Works » By Title » P » (Plus or Minus Two Seconds) ± 2" (13:10 / 1983)

“Plus of Minus Two Seconds” uses various short gestures for its compositional material. With these sound fragments, a structure has been created to accomodate synthesizer improvisations based upon one basic treatment of a tuned sine tone. The piece is in three movements. The first permits the four performers to enter the structure as a door is opened on their respective speakers. This is heard as a short sound complex followed by a long sustained upward glissando to which the players have previously tuned. The players weave among the complexities of the tape, mimicing and drawing ideas from it, creating a foundation for the sound structure. The second movement is of a more sparse nature and permits the players to come forward in the soundscape, and colour the structure. The third movement symbolizes the completion of the structure. Finishing touches and decoration are provided by the ensemble. This section moves towards a final unificaltion of the material comming from the four speakers. The effect is one of a ‘closing in’ of the sound source, such that the final gesture occurs in the centre of the space. “Plus or Minus Two Seconds” was completed and mixed at the studio of the Concordia University Audio Visual Department, Loyola Campus, on February 26, 1983. Instruments used were a Juno Six Polyphonic Synthesizer and a Synthi A. DL