Selected Drift in Dream Stasis
A durationless ensemble work for deep winter, unfolding through sustained drone, intuition, and collective listening.
First Presentation:
January 17, 2020, Chapel Performance Space, Seattle, WA, USA
Credits:
- Performed by Dhikr al-Fanā’ Time Communion
- Joey Largent — voice, shehnai, composition
- Jocelyn Beausire — voice
- Katrina Wolfe — Riley/Leedy Miraj tambura
- Noel Kennon — viola, voice
- John Teske — double bass
- Sasha Leon — sheng, drone voice
- Kyle Griesmeyer — sheng, drone voice
- Zack Wait — just intonation reed horns, shehnai, drone voice
- Brendan McGovern — just intonation reed horns
- Sam Tullman — shruti box, drone voice
- Danielle Quenell — shruti box, drone voice
- Russell Christenson — harmonium, drone voice
- Joe Iano — photography
- Robb Kunz — live recording and sound
- Taehyung Kim — producer
Selected Drift in Dream Stasis is a long-form, durationless ensemble work composed for deep winter in honor of Pandit Pran Nath (1918–1996). The piece unfolds through a single, continuous drone that expands and contracts organically, guided by performer intuition rather than fixed time.
The work blends just intonation with equal temperament, weaving pure intervals, harmonic beating, and sustained breath into a shared sonic body. Although the music appears minimal on the surface, it functions equally as a physical and meditative practice, integrating awareness of breath, posture, and sensation alongside sound.
There is no prescribed duration. The piece may last anywhere from thirty minutes to several hours, shaped by collective energy rather than clock time. Performers enter and exit gently, allowing form to emerge through listening, patience, and internal pacing rather than instruction.
Selected Drift in Dream Stasis continues an ongoing investigation into accessibility and collectivity. The ensemble includes artists with varying degrees of musical training, emphasizing feeling, intuition, and presence over technical precision. The goal is not individual expression, but the formation of a unified, living drone — a shared state where sound, body, and attention slowly dissolve into stillness.
