Works » By Title » T » Two Subway Studies (1:47 / 1991)

Two Subway Studies is a study in dramatic brevity, partly inspired by the compactness of the Pieces for Orchestra of Anton Webern, but also by a love of trains. It is in two-movements. The style is musique-concrète. The techniques include tape editing, gating, and reverberation. The sounds originate from the Vancouver SkyTrain, the Montréal Métro, and a spring reverb unit being shaken. A wide dynamic range and sounds that fade in and fade out create a sense of space that is alive with chimes, scrapes, and rumbles from long, deep tunnels. Hey, was that a rat? Oh, your mind wandered, and you missed it. Here comes the train. Don’t be late.