>> Claudia Morales: Hello.
I am Claudia Morales from the
music division of the Library
of Congress and I'm here with
my colleague Anne McLean.
We are super excited to welcome
to our digital stage
Grammy Award winning Third
Coast Percussion.
David Skidmore, Robert Dillon,
Peter Martin, and Sean Connors.
We also have electronic
music producer
and composer Jlin Patton.
We are here to talk about
their collaborative project
Metamorphosis that features
street dance choreography
and dance for Movement Art Is.
And music and Philip Glass,
Tyondai Braxton and Jlin.
Also joining us in this
conversation is composer Gemma
Peacocke who will talk
about her world premiere
"The threshold we cross
with closed eyes," composed
for Third Coast Percussion
and paired
in this virtual performance.
This fantastic virtual
concert celebrates our Founders
Day 2021.
Thank you so much and
welcome to the Library.
We are delighted to
have you here with us.
>> David Skidmore: Thank you.
>> Robert Dillon: Thank you.
It's great to be here.
>> Claudia Morales: So,
let's take it from the top.
We are -- we have
so many questions.
This project is just amazing.
So, from the music perspective,
and correct me if I'm wrong,
you started the project with
Philip Glass, Metamorphosis.
And along the side, you
start working with Jlin,
who comes to Chicago for a
residence, starts working
with your percussion
instruments, goes back home,
creates and composes
this electronic piece,
shows it to you and
you will have
to translate this
electronic sounds
for acoustic percussion
instruments.
Did I get it right?
Alright. So, please, please
explain this process to us.
Just from reading about it,
feels like a lot of work.
So, how did it happen?
And you can all come in
it and share with us.
>> David Skidmore: Sure,
maybe I'll get started.
And then Jlin, you
can tell a little bit
from your side of things.
>> Jlin Patton: Sure.
>> David Skidmore: We, the
members of Third Coast,
we came to know Jlin's music,
actually, several years ago now
from reading about it.
I think in Pitchfork magazine
first, just sort of, you know,
we're performing musicians,
but we're also music fans.
We're always looking for
new music that excites
and sort of inspires us.
And we found a review for
Jlin's album, Dark Energy,
which is this amazing,
amazing piece of work.
And listened to it.
And not only do we love it,
but we said hey, you know,
she uses a lot of
percussion sounds.
And she sounds like she would
write a really amazing piece
for Third Coast Percussion.
And so, you know, as time went
on, we reached out and we got
to know Jlin and talked about
putting a project together.
So, in some ways, Jlin, you
were kind of the beginning
of this whole project because
it started with saying we have
to work with this
incredible musician.
And then, yeah Claudia,
what you described
as basically how
the project came
to be once we started
putting it all together.
Jlin, you came to our
studio and I think you spent
like two full days sampling our
entire instrument collection
with Sean.
Is that right?
>> Jlin Patton: Yes.
Yes. It -- you know,
it's so funny
because actually it probably
wasn't anywhere close
to the whole thing.
But for sure, definitely.
Sean and I had a
ball those two days.
And yeah. No, you all's
collection is first
of all is constantly
growing and then --
but what I did was I
sampled like the basics of,
so like marimba like
we literally --
it was about a about an 8-,
9-hour day of just going
through every note
of like the marimba,
the vibraphone, just everything.
It was a lot.
And making sure -- also to
like with trying to make sure
that getting the clarity of
each sound, getting the clarity
of each note, and then kind of
contending with like, you know,
just outside interface.
And you know, having to record
right at the perfect moment.
It was like -- this
is one funny portion,
Sean and I are doing
the bowls where you have
to like the African --
the meditation bowls,
and it's every time Sean went
to touch the bowl, it was either
like a car, a train
or something.
So, but you know,
we got it done.
And then we got it within
that -- those two days.
And I went back and I
started, you know, just --
first I'm just listening
to the sounds first.
For me, it's always
about feeling a thing.
So, I have to feel
the sounds first.
Then I begin to, you know,
then I may begin to write
or just kind of -- you have to
get to know, at least for me,
I have to get to know,
you know, each sound.
Especially when it's new.
Because it's like, now it's like
a member of the family of like,
of my, you know, what
my sound library is.
Yeah, we did.
We got that done.
And then I began to create
the pieces and as I made them,
I sent it, you know,
I sent them out.
And I would send them
to David, and, you know,
he would play it you know,
for the for the guys.
And you know, it just -- it was
just kind of like from there,
we -- it was very family.
It also helps like for me,
Third Coast is very family.
So, it's so nice just
to be around, you know,
they're just great beings.
Like they're all gems.
You know, the whole, you
know, Third Coast team, is --
they're really -- they're gems.
So, it's -- I would hope that we
could do this again, you know,
at some point because
they are amazing.
>> Claudia Morales: Jlin,
did you have before going
into the studio, for the
residence, do you have an idea
of the sounds that
you were looking for?
The instruments you
were going to try out?
The textures that
you were looking for?
Or was it like a,
just a creativity
flowing from the moment?
>> Jlin Patton: Well, me
being for -- me also being --
making music with -- I'm
very percussion as well.
So, just being familiar with
just the instrument alone is --
was you know, super helpful.
I already knew what I, you
know, kind of had an idea
of what I was going into.
So, I was like, oh
okay, you know.
And then it was just a matter
of, you know, let me, you know,
putting like my spin on a thing
or making it is, you know,
being as I guess as
creative as I possibly could.
And so, it was just a matter
of yeah, I knew exactly --
not exactly, but I would say
for the most part, I knew,
you know what I was
walking into.
And it was great
because I love like,
just if I'm using the
right term, like just like,
acoustic traditional percussion
quite a bit and I use it a lot,
especially more so now lately,
then I would even say before my
like, my first album for sure.
It's such a -- I have such
a great appreciation for it.
>> Claudia Morales: And you've
written for percussion before,
so this is, as you said, is this
new to [inaudible], but do you,
in this process, do you
learn something different?
Do you interpret the sound
when you heard them
playing your sounds
and their instrument
with their take?
Do you learn something
different?
Do you discover something
different
about this composition?
>> Jlin Patton: Oh, absolutely.
It was a totally different feel
at that point for when it went
from what I did, then
their interpretation.
Oh, it was a totally
different feel.
And I loved it.
Like as a -- I love
unexpected surprises.
And so, for me, it
just flowed so well.
And a lot of that again, it just
has to do with the chemistry
of who you're working
with and like working
with like what TCP is.
It is such a beautiful
experience, honestly.
>> Claudia Morales: And how was
the process for the musicians?
Oh, I'm sorry Anne.
Go ahead.
>> Anne McLean: No, no.
No, keep on going.
>> Claudia Morales: How
was the other way around?
How was for you guys to
react, to translate the sounds
into your instruments?
>> Robert Dillon: Yeah.
It was a ton of fun.
And it was like an incredible
way to sort of like get inside
of Jlin's head a bit more.
I mean, I think we all
really enjoy like the rhythm
of vocabulary and the sort of
unpredictability and density
of Jlin's music so much.
And it was cool to like, you
know, just get to spend time
with her, talk about some
things, try some things out,
listen to tracks together,
maybe improvise a little bit.
But then when she,
you know, went away
and really created a
bunch of tracks in the way
that she usually works, sort
of putting it together in a DAW
on her computer, and
then sent us these things
with all the different layers
in there so we could pull
out each instrumental sound
on its own, and see, okay,
here's just what the
hi-hat sound is doing.
And then okay, what's
this layer?
Oh, that's another hi-hat.
It's doing something
slightly different.
And then here's like another
hi-hat sound and realizing like,
there are so many layers in
here, like maybe thirty, forty,
fifty stems in one track.
It was pretty mind
blowing, actually.
And it was cool then to
sort of realize the levels
of unpredictability too
and sort of start to like,
as we would figure out how to
put this on an instrument, say,
oh, I think I see the
pattern sort of in this voice.
And be like, oh, wait a minute.
No, she just broke the pattern.
Like it's always changing.
And that was -- it was really
inspiring, I think for all of us
as we like, delved in there.
And then it was, it was
a fun challenge to have
to then say like, okay,
there's only four of us.
How can four live musician
create -- recreate this live?
And not us just understanding
like, Okay,
how many of these voices
can one person handle?
But also like, what elements
of this will translate
really cleanly
onto an acoustic instrument?
And then what things are
like, when we start doing it
on a live instrument that's
doesn't have that like,
incredible focus, the
electronic sounds, that --
and the consistency of
them, what translates
and what do we have to sort of
reimagine in some small ways
in order to get the big picture
to work out playing it live?
But it was -- it was a lot of
work, but it was a ton of fun.
>> Anne Mclean: You
know, the layers that --
catching on to that word.
There's so many layers
of collaboration
in this incredible
piece, mesmerizing piece.
And I was wondering how you
went about, I mean, first,
there was a level with
working with you, Jlin,
and then how you created the
through composed bigger piece
for the whole evening length
work with the dancers,
and then adding on first, the
choreographers, then a layer
for the dancers, and the layer
for the lighting and set design.
Multi, multi, multi layers.
How did this develop?
>> David Skidmore: Well, we had
worked with the choreographers,
Movement Art Is on
a past project
with Hubbard Street
Dance Chicago,
a really wonderful modern
dance company in our hometown.
They had set movement
on Hubbard Street Dance,
and we had created
music for that project.
So, we got to know Lil Buck
and Jon Boogz, the two creators
that are at the head
of Movement Art Is
through that past collaboration.
And as soon as we were working
together, similar to working
with Jlin and similar to working
with Gemma, you just know
when you work with
someone if it's a good fit.
And if you want to
work again, you know?
So, straight away with Buck
and Boogz, we knew we wanted
to do another project with them.
That was really like squarely
focused on their style
of movement with dancers
who are deeply steeped
in their style of movement.
And so, we -- you know,
it's funny how these
projects come together.
It's sort of like you
say, Jlin is amazing.
We want to work with her.
Tyondai Braxton's amazing.
We want to work with him.
Movement Art Is is great.
We want to work with them.
And then every now
and then there's,
there's like us a
central thing that kind
of brings all these strings
and ties them together.
And in this case, the
impetus was Carnegie Hall.
They reached out to us about
doing what would have been,
I think, will be our
Carnegie Hall debut.
And they were specifically
interested
in a piece with movement.
And so, we reached out to
Movement Art Is and started
that conversation and
brought in Jlin and Tyondai .
And then in terms of how
it all came together,
it came together during
the COVID 19 pandemic.
And yeah, I wonder if
like maybe Sean or Pete,
do you want to regale them with
a tale of how this came to be?
>> Peter Martin: Yeah.
I mean, you know, originally,
we were scheduled to do a lot
of the developing the production
was going to be in Seattle
over the summer of 2020,
at the Meany Center,
which has also helped sort
of commission and bring
about this larger sort of work.
Then when we realized that
it wasn't going to happen
in person, you know, we had
to figure something else out.
So, we had -- the dancers
were both in LA as well
as Las Vegas working
on choreography.
We were in our studio
in Chicago.
We had a lighting designer,
also in Chicago but not working
with us in the same room but was
like in his own office
developing the sort
of different scenes
for everything.
And then we have an
amazing stage director,
named Leslie Danzig
who's Chicago based
that we've also worked with
in some previous performances.
And I think, as you mentioned
earlier in this conversation,
you know, bringing all of these
different elements together,
and finding a way to sort of
like seamlessly move from piece
to piece and you know, into
something that created more
of like an overall
sort of like narrative
or an overall performance
is something that's always
challenging when you have
so many different voices
and so many different
aesthetics that you're combining
and Lesley really helped us
sort of bring that all together
by looking at it from a bird's
eye view and thinking about,
like the journey
from the beginning
of the performance
to the very end.
But you know, we learned
a lot through the course
of the pandemic in terms
of working remotely.
And this was a huge challenge,
but one that, you know,
we're really proud of being able
to create a large production,
you know, like this
completely remotely.
>> Anne Mclean: It's remarkable.
And Jlin, you've
said that you love --
you're in love with movement.
So, this is a great thing
to see your music come
to life in this way.
I was wondering -- I
saw the ballet you did
with Wayne McGregor.
Incredible, incredible
movement thing.
One other thing, and then I want
to turn this back to Claudia,
in terms of the trust, I noticed
a comment that Lil Buck made
about the level of trust that
you need to develop or to feel
with anyone to do an
artistic collaboration.
That was an interesting
thing for me to hear about.
How do you relate
to that comment?
>> Jlin Patton: I feel
that I totally agree.
I also agree to that, because
when you -- if you or myself,
for an example, if I
approach Third Coast,
there's a reason I
approach Third Coast,
because I obviously trust them.
So, that being step one.
In me trusting them though,
that requires that I have
to step back and
let them create.
Because if I micromanage,
I'm not going
to get the best out of them.
And I learned that working with
Wayne McGregor and he's the one
who told me that -- he told me,
he said, when I was creating
for him, I'm not going
to micromanage you.
Or I would never do that
because I wouldn't get the best
out of you.
So, I learned that was a
very turning moment for me
and how I you know,
approach things or also
when a person approaches me so
that also goes back to like,
what David was saying,
with the chemistry.
You know you feel it.
You know when it's going
to work and when it's not.
Yeah, you know it.
Like, there have been
times where I've been
at the very beginning of
a thing and I'm like, oh,
absolutely, this will not work.
I love you, but this won't work.
So, you know, it's
just, it's about also --
you have to be honest with
yourself as an artist.
Be honest with yourself as, you
know, just -- first as a person.
Then artistically.
You know this -- if
it's not going to work,
don't force because it's
not going to be its best.
Sometimes you do get
moments where it is like,
two fire moments
and then like --
it's like a fire and
ice and then it works.
It's rare, but it -- you
do get those moments.
But sometimes, but it's like,
you know, both parties want
to pull each other's hair out.
So, it does happen, but I
would just say if you know --
it's just about really
knowing what you can take
and what you can't.
And if you know at
the beginning,
you know it's not going to work.
Don't you know, don't push it.
Don't stress yourself
out unnecessarily.
>> Claudia Morales:
While you were writing,
did you have the
dancers in mind?
While you were creating,
did you write it in terms
with having them in mind?
>> Jlin Patton: I always
write with movement in mind.
Always. I don't care what it is.
It -- that is always a goal.
That is -- no matter.
I've created an entire
ballet piece in my head.
I can't dance, but I can see it.
And so, I can create
if just, like that.
You know, when I wrote --
there was a particular song
that I did, actually it was
for Wayne, was Carbon 12.
I have an entirely different
dance piece in my head of what
that is and what that
means for myself.
And it's like, I don't know
who the dancers are, you know,
in my head, but I can
see the whole movement.
I'm always -- every
time I write it's always
for the purpose of
not just movement.
Of course, it can be used in
so many different, you know,
directions but movement is
definitely always like one
of my first go-tos because
movement is something
that you feel.
And because I create
-- the way I compose,
I'm an intuitive composer.
So, it's something that's
always for me is the feeling.
How did that impact?
You know, how did
that make you feel?
How did that, you know, what
kind of impact would it have?
And so, I operate -- my mantra
is, this is what I call CPU:
clean, precise and
unpredictable.
So, that I'm always in mind with
that, you know, as I create.
Absolutely.
>> Claudia Morales:
And along those words,
how do you conceive your work
in seven movements instead
of one longer piece?
>> Jlin Patton: Oh, I love it.
If it were one longer piece,
I could definitely adapt.
Either way.
That's what -- the way that
I create is exactly that.
I love the duality
and the versatility.
I love it.
And that's why it's
great like that.
I was so happy that
Third Coast didn't sound
like exactly what I did.
They pick the phrases
that they wanted
and what they thought worked and
that's what makes it beautiful.
Because it's like,
for me, I don't want
to hear exactly what I did.
I already did that.
You know, give me something else
because I've already
done that part.
Now you do -- now you take
it and you just rip it apart
and do whatever you want
to, you know, do with it.
That's just how, for me,
it's just -- I like to --
it's all about the
different interpretation
and that's why I
call it perspective.
The different perspectives
of creativity and reaching
at your you know, infinite
self and being your, you know,
your best self creatively.
So, yeah.
>> Claudia Morales: So, I
heard Buck and Boogz talk
about their work in
this -- their peace.
Their creation.
And they -- for them, they said
that street dance is
a way of activism.
How is that statement
connected to you all?
Because there's something
that connects you all beyond
the art, beyond the music.
How is that statement
connecting you
and bringing you all
together to do this project?
>> Sean Connors:
I'll take a stab
at that first, if that's okay.
I -- one of my favorite
things about this project is
when you explain it to somebody,
most people do a double
take and they say what?
There's a classical percussion
group that's playing music
by Jlin, but also Philip Glass,
and also Tyondai Braxton,
and there's going to be
incredible street dancers
on stage in this all going to
be in communication and speak
to each other somehow?
And that's, it feels
like, as artists,
that's one of the most
important things we can do.
We can inform each other.
We can reach into areas
where we're not comfortable
or we don't understand.
And we say what's
awesome about this?
What's inspiring about this?
How can we come together?
And it's, you know,
it's not as direct as --
or maybe it's even more
direct, in some ways,
as going into the
streets and a protest.
But, you know, people call music
the universal language, right?
I guess maybe love is too,
but they go hand in hand
and you develop it by doing
these projects where you come
from places that
seemingly are so different
but immediately have you
immediately find the common
ground and you speak to each
other on those artistic terms.
And the movement that Buck
and Boogz created is
kind of like that.
It's not necessarily narrative.
It's more -- it's-- there's--
but there's two characters.
And they come from
different dance traditions
and very different worlds.
And if you hear the
dancers describe the story
that they're dancing,
they're completely different.
But through the course
of the work,
they learn about each
other, they try out some
of each other's moves, and then
they emerge changed and better
for having tried something new.
>> Jlin Patton: I feel like.
Oh, I'm sorry.
>> Anne McLean: No.
Go ahead.
>> Jlin Patton: I was
just going say I agree.
One of the best things to me --
my favorite purpose to create is
to create in a space that
shouldn't make sense.
It shouldn't make sense because
society tells you we categorize,
subcategorize.
And for me, that is to
put limitation on a thing.
I do get, you know, categorizing
for reference point.
Of course, I totally
understand that.
But what happens is,
I have learned --
I have come to find
a lot of times
when people don't understand a
thing, and they can't name it,
or they can't -- it's
because they can't --
or you can't control it in the
way in just -- most people --
a lot of times people
can't enjoy things
for the beauty of what it is.
No, I can't describe it to you,
I have no idea what that was.
I just know how it made me feel.
And a lot of people it's
like, well, I can't --
I don't have a name for it.
So, you know, it's
not real anymore.
Or it can't be classified
so, now it's just --
yeah, we throw it to the side.
So, now it doesn't matter
because we can't control it.
But for me, I love to
create of what things
that shouldn't make sense.
And honestly, if
you listen to media,
this should not make sense.
And I totally agree
with Sean, it does,
it makes you do a double take.
But that's exactly why it works.
Because all of the arts,
I totally agree with Jay Z
when he said that all
of the arts are related.
Every last one.
They're all related.
There are no separate this,
this, this, this, and this.
If it is a -- under a
creative space, it's family.
And no matter what it is.
So, that's just you know, that's
just how, you know, how I feel.
You know. But yeah, I totally
agree with yeah, Sean for sure.
>> Robert Dillon: I love --
something I love about a project
like this, too, is that it
makes us not just continue
to appreciate each of our own
backgrounds and our own voices,
but it also kind of ties
our fates together in a way.
You know, like, we're
co-conspirators.
Or we're, you know, are --
we all want this project
to be successful and our --
each of our individual
successes are tied
to this project being
successful.
We have this sort of mutual
interest in this thing
that we want to build together.
So, it's not just sort of a
momentary thing of like, oh,
yeah, like what Movement
Art Is does is really cool.
Someone should check them out.
You know, but it's like, we
are now in this thing together
and the future of this project
is something that we all have
like a shared interest
in moving forward.
>> Anne McLean: And
through this,
you are reaching
incredibly new audiences.
I'm -- I know.
I've been hearing --
that's exciting for me.
It's exciting for us at the
Library to be able to put this
out and share it as so many
presenters have been doing.
But for us, it's particularly so
because we don't have a chance
to do something like
this every day.
And this is of course unique.
And also, just to say quickly
that for the Founders
Day celebration,
the woman who founded
our series,
Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge was
a very visionary person herself
who chose to commission both a
ballet from Stravinsky in 1928
and then Appalachian
Spring in 1944.
So, I think she would have
loved this project with you.
You know, Jlin, you've said that
when you when you have a gift,
you have a responsibility to
create and reflect the times.
And this is so much what I
see and hear and all of this,
all of you -- from all of you.
And from Gemma's work too on
this concert, perhaps more
than many other ensembles.
You are definitively
carving this territory.
>> Jlin Patton: Thank you.
>> Claudia Morales: So,
Gemma, your new work,
"The threshold we cross
with closed eyes" composed
for Third Coast Percussion, it's
inspired in people's stories.
We are just so fascinated
by just the idea.
People's stories,
there's so many stories.
And how people arrive
at one particular time.
And you mentioned that
your research is also based
on the Library digital archives.
Can you tell us a little bit
about all of this process
and your inspiration and your
research process at the Library?
>> Gemma Peacocke:
Yeah, absolutely.
It's kind of funny, because
the last time I was in a room
with all of these people
was Women's Day in 2020.
And we were in DC and I
think it was at the premiere
of Perspectives with yeah, and
Jlin's piece just blew me away.
And it -- - I'd wanted
to work with Third Coast
and write them a
piece for a long time.
And I think Sean and I
got talking that night,
and he asked me, you know if
I'd be interested and I was
like trying to keep it
cool and be like, yeah,
yeah, I'd be interested.
Super like buzzing inside.
And he said something
about writing for four
of the same instruments.
And so, I took that and
discarded it because I was like,
totally inspired by Jlin's
piece and just wanted
to use every kind of
texture and every kind
of electronic beat that I could.
And I had all these ideas
originally before I found
out that the piece
was going to --
this new piece is going to
premiere on Founders Day.
And honestly, I had to look
up what Founders Day is.
I've been in the United States
for years now, but it's not a,
you know, a holiday
that we take off.
So, I never really
had it explained
or looked up what it meant.
And to me, reading about
Founders Day and this idea
about how America
came to be America,
it sparked all these
different ideas for me
about how we create stories
and how we know mythmaking
and things like that.
And I wanted to explore in the
Library of Congress's amazing
and vast resources, other
stories about the creation
of the United States and have
a look a little bit wider,
in terms of whose
stories we listen to,
and whose stories make up
the history that, you know,
we may not get taught in
school or in textbooks.
Of course, we're still
in this pandemic, so --
and I was back in New
Zealand where I'm from,
so I couldn't access
physical items.
But the Library of Congress
has these amazing collections
of digitized archives.
So, I managed to just
start listening to all
of the audio files that
I could of people talking
about their experience of moving
or being in the United States.
So, I listened to stories
from people in the dust bowl
who had been relocated
to federal camps.
I listened to a lot of stories
from formerly enslaved people.
And then I expanded
out and found a lot
of Baptist preachers and, you
know, lots of different types
of Americans and lots of people
from just incredibly
different perspectives
because I was channeling Jlin
so that I could you know,
explore more about
the prismatic,
that grand of how the
United States came to be.
And on top of that, I got to
do some workshops over Zoom
with Third Coast and they
just, it was super fun.
Also very strange,
because we couldn't --
I couldn't touch anything.
So, I had to kind of have them
be my, my hands and my brain.
So, I would just like
prompt them for a sound
that I was interested in.
And they would bring out all
the instruments they could think
of that could make these kind
of weird and mystical noises
that I was really interested in.
>> Claudia Morales:
Did you also --
>> Anne McLean: Go ahead.
>> Claudia Morales: Sorry.
The same question
I have for Jlin.
Do you also have sounds in mind?
Textures that you wanted
to try out for this piece?
How did that work for you?
>> Gemma Peacocke: Yeah,
I had a lot of sounds
that I was originally
interested in.
Because at the start of
the pandemic, I was living
in New York and I was worried
that the borders would get shut
down, or I wouldn't be able
to get back to New Zealand
if something happened
to my family there.
So, my husband and I dropped
everything and left our dog
with a friend and went
home to New Zealand.
We had to self-isolate.
So, we went to my husband's
parents place in Okains Bay
on the Banks Peninsula in the
South Island of New Zealand.
And it's this rural valley.
We just -- were transported
within 24 hours
from Brooklyn to
rural New Zealand.
And I had to continue
working with people online.
And I was at the time
doing a psycho analysis
and sculpture class
at Princeton,
where I'm doing a PhD.
But suddenly, I didn't
have any materials
to do the sculpture side of it.
So, I would walk up and
down the beach and pick
up all these bones of
animals that had washed up.
And I started to like,
teach myself how to cut.
To do bone carving.
And every material I had had to
be something that I could find
because the country went into
lockdown, and we couldn't go
to shops, we couldn't
order anything.
So, I would find like wool,
and clean the wool and make,
you know, these kind
of sculptures
with just organic materials
from the environment.
And so, the first thing
that I was really interested
in when I was starting
this piece
with Third Coasts
was bone sounds.
And I'm really interested
in creating music
that has a kind of creepy vibe.
You know, like it's,
it's kind of --
I've written a lot of sad music.
And I've tried really hard
to write some happy music.
But when I've recently really
just enjoyed writing kind
of creepy, scary music,
which is its own --
it has its own set of
challenges and rewards.
And so, when I started
asking Third Coast --
when we did our first workshop,
I was asking them to, you know,
create all these
splintering noises and noises
of bones and fragmentation.
And as we went on through
the process, it became clear
that it's quite difficult to
tour with things like bones.
Especially taking them
across international borders.
So, we sort of negotiated
and they introduced me
to a whole lot of instruments
that I wasn't familiar with
and a lot of sounds
that they could make
that I had never thought of.
So, it was a total collaboration
around creating this spooky kind
of spidery sound that
I was interested in.
>> Claudia Morales: What
is that little instrument
at the very beginning
of the piece?
The little one that make
that sound that you [noise]?
What is that?
I never seen that before?
>> Gemma Peacocke:
Yeah, so that was one
of the ones they
taught me about.
It's called a waldteufel.
I think it's a bird
caller, right?
Maybe the guys can
talk about it.
They're little -- I've put a set
of instructions on my website
if you want to make one at home.
But it's a -- and it makes this
kind of creaking amazing noise.
And they had to buy so --
we had one I had written one
and then we had a
second workshop.
And it just was clear like all
the other guys were sitting
there doing nothing.
And I thought, well,
let's just have everyone
playing waldteufel.
So, they had to make
three more of them.
But they're a lot
cheaper and a lot easier
than finding bone instruments
or splintering apart bamboo,
which is what I had and I
think Peter almost took his eye
out with some bamboo.
>> David Skidmore: Yeah,
the waldteufel is a
German instrument.
And guys weigh in, if I'm
not 100% sure, on this,
but it's the translation
is forest devil.
And so, it's a very
simple instrument.
It's basically a very
small drum with a string
through the head of the drum.
And the string is attached
to both the drumhead
and a small wooden dowel
that creates friction,
which is transmitted through the
string into the tiny drumhead.
And it just creates the sound
like imaginary forest devil
or bones creaking or, you know,
whatever your imagination
will sort of take you.
And we did make a few.
But I should tell you, Gemma,
that we've now sourced
waldteufel,
so we know where to get them.
So, if any curious
listeners are out there,
we could share the link.
You can get your
own waldteufels.
>> Peter Martin: We have a large
collection of waldteufels now.
>> Claudia Morales:
Speaking of interesting --
>> Peter Martin:
Sorry, go ahead.
>> Claudia Morales: I'm sorry.
Go ahead. Go ahead.
>> Peter Martin: Oh, no.
I was just going
say it was just kind
of like a funny memory
that I have.
This sort of sound world
that Gemma was describing
of like going first from
bones and then we were messing
with bamboo and finally
came on waldteufels.
And I remember us talking
about like, the idea of bones
and like, how many bones
do we need for the piece?
And like, how are we going
to travel with bones.
and what not?
Where are we going
to get the bones?
You know, and like, and then
I was -- I'm a dog geek.
I have a dog who
loves her beefy bones.
And we have like, tons of these
old like bones right there.
I'm like, well, at least my
dog will be happy about this
like process of like, gathering
all the bones necessary.
But they never made
it into the piece so,
she'll get to eat
her bones by herself.
>> Claudia Morales:
Speaking of this instrument,
in Tyondai Braxton's
piece, I was also amazed
by the wood slats, right?
Is that -- what wood slats?
And then the metal slats
that you had in piece?
Can you talk about that
particular instrument
and have you worked with that
instrument before is that?
How do you get to
get that sound?
>> Sean Connors: Sure.
What Claudia is talking
about in Tyondai's piece,
there's stacked pieces of wood
that are cut to different
lengths.
And it's probably one of
the most simple instruments
that you can think of
besides the human voice
or clapping or something.
It's just literally just a
piece of wood and cutting it
to a different length will
change the pitch of the wood.
And we had been working with
another composer, Chris Cerrone,
to figure out if we could
like save room on the table
because if you call
for eight wooden slats,
takes up a lot of room.
So, I think Peter might have
been the one who put foam
between the wooden slats
and tried to stack them
like little size skyscrapers of
slats and then Tyondai happen
to come into the studio during
a time when we had been set
up to practice Chris's piece,
and he started playing it
and just immediately use
this new scraping technique
down the wooden slats.
And it -- we were all
-- our heads all turned,
and our eyes lit up and like
we've never heard that before.
That's amazing.
That sounds exactly like your --
exactly like the
electronics that you use.
And he's like, I
know this is great.
So, it was a wonderful
kind of just happenstance.
And then the wood -- we have
lots of raw materials like this
that we have all
over our studio.
Probably too much of it.
But we love introducing
composers to it
because it allows composers
to write for exact pitches,
but with a sound world
that is just unfamiliar.
So, wooden slats are one
of those things but also,
we have flat metal bars that are
exactly what they sound like.
Just pieces of steel also cut
to a very specific
lengths to create pitches.
And Tyondai used some of
those in his piece as well.
And Gemma used some
of them also.
I know Rob plays them
in Gemma's piece.
And we're spreading the
word about wooden slats
and metal bars to
anyone who will listen.
>> Anne McLean: You
talked about them as --
I saw he says that
they're meditative phrases,
which is very interesting.
But you -- he talks
about pitched
and partially pitched
instruments.
What exactly is the
difference there?
>> Sean Connors: Sure.
Maybe I'll just -- I'll
just jump in again.
In Tyondai's piece, and
also in Gemma's piece,
we play other instruments
that we don't have a
full chromatic set of.
For example, we have these
really beautiful Korean wood
blocks that are gorgeous
and carved out of one piece
of solid wood and
they do have a pitch.
But they're not used
in that way.
A composer wouldn't call for an
exact pitch of that instrument.
It's usually -- you have a few
of them from small to large,
and they create a contour.
So, there's a lot
of instruments,
a lot of percussion instruments
that are called unpitched
instruments.
Mainly because of
how they're used
and how composers treat them.
Not so much that they
don't have a pitch.
Because if you if you get out
a tuner you can probably figure
out exactly what pitch of a
cymbal is or a snare drum.
But they're used --
and to human years,
we don't immediately
associate them with a melody.
So, you'll see those blocks
in in both Jlin's piece,
Tyondai's piece, and
there's a beautiful close
up in Gemma's piece of
Peter playing those blocks.
>> Anne McLean: Wonderful.
Yeah. Yeah, the visual
elements are incredible.
And there's one at the opening
of I think it's Jlin's piece
where someone is
blowing into a tube.
What is that little instrument?
>> David Skidmore: Yeah, we
use a melodica in the show,
which is, I think, I think
that's probably what you're
referring to.
Although guys, let me know
if there's some other thing
that we're blowing
into because who knows.
We use so many strange things.
But the melodica
is an instrument
that is essentially operating
like a harmonica except
it has a keyboard.
So, you can more easily
play chromatic melodies
without true harmonica technique
like an actual amazing
harmonica player.
So, that's used in actually one
of Philip Glass arrangements
that we perform in the
Metamorphosis show.
But that instrument
finds its way into some
of our other repertoire as well.
So, not -- it's interesting
also, because it's --
that brings up an
interesting question we get
as percussionists.
A melodica is something that you
use air to activate the sound.
And there's a keyboard
but it's not a piano.
A piano is percussion instrument
because there are hammers inside
the piano striking the strings.
So, melodica is not technically
a percussion instrument.
However, we in Third Coast,
like to say that if
you ask a percussionist
to play an instrument,
and they say, yes,
that's a percussion instrument.
Because we play, you know,
we play wind instruments,
we play stringed instruments,
but generally, of course,
we're not going to like play
a violin solo or whatever.
No one would want to hear that.
But, if someone has a
creative use of an instrument
that doesn't immediately
fit neatly into the category
of percussion instruments, for
us, it's still an instrument
that we can make use of.
>> Anne McLean: Fascinating.
>> Claudia Morales: So,
moving into the future.
What's next for Third Coast?
What do you have
coming for you all?
>> David Skidmore: Well,
this afternoon actually,
we're workshopping
a brand-new piece
by a wonderful composer
named Missy Mazzoli.
She has written us
a big new piece.
We're looking forward
of course to lots
of live performances in person.
Real audiences.
Many of those performances
will be the Metamorphosis show
that are scheduled for sort
of December through May all
over the country and in several
countries overseas as well.
And we have a brand-new
collaboration
with an amazing duo called
Flutronix, which is a duo
of composers and flute
players Nathalie Joachim
and Allison Loggins.
And we're collaboratively
composing a piece with them.
So, lots of fun new projects.
And guys, I probably
forgot something.
>> Sean Conners: if I
may, I'd like to share
with whoever's listening,
because I'm sure there's people
who create music listening
to this conversation,
Third Coast has a program
called the Currents Creative
Partnership, which
is currently open
and accepting applications too.
And it will still be
open when the Library
of Congress concert airs.
So, if you're watching
this, and you create music,
it's a free to apply to
program that Third Coast runs,
where if you would like
to create a piece with us
over several workshops, just
share us a sample of your music
and answer a simple
questionnaire
and pitch us an idea
for a piece.
And it's all free to apply to.
And there's information
about that
at our website
www.thirdcoastpercussion.com.
>> Robert Dillon: And
this season, we're working
on two new projects through
that partnership with folks
that we selected last year,
who are amazing music creators,
Suzanne Kite, and
Machado Mijiga.
And one other cool project
that we're going to be sort
of workshopping over
the next year or so
and premiere a little further
down the line is a new piece
by composer Carlos Carrillo,
who's based in Illinois.
He's on faculty at the
University of Illinois.
So, we're excited
for that as well.
>> Claudia Morales: Excellent.
>> Anne McLean: Wonderful.
>> Claudia Morales: Jlin,
what's next for you?
What's coming up?
>> Jlin Patton: That's
a very loaded question.
No, I'm actually in
the process of working
on my -- finally get to it.
I consider it my third
album, because you know,
Autobiography was for Wayne.
So, this will be my third.
This is my personal album
that -- this isn't, I guess,
a great time to reveal it.
Because nobody knows except
me, my label, and my mother,
but I'm going to call the --
my next album will be
called Artificial Intention.
So, it is -- no it's still
in the process of developing.
But I just did the
second piece for it.
It's called -- it's
"Abnormal Restriction"
which is actually another title
from Dark Energy that I use,
but this is called "Abnormal
Restriction", but it's called
in the parentheses, I
called it "The Mollycoddle."
And the reason I call it The
Mollycoddle is you'll hear like,
kind of like a -- in the words
that I chose to use just kind
of I would say -- to not give it
away, but just the observations
of life and kind of like where
we have kind of settled into me
from you know, from
my point of view.
Just kind of in humanity,
like where we are right now.
So, this is just going to
be -- it'll be very Jlin.
Very, very me.
I always research
everything I do.
So, it's just, you know,
it's still just evolving.
So, that's where
I'm at right now.
>> Claudia Morales:
Thank you for sharing it.
We appreciate it.
Good luck to you
on that project.
Wonderful.
Gemma, tell us what's
next for you.
What's coming up?
>> Gemma Peacocke: I have a
composer collective called Kinds
of Kings with Shelley
Washington and Maria Kaoutzani.
And we are writing a concerto
for Eighth Blackbird based
in Chicago and the
Cincinnati Symphony,
which is premiering I
think in March next year.
So, that's, that's exciting.
But also, really
challenging because we have
to write the piece
together, the three of us,
and we've never done it before.
So, it's a lot of
playing telephone
and sending each other snippets
of music and then re-mixing them
and turning them into our
own voices and back again.
>> Claudia Morales: Wonderful.
Well, we want to thank
you so much for your time,
for sharing with us so many
behind the scenes stories.
You've been fantastic having
this conversation with you all.
We wish you so much success,
many live performances.
We all want to be live right?
We miss our audiences.
So, we wish you many live
concerts and so much success.
And thank you so much for
sharing your work with us.
We appreciate it.
Thank you so much.
And for you watching from home,
tune in for Third Coast
Percussion, The Metamorphosis
on October 30th, 2021.
See you the next one.
>> Anne McLean: Bye now.