Just listened perhaps on of those:

SOPHIE AGNEL "capsizing moments" CD
came out last year. Got couple of her discs. This is CD divided into 3 parts, two c. 20 min pieces and one little less than 10. It's all free improvisation with grand piano, recorded live in concert without overdubs/electronics. All acoustic preparations with objects and materials placed between the strings in order to alter its sound. There is no melody, no harmony really. It is digitally clean, and in few loud moments you realize that yeah, it isn't some PROPER classical music recording, when mics suddenly override by distortion. But overall very clean, very accurate sound how it probably sounded in performance. Liner notes lists things like aluminium ashtrays, nylon fishing lines, disposable watercups, rubber, rocks,..... result is obscure sounds of creaking, banging, screeching, etc. From minimal and quiet to full of thunderous cacophony. I appreciate the wide range of dynamics and sound, although occasionally I'm also feeling the usual dissatisfaction of mere object/instrument improvisation. I start to think what could be achieved if there was a bit more. Perhaps vocals with lyrics? Perhaps few other elements. But then again, the clarity of sound, very natural reverbs of this instruments own nature, and subtle textures would be lost if it was reduced to be some backing noise.

If comparing to something like classic John Cage "music for prepared piano" type of pieces, Sophie does it much better. It is also far superior to many contomporary piano improvisation LP's I've heard. Be it Stockhausen or Xenakis, they lose. This I'd recommend to check out. I'm sure there are others that are good.

(edit: typo corrected)

[Zeno Marx]

So much of this depends on the pianist.  Unfortunately, the bigger, more common names associated with playing Stockhausen and Cage are not the best, but they are the ones most people hear (and from which they form an opinion).  In my view, Cage wasn't done any justice until Steffen Schleiermacher started working on, and recording, his pieces.  I have several volumes from his series, and they're all phenomenal.  All the others I heard, even by reputable labels, leave a lot to be desired.  I wish Schleiermacher would record Stockhausen's Klavierstucke set.  The recording on Wergo by Herbert Henck is the best to date, but I'm positive Schleiermacher would breathe new life into them and finally actualize what was intended.

I'll definitely check out this Sophie Agnel album.  I'm always on the hunt for new piano artists and recordings.

EDIT:  It's AGNEL, not Angel, just in case anyone else is joining the hunt.

[FreakAnimalFinland]

Must give credit still to SOPHIE AGNEL "capsizing moments", since been unable to find anything to oppressive and forward going materials.

One pretty good prepared piano CD, is Atonal Records CD of David Tudor plays Cage & Tudor. C. 40 minutes long "solo for piano" is pretty well executed. Plenty of silence, plenty of growing tension. Wild hammering of keys, crude sounds of objects. It moves in very slow pace and is pretty hard to consider any serious difference why exactly this would be Cage composition and how different would be just to improvise something like that? Perhaps I fail to see the utmost genious quality of the "composition" as opposed to merely hammering random hits, but mr. Tudor was the first guy to perform this piece back in 1958. This CD version is recorded in 1982.  Most essential is the natural revern of room. Disc includes 2nd track, Tudors of piece "Neural Synthesis (no.2)" which is electronic noise performed with custom build synthesizer. Liner notes from '93 explains use of Intel's 80710NX neural-network chip, which would be capable of processing analog and digital signals, yet they build it to use only analog side. It reacts on external signals in complex and unpredictable ways. What you got here, is the crispy lazers and malformed near beat like pulse. It's abstract electronic bubbling, not really music, but most definately not noisy enough to qualify as "noise". You could think for example seeing Can't / Jessica Rylan perform with just one of her baby blue synths, and result would be close to this.
I think the most inspiring side of this, is how recording is made. In auditorium, part of some brooklyn concert series, the natural room reverb and the sense of space instead of clean and flat line-in recordings. Piece in my ears basically works due the feeling what it COULD BE and what could be done in such setting, not really what you actually hear.

[Zeno Marx]

Anyone know how VoD is going to handle the Robert Haigh set?  Edit the fuck out of them, as usual, or will these be complete works?  I would think a 2CD or 3CD box set could cover all the Haigh and SEMA from the 80s.  I won't bother double posting, but add this wish to the box set thread.  And in a dreamworld, Haigh and Pantaleimon would collaborate.

[Andrew McIntosh]

http://www.pogus.com/21021.html

"I...approached the Ruined Piano in the tractor shed at Nallan Sheep Station and took hold of the fall to life it. It was so rotten it came away in my hands. ... As I played, ants came out and journeyed in concentric circles on the front panel of the 1920's Jackson Piano. ... I knelt to pull back the bass strings and released them, firing like huge arrows. The Piano roared and groaned."

[Mattias G]

SOPHIE AGNEL played at the Perspectives festival a few months ago here in Sweden and blow me away. Had never heard of her before and did´t really know what to expect besides that she played piano of course. I must pick up the records you are talking about.

[bitewerksMTB]

I used some 'ruined piano' work on something that is coming soon (maybe).

[Haare]

I highly recommend Zygmunt Krauze's "New piano sounds" lp. Pretty hard to find but good stuff.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKFeMEv2CaM