for Flute and Flute Playing Machine

The Flute Playing Machine, built in 1979-1982, was Martin Riches' first automatic music machine. In 1982 Schaun Tozer read an article about it by Jasia Reichardt in a London art magazine. He then wrote All Change without having seen or heard the machine; nevertheless, it is a frequently performed work. The most important parameters including tempo („as fast as possible“) and the number of repetitions of the individual sections, were determined by the flute player Eberhard Blum. The machine part was then realised as a graphic music roll. Since there is no human rapport between the live player and the machine, a significant channel of communication between them is a pair of warning LEDs on the music stand. Over the years the piece has been performed by three other flute players: Natalia Pshenichnikova, Kinowaki Dogen and Lesley Olson.

All Change music roll
All Change music roll,
felt-tip pen on Ultraphan film,
15 cm wide and about 70 metres long.

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