'The Masterwork' Award Winning Fish-Knife is a 1979 performance sculpture by Paul Richards and Bruce McLean with music by Michael Nyman. The companion album is the second release by Michael Nyman and the first release including the Michael Nyman Band. It was released by Audio Arts magazine only on audiocassette, initially in a limited edition of 300 copies, although many more were produced which have the number boxes blank.
'The Masterwork' Award Winning Fish-Knife
audiocassette cover by Paul Richards and Bruce McLean
The music was performed by the Michael Nyman Band, recorded live in one take and ending in applause at Riverside Studios and edited for the album by William Furlong, Audio Arts'editor-in-chief.
The artwork is a four-part theatre work that "deals with the consequences after the unveiling of the ultimate architectural masterwork, a 'model' for society."[1] The four parts of the work are dance, dramatics, gymnastics, and contemporary sound, including music, dialogue, and noises, with each discipline utilized in a way to emphasize its unique qualities.
The first side of the album is the dialogue sculpture for four voices reducing to one. There are many voices, male and female, as many as four at once, none of whom are identified, but one is Michael Nyman. The voices comment on architecture, social class, welfare, Jimmy Carter, and the nature of art, among other things, often as arrogant or loud and powerful characters. There are complaints about 'The Masterwork', particularly by a workaday architect who does not consider himself "slashed" with multiple disciplines. There is also brief mention of a "mirroredfish-knife." This portion of the album is a multitracked, overlaid studio production.
The second side is Furlong's edit of the music, known as "Masterwork Samples." The music bears "no necessary dramatic relation" to the dramatic structure of the performance sculpture, but the music's exposition is "truncated, short-circuited, accelerated or run continuously where later they may be fragmented." The music is based on permutations of an 8-chord model, including substitutions and interpolations.
The cassette cover announces that the world premiere of 'The Masterwork' Award Winning Fish-Knife would be given in November 1979. The 2011 liner notes for the CD release of Michael Nyman, in the commentary on "M-Work", state that the project never advanced further than this audio cassette release.
PersonnelEdit
No one is credited on the album apart from Nyman, Richards, McLean, and Furlong, a group credit for the Michael Nyman Band, and E. Hallett &. Co. for the printing.
ReferencesEdit
^Liner notes. All quotations are from this source unless otherwise specified.
masterwork, award, winning, fish, knife, masterwork, award, winning, fish, knife, 1979, performance, sculpture, paul, richards, bruce, mclean, with, music, michael, nyman, companion, album, second, release, michael, nyman, first, release, including, michael, n. The Masterwork Award Winning Fish Knife is a 1979 performance sculpture by Paul Richards and Bruce McLean with music by Michael Nyman The companion album is the second release by Michael Nyman and the first release including the Michael Nyman Band It was released by Audio Arts magazine only on audiocassette initially in a limited edition of 300 copies although many more were produced which have the number boxes blank The Masterwork Award Winning Fish Knifeaudiocassette cover by Paul Richards and Bruce McLeanLive album by Michael NymanReleased1979RecordedMusic July 25 1979 Riverside Studios London Text August 1979 Riverside Studios GenreContemporary classical music minimalist music spoken wordLength56 55LanguageEnglishLabelAudio ArtsProducerWilliam FurlongMichael Nyman chronologyDecay Music 1976 The Masterwork Award Winning Fish Knife 1979 Michael Nyman 1981 The music was performed by the Michael Nyman Band recorded live in one take and ending in applause at Riverside Studios and edited for the album by William Furlong Audio Arts editor in chief The artwork is a four part theatre work that deals with the consequences after the unveiling of the ultimate architectural masterwork a model for society 1 The four parts of the work are dance dramatics gymnastics and contemporary sound including music dialogue and noises with each discipline utilized in a way to emphasize its unique qualities The first side of the album is the dialogue sculpture for four voices reducing to one There are many voices male and female as many as four at once none of whom are identified but one is Michael Nyman The voices comment on architecture social class welfare Jimmy Carter and the nature of art among other things often as arrogant or loud and powerful characters There are complaints about The Masterwork particularly by a workaday architect who does not consider himself slashed with multiple disciplines There is also brief mention of a mirrored fish knife This portion of the album is a multitracked overlaid studio production The second side is Furlong s edit of the music known as Masterwork Samples The music bears no necessary dramatic relation to the dramatic structure of the performance sculpture but the music s exposition is truncated short circuited accelerated or run continuously where later they may be fragmented The music is based on permutations of an 8 chord model including substitutions and interpolations The section The Woman Who Had Everything develops musical material from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart s Sinfonia Concertante for Violin Viola and Orchestra K 364 which Nyman would later use as a basis of material in Drowning by Numbers 2 Some of the music also formed the basis for Nyman s M Work on Michael Nyman as well as of the opening titles music for The Falls The cassette cover announces that the world premiere of The Masterwork Award Winning Fish Knife would be given in November 1979 The 2011 liner notes for the CD release of Michael Nyman in the commentary on M Work state that the project never advanced further than this audio cassette release Personnel EditNo one is credited on the album apart from Nyman Richards McLean and Furlong a group credit for the Michael Nyman Band and E Hallett amp Co for the printing References Edit Liner notes All quotations are from this source unless otherwise specified Pwyll ap Sion The Music of Michael Nyman Text Context and Intertext Aldershot Hants Ashgate Publishing 2007 p 103 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 27The Masterwork 27 Award Winning Fish Knife amp oldid 1083338221, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
