Two worlds collided within the club-like basement of The Birenbaum last Sunday, March 2nd. Savino Go and Otto Allard conducted their junior recitals and gave the audience showcase of true artistry: of experimentation and mastery.
The performance began without a performer. Go, a computer science and TIMARA double degree student, sat in front of the crowd empty-handed. An ambient track played over the speakers. This distinctly modern ambient tune filled the space, with its bubbly and clicky sounds creating an otherworldly atmosphere. Upon its conclusion, he shared a presentation on his software Chironomy, the software he had engineered to make the song.
Chironomy, Go explained, is a tool that allows users to make and perform electronic music without expensive equipment. In its current prototype state, the program allows a video game controller the ability to manipulate certain parameters in a production process known as granular synthesis. Explained in its simplest form, granular synthesis takes small sections, or “grains”, of a sample and plays multiple at the same time. It can be adjusted so that the grains play at various pitches, direction, length, start time, and so much more. Go shared the desire to go public soon, as he declared that group trials were set to begin shortly. You can visit his website https://sites.google.com/view/savino-go/chironomy to get the most recent updates on his labor of love.
The transition from Go to Otto Allard’s half of the show started with a duet from the two, with Allard on the mandolin and Go on the XBOX controller. The capabilities of Chironomy and experimental temperament of Allard were showcased in this totally unique, gorgeous piece. Allard began scraping the mandolin in a manner similar to a violin, minus the bow and tonality. Go contributed with R2D2-esque sounds, generated with flick of a joystick. The noise increased in intensity and musicality, culminating into an oddly nostalgic PC start-up-esque tune, which carried an electronic etherealness that could have only been created in that space, with those people.
After a brief intermission, Allard brought us back into the world of acoustic music. Alongside a quartet consisting of a banjo, guitar, upright bass, and his mandolin, he performed an original, “If Nothing Else, For Spite”. The crowd was spurred into a general excitement as the upbeat, folky song began. A short while into the song, the four began to slow down. Emily Bergin, on the upright bass, picked up her bow and introduced an oddly, but pleasantly, anthemic and emotional middle section. Just as this part began to mellow out, seemingly coming to its conclusion, the folky energy re-emerged, and the crowd became even more electrified than they had from the first section.
The other notable moment from the second half was “Wordsmith”, and was performed by a completely different quartet. The track was a complete mood switch, and was in constant change itself. Parts of it felt like the backdrop to mimosas at the beach, while the other half felt as if it should be enjoyed with an expensive glass of red at a classy Italian restaurant. Ben Bosler was spectacular on the drums, providing an extreme liveliness and groove whilst managing to sit in the background of the mix. Allard also showed mastery of his instrument of choice, balancing extreme technicality with an impassioned feel, something that comes only with years of practice.
What the audience of The Birenbaum got to experience that night was the perfect cocktail of what Oberlin has to offer musically: experimental electronic production and impressively polished, jazzy spunk. Upon its conclusion, the crowd erupted into an almost minute long applause, recognizing the specialness of the moment the room so graciously got to share.
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