artist: ANDREW DEUTSCH
title: The Sun
catalog number: and/21
release year: 2005
format: CD
status: sold out
title: The Sun
catalog number: and/21
release year: 2005
format: CD
status: sold out
and/OAR is extremely happy to present this powerfully mesmerizing work; carefully
remastered and reissued for the first time on CD format. Under the original title of
"Der Sonne", this work was originally issued as a limited quantity CDR release on
Andrew Deutsch's Magic If label several years ago.
"The Sun was constructed by passing ocean waves (recorded at Rye Beach, New
Hampshire), through various digital processing devices. The most articulate of
these processors was a tone generator able to isolate and respond to specific
frequencies present in the ocean waves. The concept behind The Sun was to
make a static music or a kind of music that just shimmered in place. This concept
can be traced back to the works of Anthony Braxton in his Tri Axiom Writings, and
to Stockhausen in his early serial pieces. As Stockhausen says, "there is a
difference between starting and stopping and beginning and ending". The pieces
presented here do not begin and end but simply start and stop. The Sun is also a
work, in a series of works, I have created to aid in the process of drawing. I call
these works 'image drones/sounds for drawing'. The sounds were all inspired by the
'power field theories' of Joseph Beuys and are dedicated to him and his family."
(Andrew Deutsch)
This release will present the first of a new line of packaging for and/OAR. Nicely
printed oversized cardstock inserts inside a sturdy clear plastic sleeve with a flap.
The CDs will be protected by cloth safety sleeves made in Japan. Special thanks
to Kiyoshi Mizutani and Kiyoharu Kuwayama for their help in obtaining the
sleeves.
remastered and reissued for the first time on CD format. Under the original title of
"Der Sonne", this work was originally issued as a limited quantity CDR release on
Andrew Deutsch's Magic If label several years ago.
"The Sun was constructed by passing ocean waves (recorded at Rye Beach, New
Hampshire), through various digital processing devices. The most articulate of
these processors was a tone generator able to isolate and respond to specific
frequencies present in the ocean waves. The concept behind The Sun was to
make a static music or a kind of music that just shimmered in place. This concept
can be traced back to the works of Anthony Braxton in his Tri Axiom Writings, and
to Stockhausen in his early serial pieces. As Stockhausen says, "there is a
difference between starting and stopping and beginning and ending". The pieces
presented here do not begin and end but simply start and stop. The Sun is also a
work, in a series of works, I have created to aid in the process of drawing. I call
these works 'image drones/sounds for drawing'. The sounds were all inspired by the
'power field theories' of Joseph Beuys and are dedicated to him and his family."
(Andrew Deutsch)
This release will present the first of a new line of packaging for and/OAR. Nicely
printed oversized cardstock inserts inside a sturdy clear plastic sleeve with a flap.
The CDs will be protected by cloth safety sleeves made in Japan. Special thanks
to Kiyoshi Mizutani and Kiyoharu Kuwayama for their help in obtaining the
sleeves.
ARTFORUM (DECEMBER 2005)
BEST OF 2005: MUSIC
1. Steve Roden (On The Boards, Seattle, WA)
2. Andrew Deutsch: The Sun (and/OAR) *
3. A Trove Of Archival Performances By Charlotte Moorman (Ubu Web)
4. Chris Watson: North By North West (BBC Radio 4)
5. Alarm Will Sound: Acoustica - Alarm Will Sound Performs Aphex Twin (Cantaloupe Music)
6. Tony Conrad: Bryant Park Moratorium Rally - 1969 (Table Of The Elements)
7. Githead: Profile (Swim)
8. Boards Of Canada: The Campfire Headphase (Warp Records)
9. Climax Golden Twins: Highly Bred And Sweetly Tempered (North East Indie)
10. Richard Thompson: Grizzly Man Original Soundtrack (Cooking Vinyl)
* A CD consisting of five long tracks in which the sounds of ocean waves
were filtered through digital processors. There's an ambient quality to
Deutsch's richly textured work (he describes each piece as having no
beginning or end) but not one that easily settles into the backdrop.
(Stephen Vitiello)
BEST OF 2005: MUSIC
1. Steve Roden (On The Boards, Seattle, WA)
2. Andrew Deutsch: The Sun (and/OAR) *
3. A Trove Of Archival Performances By Charlotte Moorman (Ubu Web)
4. Chris Watson: North By North West (BBC Radio 4)
5. Alarm Will Sound: Acoustica - Alarm Will Sound Performs Aphex Twin (Cantaloupe Music)
6. Tony Conrad: Bryant Park Moratorium Rally - 1969 (Table Of The Elements)
7. Githead: Profile (Swim)
8. Boards Of Canada: The Campfire Headphase (Warp Records)
9. Climax Golden Twins: Highly Bred And Sweetly Tempered (North East Indie)
10. Richard Thompson: Grizzly Man Original Soundtrack (Cooking Vinyl)
* A CD consisting of five long tracks in which the sounds of ocean waves
were filtered through digital processors. There's an ambient quality to
Deutsch's richly textured work (he describes each piece as having no
beginning or end) but not one that easily settles into the backdrop.
(Stephen Vitiello)
VITAL WEEKLY (MAY 2006)
In the releases of the and/OAR label field recordings are always important, but
the label doesn't exclusively work with that. They have two new releases out,
one of them being a pure field recording work and one with electronically
processed field recordings. The latter is the responsibility of Andrew Deutsch, a
composer who has been using max/msp extensively over the last decade. This
new work contains of the sound of passing ocean waves through various digital
processing devices. 'The most articulate of these processors was a tone
generator able to isolate and respond to specific frequencies present in the
ocean waves', it reads on the cover. It also that the concept behind 'The Sun'
was to make 'static music or a kind of music that just shimmered in place'. It
surely does that, just that. The sound is vaguely like an organ that washes
ashore, just like an ocean wave would do. It is working without many dramatic
developments (it has small and subtle changes, rather than developments, so I
guess it's not that static), but rather a sound environment that works rather
nicely when played softly and perhaps put on repeat for a day or two. There are
five variations on this CD however, which might make a repeated playing
somewhat more difficult: the flow will be interrupted. (Frans De Waard)
In the releases of the and/OAR label field recordings are always important, but
the label doesn't exclusively work with that. They have two new releases out,
one of them being a pure field recording work and one with electronically
processed field recordings. The latter is the responsibility of Andrew Deutsch, a
composer who has been using max/msp extensively over the last decade. This
new work contains of the sound of passing ocean waves through various digital
processing devices. 'The most articulate of these processors was a tone
generator able to isolate and respond to specific frequencies present in the
ocean waves', it reads on the cover. It also that the concept behind 'The Sun'
was to make 'static music or a kind of music that just shimmered in place'. It
surely does that, just that. The sound is vaguely like an organ that washes
ashore, just like an ocean wave would do. It is working without many dramatic
developments (it has small and subtle changes, rather than developments, so I
guess it's not that static), but rather a sound environment that works rather
nicely when played softly and perhaps put on repeat for a day or two. There are
five variations on this CD however, which might make a repeated playing
somewhat more difficult: the flow will be interrupted. (Frans De Waard)
TOUCHING EXTREMES (JUNE 2006)
Recording in natural settings has recently become a sort of "can't miss"
experience for many multi-talented composers, yet I can't seem to remember
anyone - other than Andrew Deutsch - having the idea of recording ocean
waves (in this occasion, New Hampshire's) and put them through a processing
apparatus in order to let us discover "the voice of the sea". This happens
courtesy of a tone generator which recognizes certain frequencies in the waves
and responds accordingly; the sublime result is a collection of six deeply
touching static pieces that Deutsch defines "image drones/sounds for drawing"
as they should facilitate this kind of application. What was directly experienced
by yours truly is being conducted into a suspended state of torpor, where the
resonance game of the shimmering pseudo choirs emitted by the ocean
dissolves any kind of tension, delivering our system both from expectation and
fear, finally wrapping us in a womb-like atmosphere of security which could be
sustained forever. (Massimo Ricci)
Recording in natural settings has recently become a sort of "can't miss"
experience for many multi-talented composers, yet I can't seem to remember
anyone - other than Andrew Deutsch - having the idea of recording ocean
waves (in this occasion, New Hampshire's) and put them through a processing
apparatus in order to let us discover "the voice of the sea". This happens
courtesy of a tone generator which recognizes certain frequencies in the waves
and responds accordingly; the sublime result is a collection of six deeply
touching static pieces that Deutsch defines "image drones/sounds for drawing"
as they should facilitate this kind of application. What was directly experienced
by yours truly is being conducted into a suspended state of torpor, where the
resonance game of the shimmering pseudo choirs emitted by the ocean
dissolves any kind of tension, delivering our system both from expectation and
fear, finally wrapping us in a womb-like atmosphere of security which could be
sustained forever. (Massimo Ricci)
SONOMU (JULY 2006)
Molded out of the swelling ocean waves off Rye Beach, New Hampshire,
Andrew Deutsch claims that The Sun is a work of sound art constructed in
accordance with the "power field theories" of late German artist Joseph Beuys,
to whom this recording is dedicated.
Deutsch has more than merely achieved his goal of creating "static
music...that just shimmered in place"; he proves once again that he is a master
of the genre. As he did several years before with Loops Over Land, where
Deutsch took the quietest of moment out of their contexts (as integral parts of
Gustav Mahler´s compositions) and wove together a pastoral of excruciating
beauty, The Sun amazes by how much one can do to a single sound source
with a little electronic processing. Or rather, while everybody and his brother
can process any kind of sound and make it sound completely different, Deutsch
is that rare artist at whose hands entirely brand new worlds emerge.
Each of the five extended tracks are unique moments in time, each creating a
mood all its own while remaining subtle and coherent throughout.
A music that will catch your eye like the sun dappling off the heaving waves....
(Stephen Fruitman)
Molded out of the swelling ocean waves off Rye Beach, New Hampshire,
Andrew Deutsch claims that The Sun is a work of sound art constructed in
accordance with the "power field theories" of late German artist Joseph Beuys,
to whom this recording is dedicated.
Deutsch has more than merely achieved his goal of creating "static
music...that just shimmered in place"; he proves once again that he is a master
of the genre. As he did several years before with Loops Over Land, where
Deutsch took the quietest of moment out of their contexts (as integral parts of
Gustav Mahler´s compositions) and wove together a pastoral of excruciating
beauty, The Sun amazes by how much one can do to a single sound source
with a little electronic processing. Or rather, while everybody and his brother
can process any kind of sound and make it sound completely different, Deutsch
is that rare artist at whose hands entirely brand new worlds emerge.
Each of the five extended tracks are unique moments in time, each creating a
mood all its own while remaining subtle and coherent throughout.
A music that will catch your eye like the sun dappling off the heaving waves....
(Stephen Fruitman)
SMALLFISH (JULY 2006)
The Sun, ironically, was actually created using the sound of waves from Rye
Beach in New Hampshire. The sounds were then processed and reconstructed
to form a 'static' work that sits in place and shimmers - like the sea, I guess.
Concepts aside the work is incredibly beautiful - a really soothing mixture of
Kirschner / Basinski-style filtering and manipulation coupled with a deep and
warming drone texture. This is one to put on and chill to or, in my case, watch
the world go by on a train. I'd love to hear it at the beach though and feel that
it may well make even more sense in that environment. A delicious album.
Recommended. (Mike Oliver)
The Sun, ironically, was actually created using the sound of waves from Rye
Beach in New Hampshire. The sounds were then processed and reconstructed
to form a 'static' work that sits in place and shimmers - like the sea, I guess.
Concepts aside the work is incredibly beautiful - a really soothing mixture of
Kirschner / Basinski-style filtering and manipulation coupled with a deep and
warming drone texture. This is one to put on and chill to or, in my case, watch
the world go by on a train. I'd love to hear it at the beach though and feel that
it may well make even more sense in that environment. A delicious album.
Recommended. (Mike Oliver)
E / I (SEPTEMBER 2007)
With The Sun, Andrew Deutsch aims to construct a sound event that is static, or
which, at any rate, shimmers in its fixed place. Towards this end, an ocean’s
wave is adopted as the sound source which becomes the object of an
excessive fixation on the part of Deutsch. Over the course of the work, however,
the recording moves from its largely immobile, frozen state, and comes alive as
a spectral apparition. What remains fixed, that is, what one experiences as
stationary, is the gaze of Deutsch itself. Through various digital processing
devices, then, Deutsch not only makes the ebb and flow of the waves chime,
rattle and clang along an expanded dynamic range, he stands himself in as
the frozen point of immobility, creating a fine catch and retreat game between
him and his source sounds. Hovering clusters of organ-like notes and
panoramic spaces are thereby seen from a fascinating perspective, one that
participates in rather than frames the proceedings. Deutsch himself makes
efforts to point out that this is music specifically intended to aid in the process
of painting. While this work is no doubt successful on that front, intentions be
what they may, the simple appearance of this work, with its sonorous humming
and eloquent, effulgent tones, is becoming in and of itself. (Max Schaefer)
With The Sun, Andrew Deutsch aims to construct a sound event that is static, or
which, at any rate, shimmers in its fixed place. Towards this end, an ocean’s
wave is adopted as the sound source which becomes the object of an
excessive fixation on the part of Deutsch. Over the course of the work, however,
the recording moves from its largely immobile, frozen state, and comes alive as
a spectral apparition. What remains fixed, that is, what one experiences as
stationary, is the gaze of Deutsch itself. Through various digital processing
devices, then, Deutsch not only makes the ebb and flow of the waves chime,
rattle and clang along an expanded dynamic range, he stands himself in as
the frozen point of immobility, creating a fine catch and retreat game between
him and his source sounds. Hovering clusters of organ-like notes and
panoramic spaces are thereby seen from a fascinating perspective, one that
participates in rather than frames the proceedings. Deutsch himself makes
efforts to point out that this is music specifically intended to aid in the process
of painting. While this work is no doubt successful on that front, intentions be
what they may, the simple appearance of this work, with its sonorous humming
and eloquent, effulgent tones, is becoming in and of itself. (Max Schaefer)
