Exquisite Sound Corpse
a creative support group for electronic musicians where every session ends with an original song. Musicians arrange song elements independently to create a collective composition.
About us
Inspired by the creative approach adopted by authors and visual artists of the Surrealist movement, an "Exquisite Sound Corpse" is a collective composition made by a group of musicians playing independent from one another. Using wireless headphones and digital audio recording, musicians will be divided into headphone groups (Red, Blue, Green) to record a song element for a collective composition. At the end of the session we'll play back the final song that even it's creators haven't heard.
There is no experience necessary to participate!
How does it work?
All participants will be assigned a tempo and headphone channel (Red, Green, Blue). Working solo or as a group ensemble, participants will prepare a song element for the recording phase. Each session could be freestyle or include challenges to incorporate into each song element. There are no restriction on what can be offered up creatively but participants are limited to choosing only one instrument. Adding silence and space can be important considerations when creating something that evolves and plays nicely with other song elements. During recording, an audible metronome counts in performers to capture their one and only take. After a short intermission, we'll enjoy the gruesome release party of a creation like no other...
the Exquisite Sound Corpse.
Conclusion
The goal is to have fun and eventually release the recordings (stream/mp3/podcast) under creative commons license for non-commercial use. Each week we'll spice things up by adding new themes, challenges, sample packs, and achievement awards for participants.
Anatomy of an Exquisite Sound Corpse
(Head, Body, Legs)
Choose an Instrument
Rule #1 (Head)
Use only one instrument as your voice. Explore it's limitations. Leave space or create a distinct emotion. A corpse is pieced together by the intention of many individual parts.
Develop a musical idea
Rule #2 (Body)
Imagine writing the beginning, middle, and end of a full composition. How will your element connect with others? What story does it tell? There are no restriction on your creativity or what musical idea can be included.
Record a performance
Rule #3 (Legs)
Capture your ideas no matter what state they are in! Using only one take, start to finish (any duration), capture your song element. Don't forget to add silence for some happy accidents. The final corpse will be premiered at the end of each session.