Vertical Noise_Chinese Folk Duo Decay.wav

The original source is a 'found' audio cassette by the Guo Brothers called 'Chinese Folk Music'. The recording has been decayed by copying from cassette to cassette numerous times over 2 weeks. The versions used in this piece are estimated to be ~50th generation. The result you will hear is a selection of 2 different generations of decay, approximately 10 generations apart, positioned in opposite stereo. Note the movement in space as it expresses the relationships between the two versions. The selection has also been edited to create a narrative by splicing together 3 sections. Please take care of your ears when you listen, it's really quite intense.
A good reference on the history of this process as a compositional technique is Alvin Lucier's piece "I am sitting in a room".

Chinese Folk Duo Decay by Vertical Noise is part of the XSL, a free sound collection curated by Thalamus Lab.