Notes on Notes.

Oh I've neglected you, blog and readers, and I apologize for that. But I shan't waste our time moaning about my hectic schedule, but rather will return to you as if I had never left.

Back in May, my housemate Will and I twice performed a very cool piece of music - "Piano Phase", by Steve Reich. "Piano Phase" is a landmark of minimalist music (composed in 1967), involving one piano part phasing against another, an effect Reich adapted from his experiments with phasing tape loops.

Well, you might as well just listen to the explanation we gave the first night we performed it. This recording is 21 minutes long in all, including the 1m30s of introduction. It was quite the thrill to perform, and quite the test of concentration. (Below is my transcription of the piece, which I did mainly to get around paying $15 for it online. Follow along, if you like – you can click on the scores to see larger versions.)

download (option-click for Mac users, right-click and save for PC users)

Recorded on May 1st, 2009, at The Little Church, in Portland, OR.

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