Etudes for Pulse (2021)

The initial idea for this piece was to create an electronic (fixed media) work using only a single sound, inspired by György Ligeti’s Musica Ricercata.

Imagine if all sound characteristics were fixed and unchanging. What is the smallest, most minimal sound imaginable? A sound with no timbre and no duration. The shortest possible duration for the human ear and the most neutral possible timbre. A constant dynamic throughout the entire piece. The only thing that could change would be the intervals between the sound’s occurrences.

In electronic music, this sound is a pulse. Something like a dot, a single sample out of 44,100 samples per second. A pulse that’s as short as possible. What can truly be built with such a pulse?

At first, this limitation felt incredibly restrictive, but I soon realized that when severe limitations are imposed, new doors of creativity open. That’s when I understood the amazing things that could be done with a single pulse.

What you’ll hear next are some of the first etudes I created for the pulse using Csound. I intend to continue this exploration in the future.