Consisting of processed recordings of the first movement of Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 10 in E-flat Major, Stick-Slide, Strike (2019) juxtaposes what we think of as the continuous action of bowing, which actually consists of micro-level variations in kinetic friction (sliding) vs. static friction (sticking), with the discrete mechanical strike of a piano’s hammers. Stretching the sound of the bowed instruments magnifies these moments of sliding and sticking, with the overall texture of the piece slowly morphing from the continuous to the discrete. Stick-Slide, Strike was composed for the Kaleidosonic Music Festival in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Technology in Music and Related Arts (TIMARA) department at Oberlin Conservatory.
