Marc Yeats music composition - list of works as of February 2009


piano works

The Appetites of Gravity    
 24 mins.  
 
Room (1997)
14 minutes for piano. First performed by Richard Casey, Manchester University, February 1998. Imagine what it would be like to be incarcerated in a small, enclosed area, having no contact with the outside world and no hope of escape. The 'room' of the title refers to this imaginary space and was the starting point of the piece. The music runs in one continuous movement, travelling through some nineteen variants which are often extremes of contrast.
 
Orange Afternoon (1997)  
5 minutes for piano.
 
The Anatomy of Melancholy (1998)
 
28 minutes for piano. The Anatomy of Melancholy is an obsessive work. It has an intense focus and grip which never manages to free itself from the gloomy world it inhabits. The work makes huge emotional and technical demands on the performer. Throughout the work, the player has to inhabit the dark sound world and cope with demanding virtuosic writing contrasted with music of expressionless simplicity.
 
Lullaby (1999)  
 3 minutes
 
The Viciousness of Circles (1999)
 10 mins. Premiered by Kerry Yong, London, July 2005
 
October Pieces (complete) (2000)  
 
October Pieces are a series of solo piano works all composed from the same musical material. The pieces are designed to stand on their own as individual works, can be played in full as a complete cycle, or, the pianist can create their own complete work by choosing several individual pieces from the set and constructing a larger work to suit their purposes. Sheet music for all the piano music listed in this section is available from the composer. Enquiries can be made via the contact page:
 
October Piece No.1
3:40" October 2000
 
October Piece No.2 
3:30" October 2000 
 
October Piece No.3   
1:50" October 2000 
 
October Piece No.4 
3:10" November 2002
 
October Piece No.5 
4:34" November 2000 
 
October Piece No.6
5:10" December 2000 
 
October Piece No.7   
3:26" December 2000 
 
October Piece No.8
1:37" December 2000 
 
October Piece No.9 
3:30" December 2000 
 
October Piece No.10   
4:14" March 2001
 
October Piece No.11  
2:37" March 2001 
 
October Piece No.12  
8:55" March 2001 
 
The Sea Bells Perpetual Angelus (2003)  
14 mins. Premiered by Sarah Nicolls in Somerset, Summer 2004.Dedicated to Sylvia Junge
 
An Interrupted Passacaglia (2003)
8 mins. Premiered by Sarah Nicolls in Somerset, Summer 2004. Dedicated to Stella Davies

Marching with Ethel (2008)
9 mins. Commissioned by Manchester Pride. Dedicated to Ed Cobbald. . Premiered by Stephen Combes – Studio 7 BBC Manchester 18th August 08

Intenso (2008)
18 mins.

orchestral works

Temporary Quickening (1994)  
12 minutes
 
I See Blue (1995)
 
14 minutes for orchestra (3.3.3.3 - 4.3.3.1 - harp, piano, percussion (1) - 16.14.12.10.8) First performed by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Martyn Brabbins, Studio 7, BBC North, Manchester, November 1995.
 
Pagan II (1996) 
 
12 mins. for orchestra (3 picc.3.3.3 - 4.3.3.1 - piano, percussion (5) - 16.14.12.10.8)  First performed by the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Naohiro Totsuka, Tokyo City Opera Concert Hall Tokyo, November 1997. A BBC Radio 3 broadcast with the BBC Philharmonic conducted by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies is planned for February 2000.   

For me, Pagan II is undoubtedly the most frightening, austere work I have ever composed. It is a personal glimpse into the abyss. The music has a ritualistic feel to it, as if some huge arcane and barbaric ceremony was being witnessed, and the participants of the ceremony were being, in turn, entranced through hypnotic 'dance', and brutalised through music which is violent, both rhythmically and harmonically. Pagan II is not intended to be a desolate pronouncement on our future, rather a glimpse of the unthinkable. Both Pagan I and II can be performed as a complete work. 
 
Pagan I (1997)   
 
18 minutes for orchestra (3.3.3.3 - 4.3.3.1 - piano, percussion (5) - 16.14.12.10.8)
 
The Anatomy of Air (1997)
 
20 minutes for large chamber orchestra (2.2.2.2 - 2.2.0.0 - percussion (1) - 5.4.3.2.1) Commissioned by the St. Magnus Festival. First performed by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Orkney, June 1997. This is the revised version of 2005   

 The word anatomy is generally applied to the tangible; to cut open something solid and reveal its inner workings. Air cannot be cut open and observed, but it does have structures and modes of organisation. Weather systems, their layering, patterns of progression, changing densities, textures, forms and forcescan be perceived as elements of the anatomy of air; the air's hidden architechture. Finally, my personal relationship with Orkney, as realised subjectively through sound, provided the 'colours', energies and idiosyncrasies which motivate and permeate the music, hopefully enabling it to communicate something of my feelings, impressions and reactions to this very special place and its people. 

 
The Anatomy of Water (1998)
 
24 minutes. For orchestra (3.3.3.3 - 4.3.3.1 - 2 harps, piano, percussion (6) - 16.14.12.10.8)

 The Anatomy of Water does not attempt to convey a picture of the sea in a representational way; my concerns were centred around the 'feel' of deep water, exploring aspects such as underwater currents, tides and waves, and the way that the sounds are altered to become blurred and echo like when heard through water. Other factors include mythological creatures like Sirens and Mermaids with their haunting calls and songs.
 
The Round and Square Art of Memory (1999)

30 mins. Solo piano - 3.3.3.3 - 4.3.3.1 - 2 harps, percussion (6) - 16.14.12.10.8 Commissioned by the BBC for the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and Kathryn Stott (piano). 1st performance to take place on 5th Feb. 2000 at the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Kathryn Stott (piano), conductor Martyn Brabbins.


The title for The Round and Square Art of Memory is taken from the illustrations of the Elizabethan alchemist Robert Fludd and refers to the different natures of encapsulaing memory via symbol, geometry and line. This work explores the nature of memory to by referring to another work of mine, The Anatomy of Water. This piece is 'remembered' by hearing familiar music through the filter of altered perspectives and dimensions. These distorted memories act in turn as the starting point for the creation of completely new and independent musical material. Two natures of music are explored; the fluid and horizontal (round) and the rhythmic and vertical (square). The work gradually transforms from one to the other through an intense and volatile sound world. The piano's relationship with the orchestra is dominant but not confrontational; much of the musical material is shared with the orchestra as an equal virtuosic partner.

 
The Devil's Day Out (2002)

15 mins. for Orchestra (3(2, 3 = picc). 3(3=cor). 3(2=Eb, 3=bcl). 3(3=cbn). 4, 3, 3, 1, Harp, Piano, Timpani, Percussion (4), Strings 16, 14, 12, 10, 8.
 
Toward the Horizon (2003)
  
(January 2003) 18 minutes (to Mark Hewitt) for large string orchestra: strings:- 8,7,6,5,4 (desks)
 
North Sound (2005) 
 
28 mins. Large orchestra. 3.3.3.3 - 4.3.3.1 - 1 harps, percussion (1) - 16.14.12.10.8.

Dedicated to Sir Peter Maxwell Davies on the occassion of his 70th birthday.
 
Elysian Fields (2005)
  
To Nigel Evans.

Woodwind - 3.3.3.3. brass - 4.3.3.1 - strings 8.7.6.5.4 (desks) timapni, harp, piano, percussion (1) Duration: 15 minutes
 
My Blood is as Red as Yours (2008)

For Orchestra and chorus (SATB)– soprano and baritone soloists – ( 2 bassoons, 2 trumpets, 4 horns, harp, timpani, strings (vla, vc,db). Duration 13 minutes.
Commissioned by the Hallé Orchestra to celebrate World Aids Day 2008. To be premiered by The Hall..Orchestra and Hallé Youth Choir, with Roderick Williams and Rebecca Botone as soloists. Conducted by Sir Mark Elder, at the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester 1st December 2008.


Electro-acoustic and digital works (mixed acoustic recordings and digital)

Atavus (Atavus album - 2006)
 
For three bass clarinets and sound environment featuring Sarah Watts (bass clarient). Sound environment composed and engineered by Marc Yeats. This music is written for CD listening and not acoustic performance
Duration:16:16
 
The Outer Fire (2006)
 
For  bass clarient and string orchestra, featuring Sarah Watts (bass clarinet). String orchestra environment composed and engineered by Marc Yeats. This piece is designed for CD listening and not acoustic performance. The work is dedicated to the painter Fred Schley. Duration: 15.40 
 
Hinterland (2006)
  
A collection of 5 orchestral variants featuring Alison Waller (clarinets) and Su-a Lee (cello), with digital sound environment. Hinterland is dedicated to my dear friends the artists Tiny Van Der Warf (Hinterland 1 - 4) and Fred Schley (Hinterland 5). This music is designed for CD listening and not acoustic performance. Soon to be avilable for download and on CD.
Duration: 33 mins
 
Hinterland 1 (2006) Duration: 5.57
 
Hinterland 2 (2006)  Duration: 7.39
 
Hinterland 3 (2006)  Duration: 6.32
 
Hinterland 4 (2006)  Duration: 5.52
 
Hinterland 5 (2006)  Duration: 7:39

Atavus (album 2006)

A collection of 4 pieces all featuring live musicians recorded with digital samples and electro acoustic sound environments. The pieces in this album range from the reflective tones of Siren Song, the bleak desolation of Songs from the Abattoir, the bizarre narrative of Music to a Dumbshow to the wild energy of Atavus.

Music to a Dumbshow (a,b) (c) (d). (Atavus album- 2006)
 
For clarinets and cellos (low strings) featuring Alison Waller (clarients) and Su-a-Lee (cellos), and digital environment, multitracked and engineered by Marc Yeats. The work is in four sections - a,b,c,d.This piece is designed for CD listening and not acoustic performance.
(part a and b) Duration: 9.18   part c Duration: 7.52  part d Duration: 5.12
 
Siren Song (Atavus album - 2006) 

For three sopranos, three alto flutes and sound environment featuring Natalie Raybould (voice) and Carla Rees (alto flutes). Sound environment also composed and engineered by Marc Yeats. This piece is designed for CD listening and not acoustic performance. This track is available on the CD 'Atavus' and also for download on the download page. Duration: 13.58
 

Songs from the abattoir (Atavus album- 2006)

For clarinets and cellos (low strings) featuring Alison Waller (clarients) and Su-a-Lee (cellos). Multitracked and engineered by Marc Yeats. This piece is designed for CD litening and not acoustic performance. This track is available on the CD 'Atavus' and also for download on the download page. Duration: 13.24 

Convergence (album – 2007)

A collection of nine individual pieces (full fathom five, easter totem, lucifer, shimmering substance, autum rhythm, stenographic figure, alchemy, convergence and pasiphae)  - exploring the musical reaction of composer Marc Yeats to the visual artwork of the American abstract expressionist painter, Jackson Pollock. The music attempts to convey a sense of the painting's energy and randomising processes from a textural and constructional point of view as well as a subjective responses to the feel of the individual works. Each movement has been coupled with one of Pollock's paintings and is titled accordingly. 

Full Fathom Five (Convergence) (2007)

For E flat clarinet, triple horn, violin, viola, cello, virginal, percussion and electronics. First movement from the album 'convergence' 2007 - Duration - 13:35
 
Easter Totem (Convergence) (2007)

For flute, trumpet, tenor trombone, contra bass tuba, violin, viola, cello, double bass, celesta and vibraphone. Movement 2 from the album 'convergence' 2007. Duration 2:36

Lucifer (Convergence) (2007)

For flute, trumpet, tenor trombone, contra bass tuba, violin, viola, cello, double bass, celesta and vibraphone. Movement 2 from the album 'convergence' 2007. Duration 7:35

Shimmering Substance (Convergence) (2007)

For flute, oboe, bassoon, 2 trumpets, violin, viola, cello, piano, virginal and percussion. Movement 4 from the album 'convergence' 2007. Duration 4:16
 
Autumn Rhythm (Convergence) (2007)

For small string ensemble. Movement 5 from the album 'convergence' 2007. Duration - 5:04

Stenographic Figure (Convergence) (2007)

For contrabass tube and double bass with 2 violins, 2 harps, percussion and electronics. Movement 6 from the album 'convergence' 2007. Duration - 8:00

Alchemy (Convergence) (2007)

A piece for two small string ensembles. From the album 'convergence’ 2007. Duration - 9:58

Convergence (Convergence) (2007)

For very large percussion ensemble (6 players) Movement 6 from the album 'convergence' 2007. Duration - 10:57

Pasiphae (Convergence) (2007)

For viola, bassoon, trumpet in B flat, french horn, percussion and electronics. Last movement from the album 'convergence' 2007. Duration - 13:31

Behemoth (2007)

Electro-acoustic and digital work for CD – duration 15:30 mins.

Tyneham (2007)

Electro-acoustic and digital work for CD – duration 13:13 mins.

Hades (2008)

Electro-acoustic and digital work for CD – duration 14:40 mins. Dedicated to Fred Schley


chamber works


Again (1994)
 
20 minutes  for clarinet, violin, cello and piano. First performed by the Chamber Group of Scotland, Queen's Hall, Edinburgh, January 1996. 
 
Flute Quartet (1994)
 
(1994) 17 minutes    for flute, violin, viola and cello. First performed by Alison Mitchell (flute) and members of the Edinburgh String Quartet, broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland, November 1995. 
 
Pumping Iron (1996)  
 
20 mins. for clarinet, horn, trumpet, piano, harp, 2 violins, viola, cello and double bass. First performed by Psappha, by Paul MacAlindin, Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, November 1997. Pumping Iron is about sensation; an almost physical delight in the power of rhythm and dissonance to get inside people and drag them, willingly or otherwise, into a sound world of primal intensity. However, other factors are at play. The title refers, in particular, to weight-lifting and the vanities implied in the 'body beautiful' culture; there are also explorations into some of the less savoury aspects of human nature. 

Is It Me? (1997)

18 mins. for clarinet (bass cl), cello and piano.First performed by the Tokyo Trio, Tokyo City Opera House, November 1997. 
 
Temporal Freeze (1997)

10 mins. for clarinet and cello. First performed by members of the SCO as part of the Resound exhibition, St. Magnus Festival, Orkney, June 1997. 
 
Tightropes of the Mind (1999)
  
16 mins. for bass clarinet, tenor trombone, double bass and sampler. Commissioned by the London Sinfonietta and first performed by members of the London Sinfonietta, Hayward Gallery, London, April 10th 1999. 
 
Tightropes of the Mind (Acoustic version) (1999)  

16 mins. for tenor trombone, double bass, piano, percussion (1), violin, viola, cello.
 
The Hour of the Wolf (1999)  
 
18 mins. for Bb clarinet and piano (1996 - 9)

Mad Canary (1999)  

5 mins. solo piccolo. Premiere - Ingrid Cauliford, Aukland New Zealand 2002

Metaphors of Battle and Conquest (1999)  
 
7 mins solo alto saxophone Commissioned by Kathryn Stott for Federico Mondelci. Premiere - mixing it - Bromsgrove Festival 2000 

A Waiting Ghost in the Blue Sky (1999)  
 
15 mins. for Bb clarinet (Eb cl), cello, piano, percussion (1) First performed by the Contempo Ensemble conducted by Mauro Ceccanti, Prato, Tuscany, December 1999.
 
I Have a Charm for Bruising (2000)
 
20 mins. for violin, viola, cello. To the Ceccanti Family. Premiere - illegal harmony string trio - An Tuireann Art Centre - February 2004
 
Only the Trees will Whisper in the Dark (2000)  
 
12 mins. for alto flute, bass clarinet, violin, cello and piano. To lewis Mitchell - Premiere, The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen 2002
 
Mary, Polly, Sukie, Jack and Jill (2000)
 
21 mins. for soprano, flute (piccolo), Clarinet (bass clarinet), violin, viola, cello, piano, percussion (xylophone and glockenspiel)
 
Summer makes the Night Light (2000) 
 
18 mins. for flute, violin, viola, cello
 
Hunting Magic (2001)

10 mins. for flute and piano. To Carla Rees - Premiere, The Reid Hall, Edinburgh, August 2003
 
Learning to Spell (2001)
   
10 mins. for trumpet and piano.
 
Davey Jones' Locker (2001)
 
12 mins. for E-flat clarinet, bass clarinet, bass trombone, violoncello, double bass, percussion (1). Commissioned by 175 East. Premiere - Auckland, New Zealand 2002 
 
VOX (2001)
 
12 mins. for solo bass clarinet. Commissioned by Sarah Watts. Premiere Rotterdam, Holland, 2002 
 
Whiz King (2002)

15 mins. for large ensemble: piccolo, oboe, clarinet in Bb doubling bass clarinet, contra bassoon, horn in F, trumpet in C, bass trombone, percussion (3), honky-tonk piano, electric organ, strings: 3,3,2,2,1 (players) (min. 1,1,1,1,1).
 
Whereto My Wishes Lie (2002)
  
15 mins. for bass clarinet and piano. To Sarah Watts. Premiere - Rotterdam, Holland 2003 

For There's a Kind of World Remaining Still (2003)
 
19 mins. (to Rosie Banks and Daniela Braun) for string trio: violin, viola, violoncello - Premiere, illegal harmony string trio An Tuireann Art Centre 2003 
 
Colour Songs (2003)  

35 mins. for soprano, flute (alto, piccolo), Bass Clarinet, (Clarinet), VLn, Vla, Vc. Performed by illegal harmony for recording. 5 songs - Weathers, You Must Never Go Against The Sun, The Colours Of The World, Yellow Of Flowers, Days Like Diamonds. Commissioned with funds from the Scottish Arts Council National Lottery, Shetland Arts Trust, Orkney Enterprise, Hi-Arts, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Western Isles Council, Highland Council and Argyll and Bute Council. 
 
Have Heard This Dialogue for One (2003)  

15 mins. (commissioned by Carla Rees) for : alto flute. To Carla Rees - Premiere, An Tuireann Art Centre 2003
 
Repeat Offenders (2003)

15 mins. for bass clarinet duo. To Henri Bok and Sarah Watts - Premiere RNCM Manchester 2003 
 
War Cries (2003)

11 mins. for tuba quartet - to Tubalate
 
ASCII Dialogues (2003)
 
12 mins. for soprano and alto flute to Carla Rees and Natalie Raybould. Premiere - An Tuireann Art centre 2003
 
Jigsaw (2003)  
 
7 mins. for clarinet, trumpet, double bass, piano, timpani drum. Premiere - Paragon, The Hub, Edinburgh September 2003 
 
Another Jigsaw (2003)

11 mins. for alto saxophone and marimba
 
My Songs (2003)  

16 mins. 8 songs for soprano, bass clarinet and cello. Premiered by illegal harmony at An Tuireann art Centre, March 2005 
 
Objects that the Sense Delude (2003)  
 
15 mins. wind quintet and piano - flt, ob, cl, bsn, hrn, pno. For Lonba ensemble - first perfomance Buenos Aires - June 2004 
 
Hocus - Pocus (2004)  
 
12 mins. alto flute, cor anglais, bass clarinet To Carla Rees and Mark Dawson, a nuptial gift. Premiere - illegal harmony wind trio - An Tuireann Art Centre, April 2004 
 
Where do these voices stray? (2004)  
 
5 mins. for bass clarinet and clarinet in Bb - to Henri Bok - Premiere, Maryland - USA world clarinet convention June 2004 
 
Stillness in Movement (complete) (2004)  
 
58 mins. soprano, alto flute doubling concert flute and piccolo, ob, bass clarinet doubling Bb clarinet, vin, vla, vc, pno Commissioned by An Tuireann Art centre with subsidy from the Scottish Arts Council. Stillness in Movement  was specially commissioned to form part of an insillation with nine oil paintings created by Marc Yeats (see essay and comment) The music is recorded onto CD and was played continually throughout the duration of the exhibition (2nd. October - 12th November 2004) Stillness and Movement is divided into three related work that can be performed independently, although ideally, all three works should be performed sequentially. Each of these three sections have their own title. 
 
Stillness in Movement - movement towards (2004)
 
18 mins. Soprano alto doubling flt and picc., ob, BCL doubling Bb Clarinet, Vin Vla, Vc, pno 
 
Stillness in Movement - neither movement from nor towards (2004)
 
15 mins. flt doubling picc., ob, BCL, Vin Vla, Vc 
 
Stillness in Movement - movement from (2004)  
 
25 mins. Soprano alto doubling flt and picc., ob, BCL doubling Bb Clarinet, Vin Vla, Vc, pno 
 
A fractured melody (2004)
 
10 mins. alto flute and piano. To Carla Rees and Kerry Young - Premier, Rarescale London, October 2004 
 
An Illusory Spectre (2004)
   
10 mins. Alto flute and Piano. To Carla Rees
 
Tales of Enchantment (2004)
 
8 mins. bass clarinet solo. Commissioned by Henri Bok. Premiered in Rotterdam Conservatorium, February 2005
 
Mimesis (2004)
  
14 mins. Bass Flute, Cello and Piano. To the memory of Ratty.
 
Child to the Black Faced Night (2005)  
 
Bass Clarinet and Piano - 8 mins duration. First prize winner in the World Bass Clarinet Composing Competition - October 2005
 
Child to the Black Faced Night (2005)
 
Bass Clarinet and Piano - exrended version - 12 minutes
 
Journey to Nowhere in Particular (2005)
 
Oboe and Piano - duration 15 minutes - a virtuoso piece dedicated to Paul Goodey
 
Torment of the Metals (2005)  
 
19 mins. soprano and large chamber ensemble - soprano, alto saxophone, bass clarinet, trumpet, tenor trombone, bass trombone, 2 bandoneons, piano, 2 percussion, strings -2.2.2.2.1 (players). Premiered in April 2005 in Rotterdam Conservatorium, Holland 
 
Passions of a Discontented Mind (2005)  
18 min. Bass Clarinet Quintet - bcl, vln 1, vln 2, vla,vc. Dedicated to Sarah Watts

Array (2006)  

For Clarinet, violin and cello. dedicated to Richard Craig. Premiere: The New York Minaturist Ensemble, New Yourk, spring 2006 Duration 6 minutes
 
Helen Jones (2006)  
 
A music theatre piece for soprano, alto flute and pre recorded digital orchestral environment. First performance, An Tuireann arts Centre, September 5th 2006. Natalie Raybould (voice) Carla Rees (alto flute) Micheal Oliva (CD and electronics).Duration: 30 minutes

Fallen Angel (2007)

For four bass clarinets and percussion. Duration – 10:00 – Commissioned by The Scottish Clarinet Quartet. Premiere 17th August 08 (percussionist Iain Sandilands) Edinburgh.

Strange Geometry (2008)

Trio for flute, cello and piano. Commissioned by Trio IAMA (Greece). Duration – 17:00.

Caliban’s Dream (2008)

Solo guitar. Duration – 9:00.

….the other side of air (2008)

For brass quintet: - 2 trumpets in C, French horn, tenor trombone and tuba. Commissioned by the International Concert Brass Soloists (Switzerland) Duration - 14:00. Premiere expected Autumn 08.


Soft Geometry (2008)

Trio for flute, cello and piano. Commissioned by Expatrio. Duration – 15:00. Premiere – Buxton Festival, July 2009

Cerberus (2008)

For four trombones (bass trombone and three tenor trombones) and percussion.
Solo version for solo tenor trombone plus prerecorded bass trombone and tenor trombones 2 – 3 with digital percussion. Duration: 15 minutes Commissioned by Dirk Amrein.

Матрёшка (2009)

For E flat clarinet and piano. Duration: 13 minutes For Paul Vowles.

принцип matryoshka (2009)

For E flat clarinet. Duration: variable, from 1  - 12 minutes. For Paul Vowles.


choral works
 
Funeral Sentences - Falling (2000)  

12 mins. for large SATB Choir
 
 

I am Nature

(inspired by works of Jackson Pollock)


to Keith Evans




Composed by

Marc Yeats


I am Nature: introduction



Lee Krasner revealed in her 1964 interview for the Smithsonian Institution: 'When I brought Hofmann up to meet Pollock and see his work…he asked Jackson…do you work from nature? There were no still lifes…or models around and Jackson's answer was, "I am nature."'

The album I am Nature comprises nine pieces, each able to stand alone yet sharing a mutual theme in concept and form; manifestly an unequivocal departure in Marc Yeats' compositional approach: Arranged singularly for CD performance.

I am Nature, reflects nine specific paintings by Jackson Pollock (1912-56) by extolling musical dualism. Though mutually atonal, one expresses tinctured and augmented harmonic shades; the other, in contradistinction, possesses monolithic and atavistic acuity of register, colour and form: Thematic juxtapositions elicit fusions again, to those familiar with the Yeats works, embodying a salient approach to structure, hue, timbre and dialectic. Consequently, he engages two notional musical modes that actuate transformations consonant with abstract painting techniques; a synthesis and metamorphosis both subtle and vibrant.

The genesis of I am Nature stems from two major influences on the composer. Yeats' own initial musical experiences delineate nostalgia for the English Pastoral School (exemplified by Bax, Vaughan Williams and Moeran) casting an acute emotional impression and a diametric opposite; matched by his passion for and fascination with avant-garde expressionism and experimentalism awakened from the 1960s and '70s.

Being also an acclaimed landscape painter Marc Yeats' work with colour, form and texture inform his ideas on musical construction and content. As his illustrative aptitude intensified he observed:

'I moved decisively from representational to abstract art. With a rising technical repertoire, so too grew my conviction of creating an individual compositional language by exploring these modes in a musical context. In I am Nature, both threads are transformed through my "painterly ear" to assimilate and evoke a very personal, natural and unselfconscious outpouring of sound.

On first hearing, the music may seem arbitrary, improvisational or even chaotic. This is not the case. Consciously the music doesn't operate within the logic of number series, motific development, Fibonacci-based proportions, functional harmony, magic squares, tone rows or any of the customary gamete of compositional techniques. Another rationale is operative; a personal logic rooted in "self experience" of the techniques and processes of abstract painting.'

The compositional logic for I am Nature stems 'intrinsically from the music itself rather than impacted externality.' Crucially Yeats reveals, 'The surface of the music - what is heard - reflects the many routes, systematic and intuitive, that beckon its creation. This surface is the music; its own context, self fulfilling and delighting in the visceral spirit and quality of sound for sounds sake in the same way an artist can relish a particular combination of colours or surfaces as complete in themselves. For me, relationships between musical objects arise from a continual process of assimilation whereby the inherent energies and context of sounds designate and hone the destiny and role that each inhabits and exhibits. Namely, the sum of the parts fashion the resultant work. This is the nature of my music – its sound – and the guiding principle for its realisation.'

All the movements of I am Nature on this CD utilise the Vienna Symphonic Library digital sound samples as elemental instrumental material allied with segments from other sound bank
libraries (keyboard instruments). Some further combined with electro-acoustics supplemented by distortions and transformations of recordings originating with Marc Yeats.

Conspicuously, this composition is not designed for acoustic performance – it has no written score - the works are for listening on various music players: The ensemble being cybernetically constructed via an assimilative format, as previously mentioned, and inherently complimentary to Yeats' methods of painting and acoustic composition.

Marc Yeats considers, 'Most listeners now experience music on CD, mp3 download; it is to this evolving medium and audience I am Nature is primarily configured and aimed. I perceive music designed explicitly for CD listening alone as a new genre that straddles the worlds of live concert and theatre performance and electro-acoustic/digital studio productions. In this latest work I've endeavoured to create the sensation of 'live' music performance by combining the highest quality digital sound samples worldwide with a fluid array of sound treatments and creative techniques.'

Yeats has long been captivated by the paintings of the American abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock, as he attests, 'His creations exude vibrancy, spontaneity and texture with high elements of chance and wild mark-making; fundamental to his distinctive modus operandi. Such dynamics have drawn me to him, alternately rousing and informing my musical responses. I am Nature attempts a translation and transition from the visual to the aural; these nine inimitable Pollock paintings are correspondingly subject and stimuli for a neo-paean.'

From the outset Marc Yeats pondered the 'improbability, if not impossibility, of creating a direct translation of the visual into sound other than as a subjective reaction to various levels and elements of given art works. I focused on two key aspects of Pollock's output; actual processes employed and surfaces produced, appraising my responses to their overall mood and dynamic.'

Wanting to incorporate facets of chance occurrence into his scores, echoing Pollock's 'action' regimen, Yeats evolved his introductory musical material from ghost templates from his own repertoire. He randomised the resultant pitches to generate a new cluster to realise the nine pieces. This process delivered a self-styled found object scenario 'involving the examination of emergent variables from chance progressions. I chose fragments, lines, and in some cases complete passages, that were pleasing. Mindful to give each piece a distinctive character, akin to the pictures themselves, I employed different tempi, durations of sections and most importantly, different instrumental and electro-acoustic combines. With the material derived randomly, each section of I am Nature projects autonomous qualities, notwithstanding additional levels of activity and consciousness, where elements variously connect some pieces to others.'

Having kindled these prismatic components Marc Yeats erected tonal configurations to reflect the spirit of Pollock 'while being structurally satisfying and cogent to my ear; an application denoting a qualitative subjectivity: Essentially no overt "logical" compositional protocols on the surface of the music that might detract from the spontaneous and expressionist sensation I sought. To this end was engendered an array of complex sound structures that would not reveal all they contained aurally on the first few listenings – I was impelled to formulate a sound-surface that embraced the complexity of many Pollock dazzling paintings which celebrate texture, colour and energy.

Later my individual musical responses to Pollock's métier were not exclusively frenetic and arbitrary. Some pieces are spacious in nature, reflective and personal; a few evince an inner harmonic stability. An indispensable stance to derive the utmost diversity between the nine works. To this end I introduced several sections as show cases for particular instruments or instrumental combinations which give the music added dimensions of dialogue and, occasionally, argument.

As work progressed the pieces flowed as a single body. This was not my original intention, but the weight and length of certain sections and feel of the music itself suggested to me a journey from beginning to end. The pieces were not composed in the order that they are now presented but organised upon their completion. To emphasis this exploratory feature I created two pieces that focus on solo strings; a pivot on either side of a central movement, Stenographic Figure, and delivering a sense of fulcrum.

Once all nine pieces were assembled and familiar to me, I returned to Pollock's work to find suitable titles for the music. It was important for me at the conceptual and compositional stages not to be hampered in any way by working to a specific designation – the music being driven by random processes and evolving into the skeletal framework for the finished pieces; a title would but inhibit the advance of these providential rudiments. Otherwise I risked an obligation on some level, conscious or otherwise, to strive towards such an outcome.

Ultimately I feel the "random approach" is in keeping with Pollock's work ethic and my own creative aesthetic. Perhaps the most challenging aspect of creating this music was allocating titles that would resonate with the finished music. Hopefully, I've achieved that.'

I am Nature: the works


Full Fathom Five 2007 Duration: 14.25

For E flat clarinet, triple horn, violin, viola, cello, virginal, percussion and electronics.

The longest piece in I am Nature, Full Fathom Five explores the relationships between all the instruments in a predominantly melodic fashion, often creating many lines of activity that play out simultaneously. This layering of lines engenders much rhythmic tension that is only eased by the thinning of textures and slowing of tempi. Instrumental groupings are constantly varied
and set against or in sympathy with each other manifesting as areas of almost chaotic activity or
delicate intimacy. The music initially drifts into consciousness and introduces the players one by one. The end of the piece is in the form of a strange dance where all the instruments join together to orchestrate an idea that only fully reveals itself at the close of the work. The music ends with an upbeat from the percussion that opens the way for what is to follow.



Easter Totem 2007 Duration: 2.35

For flute, trumpet, tenor trombone, contra bass tuba, violin, viola, cello, double bass, celesta and
vibraphone.

Shortest piece, lighter and carefree, focused upon scalic passages resultant from compositional processes in Autumn Rhythm. Many sonorities occur in the bass register with the flute lifting the texture and playing the role of a gentle protagonist. Trumpet and trombone are muted throughout to create an acidic sound while the strings issue a blithe textural backdrop to the main activity.



Lucifer 2007 Duration: 7.35

For B flat clarinet, three tenor trombones, percussion and electronics.

This piece is not necessarily a portrait of the Devil, but it does communicate darkness and melancholy. Though the clarinet features, the three trombones and percussion predominate, creating a violent, impatient and brutal sensation. The clarinet by contrast has a plaintive and lyrical role. It is the juxtaposition of these elements combined with the gentle nature of the electronics that builds a character portrait of contrary shades.



Shimmering Substance 2007 Duration: 4.16

For flute, oboe, bassoon, 2 trumpets, violin, viola, 'cello, piano, virginal and percussion.

Shimmering Substance, as the name suggests, is the most active and rhythmically vital piece of the set: Generally loud and swift with a steady yet complex inter-relation between instruments. It also contains elements of fun and playfulness, sometimes verging on complete breakdown, but always drawing back from the brink of portentous disaster. The music is both chaotic and ordered, moves constantly forwards and closes as enigmatically as it opens.



Autumn Rhythm 2007 Duration: 5.04

For small string ensemble.

The first of two string ensemble pieces in I am Nature, Autumn Rhythm concentrates on the use of string harmonics, predominantly natural harmonics: Pitch restrictions create a cohesive centre to the work. A solo violin provides relief to these textures; played sul tasto throughout occasioning a suppressed tone with an introverted expressiveness. The work has a calm,
gentle and hypnotic feel; a veritable musical mobile constantly relaying analogous events but in an ever varying set of relations.



Stenographic Figure 2007 Duration: 8.00

For contrabass tube and double bass with 2 violins, 2 harps, percussion and electronics.

This piece dwells in a low register, primarily a dialogue twixt double bass and contrabass tuba. To lighten the texture, two harps are included, often heard antiphonally and set to different modes. The percussive nature of the harps adds a piquant and even pointillist nature to the sound-scape with the two violins using only natural harmonics to take the pitch spectrum to the high treble. It is the material from these violin lines when expanded developed into use in Autumn Rhythm. Percussion and electronics add further harmonic and textural elements; in mood, reflective and introspective.



Alchemy 2007 Duration: 9.58

For two small string ensembles.

Much of the material for Alchemy draws upon Shimmering Substance and ultimately from violin passages in Stenographic Figure, but here realised in a totally different manner. The two string ensembles frequently play antiphonally, but are integrated in such a way that the exchange of musical material isn't just a simple back and forth interplay between the two ensembles. The music moves forwards through various pitch centres and tempi, constantly
building towards a full realisation of the material between both ensembles at the climax of the work. Some of the music has an elegiac feel, but at its heart, the material is rhythmic and agitated. The music begins expressively and ends gently.



Convergence 2007 Duration:10.57

For percussion ensemble (6 players)

Convergence is perhaps the most abstract and complex piece on this disc. To further emphasise the abstract nature of the music I largely avoided the use of pitched percussion and subsequently any form of melodic development. In using mainly non-pitched percussion and a huge battery of sounds and colours, Convergence relies predominantly on its rhythmic content and variation in degrees of event density to create its contrasts and structures. Pollock's 'Convergence' is a vast pictorial work with a dense and complex surface forming numerous layers of activity. The music expresses this energy and density, complexity and texture, set against and through time whilst forming shapes and structures that function in a distinctly musical context.



Pasiphae 2007 Duration: 13.31

For viola, bassoon, trumpet in B flat, french horn, percussion and electronics.

A melancholic piece: Pasiphae is an initial exposition of interaction between the viola and bassoon, succeeded latterly by horn and trumpet. Perhaps, as the most emotionally overt of all the nine pieces in I am Nature, the music is intense with a strong directional flow, reaching a stark climax that eventually fades to a pseudo coda. The viola moves through several areas of active and calm music but adheres to its sense of melancholy and gloom. The emotional gravity of this piece resonates with the preceding activity to conclude the cycle of I am Nature.


Copyright: Keith Evans/Marc Yeats 2007

The four pieces on this disc, all composed in 2006, are representative of a new departure in my compositional work as they have been produced for CD listening only and not live performance. These works cover a wide expressive range, from the calm, ambient-like world of 'Music to a Dumbshow' through the melodic and colouristic writing of 'Siren Song' to the wild and rhythmic nature of 'Atavus'.

The music I compose is in some ways a battle between two kinds of music. Although both would be described as atonal, one is more expressive and colouristic with pronounced harmonic references, the other, monolithic and atavistic in its extremes of register, colour and form. The confrontation between these two musics results in a fusion that engenders a personal approach to structure, colour, timbre and dialectic. This fusion can be seen as the working out of two strands of musical thought filtered through transformations that originate in the techniques of abstract painting. The rules of this fusion and transformation may elude the listener somewhat, but the resultant drama, be it passive or active, should be direct and communicative.

The genesis of this compositional approach stems from two main areas.
Firstly, my initial experiences with music which fell between the warm nostalgia of the English Pastoral School, with composers such as Vaughan Williams, Bax and Morean making a large emotional impression, and its diametric opposite, my excitement with the avant-garde expressionism and experimentalism of the 60s and 70s.
Secondly, being a landscape painter, my work with colour, form and texture impacted directly on my thoughts about the construction and content of music. As my painting developed away from the representational into the abstract and my repertoire of techniques grew, so did my conviction that I could develop a personal compositional language by exploring these techniques in a musical context. Now, both musical threads are transformed through my 'painterly ear' to assimilate what feels like a personal, natural and unselfconscious outpouring of sound.

It is worth mentioning this genesis as on first hearing, my music may sound arbitrary, improvisational and sometimes chaotic. This is not the case. It is clear that the music does not operate within the logic of number series, motivic development, Fibonacci-based proportions, functional harmony, magic squares, tone rows or any of the usual gamete of compositional techniques.
There is another kind of logic at work, a personal logic that has its roots in my experience of the techniques and processes of abstract painting. This compositional logic originates from inside the music itself rather than being imposed from the outside upon it. The surface of the music - what you hear - reflects the many processes, some systematic, some intuitive, that have gone into its creation. This surface is the music; its own context, self fulfilling and delighting in the visceral nature and quality of sound for sounds sake in the same way an artist can relish a particular combination of colours or surfaces as complete in itself. In my work, the relationship between musical objects is the result of a constant process of assimilation where the inherent energies and context of sound objects dictate the destiny and role that each inhabit and exhibit. In short, the sum of the parts influences the outcome of the whole.
This is the nature of my music - the sound of it – and it is the guiding principle for its realisation.

All these pieces use a combination of acoustic recordings alongside multi-tracking, sound manipulations, digital sound samples and digitally originated sounds. In bringing together this array of sounds with acoustic instruments I am able to create new works that explore fresh sound-worlds and unique instrumental combinations.

This music is not designed for acoustic performance – there is no written score as such – the pieces are designed for music listening at home or on a portable music player in the same way that any other piece of recorded music is listened to and enjoyed. Like a radio play that is a non staged dramatic work, these new pieces are non live performance musical works. The performances of the musical material produced by the featured musicians are real enough and recorded live in the usual manner, but the processes that these sounds undergo and the sound environments that they are combined with are conceived and engineered in my studio and created using the processes of assimilation previously mentioned that are common to my painting and compositions.
The experience of listening to recorded music is now widespread. Most people's daily experience of music is via CD or mp3 and music downloads and it is to these listeners that I address my new work.
I see music designed explicitly for CD listening as a new genre of music that straddles the worlds of live concert and theatre performance and electro-acoustic / digital studio produced music. In these recordings I endeavour to create the feeling of 'live' music by combining acoustic recordings with a flexible array of digital sound manipulation and creation techniques, all engineered so that my musical intention is presented to the public in an easily accessible recorded format.

All these pieces have been assimilated from existing works. I am fascinated by the recycling of material and how, by changing musical contexts and relationships of pitch and duration, one can transform familiar material into something quite new. Here, works that were originally solo or duo pieces have been segmented and reorganised, expanded both vertically and horizontally through multi-tracking and transformation techniques and cast into a digital sound environment that has evolved from the pitch and durational properties of the original material. New 'organic' digital sounds have also been originated to enhance this music, expand its colouristic and expressive possibilities and add power and depth.



The works


Music to a Dumbshow a – d 2006 Alison Waller, clarinets: Su-a-Lee, violoncello

For clarinets, low strings, guitar, percussion, piano and digital sound environment.

The outer sections of this piece (a,b,d) have an ambient, mobile-like nature that wrap around the more animated and disturbed inner section (c). Whilst working with this material, I realised the connection between the sound structures I was producing and a form of musical drama playing out in cyclic form. Although there is no programme for the music, I imagined a mime artist on stage performing their wordless story set against the music I had created, hence the title, 'Music to a Dumbshow' – music for a mime. The original material was developed form two short pieces that I composed for an educational project on Orkney in 1997. These pieces are untitled.

Siren Song 2006 Natalie Raybould, voices: Carla Rees, alto flutes

Dedicated to Natalie Raybould and Carla Rees

For three sopranos, three alto flutes, guitar, percussion and digital sound environment.

'Siren Song' enabled me to indulge my fascination for the siren, the mystical sea spirit, half human female, half sea creature that lures unsuspecting fisherman to their deaths by her seductive song. In this piece, I concentrate on the gentle, mystical aspect of the siren to paint a picture of her watery, ethereal nature, employing sounds that suggested seal cries and whale song as well as other nautical sounds all being part of her alluring aquatic nature. The music is evocative, gentle and hypnotic to the point where the three female voices and three alto flutes act as the one being, calling, enchanting and seducing. 'Siren Song' is assimilated from 'ASCII Dialogues', a piece for soprano and alto flute originally premiered by the artists on this recording.

Songs from the Abattoir 2006 Alison Waller, clarinets: Su-a-Lee, violoncello

For clarinets and low strings

This is a dark, desolate piece that explores a personal perspective on the nature and activities of food processing plants and abattoirs. There are no songs as such – more a continuous plaintive cry created by transforming the musical lines from the original material, the duo 'Temporal Frieze' for clarinet and cello.
In multi-tracking, transposing and expanding the various lines of the original piece, I have created a melancholic polyphony with an inherent monochrome harmonic world. There are no obvious structural features, only harmonic and timbral variations – the music sighs and cries its way through different areas of polyphonic density with a total absence of rhythmic drive. The nature and sound world of this music suggested its title to me whilst I was composing it.

Atavus 2006 Sarah Watts, bass clarinets

Dedicated to Sarah Watts

For three bass clarinets, percussion and digital sound environment.

'Atavus' is described by the flautist Richard Craig as "a juggernaut of a piece". From the opening bars it becomes clear that 'Atavus' is a work with huge momentum – it confidently drives and convulses forwards through various dance episodes to reach its zenith through a series of wild muliphonic glissandi – a violent and contorted burst of energy that acts as a suitable climax to previously expended energies. There is some rest-bite however, with a number of lower energy, plaintive episodes, but these generally serve to evoke yet more high-octane outbursts.
The material for 'Atavus' is drawn form the solo bass clarinet work 'VOX', which Sarah Watts commissioned and premiered and has subsequently made her own. I felt that there was a great deal more potential in 'VOX' and as such, wanted to develop a piece that expanded the possibilities of this solo into an orchestral context whilst giving an opportunity to showcase the very gifted playing of Sarah.
'Atavus' is created for three bass clarinets. Material form 'VOX' was again segmented, reorganised, multi-tracked and transformed in accordance to the needs of the new piece. I also composed a sound environment which included a large battery of percussion instruments as well as devising other original digital sounds which reflect some of the instrumental sonorities used in Buddhist temples for ceremonial and religious occasions. This sound environment used the pitches and durations from 'VOX' as its template and was then further adapted to enhance the new structures that the three bass clarinet's writing had produced. These sounds add a bold, ceremonial and archaic element to the music, enhancing its primitive and ritualistic feel – hence the title 'Ativus' – of our forefathers.

The music I compose is in some ways a battle between two kinds of music. Although both would be described as atonal, one is more expressive and colouristic with pronounced harmonic references, the other, monolithic and atavistic in its extremes of register, colour and form. The confrontation between these two musics results in a fusion that engenders a personal approach to structure, colour, timbre and dialectic. This fusion can be seen as the working out of two strands of musical thought filtered through transformations that originate in the techniques of abstract painting. The rules of this fusion and transformation may elude the listener somewhat, but the resultant drama, be it passive or active, should be direct and communicative.

The genesis of this compositional approach stems from two main areas. Firstly, my initial experiences with music which fell between the warm nostalgia of the English Pastoral School, with composers such as Vaughan Williams, Bax and Moeran making a large emotional impression, and its diametric opposite, my excitement with the avant-garde expressionism and experimentalism of the 60s and 70s. Secondly, being a landscape painter, my work with colour, form and texture impacted directly on my thoughts about the construction and content of music. As my painting developed away from the representational into the abstract and my repertoire of techniques grew, so did my conviction that I could develop a personal compositional language by exploring these techniques in a musical context. Now, both musical threads are transformed through my ..painterly ear.. to assimilate what feels like a personal, natural and unselfconscious outpouring of sound.

It is worth mentioning this genesis, as on first hearing, my music may sound arbitrary, improvisational and sometimes chaotic. This is not the case. It is clear that the music does not operate within the logic of number series, motivic development, Fibonacci-based
proportions, functional harmony, magic squares, tone rows or any of the usual gamete of compositional techniques. There is another kind of logic at work, a personal logic that has its roots in my experience of the techniques and processes of abstract painting. This compositional logic originates from inside the music itself rather than being imposed from the outside upon it. The surface of the music - what you hear - reflects the many processes, some systematic, some intuitive, that have gone into its creation. This surface is the music; its own context, self fulfilling and delighting in the visceral nature and quality of
sound for sounds sake in the same way an artist can relish a particular combination of colours or surfaces as complete in itself. In my work, the relationship between musical objects is the result of a constant process of assimilation where the inherent energies
and context of sound objects dictate the destiny and role that each inhabit and exhibit. In short, the sum of the parts influences the outcome of the whole. This is the nature of my music - the sound of it .. and it is the guiding principle for its realisation.

Many of my new pieces use a combination of acoustic recordings alongside multi-tracking, sound manipulations, digital sound samples and digitally originated sounds. In bringing together this array of sounds with acoustic instruments I am able to create new works that explore fresh sound-worlds and unique instrumental combinations.

For working, I use Logic Pro 7.1(2) on a Mac Pro, which holds 8Gb of RAM. Formally I worked on a Mac G5 but the processing and RAM capacity became restrictive for handling the vast amounts of number crunching that was needed to operate some of the software. Among the sound sample libraries I have, I use is the very excellent Vienna Symphonic Library with its unique performance interface. The VSL library is held on several external hard drives. I input musical material into Logic either via the mouse of a digital keyboard
and create music by constructing many polyphonic lines, rather like bands of strata in a huge cliff face, to use a geological analogy, and then erode through these layers to expose the simplicity of a single band of music or allow the full density of all the textures to ..sound through... There..s more to it than that of course, the process of creating music includes many simple and complex activities and techniques, which vary from piece to piece depending upon what it is I want to achieve.

Many new works of mine are assimilated from existing pieces of music. I am fascinated by the recycling of material and how, by changing musical contexts and relationships of pitch and duration, one can transform familiar material into something quite new. For instance, works that were originally solo or duo pieces have been segmented and reorganised, expanded both vertically and horizontally through multi-tracking and transformation techniques and cast into a digital sound environment that has evolved from the pitch and durational properties of the original material. New ..organic.. digital sounds have also been
originated to enhance this music, expand its colouristic and expressive possibilities and add power and depth.

Working with ..live.. sound on the Mac is rather like sculpting in sound .. you can assimilate your work as you go along and hear exactly how it is developing. Before using computers I would write music from my head, which is the traditional and popularly imagined way that a composer should work. It is also a perfectly satisfactory way to work. However, with my
experience of new musical technologies, I found that my compositional methods and way of working complimented the approach necessary to use music software and a new marriage was created that felt natural and full of potential. I also found that I could work quickly and felt in control of more of the elements that go into the creation of a finished piece of music. Indeed, for the first time I had freedoms to create whatever nature of music I wanted, whatever length, whatever whacky combinations of instruments, anything, without recourse to practicalities or other external inhibiting factors preventing my ideas from being realised. Freedom and potential felt great and I am still on that journey of discovery as I become increasingly familiar with the possibilities of the software I am working with.

Music created using these methods is not generally designed for live performance (although I have written pieces than combine the use of pre-recorded and live elements) nor are they designed for acoustic
performance .. there is no written score as such, all the work is produced in the matrix editor of Logic Pro, although I do conventionally notate the music for the live performers to play from or to record live strands into the digital sound environment .. the pieces are designed for music listening at home or on a portable music player in the same way that any other piece of recorded music is listened to and enjoyed. Like a radio play that is a non-staged dramatic work, these new pieces are non-live performance musical
works. The performances of the musical material produced by any featured musicians are real enough and recorded live in the usual manner, but the processes that these sounds undergo and the sound environments that they are combined with are conceived and
engineered in my studio and created using the processes of assimilation previously mentioned that are common to my painting and compositions. The experience of listening to recorded music is now widespread. Most people..s daily experience of music is
via CD or mp3 and music downloads and it is to these listeners that I address my new work. I see music designed explicitly for CD listening as a new genre of music that straddles the worlds of live concert and theatre performance and electro-acoustic / digital studio produced music. In these recordings I endeavor to create the feeling of ..live.. music by combining acoustic recordings with a flexible array of digital sound manipulation and creation techniques, all engineered so that my musical intention is presented to the public in an easily accessible recorded format.

And this interaction with the public is perhaps one of the most exciting possibilities of new music technologies wedded to the Internet.

Any artist who produces work on the edge, away from the populist mainstream .. in any media .. will know how the dumbing-down of arts in recent years has made it increasingly difficult to bring new work to public attention. There are many reasons for this; funding,
attitudes to new work, lack of risk taking built into programming policy, the cult of the celebrity often obscuring the valuable work of other artists, the costs of initiating new projects, the tastes and values of programmers and managers .. the list goes on, but the result is the same; it is very difficult, and in some circumstances impossible to bring the wide range of fantastic new work being produced in the UK into the public arena.
Of course, the Internet has helped a great deal with this as many new opportunities have opened up here.

As an abstract contemporary composer and painter, all the above inhibiting factors are present as part of daily life and it became clear to me that to bring my work into the public domain I had to find a new way forwards for my work to be created and disseminated.
Living as I do in a very isolated rural area (the Isle of Skye off the west coast of Scotland), I do not have the usual networking opportunities that composers living in the centers of population would have, and this isolation has a direct effect upon the
development of performance and commissioning opportunities.

I realised that by creating work in a digital format and then using the internet to advertise and disseminate my work, a whole new world of possibilities would open up for me. To this end I am currently developing my website (www.marc-yeats.co.uk) to enable the download of my work directly onto people..s home computers, thus bypassing all of the difficulties mentioned above. I would dearly love to have all the acoustic performances I want, but as that is not a possibility at this time, enabling the public to interface and download my work via the World Wide Web offers the best way forwards. I find these new possibilities very exciting.

Living and working in an isolated area has its drawbacks, some of which have been mentioned above, but for me, there are also great benefits.

Isolation allows me to develop my work away from the work of others. I say this as I feel that concentrating and focusing on what you do as an artist, without recourse to direct or indirect external influences is of great developmental benefit. I feel that this isolation helps one achieve a greater degree of individuality and intensity within the work, as by necessity, a great deal of self-development and professional practice is self-referential. This isn..t to say that I am oblivious to external influences and inspiration, as I am not, but it does protect from being bombarded by the latest trends and fads and enables the time and space for focused contemplation on one..s own artistic priorities and intentions.

Living on Skye is certainly an inspiration, though not in the way that people often think. The romantic notion is that being an artist and composer, one wants to recapture the landscape in sound and music in a representational way .. i.e. you paint what you see because it..s so beautiful, or write music about the landscape in a romantic and sentimental way. It doesn..t work like that for me. The landscape is a huge inspiration, as is the rawness of the elements, but I am more inspired by the energies and ambience of the place, the geological structures, the biological interactions and vast openness and changing fractal
and chaos theories that one witnesses in the ever-changing skies and sea-scapes. My starting point is my local environment, that is where my roots are, but the creative issues and inspirations that I am working with are of a more universal nature. This manifests to such an extent that the points of origin in my work, form an inspirational perspective, can be quite obscure, at least from the perspective of the listener of the viewer, but they are there, never-the-less.

New technologies have also begun to take hold and influence my visual works. Earlier this year I developed a series of 31 limited edition digital prints. Again using my Mac with Photoshop CS2. These prints were designed for sale through my website, again to give me access to the very widest public and help overcome some of the issues of geographical
isolation.

These original prints are created by focusing on very small areas found in a number of my larger oil paintings. The images are captured and developed through processes that explore and enhance colour and texture, discovering new worlds and abstract forms
that exist in the smallest details of much larger works. Many of these images hint at the natural world, organic material, crystalline structures, light, atmosphere and weather, as well as entirely new landscapes.

As the images originate from my oil paintings, they bring with them the brush-strokes, mark-making and textures that are inherent in that oil painting. This textural element brings animation and depth to the images as well as creating highly detailed, rich and
colourful surfaces.

The images exist only in print form and are designed specifically for this purpose .. there is no original painting that exists in the same form as the print .. the images are not reproductions of paintings but complete, unique works in their own right.

To create these images I use up to 30 different processes in Photoshop. I work with these processes .. play with them and experiment .. until I arrive at an image that I find satisfying. It is true to say that I have learnt a great deal through mistakes that I have
made whilst experimenting. These mistakes have thrown up new possibilities that I had not anticipated and where these mistakes revealed valuable results, I assimilated them into my technique.

It is also true to say that my experience and experimentation with this digital media has directly influenced the way that I think about painting. The next series of oil paintings that I produce will incorporate a number of these techniques, not to the extent of the process, as liquid oil paints handle very differently to digital pixels, but the end result
- the surface of the work .. that will directly reflect the results that I have discovered through my experience with digital media.

I believe that digital media is a wonderful tool offering huge developmental opportunities. This new media overcomes many of the boundaries and inhibiting factors common to all artists whilst putting great power and self determination back into the hands of the artist themselves to create with vision and enthusiasm as well as overcome issues of geographical and stylistic isolation.