Musicworks 98

V/A MUSICWORKS 98 CD (Musicworks)
Various artists/composers who do electroacoustic, experimental classical, noise, samples, and related sounds on a CD that comes with the quarterly Canadian magazine Musicworks. This CD covers a lot of different ground, from Harpsichord and electronics to experimental vocal to tracks from early plunderphonic artist JOHN OSWALD.
1. Spastic and silly composition for harpsichord and electronics from JOHN CAGE. The electronics and harpsichord seem to have almost nothing to do with each other which add to the silly sounds.
2. Short vocal sounds and whistles and what sounds like manipulated bird calls.
**3. Super short funny experimental vocals sounds and sound effects.
4. Experimental vocals sounds and sound effects.
**5. Multiple vocalists making vocal sounds with the sounds of crickets in the background.
**6. Experimental barbershop quartet? Playful.
**7. As the title suggests, "Voices to Water" it sounds like a mix of vocal sounds that sound like water, or vocal sounds and water sounds, or manipulated vocal sounds that sound more and more like water. Ends with sped up tape sounds.
8. Electronics that sound like manipulated vocals.
9. Reverby effects on manipulated vocals.
***10. Busy manipulated vocal sounds. I think the source material is taken from TV samurai actors. Reminds me a lot of JOHN OSWALD or PEOPLE LIKE US. When you can understand the vocal sounds it does sound Japanese. The last minute is wonderful with fast repeated female vocal sounds with a slow male vocal sound thrown in in the background. Wow.
11. Cut up and reconstructed sounds from piano and synthesizer. Comes across and early electronic composition with long sections of silence.
12. Flute, clarinet, violin, piano and percussion doing repetitive classical almost like REICH but were the sounds almost get deconstructed.
13. Experimental tango? Bandoneon led classical with distant vocal. Vocals pick up the pace and almost sound manipulated. Into a dramatic tango that sounds soundtrack like but with noisy piano.
**14. Environmental recordings (kids playing), vocal whispers, and some story telling. This track was part of a sound instillation.
15. Soundscape that was presented on a street in Toronto imagining what the sounds of Taddle Creek would sound like. Wildlife and water sounds mix with street traffic and some spoken word telling stories.
16. Just vocals in what sounds like a roundabout. Female vocal ensemble singing in a number of languages at the same time; Spanish, Greek, Gaelic, Arabic, English, Japanese, French and Zulu.
**17. Another vocal piece sung in many languages at the same time this time with some male singers and this time in Inuktutut, Georgian, Farsi, Latin and Tamil. Changes from busy layered vocals to primarily beautiful female vocals. Ends with almost 30 seconds of silence
18. I think a single gong hit given the chance to ring for 19 minutes. Mostly silent.
Excellent stuff -mph