Music Network are having some free concerts which take place on Friday 16 April as part of Ireland’s first national music day, love:live music.

In St John’s Church, Limerick, early music specialists Tonos take to the stage at 2 pm. The duo will be followed by Syrius Trio presenting a fresh approach to the piano trio and the concert will round off with The Greg Felton Trio, performing with special guest vocalist Isa Wiss.

In Dublin, events have a distinctly Irish flair with an evening of traditional music in the Button Factory from 8 pm. Three of Ireland’s most energetic groups; Brendan Begley & Caoimhín Ó’Raghallaigh; Slide; and Fidil, close events on Ireland’s first national music day.

Both events are free but ticketed and booking up fast, so it’s a good idea to book your tickets now. Contact the Music Network box office on 01 6719429 or admin@musicnetwork.ie

love:live music Limerick concert
Location: St John’s Church, John’s Square
Time: 2pm - 4pm
more details

love:live music Dublin concert
Location: The Button Factory
Time: 8pm - 10.30pm
more details

If you have any questions about love:live music contact info@lovelivemusic.ie

I’m very excited to announce that my piece ‘Reorientation’ - for Di, Erhu, Pipa, Yangqin, Guzheng, Ruan, Sheng will be played by the Chai Found Music Workshop in Taipei City on November 28, 2009 at 19:30.

My music has offically travelled further than I!

The address is No. 4, Lane 187, Minzu W. Rd. Datong District, Taipei City

The brief was to compose a piece which explored the principles of the Wu XIng philosphoy from a European perspective. (more about that below the program)

節目 ﹣ Concert Program

劉韋志 [台灣]: 坤：在地平線之間 - 給七位演奏家與電聲
Wei-Chih Liu [Taiwan] : Kun: “Amidst the Horizon” for 7 musicians and electronics

林茵茵 [台灣]: 五行之戀──武俠篇 - 為簫與笛,古箏,琵琶,笙,二胡
Yin-Yin Lin [Taiwan]: The Mutual Affection among the Five Elements — An Episode of the Martial Arts Saga
for Xiao and Di, Guzheng, Pipa, Sheng, Erhu

王韻雅 [台灣]: 無形韻 - 為笙、二胡、琵琶與揚琴
Yun-Ya Wang [Taiwan]: Wu Xing Yun - for Sheng, Erhu, Pipa and Yangqin

周書蘋 [台灣]: 埜水 - 為琵琶,笛,古箏,二胡
Shu-Pin Chou [Taiwan]: Inundation - for Pipa, Di, Guzheng, Erhu

中場 / Intermission

Brian Ledwidge Flynn [愛爾蘭]: 重新定位 - 為笛，二胡，琵琶，揚琴，古箏，阮，笛
Brian Ledwidge Flynn [Ireland]: Reorientation - for Di, Erhu, Pipa, Yangqin, Guzheng, Ruan, Sheng

Elena Lebedeva [俄羅斯]: 水色 - 為笛，琵琶，揚琴，阮，笙
Elena Lebedeva [Russia]: Watercolours - for Di, Pipa, Yangqin, Ruan, Sheng

Martijn Vanbuel [比利時]: 五金行 -  為笛,二胡,琵琶,揚琴,揚琴,柳琴,阮,笙
Martijn Vanbuel [Belgium]: Wu Jin Hang - for Di, Erhu, Pipa, Guzheng, Yangqin, Liuqin, Ruan, Sheng

Peter Bjuhr [瑞典]: 生命的五動 - 為中胡,曲笛,古箏,琵琶,揚琴,柳琴,笙
Peter Bjuhr [Sweden]: Life in 5 Movements - for Zhonghu, Qudi, Guzheng, Pipa, Yangqin, Liuqin, Sheng

Information on the Wu Xing from the Chai Found Music Website

Wu Xing is an important and influential concept in Eastern philosophy up to the present day. The 5 elements, which are connected in an overcoming and a destroying cycle have proven their validity in several thousand years. They had (and still have in a somewhat concealed way) an immeasurable impact on Chinese thought, culture, social behavior, and everyday life. As Wu Xing is not a notion in modern life anymore, it seems acceptable to revive this intriguing, self-sustaining metaphor of what our existence is  about. Just as it is the case with music, the five elements are always in motion, and their mutual impact and overall, ever-shifting balance can only be experienced as time passes by.

The use of Wu Xing as a theme for a composition contest stands in line with Chai Found Music Workshop’s interests and areas of activity: combining the old with the new, infusing tradition with modernity, creating contemporary music with its history in mind:  Wu Xing features eight world-premieres of new music on traditional instruments.

The project is two-fold: a Taiwanese and a European portion are brought together in a concert and on a CD. By involving composers from opposite ends of the world, Wu Xing aims at bridging two forms of culture. Thus, European composers can discover a new and fresh idea here, while Taiwanese composers can re-interpret their own venerable cultural background and develop their ideas and music by working with a first-class Chinese chamber music ensemble.

I’m delighted to be invovled and would like to thank the organisers and ensemble for having me on board. Here’s to a great concert!

Last summer some time I got around to doing something I had meant to do for a little while. I reversed one channel of a few 1960’s songs in the belief they would produce an interesting and enjoyable effect.

My reasoning was as follows; when stereo recording technology was first used in the production of popular music releases, having proven its worth in the classical genre the years previous, instruments and voices tended to be put into either the left or right speaker (this was a time before pan pots). What this means is that you can reverse one speaker without effecting the content of the other. Oh snap! The possibilities here really rock my world. You can have the rhythm section solidly doing their thing whilst the voice and other sundry items enter a new world of sonic diversity whilst remaining in context.

‘Who should I try this on?’ I thought.’ Who have I listened to to death and would like to experience afresh again?’ I pondered. Who else? The Beatles….

Enjoy! (or get really mad and think I’m an idiot, I don’t particularly mind).

#1 ELEANOR RIGBY

#2 DRIVE MY CAR

#3 YELLOW SUBMARINE (aka ‘Near Reversal Lake’)

One observation I’ve made in reversing music (something I do quite often) is that it takes on a very Eastern feel. So, naturally you would expect Eastern music to take on a Western feel when reversed right? Well, no. It just sounds more Eastern. I haven’t figured out why yet. Why not try it for yourself, it’s fascinating stuff and it seldom hurts anyone.

This Thursday (23rd April) I will be performing in the Ergodos Festival ‘Expressway to Your Skull’ concert in the Unitarian Church, St. Stephen’s Green at 8:30pm.

The concert, in the words of its promoters, will feature ‘Meditative and singular music around that emblem of a music, the electric guitar.’

For my part I will be playing in Garrett Sholdice’s awesome ‘Electric Guitar Quartet’

The concert opens with a new composition of mine entitled ‘Zeitgeber Gears’ for two electric guitars performed by myself and Benedict Schlepper-Connolly, here is the programme note:

‘Zeitgeber Gears is an imaginary EP of the sort produced in the early to mid 90’s by the purveyors of the ’shoegazer’ movement (My Bloody Valentine, RIDE, Chapterhouse etc). In keeping with that aesthetic I have attempted to keep the guitar parts ’simple’ enough for enthusiastic beginners to play.

The duration and division of the piece into Side A and B and further sub-division into movements (or tracks) are intended to evoke the vinyl record trend that was so much a part of this scene in alternative rock. In my teenage years I played in a number of these sorts of bands. Perhaps that’s why this understated, sometimes clumsy and often self-conscious style of music can take me to a nostalgic, idealistic and tie-dyed place.

The title is a reference to any external cue that entrains the internal time-keeping system of organisms, a nod to dead trends and old habits which retain their influence long after expiry.

Zeitgeber Gears is in three movements (or tracks)

SIDE A
I.    Meccano
II.   Serotonin I

SIDE B
III. Serotonin II
IV.  Ultradia’

Below is a link to the score (so you can bring it and read along through half-moon specs, nodding approvingly all-the-while.)

zgearsscoreblf

I hope to see you there.

You can book a ticket here (or just turn up)

Ever since the major news agencies and broadcasters started using twitter as their primary news source (is that a good thing?) I thought I should move with the times and get my ‘twit’ on.

So for all you cyborgs out there that are never more than knicker-thickness away from the web at any time, you can now effortlessly follow the Abraxas project from the comfort of your mobile browser with daily feeds.  I will also be a little more verbose and revealing about the processess involved in the compositions (when I have time.)

Please use earphones though as the frequency response from the little speakers in the iPhone is quite limited and the bass end tends to get lost (oh the humanity!)

I digress…

ABRAXAS ON TWITTER

Thanks to Aisling Ryan (Cultural Events Management) who featured Abraxas on her excellent blog last week.

It is quite the honour for me to be included in the blog as it is always chock-a-block with the best events, concert reviews and other arts coverage to make you feel that you live in interesting and exciting times.

I am therefore going to use syllogistic logic to infer that I am very interesting and exciting.

Q.E.D.

I’m quite excited about the coverage Abraxas is getting around the place.

The Journal of Music

The Networked Music Review

Russian television station TvKultura

Many thanks to all concerned and (on the eve of the 100th post) I’d also like to thank all subscribers, friends and collaborators who have offered their encouragement and support through the ups and downs of Abraxas thus far.

It’s a strange thing but each day it feels like I’ve only just started.

Here’s to the next 265

Whenever I travel I make a point of looking for alternative manuscript paper. Something out of the ordinary which incorporates the planning aspect of composition as well as the graphic and notational disciplines.

I’ve had some degree of success (in Switzerland especially) and what composer can do without their manuscript moleskin?

But, ultimately I needed something more, especially for the rate at which I need new works for my Abraxas project. So I’ve created my own manuscript which I modestly call ‘ULTRA SCORE’. It’s still at the early stages but I wanted to make it available to anyone else out there who likes the idea of a manuscript tailored to composition planning etc..

The link to the PDF is here and it’s paginated in such a way as it alternates between the two types of pages when bound so that you can sit it in an A3 position and view it like that.

Feel free to print and use it. If anyone would like a bound version (50 pages) get in touch and I can send one to you.

I welcome any suggestions for future versions.

Here is the recording of a recent York University performance of ‘Rudnicky’. My solo piano piece (that’s right, I no longer refer to myself in the third person, I don’t have a team of elves maintaining my website. It was me all along!)

Anyway, back to the piece. I was looking for an very minimal and moody journey for the listener on this one. There is a degree of interpretation in the score and I feel the performer (Stef Conner) did a cracking job at getting the pace and feel across. The acoustics of the auditorium really bring out the overtones in the sustained notes too.

A composer friend of mine said it sounds like ‘angry Satie’. nice.

Rudnicky for Solo Piano (performed by Stef Connor)

I’ve included the PDF score for anyone who likes to read along (or play at home?)rudnicky

{If you are reading along to the music then open the PDF in a new window/tab to avoid interruption}

For those who missed my original post re:the performance, here is the background to this composition from my programme notes:

“‘Rudnicky‘ is a solo piano piece composed for a laid back Polish expatriate friend of mine who lived for a time in Ireland and has since returned home. We worked together in the last true second hand vinyl shop in Dublin (Final Vinyl, Camden St. - now a ‘Centra’!) When I would visit Rudnicky’s he would educate me about Ethiopian Funk, Jazz, 70’s soul music and the origin of well know samples, playing excepts from his massive vinyl collection to punctuate whatever point he was making at the time. I composed this piece to express my gratitude and to throw him some contemporary shapes.

Something for your downtime Mr. Rudnicky.”

Quintet (performed by Ensemble ICC) allow a second to buffer

Here is the recording of the October 15th Dublin performance of my composition Quintet. It was performed in the Unitarian church by Ensemble ICC, the new performing wing of the Irish Composers’ Collective

Musicians & Instrumentation: viola (Cora Venus Lunny), cello (Kate Ellis), double bass (Daniel Bodwell), clarinet (Karl Rooney) & horn (Enda Collins)

I was thinking about Philip Johnson’s structure ‘Glass House’ (pictured above) when I wrote this. With each of the two sections the gap between the harmony narrows; starting with open fifths, then fourths and finally stacked thirds.

sounds good with a mug of cocoa

Read the score here quintet-icc-bl-flynn (open it in a new window/tab to avoid interrupting the music)

I have been experimenting with canonic procedures in my compositions lately, mainly because I love canons and they make me feel very nice.

For those who wish to know, a canon is a contrapuntal composition that employs a melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration (e.g. quarter rest, one measure, etc.). The initial melody is called the leader, while the imitative melody is called the follower which is played in a different voice.

The follower must be created from the leader by being either an exact replication of the rhythms and intervals of the leader, or a transformation. Canons where all parts sing identical music and which repeat are called rounds, such as “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” and “Frère Jacques”.

That’s according to wikipedia anyway.

I’ll be posting more experiments in this area over the coming weeks.

First is ‘Factor, Factor’ for electronics and Guitar Quartet. It is an evolving canon which mutates every n repetitions.

Hear extract of Factor, Factor performed by composer

The image, by the way is by Jon Gibson from his out-of-print album In Good Company released on Philip Glass’s short-lived Point Music label

My piano solo ‘Rudnicky‘ will be performed in The University of York, Heslington, UK on Sat 1st Nov. 6-9pm.
‘Rudnicky‘ is a solo piano piece composed for a laid back Polish expatriate friend of mine who lived for a time in Ireland and has since returned home. We worked together in the last true second hand vinyl shop in Dublin (Final Vinyl, Camden St. - now a ‘Centra’!) When I would visit Rudnicky’s he would educate me about Ethiopian Funk, Jazz, 70’s soul music and the origin of well know samples, playing excepts from his massive vinyl collection to punctuate whatever point he was making at the time. I composed this piece to express my gratitude and to throw him some contemporary shapes.Something for your downtime Mr. Rudnicky.

I was spring cleaning (in September?) and came across a Pure Data patch I constructed in order to create endless canonic music. I thought I would make a gift of it to the world. It was somewhat of a stream-of-consciousness build and can breakdown quicker than someone with SADS but when it works…pure magic!

You are free to use this patch under the GNU general public license

Download Awesome Patch!

(right click - save as)

Enjoy.

Ensemble ICC to premiere ‘Quintet’

Ensemble ICC, the new performing wing of the Irish Composers’ Collective will perform Quintet – a new work by Brian Ledwidge Flynn for string trio, horn and clarinet – 15th October (Dublin), 16th October (Cork)

Musicians & Instrumentation: viola (Cora Venus Lunny), cello (Kate Ellis), double bass (Daniel Bodwell), clarinet (Karl Rooney) & horn (Enda Collins)