On April 1, 2011, the Clocktower presented The Starry Garter: A Certain Point Within A Sphere by audio artist and composer Sabisha Friedberg. The event was held in front of a studio audience at the Clocktower Gallery and was streamcast live to the Web through ARTonAIR.org.
Composed during her residency at the Clocktower Gallery, The Starry Garter is a sonic poem for radio that combines elements of sound art, radio theater, film, and music to examine themes of transmutation and redemption. Friedberg’s work is based on Etidorhpa, or, the end of the earth: the strange history of a mysterious being and the account of a remarkable journey, the tale of an unknown man’s quest into the center of the earth, which divulges arcane secrets in a process of initiation, and reveals a journey to an ethereal plane of non-material existence. Following Etidorhpa’s narrative arc, Starry Garter updates traditional radio theater by emphasizing the text’s sonic elements with atomized dialog, an electro-acoustic process, and interludes of acoustic cello, piano, and chorus. The live performance of The Starry Garter transforms this 19th Century hermetic tale into an aural soundscape further textured by effects generated by vintage foley work (old-fashioned, handmade radio sound effects).
Radio Actors:
Richard Kohn, I AM THE MAN
Toby Wherry, John Uri Lloyd, Captor 1
Gus Weinstein, Guide 1
David Cohen, Llewellyn Drury, Captor 2, Guide 2
Music / Sound:
Sabisha Friedberg, musique concrete/tape music
Anthony Roth Costanzo, countertenor
Evan Hughes, bass-baritone
Nina Berman, soprano
Gregory Spears, keyboard / composer
Meaghan Burke, cello / composer
Theodore Robinson & Robin Shore foley
Special thanks to Scott Konzelmann (Chop Shop) for analog tape prep, equipment resource, and additional sound support. To Kelley Brower and Lana Bernberg for editing the script. To Justin Marchi, who served as Friedberg's intern for the project. Additional thanks to Larry 7, Hank Hivnor, and Andy Sway.
The Clocktower Audio Art Production Studio Program is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, celebrating 50 years of building strong, creative communities in New York State's 62 counties.
