"Every
manifestation of life is accompanied by noise. Noise is therefore
familiar to our ears and has the power to remind us immediately
of life itself. Musical sound, a thing extraneous to life and independent
of it... has become to our ears what a too familiar face is to our
eyes" – Luigi Russolo
Luigi Russolo
and his assistant Ugo Piatti built one of the first mechanical orchestras,
the "intonarumori" (noise machines), 27 different types
of inters, each producing a unique sound in several folloies or
"families" of instruments, including "howlers,"
"exploders," "crumplers," "hissers,"
and "scrapers." In the 1920s, Russolo performed numerous
concerts with these outrageous instruments emitting their startling
sounds.
"Awakening
of A City" ("Risveglio
di una Citta") suggests a larger purpose, its arsenal of
noises, evoking the sounds of urban sirens and factory whistles,
is a call to awakening our ears to the dawning of a new music of
noise.
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