#4867, A Sampler of Sampling
It's a sampler of digital sampling - from old school Steinski to AI developments in work by percussionist Chris P. Thompson; a remix by vocalist Lyra Pramuk; and Dutch composer Jacob TV.
Listen to old school 1980’s media sampling in work by Steinski and Mass Media alongside new music that reflects AI developments by composer and percussionist Chris P. Thompson. Thompson has spent 15 years playing percussion with the contemporary music band Alarm Will Sound. In his own compositions, he draws on electronic and microtonal music, a combination that can lead to somewhat abstract work but which Thompson cleverly employs on his 2024 album Stay The Same to make pointed commentary about our lives in the digital age. Perhaps this is most evident in the buoyant, madcap opener, “Selfie.” Thompson employs text-to-speech voices, which he samples and processes to produce an uncanny, AI-type sound, (John Schaefer).
Then, listen to futurist folk from Berlin-based composer and vocalist Lyra Pramuk, re-worked and re-sampled in collaboration with composer and choreographer Colin Self, also based in Berlin. There’s also music involving sampled voices in a work by Irish composer and musician Emma O'Halloran nd her work “Constellations” which won the Hildegard Competition at National Sawdust. In program notes for the work, she said that inspiration came from a National Geographic article discussing how handprints in ancient cave art most often belonged to women. Her piece is “about finding your voice and making the art that you want to make.” (Oddly Enough).
There’s also music by Dutch composer Jacob TV, who builds many of his works around recordings taken from mass media. Listen to his “The Body of Your Dreams” – a sendup of excited salespeople who hawk items of dubious value on late night TV – in a recording by Prism Sax Quartet. That, and more. - Caryn Havlik
Program #4867, A Sampler of Sampling (First aired 4/08/2024)
ARTIST: Steinski & Mass Media
WORK: We'll Be Right Back [1:00]
RECORDING: We'll Be Right Back
SOURCE: 4th & Broadway
INFO: Try Discogs.com, YouTube Music, Spotify
ARTIST: Chris P. Thompson
WORK: Selfie [2:41]
RECORDING: Stay the Same
SOURCE: Grin Agog Music
INFO: https://chrispthompson.bandcamp.com/album/stay-the-same
ARTIST: Chris P. Thompson
WORK: The Help You Need [3:44]
RECORDING: Stay the Same
SOURCE: Grin Agog Music
INFO: https://chrispthompson.bandcamp.com/album/stay-the-same
ARTIST: PRISM Quartet
WORK: Jacob TV: The Body of Your Dreams [8:26]
RECORDING: The Body of Your Dreams
SOURCE: XAS Records
INFO: https://xas.ffm.to/body
ARTIST: PRISM Quartet
WORK: Jacob TV: The Body of Your Dreams [8:26]
RECORDING: The Body of Your Dreams
SOURCE: XAS Records
INFO: https://xas.ffm.to/body
ARTIST: The Refugee Orchestra Project
WORK: Emma O'Halloran: Constellations [9:18]
RECORDING: Hildegard Competition Winners, Vol. 1
SOURCE: National Sawdust Tracks
INFO: Available at Amazon.com, Spotify
ARTIST: Lyra Pramuk & Colin Self
WORK: Witness (Selfless Rework) [5:44]
RECORDING: Delta
SOURCE: Bedroom Community
INFO: lyrapramuk.bandcamp.com
ARTIST: Art of Time Ensemble
WORK: Ain't Got Long [8:27]
RECORDING: Ain't Got Long
SOURCE: Art of Time Recordings
INFO: https://ffm.to/aintgotlong
ARTIST: Jaimeo Brown Transcendence
WORK: Be So Glad [3:26]
RECORDING: Work Songs
SOURCE: Motema Music
INFO: motema.com
