String and Tins Release Final Instalment of "Stills 03" Release Series

Jun. 26, 2023

Sound design and music company, String and Tins, today unveil the third and final instalment of their innovative "Stills" project. The release series tasks composers and sound designers with creating a piece of music in response to a self-selected artwork exhibited in London’s Tate Britain Gallery, presenting each composer with an opening premise; if each respective artwork represented a still from a scene, what would the score sound like?  

The release of ‘Stills 03’ brings the series to a compelling conclusion, with three unique scores that enrich the expansive identity of ‘Stills’. String and Tins composers Will Cohen, Jim Stewart and Simon Whiteside have taken part in this iteration, with Cohen making his debut appearance. 

Stills 03 focuses on landscape paintings, interpreting prominent works by Victorian animal painter Briton Rivière, English figure and landscape painter Christopher R. W. Nevinson, and the German-born St Ives school artist Paul Feiler. 

Through dynamic movements of expressive symphonic minimalism, enhanced by intricate, immersive sound design, the composers of ‘Stills 03’ create new, original responses to Rivière’s arctic landscapes, Nevinson’s angular early modernist skylines, and the 1950s-era non-figurative brushwork of Feiler, which in this case is strongly reminiscent of a weathered Cornish coastline.  

As with the previous instalments in the series, "Stills 03" adeptly reconciles classical instrumentation - strings, woodwind, brass, piano - with contemporary sound design. Yet where "Stills 01" experimented with digital processing, violin ensembles and choral elements, and ‘Stills 02’ mirrored the execution of film soundtrack composers, "Stills 03" embraces the use of granular effects, field recordings, free dissonance and more.

 

From Will Cohen’s subtle overture of resonant drone and gracefully surging strings, through the soothing Sakamoto-esque piano and Reichian cycles of Jim Stewart’s score, to the abrasive orchestral disorder of Simon Whiteside’s contribution, "Stills 03" expands upon the vivid, contemplative signature and myriad ideas of the ‘Stills’ series, memorably reflecting the artistic craft and atmospheric power of each chosen painting. 

"Stills 03" represents an exceptional final dialogue between esteemed artworks, evocative neo-classical music, and elaborate sound design; a fitting coda to an inventive series which has forged imaginative new connections between art, music, and inspiration. 

Mike Bamford, Founding Partner, String and Tins said: 

"Whilst the whole String and Tins team is incredibly musical, we've not all had a "classical training". The STILLS project has allowed us to collaborate as a team and push one-another to produce cinematic music that we wouldn't necessarily be capable of as individuals. We're so proud of these three EPs and will be releasing a limited edition vinyl album at the end of the year."

 

Tracklist: 

• Will Cohen – Beyond Man’s Footsteps 
• Jim Stewart – The Soul of The Soulless City 
• Simon Whiteside – Morvah  

"Stills 03" is out on the 23rd June 2023 via String and Tins Recordings, available to stream & download. EP art by Camille Rousseau. From "Watch The Music", La Collection Dessinee. 

Stream the EP here:

Also via Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, Tidal, Amazon Music