Lack

In this piece, techniques of material refinement drawn from craftsmanship are translated into a compositional concept. Just as an unpolished piece of wood can be transformed through sawing, planing, filing, sanding, assembling, varnishing, and polishing into an object whose value is enhanced either by its utility or its aesthetic, so the tone in this work is treated through corresponding playing techniques. Across fifteen sections of equal length, musical material is shaped at varying rhythmic scales: durations are carved with pizzicato and tonguing; surface irregularities and impurities are smoothed into oscillations and breath sounds using trill keys and flutter-tonguing, gradually refined throughout the piece to align ever more precisely with the length of a whole note. In the end, the pure tone remains as a simple design: “Smooth, clear, and luminous.”The live electronics follow this process of refinement, employing subtle transpositions, ring modulation, and layered delays, carefully integrated so as to complement rather than obscure the instrumental gestures. Further processing occurs through the recording of selected passages, which are later played back, manipulated, and modulated in speed according to the performers’ pitches. With each repetition, these recordings become increasingly diffuse and shapeless, mirroring the gradual progression of refinement.