Artist Statement 2

When I was first thinking about how I wanted to do this project, I was thinking about the surrealist film Un Chien Andalou. I loved the idea of nonsense ideas and relying on dreams and strong emotions to create a narrative your listeners can interpret. In the end I started leaning away from total abstract sound and towards a semi-perceivable narrative. My piece is called “Going To Bed Angry.” I tried to create a narrative where a couple is in the kitchen, doing the dishes. They start to argue with each other. They begin to yell at each other as a thunderstorm rages outside. Eventually, their fight cools. They walk away from each other. One of them decides to leave the apartment to calm themself. On their walk, they keep thinking about the argument and how it exploded into something unforgivable. They come back to the apartment, pour themself a glass of wine, and stew in their regret. The night ends when they go to sleep on the couch, still regretting but at least lulled by the pull of sleep.

I am very aware that this narrative may not resonate with the audience. I actually don’t really want it to. Instead, I used the story to shape an incomprehensible soundboard assembled with the concept in mind. Ultimately, I enjoyed messing with sound, creating a fantasy world with unusual noises edited with reverb, echo, reverse, and volume control. I think if I were to do this project again, I would have an underlying sound that ties the whole narrative together, maybe a constant beeping or the sound of a fan.