Showing posts with label Harry Partch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Harry Partch. Show all posts

May 7, 2012

This Just In


From the creator of the Musicmavericks.org website! 

2 things:

There is a really great book that is like a published scrap book of all of Harry Partch's writings and personal photos and letters -- really amazing and a work of art itself .

Also, there is a Harry Partch Symposium coming up -- a chance to hear and see the original instruments, plus meet some of the people that performed in Partch's ensembles (might be your last chance as these people are getting on in years.)

The Harry Partch Legacy: Microtonal Constructions and Intercultural Dialogues
A Symposium and Festival
September 19–21, 2012
New England Conservatory and Northeastern University Boston, MA

Featuring:
NewBand (Dean Drummond & Stefani Starin, Directors)
Bob Gilmore (Brunel University)
Kyle Gann (Bard College)
Danlee Mitchell (Harry Partch Foundation)
and others TBA

The composer Harry Partch (1901-74) is best known as a radically individualistic musical experimentalist, an emblematic “American maverick.” Seeking to create a music close to human speech, he found himself "seduced into carpentry" to create an orchestra of unique instruments and a substantial corpus of instrumental, vocal and dramatic works. His 25-year career cut across composition, music theory, and instrument building, and its conscious links to music-making outside of Europe have attracted the attention of a diverse following of listeners, musicians and scholars. This three-day event, co-sponsored by Northeastern University and the New England Conservatory of Music, will explore the continuing impact of Partch's work, with a combination of academic conference sessions, interactive workshops, and concert performances.

Thanks,
Preston Wright
Creator of the Musicmavericks.org website

Thanks Preston for the note - truly a fan of the website you have created.

May 4, 2012

Playing with Harry Partch

Not the man, but his one of a kind instruments! This website is brilliant; not only does it display all of his various creations in one place BUT you can play them all via your computer. You can see and hear first hand what this "philosophic music-man seduced into carpentry" has crafted and explore the microtonal scale system he was so obsessed with. I have played around with 5 of 6 of them so far and I swear to you, the unique tones you create with just a stroke of a key will make you feel like a member of Boards of Canada or an avant-Asian orchestra. I am obsessed with this wonderful site and am so please I stumbled across this last night when looking up crychord, an instrument he made and I named a Dahlia Seed song after (my old band).


If you aren't familiar with this American composer, inventor of instruments, theorist, ex hobo, and visionary, check out this BBC documentary. (And I salute the BBC for having the best documentaries on every possible subject. I swear I watch a different one a day!)