In early 2023 I was resident composer at the Elektronmusikstudion (EMS) in Stockholm. During this time I had access to the Halldorophone, a cello-like string instrument with a set of sympathetic strings and an inbuilt feedback mechanism. I was able to spend a lot of focused time with the Halldorophone which I used to try different techniques and improvise with it. The result is a suite of small studies I developed with the cellist Elis Hakola.
Apart from these collective improvisations I was also improvising on my own. Not being a cellist, I had to resort to develop my own technique, which I dubbed ‘feedback surfing’. In this mode, the instrument is brought into feedback resonance and then the strings are tuned and detuned by adjusting the tuning pegs. As the instrument continues tries to escape from the improviser’s control, its nature as a chaotic system becomes immediately apparent.
‘Surfing’ the Halldorophone this way becomes a musically unique experience: trying to guide an instrument that has a mind of its own.
Apart from these collective improvisations I was also improvising on my own. Not being a cellist, I had to resort to develop my own technique, which I dubbed ‘feedback surfing’. In this mode, the instrument is brought into feedback resonance and then the strings are tuned and detuned by adjusting the tuning pegs. As the instrument continues tries to escape from the improviser’s control, its nature as a chaotic system becomes immediately apparent.
‘Surfing’ the Halldorophone this way becomes a musically unique experience: trying to guide an instrument that has a mind of its own.