TOPOGRAPHY
‘Topography’ is a 45 minute, 6 movement septet for cello, percussion, analog synthesizer and piano, written for Ashley Bathgate and Mantra Percussion. It is the terrestrial companion piece to the aquatic album and composition, ‘Bathymetry’. It was premiered December 6, 2023 at National Sawdust in Brooklyn, and the premiere was featured in the New York Times, and broadcast in its entirety on WNYC’s New Sounds.
GROUNDSWELL
BATHYMETRY
Bathymetry
a new album for percussion and analog synthesizer
by Matt McBane with Sandbox Percussion
Vinyl, CD, Download and Streaming on Cantaloupe Music
‘Bathymetry’ is an album of music for percussion and analog synthesizer by composer, Matt McBane and Sandbox Percussion, released on Cantaloupe Music on November 4, 2022. It draws on various strains of classical minimalism and modern electronic music production, as well as youtube asmr and ambient modular synth videos. ‘Bathymetry’ is a 40 minute piece in 8 movements scored for a monophonic Moog analog synthesizer, a mix of found instruments (mixing bowl, glass bottles, etc), orchestral percussion (vibraphone, tam tam, etc), and drum sets. The word bathymetry essentially means the topography of the ocean floor, and the bass synthesizer sounds interact with the treble percussion sounds in a way reminiscent of how the ocean floor shapes the waves passing above. The album was composed and produced, and the synthesizer was performed by Matt McBane, the percussion was performed by Sandbox Percussion, and the album was recorded and mixed by Joseph Branciforte.
This album is the follow-up to Sandbox Percussion’s 2021 twice Grammy-nominated, and Pulitzer Prize finalist album with Andy Akiho, ‘Seven Pilars’.
Bathymetry Press
One of Wilco Recommends 2022 albums (thanks Wilco!)
Best Contemporary Classical of the Month on Bandcamp
“fascinating interplay both in the match of timbres and the way the synth reshapes some of the sounds … the real pleasure is getting lost in the details.” - Peter Margasak, Bandcamp
“a remarkable wonder” – Foxy Digitalis
“Bathymetry is a musical and sensory journey like no other that has been offered in contemporary music recently.”
“One of the most interesting albums of the year” – PAN M 360
“an electroacoustic tour de force” — Steve Smith, Night After Night
“his music, which pairs delicate textures with deep resonances, finds a depth like that of the ocean, painting an enthralling picture of the vast underwater world.” — Vanessa Ague, National Sawdust Flash Review
“phenomenal” – Relevant Tones (click to listen to whole podcast)
“McBane and Sandbox use monophonic Moog analog synthesizer, found instrument percussion (mixing bowls, ping pong balls, glass bottles), orchestral percussion and drum sets, drawing on minimalism and achieving something close to ambient music to evoke the mysterious underwater depths.” - John Schaefer, WNYC New Sounds
“halfway through the 40 minute duration, the track "Groundswell" completely won me over, and I rode a wave of enjoyment all the way to the end.” – Duncan Edwards, Brainwashed
“Editor’s Pick” - WNET All Arts
“Video of the Day” - Gramophone Magazine
Ride in ‘Conversations with Friends’ | Hulu/BBC
Drift
‘Submerge’ | Bearthoven
‘Uphill’ | Aizuri Quartet
'Well' | Build + Karlie Bruce
‘56’ | Build
‘within’ | Vicky Chow
Ride | Build | Video by Ana Veselic
Reveal | Wild Up | Christopher Roundtree, conductor
'For Triangles' video and single released!
Video of 'For Triangles,' beautifully performed by Los Angeles Percussion Quartet and beautifully shot by Four/Ten Media.
We have released the audio as a single which you can listen to and purchase on Bandcamp.
For Hi-Hats
'For Hi-Hats' was premiered July 2017 at the So Percussion Summer Institute by the awesome students Joe Berry, Sam Gohl, Clark Hubbard, and Christian Hughes. Above is the video of the premiere.
The defining feature of the hi-hat is the pedal opening and closing the two cymbals. This gives both the ability to control the resonance of the instrument and the duration of notes. In ‘For Hi-Hats’ I explore both of these abilities through the framework of simple arithmetic processes creating tightly choreographed rhythmic coordination between the four performers.
Click here to purchase a score of 'For Hi-Hats'
New single! "On and On and," a choral piece based on the writings on John Muir performed by Sacra/Profana, conducted by Krishan Oberoi.
Released 5/5/2015. Purchased or free download at bandcamp.
Premiered September 2014 at the Carlsbad Music Festival.
"a second hearing confirmed the strength and surprising emotional power of this piece. Although the terse John Muir text is little more than a koan, its mesmerizing repetitions suggest broader ontological significance." -Ken Hermann, San Diego Story
"Amazing piece" -Second Inversion
