When the whole planet full of sounds is yours to draw from to make experimental music, where do you begin? Since 2001, Burlington-based musician Greg Davis has taken on that challenge and filled nearly three dozen albums with his tech-focused music.
Armed with a Master's degree in composition and years of studying classical and jazz, Davis has manipulated all kinds of natural and computer-generated sound to create his "laptop folk" and has recorded on several different labels, like Carpark, Kranky, Important, Room40, Software and more.
As a long-time composer, performer and promoter, Davis is also sharing his vast knowledge of the genre by teaching a new course offering at Champlain College on experimental music.
Recently, Davis sat down with VPR to talk about his music and a new listening series in Burlington.
"Electronic music has the possibility to include all sounds in the universe," Davis said. " ... Working with a computer ... you have the capability to bring in field recordings or the sound of rain or the record someone playing a cello and work with that. You have the possibility to work with anything."
Davis is also curator of a new listening series titled Signals, along with the Burlington-based digital audio effects firm Soundtoys. These recital-style concerts invite a seated audience to listen to a performer explore his or her own "sound world," as Davis calls it, and each show is followed up by a Q&A to help demystify the genre.
As for his own inspirations and tastes, Davis said, "I love all music. I've had a deep love and passion for all music since I was a kid ... and I like challenging myself and listening to stuff that I might not like at first but has really opened me up and kind of expanded my boundaries of what music is or what sound is."
Generally, I'm interested in the idea of listening without prejudice, being present as a listener; enjoying the act of listening as fully and completely in the moment as I can and try not to cloud it with ideas or prejudices. - Burlington experimental musician, Greg Davis
"Generally, I'm interested in the idea of listening without prejudice, being present as a listener; enjoying the act of listening as fully and completely in the moment as I can and try not to cloud it with ideas or prejudices... and just enjoy the sounds for what they are ... and that's difficult because we all make associations based on our experiences and our life and our culture."
Davis said some of the best experiences he's had with music have been moments when he was "completely present and focused and time just dissolved" and he said he has been striving to cultivate that since.
The next concert in the Signals series is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 3 with Norm Chambers. The series runs through next year at the Hood Plant on King Street in Burlington.
