Roc Jiménez de Cisneros, half of the Barcelona-based post-rave sound-art duo EVOL, premieres Opus17aSlimeVariation#8—for computer and RGBM laser. The piece is a new deconstruction and reinterpretation of German conceptual artist Hanne Darboven’s legendary Opus 17a.

Hanne Darboven (1941-2009) worked with processes that could be described as generative because they were based on systems for manipulating numbers and making patterns. She often used calendar dates organized according to rules, displayed visually in grids drawn on paper that were arranged in larger grids. Her Opus 17a is derived from one such calendar-based artwork (Wunschkonzert, 1984), in which numbers are transcribed into notes.

EVOL’s approach to the original score focuses mainly on time manipulation. By playing around with note durations and repetitions, the grid of four-note patterns that make up Darboven’s piece becomes a very different sonic experience. EVOL’s version is both a tribute to the original as well as an experiment in distorted temporality.

Opus17aSlimeVariations is part of a series that began in 2014 and has been presented live and as an installation, using different sound materials each time. The project was first developed in collaboration with programmer Guy Birkin.

Roc Jiménez de Cisneros (b.1975, Barcelona) is an artist, composer and co-founder of the computer music project EVOL, which he started with Stephen Sharp in 1996. His work is a radical and playful exploration of algorithmic composition. Heavily influenced and inspired by cosmology, noise and rave culture, he describes his recordings, installations and performances as “computer music for hooligans.” His output has been released on labels such as Entr’acte, Presto!?, Mego, Fals.ch and ALKU, which he runs with Anna Ramos. He has performed extensively throughout the world. He lives and works in Barcelona.

Roc Jiménez de Cisneros premiered Tetralemma + Tetrafluoroethane for Lampo in October 2011.

Presented in partnership with the Graham Foundation