Search - Alastair Galbraith, Matt Degennaro, De Gennaro :: Long Wires in Dark Museums Volume 1 (North Island)

Alastair Galbraith is a veteran of New Zealand's underground music scene and Matt De Gennaro is an American sound artist. Together they turn buildings into musical instruments by fastening great lengths of piano wire to the interiors of darkened rooms. They play them by walking the length of the wires and stroking them with rosined hands to coax vibrations that are shaped by each space's dimensions into a unique set of overtone-rich drones. The effect is quite hypnotic, especially when Galbraith chips in with keening violin figures, as heart-tuggingly emotional as an ancient bagpipe air. This music isn't without precedent; there are elements of Tony Conrad's raw, shrieking Early Minimalism series and Alvin Lucier's oscillating Music on a Long Thin Wire. But De Gennaro and Galbraith's pieces, which all clock in at around 11 minutes, are briefer and more dynamic than their forbears, which makes this CD an excellent way to introduce novices to the marvels of acoustic art. --Bill Meyer