The Moon Lies Black Upon the Straits

(c) + (p) 2007, Alan Blattberg

An elegiac lament taken from the soundtrack to un cinéma imaginaire . . . documenting an exhausted and embittered patriarch's final midwinter days on his isolated homestead, set precariously along a treacherous rocky coastline.

The WLAZ is "played" as a traditional hammered dulcimer. This piece takes advantage of the instrument's naturally bright, crisp sound, which cuts beautifully through the murky drones and ever-present wind/rainsong. In a cheerier musical setting, this same instrument would sound airy and joyful. In this sonic context, the dulcimer conveys a somber, mournful tone... suitable accompaniment for the contemplation and realization of one man's mortality.

Straight rolls and press rolls are created in three different ways—via (i) long notes that have been chopped [in Cubase] into a string of short "one-hits" of varying lengths, (ii) keyswitched "release-triggered" notes, where discrete "one-hits" are sounded by the depressing and release of each key, and (iii) single sustained notes played on keyswitched "hits/rolls" instruments, which use the modwheel to control roll speed by adjusting how quickly WLAZ cycles through eight different samples mapped to the key being pressed. Each method yields a different, distinct roll sound. Through real-time manipulation of the modwheel and/or keyswitches, extremely expressive "live" playing is possible.

The dulcimer sounds are 100% out-of-the-box. No additional reverb or other processing was used. You hear only the WLAZ' natural resonance (which can be adjusted to taste, but which, as you can hear, sounds great even in its "default" form).