White, Ruth - 7 Trumps From The Tarot Cards and Pinions CD
SKU
18-Rhythms 80751009019
Official CD edition from the master tapes.
A completely electronic score (c. 1968) reflecting White's impressions of the occult. Writing of “Seven Trumps From the Tarot Cards,” Donal Henahan commended White in The New York Times for her “musical inventiveness and electronic sophistication.” From Paul Eberle in the Los Angeles Free Press: “Miss White has explored electronics to find a new instrumentation of voices for her compositions, and has conceived it as an extension of the music of the past,’ rather than a break from it, or a renunciation.”
‘Pinions’ was commissioned by dance choreographer Eugene Loring for the University of California. After the 1968 premiere, the Los Angeles Times commented: "…a really exciting, organically musical, electronic score by Ruth White. Not only the soloists but all the participants seemed to draw heat from this score…”.”
“Looking for an American Delia Derbyshire? you might consider RUTH WHITE — who for man is the queen of early electronica. Her sounds were unique in their dark, experimental glory. Though Ruth White stated herself that she never tried to make creepy music, nonetheless, she did just that — "just to show what her equipment could do.” White's entire discography is an excellent choice for those interested in exploring the history of electronic music.
With the creation of her own studio White could develop her own brand of electronic music, which explored new timbral and harmonic resources without renouncing the order and logic instilled by her classical training. White once wrote about her studio; “… it is my own personal place. No one else works in it. It is fairly well equipped. several multichannel tape recorders (including 2 new Ampex AG 440 machines), a Moog synthesizer (purchased directly from Robert Moog), oscillators, modulators, electronic organ and electronic clavichord, two pianos, a harpsichord and variable speed and reverberation devices are only a part of the list of machines that i have gathered.”
While being an accomplished musician, she had no training on electronic musical instruments. White wrote; “…it occurred to me that I was really hearing pure experiments with noise … or unorganized sound. The break-through of the noise concept was very important. I began to realize the fantastic potential for expanding our musical vocabulary if we could draw upon the new techniques for capturing and making noise. If we could find ways to manipulate these materials, it seemed we could bring them into the musical language in a meaningful way. This could be a breath of fresh air… new life for our musical systems, which had for a long time felt thin and lifeless to me.”
- LabelRhythms
- UPC80751009019