at the beginning of october 2000 - several friends responded to an unusual email request...
so just a quickly scrawled 'thank you'
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(please note: there are two versions of After The Tone on the album, both after the main album has finished. The first is the message track, and the second is a music only track) The Project Pitch - what i wanted to do...
POSTCARDS FROM AUNT CORDELIA
Interactive exercise - this Sunday
9am - 9pm.
Dear All
This is your last chance for stardom!!
As many of you will know, i have been
spending the last 37 years completing my first solo album 'Postcards From Aunt
Cordelia', and i am pleased to report that it is now nearing the final stages
of completion. There is just one music track left to mix plus a few
sound effect type things to act as link pieces.
However - the one thing really missing here
is.... YOU.
PfAC is all about the little things that
happen in life that have such a major effect on us later on. A smile
from a stranger in the street; that made your day; that put you in a good
mood; that encouraged you to talk to that person you'd seen on the bus
everyday; who you hit it off with straight away; who then became your best
friend..... and so on - you get the idea. the wrong phone number dialled
from your address book that led to a different conversation, that led to a
different meeting etc etc etc. it's an exploration of the chaos theory,
but on a very personal level.
aunt cordelia is the personification of
that butterfly flapping its wings; she smiles for Da Vinci; she leaves the
bread out in Fleming's lab etc.
so often we look for the macro emotions in
life, when most-times it's the smallest things that make the biggest
difference. like with Elgar, so many of the people around me have crept
into my music. many of you reading this, in some way are already
represented in the feelings and emotions that prompted me to write so many of
the tracks on 'cordelia'. but i wanted you to have your chance for a
more obvious say...
SOOOOO.....
on october 1st - this coming sunday - i
will not be answering the phone, but i'm inviting you to ring and drop any
message you like on the answering machine. i'd really like it if you
could (briefly) recount your own personal experience of the 'cordelia effect' ;
the small thing in your life that made the biggest change. but knowing
you lot, there will also be cause for the strange, stupid and just plain odd
too, and i would encourage that heartily as well - why not do both!
Any offerings will then be worked into a
passage called 'After The Tone..'. I'll try and use as many as possible,
but 75mins is yer lot on CD still, and there's some music I kinda wanted to
stick on this album as well. Also may depend on the quality of the phone
connection at the time etc.
If you could start your message with
"Hi, this is .........(insert name)" or similar just so I know who
it is, then I will post the full credits on the website when the album is
launched later next month. Helps at the Digi-edit stage as well.
Please participate, this doesn't work
without you. So many of you have encouraged me in the making of this
album, that I wanted you to feel much more a part of it than just an eventual
audience. So don't be shy - interact this sunday and make your mark on
music!
Our numbers are: xxx xxxx xxxx
(international +44 xxx xxxx xxxx), or i will also leave the tollbooth mobile
on as well, which is xxxxx xxxxxx (int +44 xxx xxxx xxxx), and the lines will
be open for this exercise from 9am to 9pm. Any questions, drop me a mail
or ring on saturday.
Hope to hear from y'all on
sunday...
Thanks and love
Paul D
The Project Follow-Up - staggered... (This was posted on the Sunday night once the lines had closed)
Dear All
Well! What can I say - the
response to the exercise today can only be described as utterly overwhelming.
I was completely blown away by all
your enthusiasm for this project, and I must thank all of those who took the
time and energy to respond for their contributions. From the very depths
of my heart - thank you.
Chip-ins ranged from the cathartic
to the positively bizarre (you know who you are!!) and I am delighted to
report that even Cordelia herself put in an 11th hour appearance.
In all, between midday and around
7pm, over 30 minutes of messages were left on the creaking BT digital answer
service, over some 19 messages! At one point we were one message from
overloading the system, but I managed to clear down the messages sufficiently.
I've recorded all today's
offerings and they sound pretty good so far. Over the next couple of
days, i will be carving them up and sampling bits and bobs and dropping them
into the track itself.
The only problem is that all the
contributions have been so good, that fitting them into one small track is
going to be tough, but I have a few ideas. It even set me thinking about
a small installation project in audio that focusses on the thoughts of a group
of friends on one day, and the full version of all today's work could form the
basis of that piece.
Couple of quick admin points - I'm
assuming that having read the original email, and your involvement today is
implying an agreement to have that material used on the PfAC album.
After hearing some of the contributions (which I love very dearly!), I just
want to give you the chance to adios part of your recordings if you wish, as I
recognise there were some very heartfelt & expositional thoughts there.
I'd urge you all not to change a thing, as all the contributions were really
interesting in so many different ways, and displayed a lovely cross-section of
thought and feelings.
SPECIAL NOTE...
The other thing is; if you are
reading this on Monday and kicking yourself that you don't read your email
everyday; then I've decided to extend out the project to Monday, Tuesday
and Wednesday nights this week as well. So that we can get back to near
normal telephone use though, can you please try & ring between 7 and 8pm
only, or anytime from 9am-4pm during the day.
Don't miss out, it's gone so well
so far.
Again - thank you so much to those
who have got involved so far. You have no idea how exciting &
unnerving it is visiting the answering machine knowing there are messages on
it which could be saying absolutely ANYTHING.
Cheers mein froinds. You are
complete stars.
Regards & staggered thanks
Paul A Davies
Tollbooth Music
And finally - thank you... (this was the final post on the close of the collection)
Dear All
Just a very quick note to say a
huge thank you for all your sincere and creative contributions to this
project. I sent out a general thank you to the weekenders on Monday, so
i wanted you all to know that your messages had been recorded, logged and
hugely appreciated as well.
It still continues to leave me
with an incredibly humble feeling that this subject seems to have struck a
resonance in so many of my friends' lives, and more, that you've all been
prepared to share them so willingly and eloquently.
I'm still debating what to do with
all the complete messages as there's just so much good stuff there, and i
really want to use it all, but there's just no space for ALL of the 48 minutes
of messages so far!!! However, were i to look at a second CD or an
enhanced CD version of PfAC with an mp3 of all the messages, that might be an
option too.
Work on editing the first batch of
messages is going well, though time consuming.. however, i have a huge
sense of responsibility in editing to reflect the sentiments and emotions of
each message whilst still making them practical to use for the main track.
There are a number of truly excellent soundbites in some of the messages which
will form 'repeater lines' within the track, almost like a spoken hookline.
Anyway - must get back to editing.
Once again my deepest deepest thanks to you all.
Regards & staggered thanks
Paul A Davies
Tollbooth Music
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