Taut: Investigations into Contemporary Composition and Performance

The 14 composers on Taut were each asked to create a score for Ingrid Plum. Outside of the rigidity of western notation – which so often asserts the presence of one true interpretation – there is an important distinction between creating a score and writing a piece of music. The contribution of each composer begins and ends within the forms of language, shape, colour and material. They are instigators of opportunity, and in their manifestation through the voice, instruments and gestures of Ingrid Plum, they enact their power to be ambiguous in communication; to press against the edges of performance practicality; to question the limits and peculiarities of the body; to summon the intuition of live improvisation. It’s therefore crucial to note that this CD, which captures Ingrid’s performance of these scores at London’s IKLECTIK on March 11th 2018, is just one possible realisation of these pieces. No two performances of Taut could ever be the same.

This book contains interviews with the composers involved in Taut, along with a conversation with Ingrid about the process of bringing the scores to life. As well as uncovering the physical processes behind the creation of these scores (photocopier cut-ups, embroidery, painting, poetry, dissected philosophical text), these discussions dig into their conceptual origins: memories of coastal walks, private jokes, admiration for beautiful trees, an exploration of the oft-overlooked techniques of vocal muting. And given that all of these pieces were written for Ingrid personally, these conversations frequently touch upon the origination of these scores in the experiences shared between composer and performer, whose nuance regularly transcends the communicative potential of language, and for which the collaborative intimacy of the score might serve as the most apt means of articulation.

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