Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Motility (1986)
Michael Horwood, harpischord
John Browell & Michael Hardwood, percussion
Motility is a two-channel stereo tape composition. The sound sources are harpsichord, two bass drums and two suspended cymbals. The original 1968-69 version used only one bass drum (L) and cymbal (R) plus the foreground harpsichord. In addition, that version lasted about five minutes longer.
The title, Motility, is a biological term referring to the motion of one-celled animal life (the amoeba, the paramecium, and other protozoa) in a hydrous environment. This is what the music is intended to depict, and it is, consequently, programmatic. Therefore, two ideas are essential to the work's content: the motion of uni-cellular animals and their water environment.
Motion is portrayed by the harpsichord in varying degrees of activity. It is the foreground and centre of focus just as one would see in a microscope while observing the life forms. The harpsichord part is an edited version of an extended solo improvisation. Some features developed during this improvisation include variation on one or a few motives, register, texture, accelerando, tone clusters, attack and decay. These features are further exploited and manipulated for the final mix. For example, the 'foreign' quality of this hidden world is conveyed by the simple yet impressive effects of combining forward and backward playback of the harpsichord part and channel shifting. Occasional pitch flutters are produced by intentionally bad tape splices wich allow the tape to 'catch' during playback.
The ever-present water environment is protrayed by the background percussion tracks. These parts consist of continuous rolls on all the instruments throughout the entire piece, varying only in volume. Each channel has a bass drum and cymbal. The cymbal tracks are played back at half speed and recorded independently.
Motility can be heard as an extension of those musics involving drones. Simply put, it combines static background (percussion) with active foreground (harpsichord). The music evolves slowly and culminates in a huge double climax near the end of the piece. Motiloty should be listened to with a moderately loud playback level. On less than adequate systems, the bass will need attenuation.
Finally, but not least, Motiloty is dedicated to William Thiele, the percussionist for the original version, and my other colleagues of that time, all of whom exhibited the good friendship and humour that was so much needed in those difficult years. --Michael Horwood
Original version & realisation - Bird Hard, State Univ. of NY at Buffalo, 1968-69.
1986 version - The Music Gallery, Toronto, Ontario, May 1986.
Art by Beatriz Morales
Motility (1986)
Michael Horwood, harpischord
John Browell & Michael Hardwood, percussion
Motility is a two-channel stereo tape composition. The sound sources are harpsichord, two bass drums and two suspended cymbals. The original 1968-69 version used only one bass drum (L) and cymbal (R) plus the foreground harpsichord. In addition, that version lasted about five minutes longer.
The title, Motility, is a biological term referring to the motion of one-celled animal life (the amoeba, the paramecium, and other protozoa) in a hydrous environment. This is what the music is intended to depict, and it is, consequently, programmatic. Therefore, two ideas are essential to the work's content: the motion of uni-cellular animals and their water environment.
Motion is portrayed by the harpsichord in varying degrees of activity. It is the foreground and centre of focus just as one would see in a microscope while observing the life forms. The harpsichord part is an edited version of an extended solo improvisation. Some features developed during this improvisation include variation on one or a few motives, register, texture, accelerando, tone clusters, attack and decay. These features are further exploited and manipulated for the final mix. For example, the 'foreign' quality of this hidden world is conveyed by the simple yet impressive effects of combining forward and backward playback of the harpsichord part and channel shifting. Occasional pitch flutters are produced by intentionally bad tape splices wich allow the tape to 'catch' during playback.
The ever-present water environment is protrayed by the background percussion tracks. These parts consist of continuous rolls on all the instruments throughout the entire piece, varying only in volume. Each channel has a bass drum and cymbal. The cymbal tracks are played back at half speed and recorded independently.
Motility can be heard as an extension of those musics involving drones. Simply put, it combines static background (percussion) with active foreground (harpsichord). The music evolves slowly and culminates in a huge double climax near the end of the piece. Motiloty should be listened to with a moderately loud playback level. On less than adequate systems, the bass will need attenuation.
Finally, but not least, Motiloty is dedicated to William Thiele, the percussionist for the original version, and my other colleagues of that time, all of whom exhibited the good friendship and humour that was so much needed in those difficult years. --Michael Horwood
Original version & realisation - Bird Hard, State Univ. of NY at Buffalo, 1968-69.
1986 version - The Music Gallery, Toronto, Ontario, May 1986.
Art by Beatriz Morales
