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"We lived in the gaps between the stories" is a quote from Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and acts as a source of inspiration for this composition. The quote in context is: "We were the people who were not in the papers. We lived in the blank white spaces at the edges of print. It gave us more freedom. We lived in the gaps between the stories" This piece, composed in 2016, focuses on the "gaps between" traditional accordion sounds, in other words, the sounds between performance techniques and pitches such as noise sounds, breath sounds, glissandi, and so on. It also values the "gaps between" the notation (the blank spaces) as much as the notation itself: the unpredictable instability of sounds during these moments should be relished. The "stories" are represented by the visible symbols of the notation and normative instrumental techniques, both of which are required to highlight a "between" in the first place.
Written for accordion (with and/or without amplification as desired)
Performance Notes
Notation: The blank spaces are just as important as the notes.
The score represents a time-independent "space" where the performer's usual required perception of real time, within a typical score, is eliminated. It consists of a three-dimensional vector space that is segmented into three axes: pitch, timbre, and dynamics.
Pitch axis: The vertical pitch axis is denoted by the transition bass ^ (alto) ^ treble. These are rough indications of what clef to apply to the notes within the 3D vector space. Likewise, they provide a rough indication of the hands to perform...