synchronism, now, before

Danny Fratina

15 views

Solo

2022

6 min.

Trumpet

Program Notes: synchronism, now, before is an interrogation of performance temporality, questioning the relationship between composer and performer and the flawed nature of transcription as a musical linguistical tool. Sometimes supportive, sometimes antagonistic, the dynamic between what should be and what was played is one that hinges on communication. This is often expressed through notation, but to what extent do our tools for communication fall short of normal expressive functions? Featuring a solo trumpet player stuck in a loop of composition, recording, and transcription, synchronism, now, before, is a piece that will always be a step out of time with itself.
Recording Notes: Trumpeter Sam Dechenne was told to sight-read an original work by the composer and record this single-take session. The performance was transcribed by the composer and notated as a new piece. Sam was then asked to again sight-read this new piece of music and record his single uninterrupted take. This process repeated another 5-6 times. All of Sam's performance was captured in notation and the audio was aligned to fit the transcription—the original piece of music that started the project has been deleted, and now Sam's performance and notation are all that remain. You are seeing and hearing a musician playing outside of time, creating an original (and somewhat collaborative) piece of music based primarily on the retrospective tool of transcription.
Ensemble Name: Sam Dechenne