currents and wires (2024)

15′; cl, vc, electric gtr, clavichord

Inspired by a physics concept which similarly inspired an earlier work of mine from almost 10 years ago, currents and wires takes inspiration from the velocity of electrons in wires (about 1 mm/second!). The piece is based harmonically around a 10:12:15:16 just intonation chord, which is the hum produced by the freezer section in my local Edeka in Berlin. These harmonic numbers are further utilized as temporal divisions of the whole piece (i.e. dividing the time of the piece by 10, 12, 15, 16), and each of these divisions is assigned to one of the four instruments. In this way, each instrument is treated as its own current stream, which intersect at serendipitous moments throughout the work.

[score is available upon request]

Written for red panel.