Wolfi
ix 1999
(excerpt)
Wolfi (1999) - Sound Animation
The ideas behind Wolfi came to me when I was captivated by an extremely good vocal recording. The vocalist in question acted out the story of Red Riding Hood. Instantly I felt a necessity to capture the interesting and engaging qualities, which she showed in her acting.
I think of Wolfi as a Sound Animation, using a combination of recorded text and sound images to tell the story of Little Red Riding Hood.
Fragments of text were chosen through a selection process based on cause and effect relationships. Most important were elements of pitch alliteration, natural volume curves and timbre, combining with information conveyed directly by the text.
Wolfi seems to have two sound worlds. The sound world at the beginning of the work is devoid of any recognition of the vocal source. However this world takes fundamental behavioural and physiological characteristics of the vocal recording such as timbre, morphological structure, humour, refinement and spontaneity.
The other is the world, which our ears readily identify as human speech.
Through the act of speech and recognisable text the story of the Fairy tale is shaped.
It is when the two separate worlds meet that they can explore Sound imagery. Red Riding Hood cries towards the end: "Ah the Wolf is going to eat me", running parallel to crescendo's and glissandi which could in turn describe feelings of anxiety and terror.
Many thanks to Sara.
Jo Thomas
Jo Thomas started her enthusiasm with Electro Acoustic composition while studying with the composer Andrew Lewis as an undergraduate at the University of Wales, Bangor. She then continued her studies with Andrew Lewis gaining a Masters Degree with distinction in composition.
In 1995 she took up a position as a research student in electroacoustic composition at the University of Huddersfield working with the composers, Mathew Adtkins Michael Clarke and Chris Fox.
Jo is now is working as a composer in London.
Her work has been broadcast and performed live nationally and internationally. In 1997 she was awarded a Bourges commendation for her work African Violet based on the poetry of the British poet Alison Macneil. In May1999 her work 'Glitch' was broadcast on the BBC Radio 3 programme 'Here and Now' in conjunction with a review of the Contemporary Music Festival 'Sonorities'.
Her latest work 'Wolfi' a Sound animation is based on the story of little Red Riding Hood and has been included on the recent Sonic Arts CD 'Emerging Horizons.
Jo finds collaborating with other artists exciting and challenging. Currently she is working with the composer Frank Ekeberg on a sound instillation called Lorry Red, Lorry Yellow. She is also working with the filmmaker Sara Wrighton.
Solo work in progress includes a work for tape only titled Dark Noise.
She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at City University, London under the supervision of Dr Simon Emerson.
eContact! 2.2 — Sonic Arts Network (Septembre 1999 / September 1999). Montréal: Communauté électroacoustique canadienne / Canadian Electroacoustic Community.
