People Who Do Noise
"Wherever we are, what we hear is mostly noise. When we ignore it, it disturbs us. When we listen to it, we find it fascinating". This is the often-cited opening of John Cage's famous The Future of Music — Credo. If you have ever done some experiments on yourself, you already know the feeling: there is nothing more annoying when you are doing something else and being distracted (tortured?) by background noise. Even music can become obnoxious if it is forced on us (Guantanamo, anyone?). We will probably go back to the topic on our blog, but for now, let's focus on noise.
It is true that noise can become weirdly intriguing if you pay attention to it. It's supposed to be the opposite of music, which (at its basic definition) is a way to organise sounds. But what sort of sounds? Can we organise what is chaotic by nature and make it somehow (German philosopher Hans Robert Jauss would probably hate the word) enjoyable? Can you record, press and sell noise music (itself a linguistic paradox) to the masses? The answer is yes, at least from a very pragmatical point of view: Noise has been part of the spectrum of marketable music for a while now. So you probably want to learn more about it, because you are a curious individual as much as we are, right? As Dennis Edwards would put it, "don't look any further", here is Portland-centred documentary People Who Do Noise.
«Ovunque ci troviamo, ciò che udiamo è per la maggior parte rumore. Quando lo ignoriamo, ci disturba. Quando lo ascoltiamo, ne siamo affascinati». Questo è il citatissimo incipit di The Future of Sound — Credo di John Cage. Se hai mai fatto degli esperimenti su te stesso, lo sai già: non c'è niente di più fastidioso che cercare di contentrarsi su qualcosa mentre si è distratti (torturati?) dal rumore di sottofondo. Persino la musica può diventare insopportabile se ci viene imposta con la forza (qualcuno ha detto Guantanamo?). Torneremo probabilmente sull'argomento, ma per il momento concentriamoci sul rumore.
È un fatto che il rumore possa diventare curiosamente intrigante, se gli si presta attenzione. In teoria si trova all'opposto del concetto di musica, la quale (nella sua definizione più elementare) non è che un modo per organizzare i suoni. Ma quale tipo di suoni? Si può organizzare ciò che per sua natura è caotico e renderlo in un certo senso (il filosofo tedesco Hans Robert Jauss probabilmente odierebbe il termine) gradevole? Si può registrare, stampare e distribuire il rumore alle masse? La risposta è sì, quanto meno da un punto di vista pragmatico: il rumore (meglio: noise) fa parte dello spettro della musica commerciabile ormai da un po'. Quindi probabilmente ne vuoi sapere di più, perché sei un inguaribile curioso come noi, giusto? Per citare Dennis Edwards, «don't look any further», non cercare altrove: clicca più sopra per guardare il documentario sulla scena musicale di Portland intitolato People Who Do Noise.
The twenty-seventh issue of our recording series presents Su Carta, a fully composed album by Francesco Fusaro for violin, clarinet, vibraphone, double bass, human voice and a TB-303 clone, reflecting on environment, memory, animals, and the act of composition itself. For more information on the music content, please visit here.
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The twenty-first issue of our recording series takes a deep dive into the repertoire of classical Afro-descendant composers. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The twentieth issue of our recording series pays homage to one of the most iconic compositions in European art music. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The eighteenth issue of our recording series is the result of our first Call For Score. It offers a snapshot of the state of the Italian and international contemporary music scene. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The very first issue of our recording series. For more information on the music content, please visit this page. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The second issue of our recording series is an Italian take on Stravinsky's original. For more information on the music content, please visit this page. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The sixth issue of our recording series is a live recording of the ensemble version of Holst’s masterpiece, arranged by Enrico Gabrielli. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The seventh issue of our recording series is a survey on the music of neglected electronic music pioneer Chino ‘Goia’ Sornisi. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The eighth issue of our recording series is a retrospective journey through the catalogue of library and art music composer Paolo Renosto, aka Lesiman. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The tenth issue of our recording series is an acoustic version for chamber ensemble of one of the greatest music oddities of 70s North America: Mort Garson’s album dedicated to our friends the plants. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The eleventh issue of our recording series is a new arrangement of one of Karlheinz Stockhausen’s most famous compositions, “Tierkreis”. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The twelfth issue of our recording series is dedicated to the genius of Bernard Hermman, with a focus on his music for the sci fi cult series The Twilight Zone. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The fifteenth issue of our recording series is dedicated to the first 88 pages of a graphic notation classic, Cornelius Cardew’s Treatise. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The sixteenth issue of our recording series is a collection of four works by Arvo Pärt, Florence Price, Giacinto Scelsi and Franco Battiato. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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The seventeenth issue of our recording series is a collection of six original compositions by Sebastiano De Gennaro. For more information on the music content, please visit here. Price includes VAT. Delivery prices available at checkout.
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For the first time, you can now aquire the original art created for our cover design. Created by Italian artist Annalisa “Nali” Limonta, who is also behind our beautiful “Plantasia” booklet and CD design, the artwork for our 18th release, “Call For Scores”, is now available in a unique piece for your personal collection.