Impromptu on A

This piece is an exploration of the piano as both a lyrical and a mechanical instrument. The improvisation symmetrically builds and subsides from single notes into a lush and encompassing sound, then dissolving into a mechanical realm of metallic sounds and rhythms while maintaining the same pitch and rhythmic structures. The trajectory through the piece reflects a shift in the human qualities of sound and tone in the expression of the instrument.

Inner Monologue

‘Inner Monologue’ explores the piano’s capabilities as both an instrument and resonant body. The performer moves throughout the piano, playing its keys, strings, and body to produce melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic qualities.

Live sound from the instrument is captured in real time, allowing gestures to be stretched, distorted, and rearranged as played.

Additionally, pre-recorded tape loops of the piano are layered around the performer and audience through a quad speaker setup.

Playing throughout the piano’s anatomy is to remind that the piano is more than its keys or societal utility, and the relationship between the played piano and the live processing is to represent what is meant and what is said, the struggle between intention and communication.

Darkness to light

Darkness to light is a gradual journey from prepared piano and electronic sound worlds towards the clarity of the real piano. This programme unfolds as a slow transformation of timbre and space.

KRZYSZTOF ZUBEK & ANTON SCONOSCIUTO

KRZYSZTOF ZUBEK & ANTON SCONOSCIUTO research specific acoustic timbres on the piano which, with the help of a cassette player, are recorded and played back. This reproduction aims to focus on the ephemeral aspect of sound and on its memory. As we lose connection with the memory of a sound a few instants after its vibration, the cassette acts as medium for a different remembrance of it to take the scene.

time going by / leaves turning auburn

Krzysztof Zubek explores the decay of memory over time, utilising slow microtonal shifting to evoke the sense of the shifting perception and instability.

Hoffnungszorn

This piece arises from living in a time of constant threat and overload: war, instability, and an uninterrupted stream of possible catastrophes. Attention shifts endlessly from one crisis to the next, without relief.

The music follows a struggle to endure this pressure - the attempt to find an exit where none is visible. Moments of hope appear, only to intensify the tension.

Rage that grows from within.

‘Inside / Outside’ and ‘Forest Arps’ 3, 4, & 5 from Breath Box

From the peninsula of Brean Down in Somerset, to a small sunlit room in a city, Breath Box represents the expanse and intimacy of our most familiar and favourite places. Initiated and inspired during a residency at Snape Maltings in Aldeburgh, this composition is the result of a creative partnership between pianist Eliza McCarthy and electronic musician Jo Wills.

The prerecorded material in Breath Box was made from manipulating the rich palette of sonic possibilities that lurk beneath the piano lid. Like a mischievous car mechanic, sounds are lured from under the piano’s bonnet as we travel through new aural landscapes.