Other YaWha
Spacewalk (disquiet0282)

Disquiet Junto Project 0282: Berio's Bach

Saw the ISS pass overhead twice last Friday night, against a dark sky - what a spectacle!

Imagined the experience of a spacewalk, an astronaut's tentative steps outside the safety of his craft. Surrounded by the vast marvels of the universe in every direction, with the mundane tools of his trade to hand, the umbilical chord keeps his fragile negligible life tethered to Mother Earth, providing meaning and sustenance for his being, his task. Pirouetting, spinning, graceful tumbling, blinded by sun and stars and the enormity of his insignificance, he must stay grounded, focused, yet humble, passive.

The composer Luciano Berio once said that part of the attraction of some of Bach’s music is in its clear distinction between which notes are "structurally significant" and which are "decorative". So, strong 'lead' parts frame this track, with a middle 16 that features passing decoration.

Synths used: XILS, SynthMaster, Strobe2, UVS-3200.
I read that JM Jarre recorded Oxygene III last year with an imposed restriction of 8 tracks, à-la his original Oxygene album. Since I was going for space vibes, I too imposed a similar regime this week - two drum tracks, and at most six synths playing concurrently. And the filter envelope on the UVS-3200 pad and the lfo-modulated filtered noise osc on the XILS are a nod to what I love in Jarre's original Oxygene album.