River Gate by Seven Rivers of Fire

"Form is emptiness,
emptiness is form." - The Heart Sutra

"A man cannot step into the same river twice,
because it is not the same river,
and he is not same man." - Heraclitus

River Gate originated as an experimental study of pitch interactions and developed into a conceptual meditation on liminality, duality and non-duality.

I began by selecting two notes to sustain simultaneously that would function as a gate or portal through which the drone would emerge.

I then made sure all the stops of the harmonium were pushed in before beginning. I find with my own harmonium that this makes the development of the drone more unpredictable and less controllable. It also results in incidental sounds such as the rattling of the harmonium as the air pressure builds; the creaking and clicking of the hand pump being worked; and the wheezing of the bellows filling with air.

I recorded two performances and then placed each in a separate channel so that the two dialogue with each other and at times seem to dissolve into a single drone.

Other ambient sounds include a door opening, birds calling and rabbits climbing on the furniture around me and chewing on wood and cardboard. I believe these contribute to the overall thematic significance of the piece.