Clair de terre
Robert Normandeau
Programme notes
A photograph of the Earth taken from space probably best epitomizes the second half of the twentieth century. It situates our planet in space in a way that makes it clear that the Earth is not at the center of the universe. Our place in space leads to a state of unbalance that is reflected in the way we see the world. This new perception in turn influences our artistic expression. Electroacoustic music was born just slightly more than fifty years ago, at about the same time that first photograph of the earth was taken. This has brought about a considerable change in how we (artists) make and how we (the audience) hear.
This work is divided into twelve movements that systematically explore elements of the grammar of cinematography that have been transposed into the language of electroacoustics. Preceded by an overture — Ouverture — each of these twelve movements are composed of a soundscape, an object’s sound, the sound of a musical instrument, and vocal onomatopoeias. All of these sound elements are drawn from the sound bank that I have built up over the last ten years.
Clair de terre was realized at the composer’s studio in 1999 and premiered on December 10, 1999 during the Rien à voir (6) concert series presented by Réseaux at Ex-Centris in Montréal. The work was realized with support from the Canada Council for the Arts (CCA) and the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ). Some passages in the work are drawn from music or sound elements composed for theatre plays or the radio. Thanks to André Corriveau, Jean-François Denis, Monique Desroches, Julien Grégoire, Brigitte Haentjens, Odile Magnan, Denis Marleau, Lorraine Pintal, Jacinthe Potvin, Rober Racine, Claire Savoie, and Claude Schryer.
Premiere
- December 10, 1999, Rien à voir (6)
: concert solo, eXcentris, Montréal (Québec)
- Composer(s): Robert Normandeau
- Year of composition: 1999, 2009
- Instrumentation: 16-channel fixed medium
- Publisher(s): Ymx média
Movements
Ouverture
Premiere
- February 17, 2016, Premiere of the 16-channel version (2016)
: The Electric Space Concert Series 2015-16: Concert 3, Bevegelseslab — Institutt for musikkvitenskap — ZEB-bygningen — Universitetet i Oslo, Oslo (Norway)
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 6:12
- ISRC: CAD500114410
Cadre étroit (espace clos)
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 2:31
- ISRC: CAD500114420
Couleurs primaires et secondaires
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 2:59
- ISRC: CAD500114430
Mobilité des plans
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 3:09
- ISRC: CAD500114440
Montage rythmique
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 2:28
- ISRC: CAD500114450
Montage métaphorique
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 1:48
- ISRC: CAD500114460
Durée des plans
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 2:25
- ISRC: CAD500114470
Clarté (éblouissement)
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 2:57
- ISRC: CAD500114480
Taille des plans
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 3:03
- ISRC: CAD500114490
Couleurs ternaires
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 2:09
- ISRC: CAD500114500
Micro-montage
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 0:30
- ISRC: CAD500114510
Obscurité
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 2:09
- ISRC: CAD500114520
Cadre large (espace ouvert)
- Movement of: Clair de terre
- Duration: 3:40
- ISRC: CAD500114530
