Thank you to The Edges of Dreaming and it’s host Rebekkah Hilgraves for including my track DnA in this very apt radio show.
As Rebekkah says –
The Unity is a concept, a belief in the affinity shared across a far-flung community of artists. It is about the deep and powerful connections we make to the music, and to the places it can take us. It is a celebration of various styles contained within a single genre, and the unifying ability of Art.
We are the Artists. This is the Unity.
24 /03/2020 – UK
In all honesty, I wrote this track and the accompanying explanation long before the Covid – 19 pandemic and playing it back, it sounds both strange, beautiful, of wonder but also sounds like a warning.
Somehow, today, it has taken on added significance.
We are all connected…more so now… in many more ways…both good and bad.
Let’s root for the good connections.
As I look out of the window at the grey pink hue of the sky, I think more than ever we need to keep being unified and connected well beyond our biological make -up.
Wishing you all well, whoever and wherever you are.
O x
Here’s my original explanation of the piece –
“ Create a track that represents to you a portrait of unity or connectedness…”
Hmm mm….What connects all living things on the planet?
Cells.
How about a track that is my interpretation of what is in all cells – DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid), the genetic code that determines all the characteristics of all living things on this planet?
DNA is a molecule composed of two chains that coil around each other to form a double helix carrying genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of all known organisms and many viruses. Firstly, I found a GIF on Wikimedia showing the DNA double helix in motion and so I composed this piece to roughly follow the moving image in tempo and also in a cyclical rotating soundscape. I decided to limit myself mainly to two notes for the basic tone of the piece and decided to create two long form drones in key of D and A to represent this.
The two long chains are interconnected by what looks like a ladder made up of repeating units called nucleotides. Each nucleotide contains a sugar and a phosphate molecule, which make up the ‘backbone’ of DNA. As nucleotides are the building blocks of life I have used staccato percussive sounds to represent this. There is also a strange breathing sound and a strange ticking like a clock, representing the passing of time and is rhythmic like a pendulum.
Each nucleotide is composed of one of four nitrogen-containing nucleobases (cytosine [C], guanine [G], adenine [A] or thymine [T]), a sugar called deoxyribose, and a phosphate group.
The bases are adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C) and thymine (T) are in a specific order of A, G, C and T within a DNA molecule that is unique to you, and gives you your characteristics. Here, I added more complex patterns and sounds and also chords to represent the increasing complexity of the DNA structure and here I also added the notes G and C to the D and A notes although there’s no T note : ) With the use of randomisation and fixed patterns throughout the piece the overall effect I wanted to create was living things are all made up of DNA, so, 46 chromosomes equals a human being but a Fruit fly has only 8 but we are connected by the wonder of the genetic code.
Sometimes my ideas are quite a challenge, even to myself.
As I look out of the window at the grey pink hue of the sky, I think more than ever we need to keep being unified and connected well beyond our biological make -up.
Wishing you all well.
O / Museleon
museleon 