The Legend of Oscar (the life and times of a mutant oboe)

Fixed media, stereo, 1999
Iannis Xenakis, Mutants, Orchestras, are all things that have been preying heavily on my mind over the last few months. The Legend of Oscar... deals with each one of these influences by forcing them together and making them deal with each other. A diverse range of source sounds are used in this piece, from oboe multiphonics to excerpts from Beethoven's Egmont Overture, loud bangs to quotes from Formalised Music by Iannis Xenakis. These sounds are mutated heavily, and the result is a giant stew of timbre and textures. The sounds are merged together in unnatural partnerships which can reach critical mass at any moment in time, resulting in a nervous tension of almost neurotic proportions.

The Legend of Oscar... is yet another step in my ongoing experimentation into the mutation of sounds. I had a lot more technical resources at my disposal to create as many mutants as I wanted to, with ultimately a lot more control over the end result than I have had in the past. As I gain more control, my mutants become more sophisticated and I create new sound worlds to delve into and exploit.

I would like to thank John McKelvie and Oscar (the oboe) for creating such interesting source sounds!