Manifold by Sarah Belle Reid

Manifold is experimental Canadian composer Sarah Belle Reid's latest exploration of interactive electronics and spatial sound. It is, in Reid's words, "a sonic investigation into temporal perception and memory – tiny moments that seem to persist indefinitely, and precious encounters that degrade and slip away."

Electronic music has a rich tradition of composing for multi-channel systems – from Don Buchla's voltage-controlled spatialization modules to the Francois Bayle's Acousmonium diffusion system, which consisted of 80 loudspeakers of differing size and shape for musique concrete playback. For Reid, sound's spatial dimension is as fundamental as melody, rhythm, or timbre. It remains thoroughly underexplored.

Written for trumpet and electronics, Manifold began as a live touring performance piece that used real-time processing in Max/MSP to transform live acoustic input into a continuously shifting four-channel sound field. Spatial movement functions as a core element in the compositional structure rather than a 'finishing' element added in post-production.

For this release, Manifold has been adapted into a series of accessible listening formats in collaboration with Los Angeles label Smartdumb. A Dolby Atmos mix recreates the original uninterrupted quadraphonic experience, while binaural and stereo folddowns were carefully produced by mastering engineer J Clark.

Most listeners do not have quadraphonic systems, but for Reid this is not an obstacle but an opportunity. How can spatial recordings create new environments for listening?

On a second disc, the piece has been broken into individual tracks encoded using QUARK, an NEA-funded technology that allows artists to surreptitiously distribute quadraphonic recordings in the prevailing stereo format then decode them back into quad for playback. You can learn more about QUARK at quark.cykik.com, and can also download the free software plugin that allows you to "unfold" Manifold into quadraphonic.

A forthcoming free consumer app called QUARK Play will allow listeners to gather together and recreate the quadraphonic system with just their mobile devices. Each participant’s phone or bluetooth device acts as a single-channel speaker, transforming personal technology into a shared spatial listening environment. Stay tuned!

Alongside the release, there is a limited edition accordion-style fold-out zine that lays out Reid's philosophy, inspirations, graphical notation style, and spatial techniques.

The edition is designed alongside visual artist Pat Dagle, printed on 100lb linen and kraft-enveloped with string and button for good measure. Limited to 250 hand-numbered copies.

Digital download includes the full piece in stereo, quadraphonic, and Dolby Atmos mixes, and the piece broken into nine stereo tracks that can be played back in both stereo and quadraphonic via the forthcoming Quark Play app or any surround receiver that can decode the standard .qs format.

This record is QUARK encoded to play in both stereo and Regular Matrix quadraphonic sound. QUARK is made possible by dublab & the National Endowment for the Arts.

Manifold is out January 30 on smartdumb.info.

Sarah Belle Reid is a performer-composer who plays trumpet, modular synthesizer, and an ever-growing collection of handcrafted electronic instruments. Her unique musical voice explores the intersections between contemporary classical, experimental and interactive electronics, noise music, and improvisation.

sarahbellereid.com
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