Robert Coleman and Larissa O'Grady 'Capturing Sound' (2023)

Larissa O'Grady and Robert Coleman perform Capturing Sound (2023) for violin, live field recordist and fixed media electronics.

Composed by Robert Coleman, the piece was commissioned by Larissa O'Grady and supported by an Arts Council Ireland Commission Award. The work was developed by the artists through CMC's Contemporary Artists Network (also known as CMC Connects), an initiative which supports New Music collaborations.

"Capturing sound in its “outdoor” context triggered a culture of sonic extraction that mirrored the drive for natural resources." This quote by Mark Peter Wright is fragmented and heard throughout the work. It is a reflection on how we consume today and how the act of recording wildlife could also be considered as something extractive. Field-recording has become central to my work in recent years as I have been developing my practice of the ecological soundwalk. 'Capturing Sound' merges this world and ideas inherent in field-recording with my concert work. Throughout the piece using my field recording equipment I record the music and sounds on stage and play them back into the space, building up layers with which the violinist interacts. The tension between the live and recorded sound represents the distance we put between ourselves and the wild world outside.The soundworld is inspired by the drumming of the great spotted woodpecker which I have recorded in County Wicklow, Ireland. " - Robert Coleman.

'Capturing Sound' features in the radio series We Only Want The Earth (cmc.ie/weonlywanttheearth), a two-part documentary for RTÉ lyric FM’s the Lyric Feature presented by Jonathan Grimes (CMC Ireland) which explores how Irish composers are responding to the climate challenge through their work. The series is broadcast on RTÉ lyric FM in March 2024.

Videographer: Sławek Bracki.
Audio recording: Keith Fennell.

Recorded at the Contemporary Music Centre, © The Contemporary Music Centre, 2023.

This piece is featured on 'Six New Works For Violin', the début album by Larissa O'Grady, comprising six commissioned works by Irish composers David Bremner, Robert Coleman, Jenn Kirby, Fiona Linnane, Anselm McDonnell and Judith Ring. Released by Farpoint Recordings on 7 November 2024.

Скачать видео