The work’s title is drawn from the proto-surrealist poetry of André Breton and Phillipe Soupault’s The Magnetic Fields [1919]. (A collage of the same poems, was also the source of the text for my song cycle vo [1990]). In creative work, one is faced with a multitude of possible pathways. The phrase ‘stairways of sleep’ suggested to me ascending [or descending] pathways navigable only in a subconscious state. In this sense stairways structure takes the listener on an associative journey through related musical materials.
stairways of sleep occupies a singular place in my output: prior works almost exclusively involved quotation of others’ music (Twilight’s Last Gleamings [1986]- patriotic American Songs, Savoy Trifle [1988] - Berg/Parker, Blackpool Tower [1989] Beethoven/Lennon.) stairways marks the beginning of a period in which I began working with original material using the techniques I had developed for the collage works. This material became the basis for the musical language of many works to follow such as Leo Szilard [1990], phase matrix [1993] and horology [1999]. It also contains several sonic archetypes that have re-emerged in my music from time to time, most notably the ethereal descending passage at the heart of the work.
alea: new music ensemble stairways of sleep: WAAPA Music Auditorium September 1989
credits
from separate islands: chamber music I [1988-1991],
released October 26, 2012
Magnetic Pig: Lindsay Vickery (clarinet), Matthew Jones (electric guitar), Paul Tanner (vibraphone) and Cathie Travers (piano).
A collection of tracks from the singer and multi-disciplinary artist's 111 collaboration series, featuring KMRU, Laraaji, and others. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 25, 2024