Welcome to Touch Newsletter #172. Carl Michael von Hausswolff returns to Touch with a limited edition vinyl, “Still Life - Requiem”. The piece is, as the title suggests, a requiem and its contents are solely composed by sounds captured from a specific physical solid state material. The composer has used a technique called ‘emission spectroscopy’ whereby the frequencies generated from the material was analysed and transferred into, for humans, a listenable pitch (between 15 and 14000Hz). This captured organic sound material has been stretched, looped, equalised and composed to produce the recording.
Following 16 months after Scottish artist Claire M Singer’s debut album comes the release of the beautiful and intriguing “Fairge”, meaning ‘the ocean’ or ‘the sea’ in Scottish Gaelic. “Fairge” is a single 21-minute piece for organ, cello and electronics, composed, performed and produced by Claire and is very much a companion work to the title track on her debut album “Solas” (Touch, 2016).
“Mappa Mundi” the first CD released by drøne, after two vinyl albums on Anna von Hausswolff's label, Pomperipossa. In a 5” jacket with artwork and font by nico, who also provided the hand-written text for the vinyl artwork for the 2015 and 2016 releases, “Mappa Mundi” traces and describes audio surrounding and occupying the planet earth.
Featuring artists and tracks from the Touch catalogue stretching back over 35 years, Mike Harding has compiled a 2 hour radio mix for Camp (“Next level arts residencies”). The session is now archived online and can be listened to by clicking here. A tracklist is available here.
As part of the celebrations for its 100th cassette, The Tapeworm prepared a 2 hour show for Moscow’s New New World Radio. Including exclusives from upcoming tapes by Mamiffer and NYZ, this mix is also archived online and can be listened to by clicking here.
Finally, Savage Pencil’s illustration for The Tapeworm’s “A Can Of Worms” concert is now available on a T-shirt or on a Tote. Very limited quantities of both tees and totes remain, and are now on sale in the TouchShop.
TO:103 | Carl Michael von Hausswolff “Still Life - Requiem”
Vinyl LP - Limited Edition 500
Written & recorded by Carl Michael von Hausswolff
Artwork & photography by Jon Wozencroft & Carl Michael von Hausswolff
Mastered by Jason at Transition
Track listing
A. Still Life - Requiem l
B. Still Life - Requiem ll
Conceptualised (2010–2013), composed and produced (2014–2017) by Carl Michael von Hausswolff in Palma (Majorca) and Stockholm. This musical piece consists only of sounds emitted and extracted from physical matter using emission spectroscopy as the sole basic technology. Acknowledgements to Linköping University (IFM), Sweden.
“Still Life - Requiem” consists of one piece with the same title and is divided up into two to fit the LP format. The piece is, as the title suggests, a requiem and it’s contents are solely composed by sounds captured from a specific physical solid state material. The composer has used a technique called ‘emission spectroscopy’ whereby the frequencies generated from the material was analysed and transferred into, for humans, a listenable pitch (between 15 and 14000Hz). This captured organic sound material has been stretched, looped, equalised and composed to produce the recording.
A requiem is a piece of music dedicated to certain sole or several restless souls that wander our worlds looking for a place to call home. A requiem radiates calm, peace and perhaps comfort for tormented spiritual beings - it’s a piece dedicated to promote and insert tranquility and transcendence.
This requiem also provides the listener with a certain feeling of connection - perhaps a connection with the unknown and with the energy field clusters and mental abilities of post-mortem life forms that would be the incorporeal essence of a living being.
Carl Michael von Hausswolff (born 1956 in Linköping, Sweden) has a long history within the communities of contemporary music and visual art. His first records was released in early 80s while the most recent saw the light just a few years ago (“Squared“ [CD - Auf Abwegen, 2015]). In recent years he has been collaborating with Leslie Winer (“1” [LP - Monotype 2016]) and Hans-Joachim Roedelius (“Nordlicht” [LP - Curious Music, 2017]).
He has also instigated and curated the collective sound-installation “freq_out” during 2003 - 2017, which includes artists such as Jana Winderen, JG Thirlwell, Finnbogi Petursson, Christine Ödlund and others.
Buy Carl Michael von Hausswolff “Still Life - Requiem” in the TouchShop
www.cmvonhausswolff.net
Tone 59 | Claire M Singer “Fairge”
CDEP - 1 track - 20:55
Limited edition in CD wallet
Written & performed by Claire M Singer
Mastered by Denis Blackham @ Skye
Photography & design by Jon Wozencroft
Track listing
1. Fairge
“…each piece is timeless and genuinely magical” - The Quietus
“Why have we had to wait this long for this excellent sound to be recorded and released?” - Norman Records
(Reviews of debut album Solas)
Following 16 months after Scottish artist Claire M Singer’s debut album comes the release of the beautiful and intriguing “Fairge”, meaning ‘the ocean’ or ‘the sea’ in Scottish Gaelic. “Fairge” is a single 21-minute piece for organ, cello and electronics, composed, performed and produced by Claire and is very much a companion work to the title track on her debut album “Solas” (Touch, 2016).
Recorded by Clare Gallagher at Oude Kerk, Amsterdam, 12th June 2017 on the transept organ built by Ahrend & Brunzema (1965). “Fairge” was commissioned by Oude Kerk for “Silence”, a concert series curated by Jacob Lekkerkerker.
Commissioned by Amsterdam’s oldest building and parish church Oude Kerk, “Fairge” premiered at the church in February 2017. Claire M Singer’s performance on the Ahrend and Bunzema organ, cello and electronics is truly captivating. The work very much encapsulates her signature style of expansive soundscapes full of intricate textures, rich overtones and powerful swells, emotionally resonating from beginning to end.
“Fairge” was written specifically for the Ahered and Bunzema organ and explores the precise control of wind through the pipes using mechanical stop action. This creates a lush harmonic backdrop against the harmonics and melody of the haunting cello.
“Oude Kerk were very generous in letting me have time to explore and really get to know the instrument. The work was developed over many visits sitting in the church until the very wee hours over the winter months, which was incredibly magical and inspiring. When working with mechanical stops and precisely controlling the amount of air that passes through the pipes it requires a lot of practice and exploration to learn each incremental sound the organ can make and what the quirks of the instrument can be. As every organ is unique, the piece will differ on other organs but that’s what makes writing and working with the organ so fascinating. The tuning is mean-tone temperament, which I have not worked with previously. With “Fairge” I really wanted to show how special this relatively small organ is and the beautiful pallet of sound it can produce.” [Claire M Singer, September 2017]
Claire M Singer’s performance is truly captivating, with her signature style of intricate textures, rich overtones and powerful swells, emotionally resonating throughout.
She is playing two special dates supporting the band Low at Union Chapel, London on the 14th October and at Westerkerk in Amsterdam on the 16th October.
Buy Claire M Singer “Fairge” in the TouchShop
www.clairemsinger.com
drøne1 | drøne “Mappa Mundi”
CD - 5 tracks - 35:00 (one file)
drøne: Mark Van Hoen & Mike Harding
art & font by nico
Track listing
Voice of the People
Horizontal Direction
Telegraphy Beacon
Echo of Hope
Shannon Volmet
This the first CD released by drøne, after two vinyl albums on Anna von Hausswolff's label, Pomperipossa. In a 5” jacket with artwork and font by nico, who also provided the hand-written text for the vinyl artwork for the 2015 and 2016 releases, “Mappa Mundi” traces and describes audio surrounding and occupying the planet earth.
Workers toil in smithies, call signs and chants-at-prayer reveal attempts to order the chaos, which always remains one step ahead. Post-lapsarian for sure, but smoke signals and drums have morphed into the ‘bing bong’ of the attention-grabbing, mind-polluting PA system. The coded simplicity of the whistle (“Start!”) has evolved into a more deliberate attempt to control rather than inform by explicit, structured language. Announcements have become commands; signs bark orders. Thus ‘no’ becomes a powerful rejection, rather than merely a preference; and no-ers are more easily to spot… “You’re going the wrong way”! (To which the only sensitive and mature response is: “Good!”)
Call signs, IDs, audio sigils and signatures all combine to describe a polluted, confusing atmosphere which threatens to leave us powerless and bewildered. "Decipher the sounds and you win the game! First prize is, guess what? You get to take the audio poison! Congratulations! You’ve lost!”.
The first album, “reversing into the future” drew this response from Lend Me Your Ears: "This thrilling piece – surely the most kinetic non-dancefloor record in an age". Anna herself wrote of the follow up record, “a perfect blind”: "I love everything about this release. Such a great presentation and exciting project! And most important: the music is sublime."
The Quietus wrote: "Last year's distinctive debut from drøne was likened to a hurtling journey. It's combination of field recordings, shortwave radio and modular synths possessed an excited, driving energy whose route was hitherto unexplored and destination unknowable. But with an expanded sound pool boasting instruments across the ages - from guitar, through pipe organ and strings to dulcimer and psaltery – its follow-up takes a sideways step into more cognizant, reflective pastures.”
Buy drøne “Mappa Mundi” in the TouchShop
www.field.nu/drone
Guerrilla Audio
Guerrilla Audio is a new series of audio raids by Simon Fisher Turner.
guer·ril·la
ɡəˈrilə/
noun
noun: guerilla
a member of a small independent group taking part in irregular fighting, typically against larger regular forces.
Each audio edit will be posted for 14 days and then removed from the site, although the information about each guerrilla activity will be archived, but without the audio. There will be two postings per month with the first (also featuring Klara Lewis & Rainier Lericolais) on 1st August 2015, so please check in regularly to listen to the latest offering.
Guerrilla Audio
www.simonfisherturner.com
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