40 Cryptograms (2006)
A graphic score.
40 Cryptograms was composed for my friend and longtime collaborator Terry Longshore on the occasion of his fortieth birthday. A graphic score predating the more elaborately considered and meticulously construed pieces Medium and The Metaphysics of Notation, it was intended mainly as a work of visual art. The idea of performing it as a musical work was somewhat of a joke to me at the time. Two years later—with Medium—I no longer joked about this kind of thing. Today 40 Cryptograms looks very much like a musical score to me.
Experimental | Why Experimental?
The following video is an intriguing ensemble interpretation of 40 Cryptograms by the Southern Oregon University Percussion Ensemble.