Altamira by Paulo Motta

“Altamira” (for electronic sounds). Paulo Motta, may/jun 2017

#1 nigrum lux murum (alienati aliena).
#2 Terrágua

… I show the sounds’ truth the silence
… And there are sounds that are silences.
[… And there are silences that are sounds.]
… And oblivion watches over its eternity.

(Edmilson de Almeida Pereira, In: “Livro de falas”)

My initial motivation to create "Altamira" was extra-musical or, more exactly, extra sonorous-musical: namely, the socio-economic-environmental impact caused by the construction of the Belo Monte hydroelectric dam on the Xingu River, which borders the city of Altamira (located in the state of Pará, in the Northern Region of Brazil, latitude 03º12'12 "south and longitude 52º12'23" west, region of precarious presence of the State). However, during the compositional process, two aspects related to the hydroelectric and the hydrographic basin of the region were evident to me: the concrete used in the construction of the dam and the waters of the Xingu River to be dammed. Consequently, I began to use these "images" as proto-metaphors, above all for the sound synthesis. That is, I began to synthesize timbres with characteristics "hard", more compact in frequency terms, with attacks and decays of little or no temporal duration; as well as, relatively more "liquid" tones, with application of glissandos and reverb, for example. However, I did not ostensibly apply these resources, because I have already started the works with a sonorous conception more related to the lines to the sound points, as well as noises of different shades (which, incidentally, always present themselves as the main arrays of my works). Points lines and noises which, when processed and superimposed, are transformed electronically into massive timbristic tessings that extend over relatively long durations. (Note: In the early minutes, I superimposed these timbres on one of my compositions from the Syntagma Project - https://www.facebook.com/sintagma.electro/, whose sonorities were reprocessed, whose sonorities have been reprocessed). Therefore, I intend to carry out a new work in the near future emphasizing the two proto-metaphorical images mentioned above to solve strictly compositional problems, by more emphatically applying the envelope in the temporal construction of attacks and decays. In my opinion, once a compositional work is started - and even if there are, as in this case, extra-musical motivations (sonorous-musical), the immersion in the sound matter used becomes preponderant, as well as the solution of compositional problems, synthesis, sound processing, etc., restricted to the field of acoustics and form: the socio-economic and environmental realities, contexts and adversities of certain regions of the planet and their populations may be distant from our immediate daily lives and do not affect our lives directly and immediately, but the sounds we create may perhaps raise awareness and Spiritually approach these realities, contexts and adversities: if we do not have the material conditions and resources to transform them in personal and immediate terms, perhaps we can redeem ourselves from this creating, transforming and juxtaposing electronic sounds - realities, therefore (without, of course, avoiding human being who inhabits this suffering and so badly treated planet).
As long as there is only one human being, in a state of existential suffering and oppressed by degrading situations of various orders and/or by oppressive and inept socio-political-economic systems, we can not ignore this fact, as well as to make this situation somehow pervade our personal lives.
Not necessarily find some sense already pre-established and consecrated, but the search to be available to the possibilities of building and creating senses and meanings that allow us to live satisfactorily, existentially and artistically with our immediate reality, as well as with those that present themselves circumstantially distant.

Altamira is originally a non-stop composition without separeted tracks.

Paulo Motta: Composições sonoro-musicais: https://www.facebook.com/paulomotta.composer

Sinatagma - Sonic explorations with electronic resources.
https://www.facebook.com/sintagma.electro

Paulo Motta is a composer, sound designer and synthesist based on Juiz de Fora, MG, Brazil. Experimental electronic music and sound art education.. Interdisciplinary research (philosophy, musicology, sociology, anthropology, psychology) with studies on electronic sound and human consciousness. Sonic exploration with electronic resources. PhD student in Music and Sound Arts, UFJF.

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