Ambitiously reconceiving
the artist’s studio as a
complex three-dimensional score, «SWEEPING THE GROUND» comprises four suites of
music (Sweeping the Ground in the Presence of the Impossible, Sweeping
the Ground When in Doubt, Postcards I, and Postcards II),
two PDFs providing brief essays and the images that constitute the original
score by Lance Austin Olsen and its reimagining by Gil Sansón,
and a short film and accompanying collaborative soundtrack—The Dust We
Have Become. The complete release is here presented on a wooden USB
flash drive.
“In early 2018, I sent Gil Sansón some photographs of the inside of my art studio,
which is a crazy mess, but also emblematic of how I work. I had previously
talked to Gil about how, before Zen meditation, I methodically swept the
floor of my bedroom before laying out the zafu cushion.
My bedroom is tidy. My studio is an
incredible mess. A nice balance.
I had also been recording in my studio
with Dan Godlovitch, a local friend and
collaborator. He was using an empty Elektron Octatrack sampler, and I supplied all the noise,
voices, and other sounds for him to grab and throw back at me in response.
One evening Dan made an interesting
comment that stuck with me. ‘It's like being inside a major score working
in here, dancing around all your paints and cans of water and ancient
brushes while trying not to spill anything on the electronics.’
The studio began to function as a
score.
Dan and I were inside the score looking
out, and Gil was outside the score looking in from Caracas, Venezuela.”
—Lance Austin Olsen
“There's a sense of
artistic kinship that's the key that ultimately opens all the doors, with
complete trust and faith in what each of us is doing.
We simply don't explain anything to the other.
We
just get on with it.”
—Gil Sansón
This
release is presented on a wooden USB flash drive and includes the
recordings SWEEPING THE GROUND IN THE PRESENCE OF THE IMPOSSIBLE (WAV):
Sweeping the ground I (36:40), Sweeping the ground II (15:20) / SWEEPING
THE GROUND WHEN IN DOUBT (WAV) (51:55) / POSTCARDS I (WAV): Dark rain
(4:20), It's always the piece (3:44), Dreamer (4:00), Dog poop (0:27), The
last hymn stays in your head all day (1:18), 15 Devils (5:50) / POSTCARDS
II (WAV): Postcard 3 (3:50), Postcard 4 (4:22), Postcard 5 (5:20), Postcard
6 (2:45), Postcard 7 (3:30) / the short film THE DUST WE HAVE BECOME (MP4)
(5:47) / the scores SWEEPING THE GROUND score (PDF) / SWEEPING THE GROUND
AND THE GHOSTS OF PAINTING score (PDF) / and the CREDITS (PDF).
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Sweeping the Ground in the Presence of the Impossible
Compositions by Lance Austin Olsen and Dan Godlovitch
1. Sweeping the ground I
Dan Godlovitch: Elektron Octatrack sampler
Lance Austin Olsen: amplified objects, found tapes,
guitar, and voice fragments
2. Sweeping the ground II
Erin Cunes: voice
Dan Godlovitch: Elektron Octatrack sampler,
acoustic guitar
Lance Austin Olsen: amplified objects, found tapes,
guitar, and voice fragments
Sweeping the Ground When in Doubt
Composition by Gil Sansón
Daniel Brandes: piano
Gil Sansón: all other sounds
Postcards I
Compositions by Lance Austin Olsen and Dan Godlovitch
1. Dark Rain
Erin Cunes: voice
Dan Godlovitch: Elektron Octatrack sampler
Lance Austin Olsen: amplified objects, guitar, and voice
2. It’s Always the
Piece
Erin Cunes: voice
Dan Godlovitch: acoustic guitar
Lance Austin Olsen: voice
Gil Sansón: amplified objects
3. Dreamer
Dan Godlovitch: Elektron Octatrack sampler
Lance Austin Olsen: amplified objects
4. Dog Poop
Lance Austin Olsen: voice
Charlotte: voice
5. The Last Hymn Stays in Your Head All Day
Erin Cunes: voice
Dan Godlovitch: Elektron Octatrack sampler
Lance Austin Olsen: amplified objects and voice
6. 15 Devils
Erin Cunes: voice
Dan Godlovitch: Elektron Octatrack sampler
Lance Austin Olsen: amplified objects, field recordings,
guitar, and voice
Postcards II
Compositions by Gil Sansón
1. Postcard 3
2. Postcard 4
3. Postcard 5
4. Postcard 6
5. Postcard 7
All sounds by Gil Sansón
Postcard 6 includes a quotation of Op. 6 by Anton Webern
played Gil Sansón
The Dust We Have Become
Edited by Lance Austin Olsen
Soundtrack by Lance Austin Olsen and Gil Sansón
Loss of sound
Paper cups
A thought of rock
A feel of silk
A sound of barley rattles forth
Don’t think that these few things remain alone
Brief mind
A final float to see the sun
And feel the dirt
And sound
And stone
And peat
And dogs
Return to universal mist
Mastered by Gil Sansón
Released 2020
This
is Suppedaneum no. 21
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