this piece for piano and electronics is the second work in paraskevaídis’s official catalog, the first being magma i for nine brass instruments. composed in buenos aires after her time at the centro latinoamericano de altos estudios musicales, the work is written to be performed alongside a tape that each performer must create. this track consists of a pre-recorded version of the piece that must be played in reverse during the performance.

subliminal i is part of paraskevaídis’s extremely limited mixed-media output. she composed only three such works during a brief period spanning from 1967 to 1969: subliminal i (1967); combinatoria ii (1968) for piano, trombone, percussion, and tape; and aphorismen (1969) for two actors, percussion, piano, and tape. it was possible to reconstruct the tape for subliminal i (which had been in limbo and presumed lost for a long time) through a meticulous reading of the score. on this album, it can be heard for the first time following this reconstruction. as for combinatoria ii, its tape was recently recovered at the laboratorio de investigación y producción musical (lipm) in buenos aires. this piece will be recorded for upcoming volumes of this collection. finally, regarding aphorismen, the tape remains lost; a search will soon start in the archives of freiburg im breisgau, where the work was composed.

the effect of the electronics in subliminal i, as with any recording played in reverse, is that the sound begins with the decay and ends with the attack. on the piano, this is particularly noticeable due to the specific mechanics of the instrument, where the attack of a sounded note always constitutes its peak of intensity. by having the reversed version, one hears crescendi on the piano—something impossible to achieve without manipulation. the work as a whole becomes a dialogue between a piano sounding 'traditionally' and one moving 'against the grain.'

the score notates nothing more than pitches, dynamics, and durations in seconds. the absence of rhythmic notation means that the timeline in seconds running throughout the score serves as the sole means of coordinating the piano and the tape, thus liberating the rhythmic aspect and granting a certain flexibility in performance. the tape is triggered approximately ten seconds after the piano part begins, and consequently, it ends roughly ten seconds after the piano's final note.

despite being an early work, this piece already exhibits several elements that would become characteristic of her entire output. firstly, we can point to her treatment of the instrument: the register is restricted to its extreme high and low ends, with the exception of a single note in the middle register. this note is heard at 0’52’’ in its reversed version and at 2’06’’ in its original form.

this particular use of the instrument's register remains a constant throughout her oeuvre, as will become evident across the three volumes of this edition. another stylistic hallmark of the composer is a certain stasis in the musical events. even with this dialogue—where at times it is unclear whether the sound source is the piano or the tape—the writing aims for a non-virtuosic stillness, which is also one of the most prominent aesthetic choices in her work. finally, there is a brief moment of violent explosion (at 1’00’’ on the tape and 2’02’’ on the piano). these explosions are part of a visceral quality that will be encountered both on this album and in the subsequent ones.

we share now the single versions

subliminal i

subliminal i - solo piano

subliminal i - tape