October 5, 2013 - Psychlotron, NYC. Photo by Joseph Benzola.
A long time resident of New Jersey, David Beardsley is one of the New York area's foremost microtonal guitarists. Meditative and mesmerizing, his playing is steeped in Indian music and blues as much as it is the late 20th century minimalist tradition. Playing microtonal Just Intonation guitar and steel guitar, David creates droning ambient soundscapes.
His string quartet "as beautiful as a crescent of a new moon on a cloudless spring evening" was released as an audio only DVD, For Feldman (OgreOgress) July 2006 as part of a tribute to 20th century composer Morton Feldman.
He started piano at a young age, but later moved on guitar as a teenager and started composing seriously in his thirties. Along the way, he developed a strong interest in the tuning system known as just intonation - tuning by whole number ratios from the harmonic series. David has studied North Indian Classical Music with La Monte Young, Marian Zazeela and Michael Harrison. He has also attended workshops with Dean Drummond (co-leader of Newband, director of the Harry Partch Instrumentarium) and David Hykes (Harmonic Chant aka overtone singing).
Performances include the American Festival of Microtonal Music, Chashama, Chez Bushwick, Judson Memorial Church, the Knitting Factory, Microfest (a Southern California Festival of Microtonal Music), the Music Annex at the University of Pennsylvania, New York University, Pianos (NYC), Tibet House, the Trenton Avant Garde Festival and the World Out of Tune Festival.
Recent collaborations have involved dancer Claire Barratt of Cilla_Vee Movement Projects, cellist Loren Dempster, violinist Christina Fong, and dancer Jeremy Wade. He has been fortunate to participate in performances of Evolution For Electric Guitar And Orchestra by Jon Catler (2002) and The Voice of the Bowed Guitar by Rod Poole (2007).
Which was the first musical sound do you remember?
The house I grew up in always had music. My parents enjoyed classical music, my sisters listened to the popular music of the day and we sang in church….I was fascinated with changing the speed on turntables and I broke a few of ‘em.
Which was the last record you bought with your own money?
The latest CDs were a Harold Budd album, Jane 1-11, Matt Mitchell’s Fiction, the new one from Tim Berne’s Snake Oil and some chamber music by Debussy.
Why did you decide to pick up the guitar?
I had piano lessons when I was young, 7 to 10 years old. I got to the point where I was playing arrangements of popular music like the Beatles with both hands. But I was easily distracted, I didn’t want to practice and my parents stopped paying for lessons.
When I was 13, my mother brought a small student size classical guitar home from her aunt in Germany. Later, friend at school had an electric guitar and I wanted one too. The first thing I did when I tried his Univox was try to get some feedback, then next I was testing out some slide guitar sounds. I asked my father for an electric guitar, but he said I had to show some commitment to the instrument. I taught myself some melodies from a book of fiddle tunes and convinced him to buy an electric guitar for me. I still have that Gibson L6-S. Eventually I got more serious and started to learn rock guitar off records.
Which work of your own are you most proud of ?
The string quartet /as beautiful as a crescent of a new moon on a cloudless spring evening/ (2004, for string quartet) is a high point. Christina Fong recorded all the parts and I’m still really thrilled with the performance. I’m always thinking about writing the next one, it was a great opportunity.
In 2007, Kraig Grady asked me if I was interested in playing the late Rod Poole’s Voice of the Bowed Guitar (for acoustic guitars). Along with a few other guitarists, we played one of the pieces at Downtown Music Gallery on a Sunday evening when they were still located on 3rd Ave in the East Village.
What are the pros and cons of today's digital music scene?
Digital recording is a stable medium; there are no fluctuations in the pitch like there are with magnetic tape and vinyl….perfect for static, minimal, microtonal music.
Anybody can make a recording and put it on line, so there’s plenty to choose from, but it’s easy to get lost in the crowd. For now at least, the internet really changed the music business.
Nada Brahma
The world is sound. Sound is the world.
What is the space of microtonality?
Microtones are the pitches between the keys of a piano…just intonation is the tuning system using intervals from the harmonic series represented by ratios. In 1980 I heard Terry Riley’s Shri Camel and knew that I’d found something interesting. Another 13 years passed until I was motivated to learn the mechanics of just intonation and use it in my own music. There’s a wealth of new harmonic colors waiting to be used. Beatless large intervals and sparkling tiny intervals make musical textures exciting. Microtonality isn’t a style of music, I just happen to be interested in composing in a minimalist style now.
What’s the difference between a good guitar and a bad guitar?
A good guitar plays in tune!
Something you love in art?
I love creativity and the thrill of discovering something new.
Define the sound your compositions are still looking for.
Sonic adventure.
Why and how do you use extended techniques in guitar?
For my microtonal guitar music, it’s all done with the tuning and a hardware looper – echos and feedback. It’s a great way to perform solo.
Which living artist (music, or other arts) would you like to collaborate with?
I’d like to have a band again; it’s just a question of the right people.
What dead artist would you like to have collaborated with?
Mark Rothko.
What’s your next project about?
I want to finally record my microtonal guitar album. Life got in the way, now is the time.
Links
http://biink.com/db
http://soundcloud.com/biink
http://www.youtube.com/user/db
http://vimeo.com/user9763559
http://harmonicsdb.wordpress.
http://soundcloud.com/biink
http://www.youtube.com/user/db
http://vimeo.com/user9763559
http://harmonicsdb.wordpress.
Works
1994
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Intersections and Directions for piano. Premiered at the 1994 Trenton Avant Garde Festival by Carlton Wilkinson.
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1995
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Science Friction, in harmonic just intonation from the Trenton Avant Garde Festival presents a Recital Without Musicans. Premiered at the 1995 Trenton Avant Garde Festival Composer's series.
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1996
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When Time Is Rubber parts I, II & III premiered at the 1996 Trenton Avant Garde Festival Composer's series. MIDI tape work.
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1997
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Xou Oxno, a tape collection of ambient archives on Biink! music
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The Tyranny of Equal Temperament for Harmonic Just Intonation Synthesizer. World premier at the Trenton Avant Garde Festival, September 6, 1997.
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Also premiered at TAGFest '97, the one minute composition Crustaceans A-Go-Go in harmonic just intonation as part of the forthcoming IMMP compilation of miniatures Droppings.
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1998
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Sonic Bloom for synthesizer and digital delays in 13 limit just intonation.
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Analog Bow Guitar Studies in 7, 11 & 13 limit just intonation and beyond.
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The release of the Superfinemagneticparticle 7 inch 33 rpm single Little Eternities where I cameo on Poetic Musical Forms.
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Yellow Star Dark Night I, II & III for synthesizer and digital delays in just intonation.
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Sonic Bloom for synthesizer and digital delays in 13 limit just intonation. World premier at the Trenton Avant Garde Festival, September 12, 1998.
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1999
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CD release of Xou Oxno on Biink!
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CD release of Sonic Bloom ep on Biink!
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CD release of a new work composed in March '99, Somber on Biink!
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One hour performance of Sonic Bloom at Downtown Music Gallery, New York City, April 18th, 1999.
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Sonic Bloom at the American Festival of Microtonal Music's MicroMay '99 Microthon at NYU, May 23rd, 1999.
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The Just Intonation Slide Vina-Guitar Studies [1998-1999]
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One hour performance of Sonic Bloom at the Knitting Factory, New York City, September 8th, 1999.
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Just Intonation Guitar soundscapes. September 24th, 1999 - present.
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2000
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CD release of NYC (1999) on Biink! A performance of Sonic Bloom 17 at New York Cities famed home of the Avant Garde: the Knitting Factory, New York City, September 8th, 1999.
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Temple In The Ear world premier in Philladelphia, Pennsylvania. The Music Anex at the University of Pennsylvania, June 3rd, 2000. read review here.
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The Speed of Dark for synthesizer in Just Intonation with echos.
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Vixa for synthesizer in Just Intonation. World premier at Downtown Music Gallery, New York City, October 22, 2000.
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2001
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After the Full Moon, synthesizer tuned in 17 Just Intonation,: 7th harmonic with 17 limit neutral thirds.
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Artar.17-limit Just Intonation synthesizer.
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Yellow Star. Another piece in the tuning system known as 17-limit Just Intonation. Special for MP3.com. Besides that fact, two long melodies and a drone.
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Blurry Day. 17 limit Just Intonation. An Ab neutral 3rd +11th 17th chord. Got that? World premier at the 2001 World Out of Tune Festival, NYC, June 26, 2001
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Just Improvisations 7.26.2001 - Nova Nights at The Den at Two Boots, Thursday July 26, 2001
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Just Improvisations 8.14.2001 - On August 14th, 2001, David recorded a set of Just Intonation guitar music at Manhattan Neighborhood Network Public Access Cable Television studios for Mantra TV.
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2002
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Just Improvisations 2.23.2002 - open loop @ Chama aka NY Loop fest.
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Just Improvisations 3.2.2002 - open loop @ Chama aka NY Loop fest.
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Drifting on a Sea of Drones (2002) - 13 limit guitar and echos over a drone. Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. March 20, 2002, Spring Equinox concert.
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Raga Ebo (2002) - fretless guitar and ebow, notes fretted with fingernail, and echo over a drone. Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. March 20, 2002, Spring Equinox concert | ||
For Xenakas (2002) - fretless guitar and echo. In memory of Iannis Xenakis. Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. March 20, 2002 | ||
Just Improvisations 3.20.2002 - fretless guitar improvisations including the theme to ...and then they were dust (2001) Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. March 20, 2002, Spring Equinox concert.
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Clouds Veil the Future (2002) - 13 limit guitar and echos over a 4:7:9 drone (I later dropped the 4, so it's just a 7:9). Solo Show, April 1, 2002. Opening for Robert Rich @ the Knitting Factory NYC | ||
...and then they were dust (2001)Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. March 20, 2002, Spring Equinox concert (theme) | ||
The Year of the Sunset (2002) for lap steel guitar and drone in 7 limit Just Intonation. Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. April 10, 2002 | ||
Photo (2002) for Just Intonation guitar and echoes. In response to a photo by David Horvitz. Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. June 12, 2002 | ||
Land of Vibration (2002) for Just Intonation guitar and echoes.Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. June 12, 2002 | ||
Around D (2002) for Just Intonation guitar and echoes. Also known as The Old Tomorrow.Solo Show @ Chama, NYC. September 7, 2002 | ||
2004
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as beautiful as a crescent of a new moon on a cloudless spring evening (2004, for string quartet)
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2006
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Dry Water (2006, solo microtonal guitar improvisation) for the Out: 17 Modern Guitarists Salute Derek Bailey compilation.
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2009
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November Test Pattern, the ecstasy of electric trees weeping in the twilight including recumbent bright insects and relevant footnotes. (2009, for 13 limit just intonation sine tones.)
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The SomewhatMysterious Tuning from Main Street Goes to Brooklyn for multiple just intonation guitars, cosmic zither and percussion. (2009)
Goodbye Blue Monday
1087 Broadway, Brooklyn, NY
Monday, July 20, 2009
David Beardsley (Mystery Tuning steel guitar, 49/48 guitar), Alex Carpenter (cosmic zither), James Ross (Mystery Tuning guitar). Notes about the tuning used this piece.
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2011
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He Was Alone in the Doorway, Digging the Street (the Jewel…of Hudson Street) for microtonal guitar.
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Now and the Recent Past at the Edge of the Ocean for microtonal guitar.
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2013
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Earth Music as Background to the Bells? for microtonal guitar.
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Video
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2001
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Change of Light (2001) - 6 hours of a view off of my balcony in New Jersey. A spring rain shower, sunset, night, sunrise.
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2011
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David Beardsley, microtonal guitar at Pianos, NYC 3-27-11
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Collaborations
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1996
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Co-composition The Eye Pressing Party on Superfinemagneticparticles - Murk (cassette)
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1997
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inside the piano abuse on Poetic Musical Form from Superfinemagneticparticles - the Cabinet of Curiosities (cassette)
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2000
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Atarxia, playing ebow lap steel guitar with violinist Patrick Pagano and pre-recorded audio at the American Festival of Microtonal Music, NYC, November 11, 2000.
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