Group members: Cindy Chan, Tiffany Chan, Lisa Huang
(We suggest listening to the piece with headphones in.)
Here is our finished sound sculpture: “Emotional Descent After a Dispute”
For our sound sculpture, we were drawn to the unusual break from emotional passivity in part three of Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis. After Gregor’s perceived attack on his mother, the two fractures of the divided family are left to come to terms with the dispute in their own manner. This basic human instinct to recover after a fight or argument inspired our interest in creating a sound sculpture that followed that reaction. We used a quote by the narrator, “Gregor was a member of the family…. something one should… just endure,” (66) to understand Gregor’s emotional progression; his human nature had always compelled him to selflessly give to his family, therefore, he felt internally conflicted when his new insect nature reveled in independence. Knowing this, we were able to follow the emotional peaks and troughs in Metamorphosis and then expanded the idea to loosely fit all human conflicts.
From there on, we focused on our musical interpretation of that idea and how we wanted to see the violin as the highlight of the sculpture. We felt that throughout Metamorphosis, the violin symbolized the narrative’s conflict and was a good bridge between our interpretation and the text. In “Emotional Descent After a Dispute,” aptly named for what the music interprets, the listener will hear a range of dissonant sound bites and clips from orchestras and symphonies with a focus on the violin. The clips of various symphonies by Vladimir Ashkenazy, Allan Pettersson, Jean Sibelius, and Dmitri Shostakovich have been molded together to bring the listener through a musical construction of disparaging, caring, and renewing emotions. Our goal was to use music to clearly elucidate (1) the rough emotions after a dispute, (2) the sedating of the resentful emotions, (3) the gradual emotional buildup towards conflict resolution, (4) the small conflict that arises from trying to resolve the issue, and (5) the ultimate resolution. We hope listeners can connect to the overall theme and, more importantly, enjoy!
Works Cited
Tremblay, Charles-David. “Symphony No. 6.” Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 29 May. 2011. Web. 29 Sep. 2013.
avihu4. “Sibelius- The Swan of Tuonela. AVI OSTROWSKY- Conductor, Norwegian Radio Orchestra.” Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 28 Dec. 2008. Web. 29 Sep. 2013.
orangejamtw. “Shostakovich- Symphony No. 5.” Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 2 Jun. 2011. Web. 29 Sep. 2013.
Faina1612. “Vladimir Ashkenazy performs Prokofiev Piano concerto No. 2.wmv.” Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 8 Jun. 2012. Web. 29 Sep. 2013.
Huang, Shao Gang. “Prokofiev Piano Concerto No.2 in G minor op. 16 Part 2.” Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 11 Jun. 2013. Web. 29 Sep. 2013.
Lam, Alex. “Yundi Li- Prokofiev.” Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 7 Dec. 2007. Web. 29 Sep. 2013.
I was completely lost and absorbed within your sound sculpture from the 50 second mark and onwards probably because it felt so intense and real. The whole thing sounded incredibly cinematic and gave off waves of terror, which I thought was very apt for a story like The Metamorphosis. The rolls of thunder were also fitting and definitely helped enhance the ferocity of the orchestra. I am also very impressed with the fact that you managed to blend the pieces of multiple composers to create a chilling dissonance that, more importantly, made sense together.
I love how all the classical music you used create a bigger piece and sounds as if it’s just one single song, meaning they all connect somehow without any dissonance. (I know your explanation says “the listener will hear a range of dissonant sound bites and clips,” but I perceived it differently.) Also, your sound sculpture reminds me of the music used in Hayao Miyazaki’s animation films like Howl’s Moving Castle. Like what Julian said, I like how the thunder rolls and its intensity. Listening to it with headphones really helped to enjoy your piece more too!