DESCRIPTION:
In Roomtone the resonant frequencies of the concert hall are mapped by computer, in real time, through acoustic feedback, and projected as staff notation (this takes a little less than 2 minutes). The strongest, most resonant pitches appear first, at the left, the weakest at the far right. Once the staves are filled the musicians improvise variations on these notes (and some octaves) as they are highlighted, gradually stepping through a site-specific architectural tone row. This video is of the first North American performance, by Fred Frith's Improvisation ensemble at Mills College, Oct. 5, 2013. Seven of the musicians are on stage, the other seven distributed throughout the concert hall. Thanks to Nick Didkovsky and Georg Hajdu for their clever MaxScore notation software, and to Fred's hardworking band.