leviathan (2014)

commissioned by Spitting Image Collective
composed for Sarah Porwoll-Lee

leviathan embodies the sonic world that one might hear in a littoral cave. The work was inspired by An Uaimh Bhinn, a cave on the Scottish coast famous for its unique harmonic resonances. The reverb used in the piece is modeled on the impulse response of a cavern; the vases serve as harmonic resonators through which many sounds are processed live, including the swell of ocean waves and the bass clarinet. The vases filter these sounds to bring out certain predictable pitches, which are then harmonized by the bass clarinet. The long, winding bass clarinet melody is the leviathan slinking through the cavernous electronic soundscape.

full score