Outlier
The music box takes center stage in this exciting and novel CD by New York composer/pianist/instrument builder John Morton. Through the manual and electronic manipulation of composed music box mechanisms, layers of tones, surprising textures, and elegantly constructed figures are moulded into abstract melodies. Joined by Steve Hardwick, guitar, Ted Piltzecker, vibraphone, and Bill Blossom, bass, the altered music box becomes a distinct, expressive musical instrument: it intrigues the imagination and evokes the power of childhood musical memories.
Among the compositions on the CD is a suite from A Delicate Road, commissioned by the Greenwall Foundation and first performed at The Kitchen with dancer/choreographer David Appel; an early work, Slurry, for three clarinets; as well as stylistically diverse compositions that explore the rhythmic, enveloping sound of Morton’s ingenious music boxes. For the past several years, John Morton has been focussing on the manipulation, alteration, and electronic processing of music boxes. Along with artist Jacqueline Shatz, they construct large scale music boxes using multiple, moving sculptures and numerous composed music boxes which are activated singly or simultaneously by the observer/participant. During Summer, 2001, they were in residence at the Kohler Factory in Wisconsin, creating music boxes in the Arts/Industry program.
