Christian Fennesz has contributed a new composition titled ‘The Last Days of May’ to Volume, the innovative music series presented by the Art Gallery of New South Wales, 5-21 July 2024. ‘Threshold’ is a new music programme devised in collaboration with Longform Editions, the Sydney-based, internationally renowned online ‘gallery for listening’. For the duration of Volume 2024, recordings of four world-premiere compositions will be played at the thresholds of Naala Badu and Naala Nura – the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ north and south buildings.

Fennesz writes: “The piece was recorded in the last days of May 2024. I discarded my original concepts for this piece right after starting the work. This was partly due to the fact that I happened to listen to a piece by Roland S. Howard that day, who I consider one of the greatest guitarists. So, I started again with a blank canvas. I focused on the essential components and instruments that had defined my work so far: guitars, string instruments in general and samples thereof, as well as a few synthesizers with a particular focus on the now largely forgotten synthesis principle of physical modelling. Microtonality and the decay behaviour of strings were important to me. The piece, conceived as a sound installation, is meant to blend into everyday soundscapes and occasionally stand out. However, it can also be listened to at full volume on headphones.”

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