Sarah:
"So were you involved in the music translations as well?"
Dr. Neruda:
"Yes. I helped in the initial discovery of their musical notation and helped with the translation indexes. I wasn't involved in its production phase, though I was very curious as to what it would sound like."
Sarah:
"Can I hear any of these compositions?"
Dr. Neruda:
"Yes, of course. When I left, the ACIO had successfully translated ten of the twenty-three music compositions. I have these. And they've been converted to both CD and cassette standards. I also have complete files of the remaining thirteen compositions in their raw, de-constructed form."
Sarah:
"How were they produced exactly?"
Dr. Neruda:
"Do you mean that technically or artistically?"
Sarah:
"I guess both."
Dr. Neruda:
"On the technical end we needed to step their samples down to a resolution of 384-bit in order to use them in our computer systems. When we first heard the samples of instrumentation, we were somewhat relieved to hear familiar sounds. There were some that were different, but for the most part, the digital samples that were encoded on the optical disc were the same as contemporary musical instruments heard around the world.
"Once we had captured their samples and organized them into octaves, we took their compositional notations and essentially let the computer select the digital instrumentation based on their samples. Eventually this all had to be stepped down to a 24-bit commercial CD mastering system, which was them pressed on a CD and recorded onto a cassette tape.
"As for the artistic production, there really wasn't much that we did. The computers did all the interpretative work and essentially performed the production for that matter. We had some of our staff perform overdubs on various versions to experiment with the compositions. The music was very popular, particularly when you listened to it at a sampling resolution of 384-bit."
Sarah:
"Didn't anyone wonder why the time capsule included a musical construction kit instead of just having a recording of the music? I mean, why have us bring an artistic interpretation to their music?"
Dr. Neruda:
"Everything was wondered about in the Ancient Arrow project. Everything.
"We didn't know why they did it the way they did it, but again our hypothesis was that the WingMakers didn't have a way to bring their music into our world because we lacked the technology to listen to it. So they disassembled their music into - as you put it - a construction kit, which enabled us to reconstruct the music so it could be listened to on our technology. It's the most logical reason.
"There were several of us who were able to experience chambers one and two as a completely integrated form of expression and it was a very powerful experience... to say the least. When you hear the music in 384-bit resolution with the original paintings, standing inside the actual chamber in which they were placed, it is a very moving and spiritual experience. Unlike any I've ever had."
Sarah:
"In what way?"
Dr. Neruda:
"Just that the sense of being pulled out of your body and into the portal of the painting is irresistible. There is a very strong sense of movement into and beyond these paintings, and the music and paintings are only two of the art forms, the third, the poetry is also part of the experience."
(Excerpt from the second interview Dr.Neruda)
