Crenshaw Stories can be performed in one of two ways:

1) as a concert piece enclosed by a Prelude and Postlude or

2) as a running “installation” piece within the Crenshaw Train station on the Metro Green Live in Las Angeles. 

The concert version (afternoon length performance) was premiered on 11/11/07 at Sage Chapel, Cornell University with artist Buzz Spector.  Spector performed a spoken part, adding to those within the four-channel surround mix, pre-recorded readings done at the Cornell Electroacoustic Music Center.  The performance was part of the “Sage Vespers” series sponsored by CURW (Cornell United Religious Work).  A live chimes/carillon part was composed to accompany this performance, to be heard through the open side doors of Sage Chapel, but this was not possible given a concert scheduled in nearby Barnes Hall held at the same time.  The bells were, therefore, realized electronically using speakers placed in the rear of Sage Hall facing away from the audience and up into the Organ choir, simulating the sound of bells coming into the Chapel.  Indoor “resonances” intended to be created with microphones on the outdoor chimes were preserved using a direct audio feed from the artificial chimes realization.

The installation version for Las Angeles is still in the negotiation stages.  Initial interest was expressed in the idea of adding sound to the physical artwork (done by Buzz Spector in 1992) but the project has not yet gone forward as planned.  In this version the music is created “live” using a selection of musical samples and live processing of the environment (voices, train sounds, etc) to generated the music.

Sage Hall premiere performance details

• Four channel projection surrounding front seating area of the chapel
• Two channel rear projected sound into organ choir (chimes substitution)
• Real-time realization of Crenshaw Stories via laptop computer and PureData software
• Live projection of images from Crenshaw Station installation in Las Angeles
• Live reading/performance of texts selected by reader, artist Buzz Spector

This piece occupied the midpoint of a full concert of pieces, an Introit for chimes, a Prelude, two pieces by other composers selected to accompany the “locomotive” theme of the concert (Etude aux Chemin de Fer by Pierre Shaffer and Locomotion by my former student Suneth Attygale), and a Postlude (see attached concert program).  The Prelude and Postlude are mirror images of one another, the former a train “arriving” at the hall and the latter “leaving”, receding away.  The passing train horn uses, in both cases, Calos Gesualdo's Moro Lasso (Alas, I Die) as a source, it's opening chords re-imagined via FFT convolution as doppler-shifted train horns.  This was in honor of the performance date of 11/11, Armistice Day.

An encore performance has been requested by CURW director Roberta Moudry (she called it “the most integrated of our Sundays”) and is scheduled for Fall 2009.  A revised and expanded version of the concert piece is being prepared to include chorus (both singing and reading), organ, chorus, and (finally) the chimes intended for the premiere performance.