Interpret of the Beethoven Piano Sonata, nr.1-nr.14(Senza Misura)

From the aspect of medium:
It is said that this piece of art work is inspired by the Symphonic Poem for 100 Metronomes, both involving timing. However,  the use of new techonology like LED, speaker, electricty in Samson's work is quite different from the traditional metronomes used in Ligeti's work . We can also see that the latter include the elements of  sound and movement (the swing of the poniter) while the formal includes the elements of sound and light. The light element seems to be attractive to the audience.
From the aspect of the concepts of music and sound:
We may wonder what does music consist of? It seems that in the John Cage 4'33 piece, we can tell that music may just be sound itself, maybe even silence itself. John Cage looks like in favor of pure sound, sepatating sound from music. When we consider Beethoven Piano Sonata, nr.1-nr.14(Senza Misura), an experiment to explore the transformation from music into souud, we get the message that one essential element of music is sound. We can also say that it is the medium of music. However, music is not only about pure sound. Other elements, like visual element,  may also play an important role in contemporary music creation.

Beethoven Piano Sonata, nr. 1 - nr. 14 (senza misura)

Theme: What will come out when the classical music Beethoven Piano Sonata is transformed into pure sound?
Form:  a sound and light installation
Medium: Electronic circuits, jumper wires, LEDs, speakers, 9V batteries.

Tips: Senza misura in musical notation denotes the absence of bar lines, which is to say, to perform in free time.
In Beethoven Piano Sonata, no. 1 - no. 14 (senza misura), "musical" contents are stripped bare so that only the temporal grids remain: the installation is consisted of 47 electronic devices, each ticking / blinking to the tempo of one of the movements from Beethoven's piano sonata no. 1 to no. 14.

Background: Music-Sound-Sound Art
Music--an art form whose medium is sound. Common elements of music are pitch(which governs melody and harmony), rhythm(and is associated concepts tempo, meter, and articulation), dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture.

Sound--a mechnical wave that is an oscillation of pressure transmitted through a solid, liquid, or gas.

Sound Art--is a diverse group of art practices that considers wide notions of sound, listening and hearing as its predominant focus.

Final output

click here to see the the art work 

references:

http://en.wikipedia.org/
http://www.whiteboxny.org/program/images/tomatogrey/samsonyoung_statement.pdf
http://inputoutput.tv/cms/?p=1178&sec=ex
http://www.thismusicisfalse.com/?portfolio=beethoven-piano-sonata-nr-1-14-senza-misura-2010

Interview Questions

Q1: Why do you choose New Media Art as your performance style? (Since that you major in music back in college, why not be a composer?)

Q2: What do you think is the most challenging part while pursuing New Media New?

Q3: How did you transfer the idea of Gyorgy Ligeti's "Symphonic Poem for 100 Metronomes Backwards" to your work "Beethoven Piano Sonata Nr. 1-14 (Senza Misura)"?

Q4: Based on your work "Beethoven Piano Sonata Nr. 1-14 (Senza Misura)", why do you think there is a need to talk about the relation between sound and music?

Q5: Would you say that your work is commercial orientated? Do you take profit into concern while creating new piece?

Q6: How did you transfer you idea of music into image?

Q7: Why is all the image shown in geographic style? Why not scenic photos or portraits of human beings instead? (Is it a kind of rule of new media art?)

Q8: What part of your work -- music, image, choreography -- do you think represent your idea the most?

Q9: How would you valuate your work? How would you want the public to enjoy your work?

Q10: What is your next step? Any new work coming out recently?

John Cage - 4'33"

John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer, philosopher, poet, music theorist, artist, printmaker, and amateur mycologist and mushroom collector. A pioneer of chance music, electronic music and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde. Critics have lauded him as one of the most influential American composers of the 20th century. He was also instrumental in the development of modern dance, mostly through his association with choreographer Merce Cunningham, who was also Cage's romantic partner for most of their lives.

John Cage's famous silent piece. Although composed in 1952, Cage already thought about it in 1948 where he mentions it as 'Silent Prayer' in his article A Composer's Confessions. In the work no intentional sounds are made during it's entire duration. In the first version the work contains 3 movements lasting 33", 2'40" and 1'20". These timings were chance determined. Later on Cage cancelled this division and reworked the piece, creating a wholly different composition from the original.
Much has been written about 4'33" and about Cage's ideas behind it's silence. Two of those ideas: 1. Silence does not exist. One simply should listen and open one's ears. 2. Silence is a means to seperate tones and chords, in order to avoid melodic interpretations to chronology of sounds.





Reference: http://www.johncage.info/index2.html
By Joyce

Symphonic Poem for 100 Metronomes (By Gyorgy Ligeti)

György Sándor Ligeti (May 28, 1923 – June 12, 2006) was a composer, born in a Hungarian Jewish family in Transylvania, Romania. He briefly lived in Hungary before later becoming an Austrian citizen. Many of his works are well known in classical music circles, but to the general public, he is best-known for the various pieces featured in the Stanley Kubrick films 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Shining and Eyes Wide Shut.

On August 15, 1962 Ligeti composed a symphonic poem for 100 metronomes set at random speeds, each wound to their maximum setting, then released all at once.

It’s partly an exercise in aural perception, as at first the sound is heard as white noise, but after a short time the brain is able to pick apart relationships between sets of metronomes set to similar speeds. As some metronomes stop ticking this sensation becomes stronger and your attention becomes drawn to the differences in phase between ticks.

Known as “Sound localization,” this is the same mechanism that allows you to focus your attention on the direction and source of one voice in a crowded room, ignoring noise considered unimportant by your brain





Reference: http://guitarodyssey.wordpress.com/2010/08/15/symphonic-poem-for-100-metronomes-gyorgy-ligeti/
By Joyce

What is metronome?

A metronome is any device that produces regular, metrical ticks (beats, clicks) — settable in beats per minute. These ticks represent a fixed, regular aural pulse; some metronomes also include synchronized visual motion.





Reference: Wikipedia
By Joyce

New Media Art

As Samson can be concluded as new media artist, what exactly is new media art? Let's take a deeper look. :)

New media art is a genre that encompasses artworks created with new media technologies, including digital art, computer graphics, computer animation, virtual art, Internet art, interactive art technologies, computer robotics, and art as biotechnology. The term differentiates itself by its resulting cultural objects and social events, which can be seen in opposition to those deriving from old visual arts (i.e. traditional painting, sculpture, etc.) This concern with medium is a key feature of much contemporary art and indeed many art schools and major Universities now offer majors in "New Genres" or "New Media". New Media Art often involves interaction between artist and observer.

New Media concerns are often derived from the telecommunications, mass media and digital modes of delivery the artworks involve, with practices ranging from conceptual to virtual art, performance to installation.

As the technologies used to deliver works of new media art such as film, tapes, web browsers, software and operating systems become obsolete, New Media art faces serious issues around the challenge to preserve artwork beyond the time of its contemporary production. Currently, research projects into New media art preservation are underway to improve the preservation and documentation of the fragile media arts heritage (see DOCAM - Documentation and Conservation of the Media Arts Heritage).

Methods of preservation exist, including the translation of a work from an obsolete medium into a related new medium, the digital archiving of media (see Internet Archive), and the use of emulators to preserve work dependent on obsolete software or operating system environments.

Reference：http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_media_art
By Alice