Release date: 29 March 2024
Four Sections of Music Unequally Divided is an exhibition of Seán Clancy’s hypnotic explorations into nonprescriptive compositional structures and musical material. The influences of visual artist Sol LeWitt in his reduction of forms to their bare essence and composer James Tenney in his sheer joy of the plasticity of sound are never far from this piece. The release comprises a single uninterrupted 44-minute span of music in which athletic piano playing meets analogue synthesizers and deconstructed gamelan.
Seán Clancy was born in Dublin in 1984. His music deals with translation, examining minimal compositional strategies over extended periods of time, and devised collaboration. His music has been described by The Irish Times as “spare and hypnotic”, by The New York Times as “beautifully simple yet elusive” and by The Quietus as “an affecting reminder of minimalism’s capacity to feel deeply personal and purposeful”.
Clancy has been commissioned and performed by many ensembles and artists from around the world, working closely several times with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, Quatuor Bozzini, Crash Ensemble, Plus Minus Ensemble, Contempo Quartet, Fidelio Trio, Ensemble Krock and Workers Union Ensemble. He also performs frequently in a duo with Andy Ingamells.
He has appeared at festivals such as the Commonwealth Games, New Music Dublin Festival, New York MATA Festival, Beijing Modern Music Festival and Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival. His work has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3 (UK), Dublin Digital Radio (Ireland), RTÉ Lyric FM (Ireland), WFMT Chicago (USA), and WNYC (USA), amongst others. He is an Assistant Professor Ad Astra Fellow at University College Dublin and is represented by the Contemporary Music Centre, Ireland.
AUDIO
REVIEWS
"The composition often moves at a glacial pace, yet it’s anything but cold, as the composer’s choice of instruments and timbres projects a soothing warmth […] Individual sounds appear again and again, with every occurrence the same as the one before yet slightly different and unique. Their placement is sparse at first, making the silences that absorb each hit just as important as the sounds themselves." The Quietus
RECORDING CREDITS
Gamelan, Synthesizers, and Piano performed by Seán ClancyEngineered by Simon Hall
Mixed by Simon Hall & Seán Clancy
Mastered by Simon Hall
Produced by Simon Hall & Seán Clancy
Engineering Assistants: David Birnie & Joe Ockford
Catalogue number: BRC023
Release date: 29 March 2024