Ear Harps

ash ear harp

oak ear harp

Well the Aussie fight back didn't amount to enough and a lovely victory for England.  In the meantime I have been making ear harps, strange wooden things that are strung in a branch of a tree and a hollow ear trumpet is inserted into the branch, when one plays the strings and puts the trumpet to ones ear so the sound is amplified, and the beautiful sounds of the strings are heard.

Here are pictures of Louise Baker and myself enjoying the aforementioned sounds.  More of these to make over the ensuing days days before the bronze etching begins.

Harp in Tree

So the aussies are fighting back and I have been in the studio creating a piece for Heydon Wood to go with the aeolian harp and camera obscura.
This one see a rectangle of larch cut from a larch tree that is soon to be felled.  The rectangle of wood gave me the opportunity to create another musical instrument that will sit inside the tree, a handle in place to pull it out and play it.
It has an oak plectrum for playing it either in situ or taken and strolled around the wood.

Later in the week I will be making ear trumpets that will be drilled and set into the larch trees so the trees can be listen too.

A Performance In A Cave In Somerset

With the help of Ignite Somerset and more particulary Richard Tomlinson
I will be recording me playing my sound instruments in various unusual locations around Somerset.
For the first one created at Banwell Bone Cave (Many thanks to all concerned there) is now on You Tube at this site:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoUNcP5e4MM
Please leave comments.

Trowbridge Slate Diamonds

I have now had delivery of all the slate diamonds from Delabole, they have sand blasted my designs into their very fine slate.

These are to be set into five special houses on the new estate in Trowbridge.  I am now to start the bronze beer caps for the trail around the estate, all looking good.

There is one design set in the middle with a blank either side.  They are 440mm x 270mm.

The First FAIRFAX:GREEN gig at the First Johnny Doo Salon Sessions

FAIRFAX:GREEN

Perform live for the first time at the Johnny Doo Salon Sessions.
A new venue for Somerset, and boy does it need one, so a big hurrah for
Johnny Doo.
In Broadway near Ilminster a barn converted into a venue,  MuffinWood has created for the event an 8 metre long instrument he calls the 'electric fence', a length of wire with attached piezo mics, magnets and speakers, covered in silver foil and LED's, it produced a sonic note around C major with the ability to be caressed, bent, struck, bowed et al. So that is how the evening started to a selected audience feasting on fine soup and bread and copious amounts of tea.  The drone droned and then a surprise to the evening and Rosie May Giblett, a young singer songwriter sang three songs of extraordinary beauty, a voice drenched in honey and someone to check out on her soundcloud/rosie-may and her bandcamp: rosiemaymusic.bandcamp.com

Rupert and I dressed in black walked to the stage a fair few nerves running, but a confidence in what we do.  We started and for 38 minutes the whole barn was filled with our evocative music, bringing images to the imagination, a journey deep, deep into the subconscious of the listener.
Sara made notes in a book I have reproduced here.

The gig was a resounding success, the BulBul Tarang perform well, and Rupert and I are now certain we are onto something here, we need to take it on..This performance will be on my soundcloud:  https://soundcloud.com/michael-fairfax

BulBul Tarang

One day I was reading the 'Wire' and it mentioned that 'Ashley Paul' had become interested in Bul Bul Tarang's, I am sure you can imagine I needed to know what one of those was instantly, so with the joy of an ipad and internet connection soon I was feasting my eyes on these fantastic looking instruments, made from typewriter keys and a set of strings.  As I love making my own instruments I really had to make one of these, in my own fashion of course.  Not knowing remotely the mechanics of playing I went about disembowelling an old portable typewriter and fashioning a method of movement for the keys, as the typewriter mechanism isn't right for the BulBul!   In these ensuing weeks I have had as much pleasure as a man can have creating this instrument, and today I finished it, plug it in to an amp and droned away, pressing keys, creating rhythmic drones. fantastic fun and now I will be able to play this instrument at the gig on the 16th June near Ilminster, It makes huge sense for you all to be there too!  See flyer below.

Perforated Bowl

The "Perforated Bowl'  my first contribution to the 'cabinet of curiosities' for the Isle of Scilly Camera Obscura project.
I visited Scilly a couple of weeks ago to see the state of play with the camera obscura project that Andrew and Be Combes are building on St Mary's.
I have been commissioned to create a number of pieces for the old windmill that will soon be the camera obscura.
Andrew and Be intend not only to create a fabulous viewing area inside the old windmill but also to create a gallery of curiosities within the interior.
You can find out more about the project by visiting their Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/scillycameraobscura

The perforated bowl is a gift for a couple, when the relationship is over the bowl must be 'torn' along the perforations and each partner has a half.

I have also designed three of the windows with optical structures these will be completed over the next few months.

Great fun and a wonderful opportunity.

Many thanks to Andrew and Be Combes for their vision and blooming hard work