Présenté par : Juan Parra Cancino, Jonathan Impett
Biography
Three States of Wax:
The nature of material in live electronic improvisation
Juan Parra Cancino & Jonathan Impett. Orpheus Institute, Ghent.
This presentation delves into the creative, performative, and technical approaches employed by the Three States of Wax duo: Jonathan Impett (trumpet and electronics) and Juan Parra Cancino (guitar and electronics).
The concept of improvisation's materiality is at the heart of this exploration. The title and approach are inspired by the philosopher of science Michel Serres' inquiry into the materials of physics. Extending Descartes' thought experiment involving a piece of wax (always the same, yet ever-changing), Serres identifies three perspectives: the object as perceived, the object as described through its properties, and the object as an informational nexus. This latter view not only encapsulates the entire history of its origin and interactions, but also continually transforms in every encounter or examination. Serres contends that this perspective is particularly relevant in our information-driven world.
Improvised electro-acoustic music is paradigmatic of contemporary practices in various dimensions. It raises fundamental questions about the nature of material and its representation, the ascription of authorship, and the emergence of structure across time. In a culture of highly personalised performance systems, the manipulation of shared material becomes a central technical question.
In Three States of Wax, material is handled in Serres’ sense – not only as representational (generated a priori or in real time), but as the traces of its interrogation and mediation. In this respect, our work is congruent with current research in Digital Humanities – the core of the system could be seen as an evolving knowledge map. Information undergoes exchange, comparison, and processing through a spectrum of modalities. The distinction between these modes is the driving force behind the music, akin to a Lacanian engine with real, symbolic, and imaginary facets. Three States of Wax introduces a new layer to the realm of live instrument processing. What were once seemingly incommensurable custom individual systems evolve into a dynamic network. The central “difference engine” becomes an autonomous voice, utilising analog sounds to unveil the inherent dynamics of the emerging structure.
This presentation explores the concepts and strategies employed by Impett and Parra to establish this sonic network. Elements such as hauntologies and principles reminiscent of artificial life all contribute to the creation of multiple branching pathways and their diversions. These pathways are designed to act as tangible, instrumental resistance within the shared system and its performers.
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