harmonical Whale Song
contrebasse and time lag accumulator
This piece stands as my most cherished composition and performance. I have a deep appreciation for the timbral qualities of harmonics, particularly when produced on the contrabass. Having spent many years playing the electric bass, I was long fascinated by the phenomenon of feedback, though I never succeeded in exerting meaningful control over it. It was only upon exploring the world of bowed string instruments that I discovered the bow’s potential to create a highly responsive and nuanced form of resonant feedback, especially when engaging with harmonic overtones. This sonic quality continues to captivate me.
When paired with a time-lag accumulation system utilizing a modified karaoke device—a "Cony" brand tape deck outfitted with a PT2399 echo chip—the resulting soundscape brings me profound satisfaction.
In retrospect, I am fortunate to have documented this performance at all. Despite the presence of compression artifacts, I believe the recording surpasses my expectations and preserves an ephemeral moment in my creative practice. I share it now because I am no longer able to recreate it: my contrabass has since been restrung in fifths tuning, and the Cony device is no longer functional. What remains is, in a sense, the final trace of what I often refer to as my "whale song." I offer it here with the hope that others may find value in it as well.