Inuksuit

(“…to act in the capacity of the human…”)

for nine to ninety-nine percussionists

commissioned by the Banff Centre, Muzik3 Foundation, and Furman University

©Taiga Press 2009

 for Steve and Brenda
in celebration of your marriage
and our friendship
Inuksuit
(…to act in the capacity of the human…)
“Once there was a little boy. And he went outside.” – Harry Partch

My music has always been rooted in the earth. Over the past thirty-five years I’ve composed many works inspired by the outdoors,
but heard indoors. Recently, after hearing Strange and Sacred Noise performed in the Anza-Borrego desert, the New England woods,
and the tundra of the Alaska Range, I’ve wanted to create a large-scale work conceived specifically to be performed outside.

Inuksuit is inspired by the stone sentinels constructed over the centuries by the Inuit in the windswept expanses of the Arctic. The
word “Inuksuit” translates literally: “to act in the capacity of the human”. This work is haunted by the vision of the melting of the
polar ice, the rising of the seas, and what may remain of humanity’s presence after the waters recede.

Inuksuit is a concert-length work for percussion, in which the performers are widely dispersed and move throughout a large, open
area. The listeners, too, may move around freely and discover their own individual listening points. This work is intended to expand
our awareness of the never-ending music of the world in which we live, transforming seemingly empty space into more fully
experienced place.

Each performance of Inuksuit is different, determined by the size of the ensemble, the specific instruments chosen, and by the
topology and vegetation of the site. There is no master score. Rather, this folio contains a collection of musical materials and
possibilities for musicians to use in creating a unique realization of the work.

Inuksuit invites exploration and discovery of the relationship between the music and the site, as well as the musicians’ interactions
with both. The musicians are encouraged to consider carefully the selection of instruments, the distribution of performers, and the
acoustical properties of the performance site.

The experience of preparing, performing and hearing Inuksuit may raise larger questions: What does it mean to act creatively with
and within our environment? Can we listen and hear more deeply the field of sound all around us? How does where we are define
what we do and, ultimately, who we are? And how do we understand the brevity of our human presence in the immensity of geologic
time?
INSTRUMENTATION

Inuksuit employs three Groups of instruments, and five types of musical materials: Breathing/Wind, Calls/Clangs, Inuksuit, Waves, and Birdsongs.

Each musician in Group 1 breathes audibly through a megaphone (a bullhorn, a microphone and portable speaker, horn or trumpet), plays a conch shell trumpet (Tibetan
trumpet, air horn, other horn or trumpet), an air raid siren (timpano, wind machine or water gong), a hand bell (medium suspended bell, chime, temple bell or Tibetan cymbals),
and a triangle (or small bell(s)).

Each musician in the Group 2 plays a snare drum, rubbed with brushes or rolled with light sticks (stones rubbed together, maracas, rattle, shaker, sandblocks, rice swirled inside
a single-headed drum, or other friction sounds), a sizzle cymbal, and an array of seven tom-toms and bass drum. (If fewer drums are available, the musicians should produce
eight distinctively different sounds from their drums.)

Each musician in the Group 3 plays a whirled plastic tube (blown corrugated metal tubing, bullroarer, or other Aeolian instrument), seven suspended cymbals, a tam-tam, and
orchestra bells (or crotales). (If fewer cymbals are available, the musicians should produce eight distinctively different sounds from their cymbals.)

The musicians are encouraged to select instruments carefully, to create varied and imaginative soundings of Inuksuit. A larger performance space will likely require lower-pitched
instruments and louder dynamic levels. A smaller space may encourage higher-pitched instruments and softer dynamics.
Inuksuit: Performance Notes page two

DISTRIBUTION OF MUSICIANS AND INSTRUMENTS

Inuksuit may be performed by as few as nine musicians (three musicians in each of the three groups of instruments) or as many as ninety-nine musicians (thirty-three in each
group), in multiples of three. The work may be performed in an open space of any size, in almost any outdoor location.

A larger number of musicians will likely require a larger space, although a lovely performance might be created with ninety-nine players in a relatively small space. A very
different but equally beautiful version of the piece might be realized with nine musicians in an expansive space.

Each musician in Inuksuit should be a solitary figure, a singular marker in the larger landscape of the music and the place. While playing at his or her own station, an individual
player will often be aware of other musicians. However, it’s likely there will be moments when she or he can hear no other player.

The musicians may be arrayed in concentric circles, with the instruments of Group 3 stationed nearest the center of the performance space, Group 2 in the second circle, and the
Group 1 defining the outermost circle.

Alternatively, all the musicians may be distributed in one large circle. Either way, the musicians should be distributed evenly around the performance space. The degrees of
separation are determined by dividing 360º by the number of players. (For example: In a performance with ninety-nine musicians, the players should be distributed about 3.64º
degrees apart. With nine musicians, they should be 40º apart.)

Musicians from each group should be stationed evenly around the performance circle(s). The distance from the center of the performance site to each station of an instrumental
group should be approximately equal, as the terrain permits.

Most of the instruments (except those for the Breathing and Wind figures) should be positioned at their stations in advance of the performance. All the musicians depart from a
central location.

THE SITE

Inspired by the open landscapes of the high Arctic, Inuksuit may be performed in almost any outdoor setting, from mountains to plains, from to forest to desert, from remote
wilderness to city park. This piece is not intended for performance indoors.

Inuksuit is a site-determined work. In each setting the instrumentation, the number of performers, the specific moment-to-moment events, and the performance duration will be
different. This folio provides the musical materials and guidelines for discovering the work within each site.

DEFINING THE SPACE

One of the primary tasks of preparing Inuksuit is to define the physical boundaries of the performance space. Some locations – such as mountain cirques, box canyons or seaside
cliffs – will present clear visual and aural boundaries. Other locations, such as tundra, desert, or grassy plains may be more difficult to define. Sound will travel greater or lesser
distances depending on the wind speed, humidity, barometric pressure and other aspects of the weather. In some sites, elevation and/or vegetation may influence the staging of
the performance even more than distance.
Inuksuit: Performance Notes page three

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS (Outlined in the Event Map)

MUSICIANS OF GROUP 1 – As you move out from the center toward your outermost performance stations, stop at nine roughly equidistant locations along the way. At each of
these locations, perform one Breathing figure. You may vocalize (with sounds such as “shhhhhh” “aaaaaah” or “oooooh”, or very breathy whistling) on the edge of tone. You may
also turn as you perform, perhaps raising and lowering your Breathing instrument. The first Breathing figures will likely be audible to all musicians and listeners. But as the
players diverge, individual Breathing figures will likely not remain audible to everyone.

As you arrive at your outermost station (following completion of the final Breathing figure), begin playing Calls on conch shell trumpet (or Tibetan trumpet, air horn, other
trumpet or horn). After you have played the Call figures once in order, you may play any or all of them again, in any order. Following the Calls, begin playing Waves on siren
(timpano, wind machine or water gong), and continue playing those figures until it seems that all musicians are playing Waves.

After completing the Waves, begin playing Signals on hand bell (suspended bell, chime, temple bell or Tibetan cymbals). As with the Calls, after you have played your Signals
once in order, you may play them again, in any order. After completing the Signals, pick up your triangle (or small bell(s)) and begin playing the final Wind figures, moving from
station to station, back toward the center of the performance space.

MUSICIANS OF GROUP 2 – Listen to the Breathing figures for a few minutes, then –carrying your stones (maracas, sandpaper, or other friction instruments)– begin to move from
the center toward your outermost performance station. Along the way, stop at nine roughly equidistant locations, playing one Wind figure at each location. Marching snare drums
may be utilized to allow performance of the Wind figures at different locations. If playing your Wind figures on a stationary snare drum, your drum should be stationed
approximately halfway between the center of the performance space and your outermost performance station.

As you arrive at your outermost station, begin playing Inuksuit figures (rising) on 7 tom-toms and bass drum.

After hearing the Wave figures from the sirens (timpani, wind machines or water gongs), you may move to Waves figures. Continue playing Waves until you hear the musicians
of Group 1 beginning to play Signals on their hand bells (suspended bells, chimes, temple bells or Tibetan cymbals).

Then you may return to playing Inuksuit figures (in descending order). After playing your last Inuksuit line, move to sizzle cymbal and begin playing your final Wind figures.

MUSICIANS OF GROUP 3 – Listen to the Breathing and friction sounds for several minutes, then –carrying your whirled tube (blown tube, bullroarer, bullhorn, mic and speaker,
or other Aeolian instrument)– move out from the center toward your outermost performance station. Stop at nine roughly equidistant locations along the way. At each location,
play one Wind figure.

When you arrive at your outermost performance station, begin playing Inuksuit figures (rising) on 7 suspended cymbals and tam-tam.

After hearing the first Waves figures from the drums, you may move to your Waves figures.

Following the conclusion of your Waves, return to playing Inuksuit figures (in descending order) on suspended cymbals and tam-tam. After playing the last Inuksuit staff, move
to orchestra bells and begin playing your Birdsong figures.

ALL MUSICIANS - At the beginning and end of the performance, there may be relatively long rests between composed sounds. In these pauses, the music of the place becomes
part of Inuksuit, which in turn becomes part of the continuing music of the place. When you have finished playing, you may remain at your final location, or walk and listen for as
long as you like.

A performance of Inuksuit may last 70 minutes or more. The piece is over when the last Birdsong phrase has been played.
 Inuksuit: Event Map

GROUP 1 Breathing Calls Waves Clangs Wind

through megaphone conch shell trumpet siren handbell triangle

(bullhorn, (Tibetan trumpet, (timpano, (suspended bell, chime, (or small bell(s))
microphone, airhorn, plastic horn, wind machine temple bell,
trumpet, or horn) other horn or trumpet) (or water gong) or Tibetan cymbals)

|________________|_____________________|___________________|_____________________|_______________…..

GROUP 2 Wind Inuksuit (rising) Waves Inuksuit (falling) Wind

rubbed stones tom-toms tom-toms tom-toms sizzle cymbal

(maracas, rattles, and bass drum and bass drum and bass drum
shakers, sandblocks,
rice in drum, or
other friction sounds)
|________________|___________________|_____________________|___________________|______________…..

GROUP 3 Wind Inuksuit (rising) Waves Inuksuit (falling) Birdsongs

whirled tubes suspended cymbals suspended cymbals suspended cymbals orchestra bells
(blown tubes, and tam-tam and tam-tam and tam-tam (with optional
bullroarer, piccolo parts)
or other Aeolian
instruments)

|________________|____________________|_____________________|__________________|______________…..

TIMELINE 00:00 ca. 10:00 ca. 28:00 ca. 46:00 ca. 64:00 ca. 74:00

|_________________|____________________|____________________|_____________________|________________________…..
Inuksuit: Performance Notes page four

PARTS AND NOTATION

Each musician in Groups 2 and 3 selects her or his own Inuksuit figure from the pages provided. (There are 66 Inuksuit pages – 33 each for Group 2 (Drums) and Group 3
(Metal)). The blank spaces on these pages indicate silence (roughly proportional to the durations of the written notes). Each Inuksuit figure is to be played by a single musician.
No two musicians may play the same Inuksuit figure.

Initially, Inuksuit figures are played from the bottom up, with the lower staff played alone. The Inuksuit are repeated, with the bottom two staves in play, and so on, until all
eight staves are in play. As more staves are added, there may be more notes than can be performed simultaneously by one person. What to play and what to leave out is the
decision of the musician, but priority should be given to the most recently added staves.

After the Waves figures have been played, the Inuksuit figures are played again, in reverse order. Beginning with all eight staves, a staff is deleted with each repetition of the
Inuksuit, until the lower staff is played alone.

The musicians of Group 3 select Birdsongs from the pages provided. The white space between the Birdsong figures indicates silence (roughly proportional to the durations of the
written notes).

More than one musician may play the same Birdsong part. Figures chosen should be those of birds that occur at the performance site. At present, only North American birds are
included. For performances on other continents, transcriptions of the music of local songbirds should be added. Performers may make their own transcriptions, or get in touch
with me and I will make them.

This folio also includes optional Birdsong parts for piccolos (in multiples of three).

TEMPO

Except where otherwise noted, the underlying tempo of Inuksuit is slow, in the range of Quarter Note = 40 to 60. The appropriate tempos will be determined by the size of the
ensemble, the acoustics of the instruments and the performance site. Each musician should be a solitary figure, sounding their own independent time and location, within the
larger field of sound. There should be no conductor. However, it may be helpful for one or more people to help coordinate logistics and the overall sequence of events.

DYNAMICS

No dynamic markings are included in the written parts. The dynamic levels of a performance will be determined by the acoustic characteristics the instruments and the site, and
by the number of musicians. Ideally, any two players who are separated by the greatest distance should barely be able to hear one another when the other is not playing.

REHEARSAL

Although a performance of Inuksuit is in some respects indeterminate and unpredictable, rehearsal and performance of the piece is a rigorous process that can require several
days of work at the site. Rehearsal and performance may require topographic maps, GPS units, two-way radios, cellular telephones, backpacks, tents and camping gear, off-road
vehicles and other such tools.
Inuksuit: Performance Notes page five

The performance site should be treated with utmost care and respect. Unlike the stone sentinels of the Arctic, the Inuksuit of this piece are made only of time and air. Once they
have been sounded, they disappear. Inuksuit be a powerful, memorable, but ephemeral experience. When the performance has ended, there should be no physical trace that it
ever took place.

AUDIO and VIDEO

In a large performance site, amplification may be used to augment the ambient sound levels of the performance. Microphones may be directed toward the perimeter of the site
and plugged into portable amplifiers facing toward the center.

Audio and visual recordings may be made from the center of the site, at the individual performance stations, and in various other locations. These sounds and images may be
mixed to create a composite of the entire performance. This mix may be fed to a central location, so that people who are unable or disinclined to traverse the entire field of
performance can hear and see the work from a “global” perspective.

THE LISTENER

There is no preferred listening point from which to hear Inuksuit, no “best seat in the house”. Rather, every listening point is potentially the best seat. The listener is encouraged
to participate actively in shaping his or her own experience, by finding their own individual listening point, or by changing locations throughout the performance.

One listener may choose to root himself in a central location for the entire performance, listening as the music gradually expands within the performance site. Another listener
may choose to follow the path of a single performer. In doing so, the listener will experience a wide range of aural perspectives, from the monumental presence of the nearby, to
barely-audible sounds in the distance. Yet another listener may choose to wander freely throughout the performance, following wherever his ears may lead him, discovering
musical moments and spaces that no other listener may ever hear.

–John Luther Adams