2010
October
31st - The Sissy-Eared Mollycoddles premiere!

OCTOBER 31st, 2010

3 in the PM

at

THE GREEN MILL, CHICAGO

THE SISSY-EARED MOLLYCODDLES

Playing world premieres by Dave Reminick, Alex Temple, Ian Dicke, Lee Weisert, Patrick Liddell, Ben Hjertmann, and Luke Gullickson!

Saxophones - David Reminick, Noah Zeldin, and Sean Patayanikorn
Drums - Brian Baxter
Bass - Bill Milgram
Tenor Voice/Bass - Ben Hjertmann
Synth/Melodica - Alex Temple

There will be a $5 cover charge at the door. Proceeds go to help the new-music shortage.

http://sissyearedmollycoddles.com/



10/31/2010 | 3:00pm | Patrick | green mill, SEMC, new music, saxophone, voice, synth, drums, bass | Direct Link



10th - DOJO v TWITCH w ONTOLOGIST

OCTOBER 10, 2010, 10 PM

RODAN 1530 w MILWAUKEE

AMAZING MUSIC

AMAZING VISUALS

FREE

KITCHEN OPEN LATE

part of the LIVING SUNDAYS SERIES

(pic coming soon)



10/10/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



September
12th - DOJO v TWITCH w ONTOLOGIST

SEPTEMBER 12, 2010

We are BACK IN BUSINESS

with our regular residency at RODAN (1530 w MILWAUKEE ave, WICKER PARK chicago)

10 PM till you die, baby

Late-night Kitchen

TOTALLY 100% FREE

(pic-flyer coming soon)

 



9/12/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



August
8th - DOJO v TWITCH w ONTOLOGIST at, er, Catalyst

SHOW MOVED!

repeat

SHOW MOVED!

AUGUST 8, 2010, starting at 10 PM

NOT AT RODAN, because they double-booked us and we got trumped by a post-Lollapaloosa party! I don't blame them!

INSTEAD at CATALYST, 3824 W NORTH AVE, CHICAGO

 

36825_1526196991306_1126106716_31531075_2892135_n



8/8/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, living sundays, chuckphoto, catalyst | Direct Link



July
21st - 60x60 2009 International Mix Live!

A new performance of my video work with Vox Novus is featured at Outsound Music Festival on July 21st. If you're in the San Francisco area please check it out!

Information about the event can be found here.

 

Here is an extremely short recommendation for the event in the SF Examiner!

 

more info about the 2009 International Mix can be found here 

click here for more info on Vox Novus and the 60x60 project



7/21/2010 | 7:00pm | Patrick | vox novus, 60x60, video, collaboration | Direct Link



20th - AMBiENT PiNG plays 60x60 Sanguine Video Mix

07.20.10 THE AMBiENT PiNG 
presents 
A/V
 NiGHT featuring 
60x60 Project Audio/Visual Mix + 
Transmorphous Sound Ensemble
 + 
Geek Weekend
 + General Chaos Visuals
Tues. July 20th @ Supermarket . 268 Augusta Ave.

TORONTO!


Kensington Market . just south of College. Map + info here 
PiNG doors open at 7:30pm . 1st set at 8:00 sharp . $6

av-night



7/20/2010 | 8:00pm | Patrick | 60x60, vox novus, sanguine, ambient ping, toronto | Direct Link



11th - DOJO, TWITCH, DJ Sound Culture w ONTOLOGIST

Our monthly residency at Rodan!

Sunday, July 11, 2010, 10 PM to close

at

RODAN

1530 N Milwaukee, Wicker Park, CHI

featuring:

SNAILS VS CHEETAHS IN SPACE.

Join Us this sunday for the eclectic sounds of DJ Sound Culture... 

DJ sets from Dojo and Twitch, with Visuals from The ONTOLOGIST!!!

www.livingsundays.com



7/11/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, DJ Sound Culture, living sundays | Direct Link



11th - Tomorrow Music Orchestra w/ ontologist vids

Jerry's Sandwiches

1938 W Division Ave, Wicker Park CHI

July 11, 2010 starting at 8:30 PM

TOMORROW MUSIC ORCHESTRA

featuring mostly new beauty music from composer/leader Matthew Golombisky

and improvised video projected directly onto the performers for an immersive, inclusive experience like nothing you've ever seen at Jerry's Sandwiches!

 

 

 



7/11/2010 | 8:30pm | Patrick | tomorrow, TMO, live visuals, Jerry's Sandwiches | Direct Link



June
I Am Sitting In A Video Room FAQ

This page is designed to answer questions concerning the creation and issues surrounding my piece I Am Sitting In A Video Room. If you haven't seen it yet, please click here.

An homage to the great Alvin Lucier, this piece explores the 'photocopy effect', where upon repeated copies the object begin to accumulate the idiosyncrasies of the medium doing the copying.

 

Please visit here for more information about Alvin Lucier's piece, and you can listen to the complete piece here.

 

Full words: I am sitting in a room different from the one you are in now. I am recording the sound of my speaking voice as well as the image of myself, and I am going to upload it to YouTube, rip it from YouTube, and upload it again and again, until the original characteristics of both my voice and my image are destroyed. What you will see and hear, then, are the artifacts inherent in the video codec of both YouTube and the mp4 format I convert it to on my computer. I regard this activity not so much as a demonstration of a digital fact, but more as a way to eliminate all human qualities my speech and image might have.

 

How long did this take?

 

I began on May 27, 2009 and completed the 1000th upload on May 27, 2010. It was not particularly labor intensive, but required constant interruption with my other work. I did not do it consistently, and there were entire months that went by where I didn't upload a single one.

 

Did you upload them by hand?

 

I did upload them all by hand. I would download the latest video, rename it and save it, then immediately upload that renamed video to YouTube (with pasted information). YT would require between 5-10 minutes to process the new video, then I would download that one. So I guess it was a pretty arduous process. If I were to do this again, I would write a bot in C++...

 

 Why does the video get shorter as iterations progress?

 

YouTube automatically cuts off the last one or two frames from an uploaded video. While this doesn't make a difference for a single upload, the successive accumulation of these cuts eventually adds up. The first video is 42 seconds long, while the last video is only 38 seconds!

 

Why does the video get out of sync in the first 100? Why does it get corrected thereafter?

 

As with removing the last few frames, YouTube also adds a few frames of (silent) audio at the beginning of each upload. Again the accumulation of iterations pushes the audio out of sync. I didn't realize this would be a major issue until about Room 130, where I decided if I didn't fix the audio, it would eventually be removed entirely from the project. So I corrected the sync in Final Cut Pro, and then re-corrected it every 100 iterations. The final version of the audio is worth the corrections!

 

I thought digital copying was lossless. Why does the video quality get worse?

 

When copying files, the information is lossless; i.e. no matter how many copies are made they are all exactly identical to the original. This is just bit-jockeying. But what I am doing here is transcoding the video twice per upload. Each time the video gets uploaded to YouTube, it gets translated to the .flac/H.264 video codec -- a process that makes the video smaller but loses some of it's information. Then this loss happens again when I translate it again to mp4 format on my computer. Each time the pieces of information lost are saved on subsequent versions, and accumulated throughout the process. 

 

Oh my god that audio is terrifying! What's going on?!

 

It gets complicated, but each translation of the audio goes through a process known as "Fast Fourier Transformation", which breaks the audio down into more-easily-parsed tones. Again, however, this process loses a bit of subtle information, which is accumulated. It sounds like water because water actually resonates/fluctuates at many random frequencies, and the FFT analysis unintentionally mimics this as well.

 

 



6/1/2010 | 6:02pm | Patrick | liddell lucier alvin codec resolution filter repetition digital noise loss quality copy repeat | Direct Link



I AM SITTING IN A VIDEO ROOM

The video here

And you can watch any number of them individually HERE.

Below are links to websites that have given this project a review! Please check them out!

THE ATLANTIC

URLesque

Huffington Post

Althouse Blog

Metafilter

Mashable

Boing-Boing

Gawker

Gizmodo

Regator

The Awesomer

Neatorama

The Daily Swarm

Tomas Ford

PoeTV

Warren Ellis

Switched

After Effects Portal

(En francais:) Insolite

(Japanese:) Alfalfalfa

others as I find them!

 

 

 



6/1/2010 | 1:36pm | Patrick | video room, 1000, copies, iteration, loss, transcode, generation, | Direct Link



May
21st - Northwestern Uni Sax Ensemble, in 3D!!!

The Northwestern University Saxophone Ensemble proudly presents:

A Night of Entertainment: IN 3D!!!

Hear the profane and the profound as music blends with color and shape in a never-before seen synesthesiac experience, featuring ONTOLOGIST (patrick liddell) providing the eye-popping visual experience.

Works by Glinka, Walton, Fuste-Lambezat
Conducted by Anthony Paggett, William Staub, and Frederick L. Hemke
Narrated by Linda Gates and Richard Drews
Video by Patrick Liddell

 

sax ensemble may 2010



5/21/2010 | 8:00pm | Patrick | northwestern, saxophone, ensemble, 3D, glasses | Direct Link



9th - DOJO and MATHIEN with ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

SUNDAY MAY 9 2010, 10 PM

DOJO

MATHIEN

w ONTOLOGIST vids

at the one place you can always find them:

RODAN 1260 N Milwaukee, Wicker Park, Chicago

check out the tiny poster below:

rodan 9-8-10



5/9/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, mathien, living sundays | Direct Link



8th - Maurice (w ontologist vids) at Heart of Gold

Maurice, the band with plans to take over Chicago, has their swan song final show 

MAY 8 2010

at

Heart of Gold, 3036 N Lincoln, Lakeview, Chicago

at 10 PM



5/8/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | maurice, live, heart of gold, last show | Direct Link



April
30th - ONTOLOGIST SPINS at SIMONES Friday 10pm

ONTOLOGIST RETURNS to SIMONES (960 w 18th st PILSEN CHITOWN)

flowing R&B, soul, funk, reggae, ska, interesting hip-hop, groove, live visuals, love

THIS FRIDAY APRIL 30, 2010

starting at 10 PM

 

Simones4_30_10



4/30/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | live, spin, soul, funk, r&b, simones | Direct Link



25th - University of Chicago Gamelan Concert

I'm playing with Friends Of The Gamelan, the Indonesian music ensemble at University of Chicago. Our spring gamelan concert will be held
on Sunday, April 25, 2010 at 6:00 p.m. at Hyde Park Union Church,
5600 South Woodlawn Avenue in Chicago.

Joko Sutrisno, our guest artistic director, has crafted
an outstanding repertoire of traditional and
contemporary Javanese gamelan music.  We've had great fun
learning these compositions, and we hope that you'll join
us for an incomparable listening experience.

Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for students.
Please visit our web site at 
http://www.chicagogamelan.org/
for more information.  For directions to Hyde Park Union Church,
please visit 
http://www.hpuc.org/Other/Directions.htm.

 

Gamelan Concert 4/25/10



4/25/2010 | 7:00pm | Patrick | University of Chicago, gamelan, joko sustrino | Direct Link



16th - Kaija Saariaho's Amers

On Friday April 16 2010 I perform with Northwestern's Contemporary Music Ensemble on Kaija Saariaho's work Amers. My part controls the electronic cues, synthesizer and sampler programs, and the reverb of the solo cello. Saariaho was invited to NU as part of her Nemmers Prize residency. I was asked because the electronics part ended up being pretty difficult to execute.

http://www.northwestern.edu/newscenter/stories/2010/03/saariaho.html



4/16/2010 | 7:30pm | Patrick | saariaho, electronics, amers, northwestern | Direct Link



11th - DOJO and TWITCH with ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

Another beautiful night of beautiful music and beautiful imagery. Two vids of the night attached: first, DJ TWITCH makes some beautiful noise with DOJO's recorded tracks. Both vids show off the double-projected imagery.

 



4/11/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



11th - Cycle (As Opposed To Line) at NIU

A piece originally written as a project in Jay Alan Yim's course at Northwestern, "Content In Music". After I wrote the music I had made a mp3 of it using sampled gamelan sounds, and posted that on my myspace profile

www.myspace.com/neominimal

I had been in contact with the lovely Dr. Jui-Ching Wang at Northern Illinois University the year before asking to borrow their gamelan for my recital, and while the school decided not to let me use it, she and I remained in touch and this spring she asked if the NIU gamelan could play this piece! Here is the performance, accompanied by my live visuals, at the concert on NIU campus April 11, 2010.

 

'



4/11/2010 | 3:00pm | Patrick | gamelan, Northern Illinois University, live visuals, Cycle, Line, NIU, gamelan, buddhist | Direct Link



March
28th - NIU Gamelan Rehearsal for April 11 Concert

On Sunday April 11, Northern Illinois University Indonesian Gamelan Ensemble will be playing a piece I wrote a few years ago. While I will put up some info about that soon, the ensemble director, Dr. Jui-Ching Wang, was so kind as to film an early rehearsal. Check it out to get a sense of what to expect!

 

 



3/28/2010 | 12:05am | Patrick | Cycle, Line, NIU, gamelan, buddhist | Direct Link



14th - DOJO v TWITCH w ONTOLOGIST LIVE! at Rodan

The monthly residency continues!

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RODAN (1530 w Milwaukee, Wicker Park)

10 pm - 2 am, March 14, 2010

TWITCH, DOJO, and MODEL WORKERS

with [ontologist] visuals

with a special performance of Bartok's 2nd Quartet for Strings!

featuring members of the New Millennium Orchestra

 



3/14/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, model workers, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



Space-Time Is Love Bliss

Premiered at Electronic Music Midwest miniFestival on March 11, 2010 at Lewis University, Romeoville, Illinois. Intended for tape and 2 videos, in which the second video is projected at a large convex mirror and reflected across the entire auditorium walls and ceiling. 

Program notes:

The title is a quote from spiritual teacher Adi Da Samraj, discussing the connection between our Universe and our thoughts. This sentiment is echoed in current quantum theory, where consciousness is required to collapse the behavior of electrons (as exemplified in the infamous Schrödinger's Cat paradox). I used the electron emission spectrum of elemental hydrogen as the source for timbral and formal material within this piece. The dual-duality of the title also suggests the fractal (in this case, Cantor's Comb) nature of the Universe, again found in the emission spectrum of hydrogen and a formal factor in both the music and video. 

Space-Time Is Love-Bliss from ontologist on Vimeo.



3/11/2010 | 8:00pm | Patrick | tape, ambient, electronic, teleology, alan watts, rings, abstract | Direct Link



6th - Maurice & Ontologist at Morseland

Maurice and ontologist, at it again! This time at Morseland (1218 w Morse ave, Rogers Park) on March 6 2010 starting at 9 PM!! Come out for some experimental rock/jazz and classic R&B/soul jams!

ReaganMaurice6Mar2010



3/6/2010 | 9:00pm | Patrick | maurice, live, morseland | Direct Link



February
17th - Iraq Body Counter

You might be asking yourself "Self, how many innocent people have died because of America's presence in Iraq?" Now there's no need to ask! Iraqbodycount.com has hooked you up:

 



2/17/2010 | 1:13am | Patrick | iraq, body, count | Direct Link



14th - ONTOLOGIST VIDEOS on Valentines Day

vdayRODANhires

[two videos taken from that night, from DJ ISSIE NIXON's set:]

 

and featuring the lovely Issie Nixon dancing also:

 



2/14/2010 | 11:00pm | Patrick | twitch, issie nixon, hillary rawk, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



1st - localSTYLE's ~plicity at Northwestern

localSTYLE (Jay Alan Yim (sound) and Marlena Novak (light)) are featured at Northwestern University's Contemporary Music Ensemble Concert on February 1st, 2009 at 7:30 PM at NU's Pick-Staiger Hall, 50 Arts Circle, Evanston IL.

ONTOLOGIST performs the video for this unique performance experience! 

More info about the concert can be found at:

http://www.pickstaiger.org/concerts/new-music/details/330-contemporary-music-ensemble

 

Says localSTYLE:

http://www.localstyle.tv/plicity/

Two tectonic plates — the North American (moving to the west) and the Eurasian (moving to the east) — form the Icelandic Rift; they are separating at the rate of approximately two millimeters annually.

 

The underlying theme of ~plicity is that of inexorable forces (such as social / political / psychological turbulence and plate tectonics) pulling people (and continents) apart, counterbalanced by a reciprocal yearning to pull together, build bridges across divides, and to strengthen community.

The title is an indication of the complex nature of these relationships and of the strategies for addressing them: implicit, explicit, complicit, duplicit, implication, duplication, replication, multiplicity, etcetera.

The musical and video scores are templates for contingency, presenting the performers with recurrent windows of opportunity to assess and reassess their relationships with each other, shift allegiances, and to map out a course through changing terrain.

 



2/1/2010 | 7:30pm | Patrick | Northwestern, CME, localSTYLE, Novak, Yim, plicity | Direct Link



January
25th - Maurice (w ontologist visuals) at Whistler

Says Maurice:

Hey friends, we're playing our first show since the fall. We'll be performing new material. We play at 10pm, Gran-tu-molani is at 9pm. 

The Whistler is in Logan Square at 2421 W Milwaukee. Show starts at 9 pm!

Here's a live clip from the performance:

 



1/25/2010 | 9:00pm | Patrick | maurice, live, whistler | Direct Link



Parthenope (feat. Liz Johnson)

Parthenope

for tape

A collaboration with Chicago violinist Elisabeth Johnson.

Parthenope was a muse of Greek mythology.

Created for Vox Novus's 360 degrees of 60x60 mix for ICMC 2010.

LISTEN IN THE PLAYER ABOVE!

TRACK 10

Parthenope



1/15/2010 | 4:48pm | Patrick | tape, violin, parthenope | Direct Link



10th - Dojo, Twitch, DJ Warp, ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

Renowned Wicker Park lounge Rodan is the site of the weekly showcase of sound and video art known as "LIVING SUNDAYS." The evening features new music, video art, and live performances. Hosted by a potent cross-section of creators and promoters, "LIVING SUNDAYS" is a free event sure to leave a lasting impression.

Noisemakers Dojo vs Twitch, along with the trusty Ontologist on visuals, curate their chapter of the Living Sundays story every 2nd Sunday of the month. This Sunday January 11th they welcome the celebrated Chicago institution DJ Warp as their featured guest. Good beer on tap is 3 bucks. No cover. Great food. Chicago's own clubhouse for weirdo art peeps who do shit.

Please visit Rodan on any Sunday night to check out some great Chicago sound and video art, at 1530 North Milwaukee Avenue, 10pm-2am. For more information visit the Living Sundays website, www.livingsundays.com

 

20547_1305189706262_1126106716_30954515_4757772_n

Here's a clip taken from that night (courtesy of Brian Klein):



1/10/2010 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, dj warp, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



2009
December
ADSR 4

ADSR

A semi-regular series of episodes exploring the sometimes-confusing and often-beautiful world around us through music, video, and light-hearted philosophy. 


Episode four: Combine Doubt With Wonder

Today's society is chock full of two types of people: skeptics and fanatics. Is there any middle ground? This episode discusses an old Japanese philosopher who dared to say 'yes'. He is visited by his old friends Quincy Jones, Herbie Hancock, Carl Sagan, and some crazy dancing women.

 

ADSR 4 from ontologist on Vimeo.



12/30/2009 | 12:46am | Patrick | internet show, combine, doubt, wonder, carl sagan, quincy jones, herbie hancock | Direct Link



13th - DOJO and TWITCH with ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

Music of DOJO, TWITCH, and IPAGHOST


Video by: SIN-R8 and ONTOLOGIST


RODAN

Dec 13 2009

10 pm

 

 

DEC13



12/13/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



November
21st - ONTOLOGIST SPINS at SIMONES Sat at 10 PM

No longer on Thursdays, ONTOLOGIST still visits your favorite Pilsen hotspot, this time coming in on a Saturday to make your feet move and your spirit soar.

ONTOLOGIST spins FUNK, SOUL, R&B

with synchronized video

SATURDAY NOV 21 starting at 10 pm

at SIMONES, 960 w 18th st, PILSEN

FREE!

 

Simones11_21_09



11/21/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | live, spin, soul, funk, r&b, simones | Direct Link



ONTOweb Scrabble Dictionary

Why not check your Scrabble work at ONTOweb?

 

And while you're at it, a normal dictionary. Don't you just love the internet?

 

 




11/16/2009 | 8:00pm | Patrick | scrabble, dictionary | Direct Link



8th - DOJO and TWITCH with ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

It's time once again for your favorite Eclectica/Experimental/Hallucinatory evening of the month!

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 8th (and every 2nd Sunday of the month)

at 10 PM

at RODAN (1530 w Milwaukee, near 6-corners Wicker Park)

music of DOJO, TWITCH, and ONTOLOGIST

with eyeball bending visuals

and a late night kitchen!

ALL FREE!

 

Rodan11_08_09



11/8/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



ONTOplayerV2 video improvisation software

ONTOplayerV2 now available for download!

ONTOplayer is a quicktime video player intended for real-time manipulation in live improvisatory settings. Choose any set of movies to scrub, add effects, and zoom, pan, colorize, and otherwise fuck with in real time!

Features:

• 19 video effects, including Sobel line detection, distortion, feedback, and more

• Full MIDI controller implementation

• Video camera in and out

• Full algorithmic mixing and chromakeying

• ReWire support

• Play and manipulate any movie that QuickTime can read

 

Freeware! For Macintosh running OS 10.5+. Please download here:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1376318/ONTOplayer.zip

If you use it and like it, please help the development of new features and donate $15 to "canzona(at)gmail.com" at PayPal.

ONTOplayer Download - Soft-Files.com

woot woot five stars!



11/7/2009 | 3:49pm | Patrick | ontoplayer, software, video, improvise | Direct Link



EVERY THURSDAY IN NOVEMBER!

BRING YOUR DANCING SHOES!

ontologist

spins

soul, funk, and r&b

with synced video!

at

Division Ale House

(1942 w division, at Damen, Wicker Park/Uke Village, Chicago)

starting at 9:30, to close

plus food & drink specials

 

DAH10_29_09



11/1/2009 | 3:42pm | Patrick | spin, live, division ale house, funk, soul, r&b | Direct Link



October
ONTOLOGIST spins SOUL/FUNK every Thursday!!

MORE FUNK FOR YOUR FOOTS! Come out and enjoy a night of rare treats and pop jams!

Where: Division Ale House (1942 w Division at Damen)

What: ONTOLOGIST spins SOUL, FUNK, and R&B with synced video!

When: EVERY THURSDAY! starting at 9:30 PM

How much: FREE! 100% FREE! Plus great drink specials. 

 

DAH10_29_09



10/29/2009 | 9:30pm | Patrick | live, spin, soul, funk, r&b, Division Ale House | Direct Link



11th - DOJO and TWITCH with ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

Model Workers

DOJO

TWITCH

and ME

October 11, 2009

10 pm

Rodan (1530 n Milwaukee)

IT DOESN'T COST ONE FUCKING DIME! 

Rodan10_11_09



10/11/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, model workers, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



September
60x60 2009 International Mix

60 works by 60 different composers. Each piece exactly 1 minute long, played back to back. This ultimate mix tape of largely original works becomes the bread and butter of Vox Novus's 60x60 project. It has become so large and successful in the last few years that multiple offshoots have started, including a Midwest Minutes Mix and a Pacific Rim Mix. 

This year Robert Voisey, ringleader at Vox Novus, asked me to collaborate with them for their 2009 International Mix. 60 composers from around the world combine into an intense and orgiastic hour of sonic bliss. I composed and recorded 60 short videos to accompany the sound! Please check out the collaborators list for Vox Novus here:

http://www.voxnovus.com/60x60/Collaborations.htm

and please check the events schedule to see if the International Mix (or any of the other mixes) is playing near you:

http://www.voxnovus.com/60x60/Events.htm

Says Voisey:

Friday September 25, 2009 – 60x60 Video (2009 International Mix)
So all this starts somewhere around the G20 conference in Pennsylvania,
Friday September 25, 2009.  60x60 had a private screening of the 2009
International Mix with a video collaboration from Patrick Liddell.  David
Morneau and David Berlin presented this screening is in an effort to create
a large interactive educational outreach program using 60x60.  (Another new
initiative for Vox Novus and the 60x60 project.) 

http://www.voxnovus.com/60x60/Collaborations.htm 



9/25/2009 | 11:39am | Patrick | 60, tape, international mix 2009, vox novus | Direct Link



14th - ONTOLOGIST SPINS at SIMONES Thurs 10pm

ONTOLOGIST spins video and audio for your eyeballs and earballs!

SOUL FUNK RnB from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, and 00s

THURSDAY SEPT 24th 2009, 10pm

and every last Thursday of the month!

at

SIMONES

960 w 18th st PILSEN CHICAGO

Come out for the sake of your earballs! 

SIMONES9_24_09



9/24/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | live, spin, soul, funk, r&b, simones | Direct Link



13th - DOJO and TWITCH with ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

DOJO versus TWITCH with CHIP-CHOP of Brobot

featuring ONTOLOGIST visuals

LIVE! at RODAN • 1530 w milwaukee ave, chicago

Sunday Sept 13 2009 • 10 PM

Free!

Part of the Living Sundays Series

 

Rodan Sept 13 2009



9/13/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, chip-chop, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



August
27th - ONTOLOGIST SPINS at SIMONES Thurs 10 PM

ONTOLOGIST spins FUNK, R&B, and SOUL (new and old skool!)

 At SIMONES (960 w 18th st PILSEN)

 The last Thursday of every month!

 Next date: August 27 2009

10 PM to close! Come join in the fun!!

 
SIMONES August 27 2009

 

 



8/27/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | live, spin, soul, funk, r&b, simones | Direct Link



9th - DOJO and TWITCH with ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

DOJO versus TWITCH with ONTOLOGIST

LIVE! at RODAN • 1530 w milwaukee ave, chicago

Sunday August 9 2009 • 10 PM

Free!

Part of the Living Sundays Series

Rodan9Aug09flyer



8/9/2009 | 6:13pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



8th - ONTOLOGIST LIVE! at Reggies Music Joint

Saturday Night
Jam Bands
ONTOLOGIST visuals
Reggies Music Joint
2105 S State
http://www.reggieslive.com/musicjoint/



8/8/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | live, visuals, reggies music joint | Direct Link



July
30th - ONTOLOGIST SPINS at SIMONES Thurs 10 PM

ONTOLOGIST spins FUNK, R&B, and SOUL (new and old skool!)

At SIMONES (960 w 18th st PILSEN)

The last Thursday of every month!

Next date: Thursday July 30 2009

10 PM to close! Come join in the fun!

SimonesFunkThurs



7/30/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | live, spin, soul, funk, r&b, simones | Direct Link



Wookie Luke

This piece is a sort of dream-parallel to this music here:

http://www.vimeo.com/1098903

Ukulele Force Freakin rules.

 

Dedicated to Scott Scharf who has discovered the true meaning of the force.

Wookie Luke (to Scott Scharf) from ontologist on Vimeo.



7/15/2009 | 1:43pm | Patrick | wookie, luke, power, converters, droids, ukulele, tuba, blaster | Direct Link



12th - DOJO and TWITCH with ONTOLOGIST at Rodan

ONTOLOGIST spins video again with DOJO and TWITCH

SUNDAY JULY 12, 2009, 10PM

at RODAN, 1530 w MILWAUKEE, CHICAGO



7/12/2009 | 1:36pm | Patrick | live, rodan, dojo, twitch | Direct Link



June
30th - ONTOLOGIST SPINS at SIMONES Tuesday 8pm

ONTOLOGIST @ SIMONES (980 w 18th st, Pilsen, Chicago)

TUESDAY JUNE 30th 2009 @ 8PM+

NEW & OLD FUNK (Parliament, Jamiroquai), SOUL (Jackson 5, Dwele), R&B (Al Green, Remy Shand), some originals!, and MORE (Bob Marley, Herbie Hancock, Stevie Wonder)!! 

Including video footage of soul/R&B classics and live visual improvs!

Come out and enjoy some listening/watching/dancing/drinking!

SimonesFlyer6_30_09



6/30/2009 | 8:00pm | Patrick | live, spin, soul, funk, r&b, simones | Direct Link



May
Arrow To The Sun

Out now!

Arrow To The Sun

Arrow To The Sun

music and video by ontologist

10 tracks of eclectic design

ranging from filmic string music to indonesian gamelan music to video game music

plus original video syncronized to each track

click here to listen and purchase:

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ontologist

or listen on iTunes! and contact me here (canzona(at)gmail.com) for more info



5/30/2009 | 11:59pm | Patrick | Arrow, Sun, album, release, canzona, records, CD, DVD | Direct Link



10th - DOJO, ONTOLOGIST, and others at Rodan

ONTOLOGIST With DJ Brock Manke, VJ Chris May, and DOJO

@ Rodan (1530 w milwaukee)

Sunday May 10, 2009 at 10PM+


Presented by Living Sundays.

livingsnday510webbtr



5/10/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, Chris May, Brock Manke, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



10th - MATT ULERY CD release

New CD "Themes And Scenes" by bassist/composer Matt Ulery! Recorded with musicians from throughout the Chicago area, this album is a soundtrack to a movie that doesn't exist. 

CD RELEASE at Heaven Gallery

May 10 2009 8 PM

 

video improvisation by ONTOLOGIST

mattulery



5/10/2009 | 8:00am | Patrick | ulery, themes, scenes, heaven gallery | Direct Link



March
8th - Dojo VS Twitch WITH ontologist at Rodan

Dojo VS Twitch with ontologist

@ Rodan (1530 n milwaukee, chicago)

March 8, 2009, start at 10 PM


Email me for a DVD of the complete show! recorded by Sin-R8!

Featured by Living Sundays.

mar8



3/8/2009 | 10:00pm | Patrick | dojo, twitch, rodan, living sundays | Direct Link



January
25th - ONTOLOGIST @ Chicago Motion Graphics Fest

 

ONTOLOGIST live! at the MGChicago manipulation showcase

at the

Chicago Cultural Center

JANUARY 25 2009 6-9PM

please visit:

http://mgfest.com/09/Chicago/screenings/visualperformance.php



1/25/2009 | 6:00pm | Patrick | MGChicago, motion, graphics, festival, cultural | Direct Link



2008
October
Maurice: Ace of Wands

Maurice showcases many of it's talents in Ace of Wands, title track to their newest album release. 



10/30/2008 | 9:14pm | Patrick | maurice, circles, bubbles | Direct Link



Maurice: Gently Little Boat

Track from Maurice's 2008 album, Ace of Wands. In this video, we explore both the naive beauty and adult nature behind dancing and music. 

 

Please visit: www.mauricechicago.com and www.myspace.com/mauricechicago for more info.

 



10/30/2008 | 8:26pm | Patrick | maurice, dancing, square, strip, kodak, titty | Direct Link



Maurice: Smoking Imperator

Maurice explores the subtleties of a single complex melodic line.

For more info, please visit: www.mauricechicago.com or www.myspace.com/mauricechicago


 



10/30/2008 | 1:56pm | Patrick | maurice, driving, cars, time lapse, slow motion | Direct Link



24th - FEATURED VIDEOGRAPHER at EARS&EYES FESTIVAL

THREE DAYS of ONTOLOGIST

as FEATURED VIDEO ARTIST at the 3rd ANNUAL EARS and EYES FESTIVAL

OCTOBER 24 - 26, 2008

at The Hideout, 1354 w Wabansia, Chicago

Performances by: Toby Summerfield Large Ensemble, Touch., Bus Master, David Daniell, Black Ladies, Rats & Labor, Bill MacKay, Maurice, L'Altra, Mike Reed's People Places and Things, Via Tania, D Numbers, The Eternals, Silences Sumire, Jeff Greene Large Ensemble, W. W. Lowman, The Engines, Pedway, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Algernon, Eleventh Dream Day

please see: www.earsandeyesfestival.com for more information.

4838_199968550366_739755366_7342931_3597655_n

4838_199968540366_739755366_7342929_1861898_n 4838_199968515366_739755366_7342926_8046637_n 4838_199968510366_739755366_7342925_8364387_n



10/24/2008 | 1:23pm | Patrick | eyes, ears, featured, maurice, parts & labor, tomorrow music orchestra, The Eternals, D Numbers | Direct Link



September
ADSR 3

ADSR

A semi-regular series of episodes exploring the sometimes-confusing and often-beautiful world around us through music, video, and light-hearted philosophy. 


Episode Three: an explanation of harmony

In this third installment we are taken through the harmonic inner ear of three electronic composers (and a tip o the hat to Beethoven). What is harmony? What does it represent in our everyday lives? And what does this mean for you? 

 

ADSR 3 from ontologist on Vimeo.



9/24/2008 | 7:23am | Patrick | internet show, harmony, behrman, beetstretch, fennesz | Direct Link



August
27th - ONTOLOGIST LIVE! at Butterfly Social Club

ONTOLOGIST plays LIVE! with The Abominable Twitch, Derby, and VJ sin-R8

@ Butterfly Social Club (722 w grand st, chicago)

August 27, 2008 starting a 9 PM


presented by Psymbolic Arts re:vivify series.

BSCFlyer



8/27/2008 | 9:00pm | Patrick | psymbolic, twitch, derby, sin-r8 | Direct Link



ADSR 2

ADSR

A semi-regular series of episodes exploring the sometimes-confusing and often-beautiful world around us through music, video, and light-hearted philosophy. 


Episode Two: Bifurcation

In the second episode we take a look at the dichotomy of human existence. Why do we always see everything in black and white? What does that say about the way we process our experiences? Featuring an ontologist original, some bizarre computer footage from the 80's, and a few words of advice from none other than The Beatles themselves.


If you know anyone that would like to know about this, please forward this to them or forward me their email address and I'll include them in the next posting. Postings will be made at the release of every two episodes; you are welcome and encouraged to join the mailing list! Please write to me here!

 

ADSR 2 from ontologist on Vimeo.



8/2/2008 | 5:56pm | Patrick | internet show, bifurcation, unity, and, beatles, hello, goodbye | Direct Link



July
ADSR 1

ADSR

A semi-regular series of episodes exploring the sometimes-confusing and often-beautiful world around us through music, video, and light-hearted philosophy.

'Postmodern Mix' is theme for this premiere episode. Within we take a look at what postmodernism is as a movement, as well as what some of its implications are. Music and visual examples abound.

If you would like to receive info about new episodes of ADSR, or if you'd like to discuss any content from the show with me, I would love to oblige.

ADSR 1 from ontologist on Vimeo.



7/8/2008 | 2:19pm | Anthony | internet show, postmodern, bungle | Direct Link



May
Business Cards!

I've ordered new business cards! I wish that I could include the information from this site but alas it wasn't ready when I made these cards. www.patrickliddell.com still works though, so at least they can (re)direct here.

 

pliddellFRONT

 

 

 

pliddellBACK



5/1/2008 | 2:21am | Patrick | cards | Direct Link



April
Tudoresque

Tudoresque

a feedback improvisation for four mixers

this recording features Lee Weisert, Brett Masteller, Chris Mercer, and me.

Based on works of David Tudor during the 1960's.

DOWNLOAD THE THIRD IMPROVISATION HERE!

Feel free to use it and pass it along!



4/27/2008 | 5:02pm | Patrick | tape, live, improvisation, david tudor | Direct Link



The Kiva of BEEZ (feat. Maurice)

Track 8 from the complete art-piece Arrow To The Sun. Here CHOP must overcome the Kiva of BEEZ, symbolizing money and sex. Performed by Maurice from Chicago.

 

ontologist: The Kiva of BEEZ (featuring Maurice) (from Arrow to the Sun) from ontologist on Vimeo.



4/5/2008 | 6:44pm | Patrick | arrow, atts, stock, bees, money, bass, drums, keys, keyboard, guitar, trombone, sax, trumpet | Direct Link



Renunciant (this time to Octet and Variations)

Track 5 from the full art-piece Arrow To The Sun.

Here our protagonist, CHOP, is in search of answers. He looks for them all over the world, in the oceans, and even in outer space.

 

ontologist: Renunciant (from Arrow To The Sun) from ontologist on Vimeo.



4/1/2008 | 6:40pm | Patrick | arrow, atts, tape, flute, clarinet, horn, trombone, bass, piano, walking, clouds, newspaper, chicago | Direct Link



March
Contact

When I made this video I was not aware of the singer or song; however, since then I have come to discover that it is none other than Bridget Bardot singing one of 'her' tunes, Contact. I took out most of the accompanying instruments and added my own harmony, rhythm, timbres, and so forth.

I must admit that the final product, with the video singing along, is pretty nice. I'll be trying more of this sort of mash-up covers in the future... stay tuned.

ontologist: Contact from ontologist on Vimeo.



3/27/2008 | 3:04pm | Anthony | bardot, outer space | Direct Link



January
17th - ONTOLOGIST SHOWCASE at MGChicago

ONTOLOGIST LIVE! at Motion Graphics Chicago 2008

Thursday January 17 2009, 4 PM

Art Institute of Chicago

please visit:

http://mgfest.com/08/summit.php#day2



1/17/2008 | 4:00pm | Patrick | live, art, institute, motion, graphics | Direct Link



2007
November
High Fructose

High Fructose

for two small ensembles (saxophone and female vocalists, and bass with french horn)

Corn Syrup

  

 

ALL THREE MOVEMENTS ARE AVAILABLE TO LISTEN IN THE PLAYER ABOVE!

TRACKS

12, 13, & 14

 

 

Program notes:

Despite what movie music may imply, music is inherently nondescript. While it mimics movement and emotion within our daily lives, when forced to determine the 'meaning' or 'intention' behind a particular piece of music (without prior verbal or conceptual baggage already attached), it is practically impossible to say what the 'meaning' is (if any). This ambiguity is something that composers have always played with, from the deceptive cadences of Bach and Mozart to the unsteady rhythmic vacillations of Gerard Grisey's Vortex Temporum. In a different way, that is the idea behind this piece: two separate pieces, each with its own meter and tonality, sound complete within themselves; but when played simultaneously, new and richer rhythms and harmonies emerge. While it seemed that the content of each movement was constant and unambiguous, in reality it was only the ambiguity that we were able to perceive.

Click here to download the score!

Click here to download the parts, so you can perform it yourself!

Click here to download the Reason document, so you can alter and create your own version!

Performers on the recordings are: Elizabeth Petersen, bass; Kaoru Matsushita, horn; Anthony Paggett (alto sax); Starr Busby, Catherine Brookman, Denise Wernly (voices). 



11/1/2007 | 3:49pm | Patrick | bass, french horn, alto sax, vocals | Direct Link



October
Maurice: What You Say, Make Human

Maurice, the band with plans to own Chicago, considers the unspoken laws and invisible prisons in which we live.

For more information, please visit:

http://www.myspace.com/mauricechicago

Video by: ontologist.

 



10/15/2007 | 9:44pm | Patrick | maurice, film, occupation, industry, light, car, flip, world | Direct Link



Piece for Karl II

This poppy piece was originally written as a potential car advertisement in England. It didn't get used, but I was pretty happy with the texture I created so I added some chords underneath and the rest just came together.

About the video: Consider a building you pass on the way to or from work. That building has a particular meaning to you. Now consider the meaning of that building to a person who lives there -- the meaning of that building is *completely* different to yours, in ways we are incapable of fathoming. Further, to a tourist who passes the building for the first and only time, your meaning is impossible for him to fathom. Now, consider how the building is a weak metaphor for *everything in the entire world*.



separate audio tracks for your use and enjoyment:



10/12/2007 | 1:00pm | Patrick | tape, bells, time, space, train, musashi | Direct Link



Maurice: Detlef Schrempf

Maurice, the new musical experience hailing from Chicago, pays hommage to 1992 NBA Sixth Man of the Year: Detlef Schrempf. 

Please visit:

http://www.myspace.com/mauricechicago

for more information.

Video by: ontologist.

 



10/3/2007 | 9:39pm | Patrick | maurice, sports, slow motion, accidents, skateboard, judo, baseball, basketball, hockey, diving | Direct Link



Jessica's Theme Song

Two versions of this piece exist:

The original was created for pLAy ensemble, which performed it multiple times in their 2007-2008 season.

The instrumentation is: flute(piccolo), clarinet(bass clar), oboe, viola, cello, piano(percussion), and tape.

The second version is electronic, featured below. A birthday gift to Jessica. Happy Birthday! A video/music collaboration celebrating women and all their roles in our society. Taken from film reels of the 50's, 60's, and 70's, this montage changes the meaning of those reels -- in which women were shown to be often subordinate to their male counterparts -- to show what they were capable of then, and even more so now. 



10/1/2007 | 2:00pm | Patrick | tape, triangle, organ, trouble, women | Direct Link



April
Remembered Music

Remembered Music

for classroom of performers and conductor

Composed for Jay Alan Yim's "Content in Music" course at Northwestern University.

Instructions:

Recall from childhood a favorite melody with lyrics. It does not need to be one that others will recognize; instead, truly try to chose your own favorite. The conductor will give you a pitch (middle C) on which the tune should start (as opposed to what key the tune is in). On cue, sing your melody without any regard for what the people around you are singing. Sing at a mf volume with straight tone (little to no vibrato). If your melody accidentally strays from the key in which you began, make no attempt to correct yourself as the piece progresses. At exactly two minutes, the conductor will give a cue to end the piece; at exactly the cue stop all sound, regardless of whether it is at the end of the phrase or the end of a particular note. Thirty seconds of silence follows, after which the conductor will cue the end of the piece.



4/26/2007 | 4:25pm | Patrick | remembered music, childhood, singing, silence, jay alan yim | Direct Link



March
Ice Cream

ICE CREAM

a tasteless odyssey

 

for tape

 

TRACK 5 IN THE PLAYER ABOVE! LISTEN NOW!

Ice Cream

 

I took a class taught by Aaron Cassidy at Northwestern titled "Music at the Limits", in which we examined the extremes of music; the extremes of length (milliseconds up to 6-hour performances), the extremes of playability (John Cage and Iannis Xenakis), the limits of authenticity (George Rochberg, DJ Spooky's sample culture). The final project was to create a piece of music that tested the limits of some aspect of music. I decided to write a piece of recorded music that toyed with the limits of taste and tackiness. In the process I discovered how personal an opinion taste was, and was confronted with some of my biases toward music. It is a very subjective matter, taste.

 

This piece is in four sections, each exemplifying a style that lends itself to schmaltz and tacky interpretation, and each is coupled with lyrics that lie on the boundaries of comfort and purpose. The first section is generic house music, coupled with the most banal of lyrics (with an intentionally bad sax solo by the in-fact-very-talented Caroline Davis). The second section is trashy grunge rock, complete with lyrics about the love of intoxication (and another poor solo, on guitar by Lee Weisert). The third section emulates cheap 80's new wave, with washy, completely nonsensical lyrics. The final section is a bubbly polka, bizarrely coupled with raunchy sexual lyrics (sung by Chipmunks, of course). Each section is awkwardly glued together by other genres and sound effects.

 

My final piece was accompanied by an essay detailing the topic of taste and tackiness, as well as a complete description of all the intentionally tacky compositional choices I made along the way. 

 

You can download the essay here!

 

This piece is actually an inspiration for some conceptual ideas that occurred to me later… 



3/1/2007 | 3:09am | Patrick | taste, tacky, cassidy, weisert, ice cream, tape | Direct Link



2006
May
Magnificat Ex Machina

Magnificat Ex Machina - 1 - Magnificat

for live electronics

written in Max/MSP 4.8

LISTEN NOW IN THE PLAYER ABOVE!

TRACK 11

Created for Chris Mercer's "Composing with Computers" course at Northwestern University. This Max/MSP patch takes any audio file and performs a continuous large-scale granulation to the file; however, the grains remain in time with a master clock which creates a much more rhythmic structure. Each performance is unique. In this particular performance the master clock gradually increases tempo. The sound file is taken from Montiverdi's Magnificat, movement 1, performed by Bach Collegium Japan. 

Click here to download the original Max/MSP patch!



5/3/2006 | 4:36pm | Patrick | tape, magnificat, max/msp | Direct Link



Uptown Theatre Music

UPTOWN THEATRE MUSIC

for organ, four hands, two feet

LISTEN NOW IN THE PLAYER ABOVE!

TRACK SEVEN features MOVEMENT II

TRACK EIGHT features MOVEMENT IV

None of my works have seen as illustrious a career as Uptown.

Originally featured in the documentary "Uptown: Portrait of a Palace" by filmmakers John Pappas and Michael Bisberg. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE IMDB PAGE! Check out that listing under "Original Music". Oh yeah!

Performed at Northwestern Student Composer Concert held in Alice Millar Chapel on November 16, 2006 by Zvonimir Nagy and Sergiy Komirenko.

Click here to download the score to MOVEMENT II.

Click here to download the score to MOVEMENT IV.

Then in late 2006 my work with Function Ensemble (now Outshine Family) lead to a pop version with lyrics and backup ensemble, including string orchestra, full choir, brass and woodwind ensembles recorded on November 8th and 9th, 2006, and the vocal deliciousness of leader Matthew Nicholson. For Outshine, we have renamed it "The Dream, The Lie". Here is video for that piece, available soon on VINYL from Black Map Records in London!

Also available, my Reason documents, where I composed both movements:

REASON file for Uptown Theatre Music II

REASON file for Uptown Theatre Music IV 



5/1/2006 | 3:23pm | Patrick | uptown, organ, theater, imdb, function | Direct Link



February
10 Aural Postcards

I have been interested with the idea of ‘aural postcards’ for some time now. There are similarities between the expressionists within the art realm and the expressionists in the music realm; in the same way there are similarities between impressionists in both disciplines, and minimalist art and music share many concepts. But what is the aural equivalent of a photograph, or a snapshot, or a postcard? These represent a cross-section of time – a singular moment, lasting anywhere from 1/2000ths of a second to half a second. Obviously no piece of music can technically be played within these time limits. These ten short pieces attempt to portray the same idea; while the period of time in which they are perceived is longer than that of a postcard, perhaps, they are a cross-section of a larger time span of which the listener can only guess their full scope.

I took the New York Miniaturist Ensemble call for scores as a perfect opportunity to create a series of postcards. Each postcard is only 10 notes in length (though repeats add to the literal number of notes played), and with ten postcards the 100-note limit is reached exactly. Upon completion of these miniatures, I realize that some are indeed cross-sections of larger works, and a snapshot has been taken, while others are complete within themselves… perhaps the visual equivalent in these cases is a photograph of a landscape, still-life, or portrait.



2/1/2006 | 3:00am | Anthony | miniatures, postcards, cello, horn, clarinet, vibes, vibraphone | Direct Link



2005
March
... by Sixty

I wrote this piece for Vox Novus's 60 x 60 project, in which sixty tape pieces of exactly one minute each are played back to back, filling one hour. My piece takes this concept one step further though; in ...by Sixty, I break the time into smaller segments and wrote 60 one-second pieces. 

I had just discovered the term "ontology" at the time I wrote this piece (and hadn't thought of "ontologist" yet), and some then-students at Northwestern Uni composition students voiced the word for me for this recording as well. Voices include:

  • Johnathon Kirk
  • Kenn Kumpf
  • Joann Cho
  • Jennie Gottschalk
  • Lee Weisert

Instrumentation: tape.

(Some samples include: accordion, waterphone, electric bass, film strips of the 1950's (in particular "Duck and Cover"), and my 2005 freshmen aural skills class.)



3/1/2005 | 2:00pm | Patrick | 60, tape, one second, samples, ontology | Direct Link



January
Test Pattern No. 1

TEST PATTERN NUMBER ONE

for 4 alto singers, 4 baritone singers, 4 electric guitars, bass, and African percussion

YOU CAN LISTEN NOW IN THE PLAYER ABOVE!

TRACK NINE

This performance by friends at the Student Composer Concert in Regenstein MCR on Northwestern University, May 27, 2007.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE SCORE

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE PARTS! PERFORM IT YOURSELF!

ONTOarchive

Lyrics:

She's a simple melody/Such a perfect, precious thing/Wouldn't know what to do/Guess I don't know what to do

He is rhythm manifest/Sometimes plastic, sometimes clay/Wouldn't know what to do/Guess I don't know what to do

(From the program notes of the 2007 concert):

Test Pattern No. 1 (2005) was my first true experiment with solely minimalist and popular elements. Melodic repetition, form, and pan-diatonicism were some of the ideas that I borrowed from classical minimalism, while groove/style, instrumentation, and rhythmic features were taken from popular musics. Interestingly, the combination sounds like neither, take a shape and form all its own. Since these piece, my personal compositional style has moved more toward a true classical-popular hybrid. While I have not reached it (and it  may not be possible after all), the effects are spellbinding in their own right, and that magic in itself is reason to continue on this quest.

 



1/1/2005 | 3:23am | Patrick | test pattern, alto, baritone, guitar, bass, percussion | Direct Link



2004
June
For WeeBoo

For WeeBoo

for bassoon solo and double reed consort

featured in an article in Bradley University's Hilltopics Magazine, Spring 2005. Click here to read!

YOU CAN HEAR MVMT II RIGHT NOW IN THE PLAYER ABOVE!

TRACK 6

Featured at the 2004 International Double Reed Symposium held at Monash University, Melbourne, Australia!

Click here to check out the coolest program notes ever made!

Check out the score to each of the movements:

MOVEMENT I: Laundry Basket

MOVEMENT II: Counterpoint at St. Francois

MOVEMENT III: Strider on Genesis



6/1/2004 | 2:57pm | Patrick | double reed quartet, oboe, basson, english horn, elyzabeth liddell | Direct Link



February
The Waiting Variations

The Waiting Variations

a dubby duet for marimba and electric bass

AVAILABLE TO HEAR RIGHT NOW IN THE PLAYER ABOVE!

TRACK 15

Simply an homage to the great Bob Marley, a version of one of my favorite pieces of his, Waiting in Vain.

Performance by Sean Connor (marimba) and Tristan Arnold (bass) of Exposure Ensemble, at Norris Center on Northwestern University Campus, November 8th, 2005.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE SCORE

Program notes from the concert:

This piece is not-so-loosely based on the song from Bob Marley’s Exodus—Movement of Jah People album, Waiting In Vain. It uses an extended harmonic progression from the original, but many bass passages as well as melody motifs can be recognized throughout. There are a total 5 ‘variations’ to the chorus melody, each with a distinct change in rhythm and technique. As the piece progresses each variation slips a bit more out of key, into the final variation, which is very free. For the final ‘tag’ chorus, dissonances are resolved and the two instruments return to the home key. This piece is dedicated to Bob Marley.



2/1/2004 | 3:02am | Patrick | bob marley, waiting in vain, marimba, vibraphone, exposure ensemble | Direct Link



2003
November
Seven Melbournisms & A Fantasy

Seven Melbournisms & A Fantasy

for "Electric" Gamelan Degung

 

 

LISTEN ON THE PLAYER ABOVE!

 

TRACKS 19 - 26

Written at Monash University and performed at a Composer's Concert in December 2003, 7 Melbournisms brings old and new together: traditional instruments and notation of Javanese gamelan and live computer processing. The instruments are appropriately mic'ed and their sounds fed into a program written in Max/MSP which allows real-time alteration of that sound. Each movement alters the gamelan sound in a different way. The final movement explores all the manipulations together, and is a small tip-o-the-hat to composer Elliot Carter's Eight Etudes and a Fantasy.

Each movement conjures a unique aspect of life in Melbourne, Australia. Their titles are:

1. skylines of clouds

2. lousy public transport

3. anzac biscuits

4. bourke st. mall

5. the pony

6. trees where cars should be

7. music scene

8. fantasy


I also wrote an essay describing my intentions and inspirations behind the piece, which seems to be a fairly standard practice in Australia. CLICK HERE to download the backstory behind this piece!


The Max/MSP patches are available upon request.



11/1/2003 | 6:01pm | Patrick | tape, gamelan, Max/MSP, melbourne, | Direct Link



May
4 Notes from Christine

Program notes:

4 Notes from Christine (2003)

for Marimba Solo and Percussion Ensemble

 

 

 

These four movements were inspired by four handwritten notes I once received. Each movement treats the text of the notes differently: the rhythm of the passacaglia in the first movement, the stately ensemble chords in the second movement, the rhythm of the solo pad in the third movement, and the "lyrics" to the melodic line in the fourth. I treat each of the parts as a melodic instrument, and throughout the work the instruments trade roles with the marimba soloist.

You can hear movements I, II, and III in the player at the top of this window! Check out numbers 16, 17, and 18 in the list!

This performance is none other than the now-world-famous Third Coast Percussion Quartet, featuring guest marimba soloist Ryan Kilgore. This performance was in April 2007 at Northeastern University in Chicago.

If you would like to follow along, please feel free to download the score for each movement here:

Movement I

Movement II

Movement III

Movement IV (Not Performed)

(Parts available upon request.)



5/1/2003 | 2:40am | Patrick | percussion, marimba, third coast percussion quartet | Direct Link



January
[ontologist] - Patrick Liddell BIO

CONTACT: ontologist (at) gmail.com

Patrick Liddell [ontologist] is a music composer and video artist currently living in Chicago. His music and video art is a postmodern blend of all styles and genres. He has regular collaborations with bands such as Maurice (Chicago), Sunshine Family (London, Melbourne), Silences Sumires (Chicago), Vox Novus (New York), Tomorrow Music Orchestra (Chicago), and many solo artists from around the world. His first album, Arrow To The Sun, is available from Canzona Records as well as iTunes and CDBaby.

He has received his doctorate in music composition from Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. 

Download his teaching CV here for compete documentation of works and education.

His dissertation discussed his use of postmodern ideas as a compositional tool. Download the dissertation by clicking here.

PRESS INFO:

 

LiddellBioPic

 

GreenLightPatrick

Other works by Patrick Liddell:

A set of very early theatre-pieces, written in 1997 and 2001: 

Scavengers (click here to download video!)

for Trombone Quintet 

Scavengers - Reprise (click here to download video!)

for Clarinet Quartet, Trombone Quartet, Baritone Sax, and Tuba

and CLICK HERE to download the full score and instructions for both Scavengers and Reprise!



1/1/2003 | 7:03am | Patrick | liddell, bio, ontologist, information, contact | Direct Link