“Miel” was inspired by the vocal quality of the sound of Paetzold flute—a result of the close relationship between air pressure, tuning, and dynamics.
This vocality, evoking a sense of roundness, is embodied by two main instrumental figures: dynamic envelopes of long notes—from silence to broken distorted sound—and short downward glissandi produced by slowly covering the labium of Paetzold flute with the right hand. In contrast to these nearly human vocal gestures, the electronics embrace a mechanical component, mixing Paetzold sound with air motor noise to produce suffocated breathing machines.
The ensemble is composed of eight Paetzold instruments alongside a recorder quartet which plays as a single four-voice instrument—initially presented as a static background layer, then suddenly foregrounded as soloists.
2012