NQN details, part 6
Track five on ne quid nimis is “the speaking holes”.
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The track was recorded in February 1994 for inclusion on one of Epitapes’ many themed compilations, but if it was included on any of them, I do not know about it. I sent Mike Tetrault of Epitapes very many tracks for his regular compilations, (probably to his dismay and irritation!). I now have five tapes in my collection from the label.
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“the speaking holes” was one of the most minimal pieces of music I have ever conceived and recorded. All of the sounds on this song come from polished stones rubbing against each other. I had a small vase made of sedimentary fossil rock, and a ball made of the same stone that was about two inches in diameter. The ball fit snugly into the mouth of the vase, like a ball in a socket. I contact mic’ed the vase and rolled the ball around in the socket for the duration of the piece. I recorded four tracks of this, and ended up with something that sounded like quiet mouth noises punctuated by snaps and clicks.
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Directly after recording this song, I kept the same set-up and recorded another little experiment by tapping on the stones with various things. That little experiment became “Tapping the Hole” on the release abandon.
Always one of my favorites.
Posted by harebell | February 21, 2009 12:35 pmThank you!
Posted by C. Reider | February 21, 2009 1:25 pm