West Pole (2009) for piano and electronics. Duration 9’ minutes.
West Pole completed on January 2009 and is written for the pianist Stephane N. Ginsburgh. The piece gives a dualistic role to the performer, that of pianist and percussionist. However, my intention was to blur this distinction by providing one performer playing percussive instruments. As a result, the piano is rather approached as a percussion instrument with passages played inside the harp using various sticks but also on the keyboard with virtuosic gestures that fuss well with the electronic part. In addition to piano the performer plays several percussion instruments and found objects in a way that extent, enhance and dialogue with piano and electronics.
The instrumental part of West Pole is compiled out of 200 hundred sound samples that are previously recorded. The produced sound library has been analyzed and classified according to MPEG-7 low-level descriptors by a computer system implemented on MaxMSP.
The electronics play through out the piece and fusses with the instrumental part. It is an amalgam of concrete, synthesized sounds, instrumental and soundscape sounds which along with their references and their semiotics aim to create a reach sonic experience.
This piece was awarded the 2009 Giga-Hertz Special Prize for electronic music in Karlsruhe/ Germany, an Honorable Mention at the Bourges - 36e Concours International de Musique et d’Art Sonore Electroacoustiques in Bourges/ France and was Finalist at List Prize 2014 in Bologna/ Italy.