SOUNDSCAPES is an open source music initiative curated by Claudio Marzano (BNL MTL) and Scott Clyke (Montreal Mirror, Red Bull Music Academy) as part of La Biennale de Montréal 2009.

The goal of this 3-step project is to generate an indefinite number of musical compositions from common source material over the course of one year (from May 2008 to May 2009).

Step 1. Canadian pianist, composer and arranger David Ryshpan composed a soundtrack for Rick Leong’s painting entitled Dancing Serpent in Dawn’s Quiet (2006), a recent addition to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts’ Permanent Collection.

Step 2. A wide range of musicians, DJs and producers across Canada and the world will be invited to remix/reinterpret the original score which will be posted on this page for anyone to download and remix freely.

Step 3. A selection of the collected compositions will be featured on a limited-edition recording which will also include the original source material to encourage future remixes. The compilation will be released during an evening of live performances that will take place in May of 2009. All material created and produced for the OPEN MUSIC project will be released under a Creative Commons Attribution - Noncommercial - Share Alike 2.5 license (http://www.creativecommons.org).

To participate, email music@biennalemontreal.org

Rick Leong
Dancing Serpent in Dawn’s Quiet
2006
Oil on canvas
183 x 244 cm / 6’ x 8’
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Collection

David Ryshpan
Dancing Serpent In Dawn’s Quiet
2008
Mario Allard - alto saxophone & flute
Ben Henriques - soprano & tenor saxophones
Gary Schwartz - guitar
David Ryshpan - piano
Scott Kingsley - double bass
Philippe Melanson - drums
Engineered & mixed by Andrew Mullin. Assistant engineer: Nick Squire