Episode 128

Terry Riley—Part 2, Solo Organ and Synthesizer Works

Playlist

Time

Track Time

Start

Introduction –Thom Holmes

05:28

00:00

Terry Riley, “The Last Camel in Paris” from The Last Camel In Paris (2008 Elision Fields). Composed and performed on a Yamaha YC-45D combo organ custom-tuned to just intonation and outfitted with a digital delay system, Terry Riley. Concert recorded by Radio France for a France Culture program by Daniel Caux broadcast May 13, 1979, in the Atelier de Création Radiophonique series. The delay circuit was created by Chester Wood, Riley's road technician. It fed stereo signals to the digital delay. The YC-45D was modified so that it had separate mono outputs for each of its two keyboards, resulting in 4-channel live performances comprising two live channels and two delayed. Riley improvised these concerts around given themes and patterns. Wood created the delay, which they called “the shadow,” out of “an ancient computer he had procured from Don Buchla and this tour was the maiden voyage to try it out,” (Riley). Previously, the analog delay Riley used on works such as the Dervishes (see previous episode) created a fixed-length delay based on the physical head gap of the tape recorders used, which consisted only of two delays of 7.5 inches per second and 3.75 inches per second, the speeds available on his Revox tape machine. The digital delay allowed Riley to fine tune the pause before a sound would repeat, finding tape delays that worked well with the tempos he was using in his compositions. This concert came after the release of Shri Camel album on CBS, a widely known release. I thought hearing these live variations on that work would be of interest.

50:58

05:34

Terry Riley, “Eastern Man” from Songs For The Ten Voices Of The Two Prophets (1983 Kuckuck). Composed, Voice, two Prophet 5 synthesizers by Terry Riley. Recorded in concert on May 10, 1982, at Amerika-Haus in Munich. Recorded digitally on Sony PCM-100 and PCM-1610 equipment.

11:19

56:39

Terry Riley, “Aleph Part 1” from Aleph (2012 Tzadik). Composed, Korg Triton Studio 88 synthesizer, Recorded, Liner Notes, and Produced by Terry Riley. Recorded in 2008, Aleph was originally created for the Aleph-Bet sound project organized by John Zorn for the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco.

45:46

01:07:56

Opening background music: Terry Riley, “Anthem of the Trinity” from Shri Camel (1980 CBS). Produced, Composed, Performed in real-time on a modified dual-manual, Yamaha YC-45-D Electronic Organ with just intonation and digital delay, by Terry Riley.

Opening and closing sequences voiced by Anne Benkovitz.

Additional opening, closing, and other incidental music by Thom Holmes.

My Books/eBooks: Electronic and Experimental Music, sixth edition, Routledge 2020. Also, Sound Art: Concepts and Practices, first edition, Routledge 2022.

See my companion blog that I write for the Bob Moog Foundation.

For a transcript, please see my blog, Noise and Notations.

Original music by Thom Holmes can be found in iTunes and on Bandcamp.