On the realization of noanoa and pres, two pieces for solo instruments and ircam signal processing workstation

This article is a translation of a musicological work written by the Finnish composer Kaia Saariaho with sound engineers Xavier Chabot and Jean-Baptiste Barriere from the Ircam. The study describes two solo pieces - «NoaNoa» and «Pres» - one for flute, the other for cello, realized during 1992 by Kaija Saariaho with the Ircam Signal Processing Workstation (ISPW, based on the Next computer) and with Xavier Chabot from the Ircam Pedagogy department. These works are created in the pedagogical perspective to explore the potentialities of Max on the ISPW, and specially its connexion with Patchwork used to prepare data and patches. In the two pieces, the electronic parts amplify and develop the sonic structure of the solo instrument, exemplify the close relationship between sound material and musical structure, and explore real-time strategies for control over various synthesis and signal processing algorithms.

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