I use micro-intervals in my music as one aspect of composing with sound as a whole. Typically, I compose on a micro-level of form by creating a counterpoint between micro-intervalic pitch movement, micro-intensity variation, micro-timbral change, and micro-spatial transformation.Microintervals are very helpful both for micro-melodic sequencing as well as micro-ornamental variation. For example, I will frequently specify a micro-intervallic ornament as to its overall pitch pattern, the micro-intervallic width of the pattern, and its speed.More recently, I have begun to relate micro-intervallic movement to structures of micro-durations; thus, micro-intervallic pitch movement is related to micro-rhythmnic sequence. Thus, micro-intervals and micro-durational/micro-rhythmnic structures are stretched and transformed in tandem over the course of a work.
Biography
American composer, born in New York City in 1955, has lived in France since 1991. He studied composition privately with George Cacioppo and William Albright and electronic music with George Wilson at the University of Michigan.He has composed more than 80 works for orchestra, chamber ensemble, vocal and instrumental soloists, and electroacoustic works. His works have been played throughout the world, including by such reknown performers as Arditti String Quartet, Voxnova, Ensemble 2e2m (conducted by Paul Mefano), Nicholas Isherwood, Erik Drescher, Irvine Arditti, Rohan de Saram, Maurizio Barbetti, Roland Auzet, Neue Vocalsolisten, Orchestre Nationale de Lille (conducted by Jean Claude Casadesus), the Orchestre Francais des Flutes, Estonian National Symphony Orchestra (conducted by Risto Joost) and the Ensemble U.Formerly director of the Ateliers UPIC/CCMIX from 1991 to 2007, Gerard Pape founded the C.L.S.I. (“Cercle pour la Liberation du Son et de l’Image”), an ensemble consisting of 8 performers playing instruments and computers “live” in 2007. In 2010, Pape founded along with his wife, the Russian composer, Olga Krashenko, the D.L.S.I. , a duo wherein each composer participates in the performance of the other’s works. In 2012, Pape founded the F.L.S.I., a new festival featuring performances of “classic” contemporary music works as well as world premiers for instruments and computers played and composed by the members of the C.L.S.I., the D.L.S.I., and other invited guest performers and composers.
Pape is currently in the process of producing a bi-lingual book of his musical writings that will also include a CD of his latest compositions in collaboration with the musicologist Leopoldo Siano. This “Book/CD” will be published in France by Editions Michel de Maulne in co-production with Mode Records in 2014.
His most recent musical compositions include HARMONIES OF FORM AND TIME for six soloists and six orchestras, premiered in March, 2012, in Talinn (Estonia) and the opera ”WHY POETS?” taken from his opera cycle-in-progress SUNSET TIME which is to be premiered May 28th, 2014 in the SOUND festival in Aberdeen (Scotland).
