LINER NOTES:

The basic idea behind of what has become to be known as the Secret Life of Semiconductors began over 25 years ago. Originally entitled X, I had been toying with completing this abandoned work for some time, although it wasn't until the turn of the 21st century that I had an opportunity to do just that.

in July of 2003 I received a letter from an individual who had heard my music at the 2002 SEAMUS National Conference, who presented me a commission to compose a series of pieces for his dance company. As he outlined the project I was struck by it's similarities to X's original sketches and this work was unearthed in earnest in 2003 for the Odin Dance Company. The material included in those performances consisted of Part 1, Transition I, Part 4 and the Coda. The balance of TSLOS, Parts 2 and 3 and Transitions II and III were composed after that run.

None of the original tracks (recorded at in the summer of 1978 on my Serge system), still exist in a state suitable for presentation. I have attempted to transfer some of those source tapes to digital, but many years of bad storage has taken its toll on fidelity. Loosing this material was of little consequence to me as I felt it impossible to recreate that specific energy, not to mention that I've grown as both an individual and composer since. That being said, the concept and basic timbres of the original work remain viable. The work as it exists today is from all new material, with Parts 1 and 4 and Transitions I and II coming mostly from my original notes .

The Secret Life of Semiconductors was begun in the fall of 2003 and completed in the fall of 2009, although it's composition was interrupted during the course. The Ascent Into Light and the first gesture of Je Suis Anonyme were composed while TSLOS was still in the works.

TECHNICAL NOTES:

Outside of an Eventide 2016 digital reverb, TSLOS is analog and composed entirely on instruments of my own design (Plan B) outside of an Analogue Systems RS-200 used for the CV to Midi conversion of the pulse strings. The parent rhythmic information which drives portions the piece were produced by a series of analog sources including the original Milton analog prototype and a Plan B Model 28 Tap Clock which were archived digitally via the CV to Midi conversion. There were two noteworthy applications which utilized this process: the glassy-sounding glissando's at the end of Transition I and the Xylophone timbres in Part 4. Their polyphony was created by breaking down the parent analog/midi tracks which in Transition I were generated by the smooth output of the Plan B Model 24 and in Part 4 a prototype touchpad controller. The resulting gates were then demultiplexed into four individual parts via the gate outs of the MIlton as the first, second, third and forth events, repeating each consecutive four after that which afforded four separate recording passes which when re-multiplexed become parts of the same gesture. When mixed, the decay of each envelope rings as an overlap which distinguishes the basic timbre of these two events.

We can thank TSLOS for devices currently in the Plan B arsenal that went on to become the Models 11, 24, 28, 21, 29 and 31 as the circuits were conceived expressly for this piece.

I have archived many of the patch sheets used on TSLOS here.

THEORY NOTES:

The Secret Life of Semiconductors utilizes what I refer to as Dovetailed Theme and Variations form, in which two contrasting motifs are alternately presented, each developing independently of the other. Specific to TSLOS, the A material consists of a relatively gaseous, formless drone -- the B material in contrast being more acute and percussive. True to classic Theme and Variation methodology, the A material takes the prominent role with the B material serving as more of a compliment - that's the T and V part. The Dovetail comes into play by the shift of prominence between the two motifs, presented as follows:

As the piece progresses, the A material -- initially the foreground theme -- takes a secondary role to the B material. First presented as unpitched and chaotic, the B theme percussive events are developed rhythmically, then become pitched, then organized into a tonal set (E maj). It's at the close of Part 4 where both horizontal (pitch) and vertical (rhythmic) information is unified as it folds into a standard fifth species counterpoint progression. Further incorporation of Theme and Variations is evidenced by the fact that Part2 and Part 4 use the identical visual score.

Each of the four main parts have been designed to stand on their own - structured within themselves such that they can be considered independent pieces while also completing their portion of the overall work's developmental progression. The three transitions were not presented in this fashion. While in some cases they do contribute to the work's development, unlike the main sections they introduce new motif's which do not carry through further into the work.

Because of the nature of speaker response and the hard transients in this piece, it recommended that listening be done via loudspeakers rather than headphones. By the direction of it's original patron The Odin Dance Company, TSLOS exists as an homage to one of the most influential pieces in my personal experience - Subotnick's Until Spring.du

PERFORMANCES:

As a performance piece, X premiered at the Electronic Explorations concert in Los Angeles in 1978. It received a horrid review by in Synapse Magazine and two glowing reviews by Joan La Barbara for the Los Angeles Times and High Fidelity Magazine. A shortened 10 minute performance mix of The Secret Life of Semiconductors premiered in 2006 at Stony Brooke University and again in 2008 at the Sonic Odyssey Festival in Los Angeles. Part 4 and the Coda were performed live at Disney Hall's REDCAT Theater in Los Angeles on 11/16/07 by an ensemble consisting of composers Gary Chang, Alessandro Cortini, Richard Devine, Thighpaulsandra and myself. Images from that performance can be viewed here.. The live performance from that show can be downloaded hereLIketors is an homage to Subotnick's