Deliquescence (2011)
duration 8:00
8 channels (EA)
for Shattering the Silence 2011Premiered Sat. Jan. 22, 2011, Denton Hall, Acadia University
Listen to a 2-channel version
Program Note
The ability of a substance to attract and hold water molecules from the surrounding environment, such as coffee grounds. Deliquescence uses sound-sources that were originally created for 10 EA studies I worked on in 2010. Sounds are used for their gestural qualities alone; a certain tessitura, density, velocity etc... that create relationships between dissimilar sound sources, such as boiling water, pins in a plastic box, the low hum of an air-exchange unit, swirling of plastic bowls and others. Source-bonding; finding sounds that imitate certain gestures, becomes a central focus, as does as spectral approach; removing certain frequencies, or working with the envelope of sound; splicing the attack and decay, for example, leaving only the sustain. My working process reminded me of the effect of deliquescence, absorbing material through the surrounding sonic environment.
Deliquescence: the process by which a substance absorbs moisture from the atmosphere until it dissolves in the absorbed water and forms a solution. Deliquescence occurs when the vapour pressure of the solution that is formed is less than the partial pressure of water vapour in the air. All soluble salts will deliquesce if the air is sufficiently humid. A substance that absorbs moisture from the air but not necessarily to the point of dissolution is called hygroscopic. From the Encyclopædia Britannica. 2010. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 12 Dec. 2010
