Cookbook of Creative Processes for the Commodore 64: I - hearts (2024)
for bass clarinet, drum set and tape
Duration 2'45"
This demo is part of a developing three-piece project exploring identity and nostalgia through retro computing, instrumental music and electronics,
the project takes its name from the 1984 instructional textbook "Cookbook of Creative Programs for the Commodore 64" by Robert Rinder.
This first piece grew out of an unserious program written in BASIC, which built on one of the example programs of the book, exploring ways of producing visuals and sound with the Commodore 64 and its famous sound chip, the SID.
When my program runs, multicoloured hearts fill the screen, while synthesised tones of randomised pitch bubble along. The output has both a dark and unserious quality, and I used it as a starting ingredient and framework around which to build with bass clarinet, drum set, and further electronics including samples and software synths. The resulting piece is a melting pot of conceptual ingredients that include: retro computing, chiptune music, and hearts as symbols of love, cutesiness, and violence.
This first piece grew out of an unserious program written in BASIC, which built on one of the example programs of the book, exploring ways of producing visuals and sound with the Commodore 64 and its famous sound chip, the SID.
When my program runs, multicoloured hearts fill the screen, while synthesised tones of randomised pitch bubble along. The output has both a dark and unserious quality, and I used it as a starting ingredient and framework around which to build with bass clarinet, drum set, and further electronics including samples and software synths. The resulting piece is a melting pot of conceptual ingredients that include: retro computing, chiptune music, and hearts as symbols of love, cutesiness, and violence.