eidos; qualia (2022)

for flute, clarinet, viola, cello, objects, and electronics

eidos; qualia oscillates between presence and absence, implying a continuity between being and non-being, appearance and disappearance. It draws upon Yuk Hui’s discussion of recursivity, a concept that he likens to success in shanshui painting: “when one sees something when there is in fact nothing; when there is nothing where one sees something.” I convey the idea of recursivity musically by rendering the soundless as equally audible as the sounding. By positioning the musicians around the audience and by gradually foregrounding the presence of space through IRCAM’s Spat, I transform the soundless—the relation of one body to another—into something that is perceived through distance and heard through signal processing. Furthermore, in the final section of the piece, silent everyday objects (e.g. cardboard boxes and ceramic pots) are given voice as musical instruments.