Syntax of Snow

Composer Matthew Burtner, director of the University of Virginia’s computer music center, is a recognized pioneer in the realm of ecoacoustics, in which natural sounds and processes help develop a unique musical syntax for each piece. Burtner’s interest in this field ties into his Alaskan heritage and his awareness of cultural differences in the ways people experience the ecology of their immediate surroundings. He adds:

For people and animals in the north, the sound of snow can tell them the year, month, day and time of day. It can tell about the present and past weather conditions. It can tell them where they are and where other things are in relation to them. It can tell about the contours of the landscape, the plants and the wildlife in the area. It can even tell about the history and the status of those animals and plants, and the condition of oneself in the environment. A well-trained listener can tell all this just from the sound of snow.

Syntax of Snow was inspired by Burtner’s research for a book entitled North 2020, in which he tracked the “ecoacoustics of a changing Arctic.” It was written for an extended-range glockenspiel (with initial performer and dedicatee Trevor Saint in mind) and a large container of amplified snow. The percussionist plays the bells with mallets in one hand and the snow with the other, gloved hand. The two sound sources are treated as one instrument with each note corresponding to a movement in the snow. In this way, Burtner’s notation extends the musical syntax directly into the snow. The piece uses a drifting approach in which pitches from each cycle of the harmonic process persist in the present and yet are continually shaped by new input.

(c) Jason Stell and Matthew Burtner