OPEN SYMMETRY (2019)

TRISTAN PERICH & ENSEMBLE 0

FOR PERCUSSION AND 20 SPEAKERS WITH 1-BIT ELECTRONICS

In 2010, Tristan Perich's lo-fi electronic composition 1-Bit Symphony, then praised for its intense hypnotic power and surprising emotional depth, prompted an immediate desire on Ensemble 0 to organize its first European tour with Tristan Perich & Lesly Flanigan. In fact, the ensemble has been performing some of the American composer's compositions for some time now, including Observations (for two sets of crotales and 6-channel 1-bit music, 2008), Formations (solo cello and six-channel 1-bit electronics, 2011) and Impermanent (for tubular bells and two-channel 1- bit electronics, 2011).

Open Symmetry was commissioned by Ensemble 0 and the Variations festival (Lieu Unique) and premiered on 28 April 2019.

"Open Symmetry contains a dense tangle of tones produced by percussion and electronics. Subtly shifting patterns propel the music, while tonal bugs jump from one colour to another, like an illuminated reset button" (Tristan Perich, NYC, 30 May 2018)

A recording of Open Symmetry was released in 2024 on Erased Tapes.

SEQUENCIAL (2011)

TRISTAN PERICH feat. ARS AD HOC & DRUMMING GP

FOR STRING AND PERCUSSION QUARTETS WITH GATED AMPLIFICATION

“In Sequential, the musicians bow their instruments at an almost inaudibly quiet volume, and close-placed microphones capture their sound and run it through a custom circuit board that toggles each signal on and off, in a scored pattern. Instead of using 1-bit information to synthesize sound, I’m using it here to interrupt it. It’s as if someone is performing the mute buttons on the mixer, turning sustained notes into binary rhythms. Even though all sound in the music is performed live by the musicians, the resultant music becomes an electronic-sounding tapestry of pitch that obscures the natural timbre of the instruments, substituting individual voices for a hybrid combination.” (Tristan Perich)