Shendos 5 - Trio (1999)
Three Improvisers
PROGRAM NOTES
Shendos: a graphical notation system that provides a framework, or score, for an improvisation.
The shendos represent musical activity, or intensity, at a given point in time. This intensity can be made manifest through several musical parameters, including dynamics, tempo, interval size, dissonance, texture, harmonic rhythm, rhythmic complexity, rate of change, etc. Any or all of these or other parameters may be used to achieve an audible representation of the intensity level mapped out in the score.
The timing of a shendo element is always relative to the parts around it (except for solo shendos, which are relative to themselves). The “tempo” chosen at the outset can remain in flux, but should be relatively consistent throughout.