SEQUENCIA: The Music from DNA

Announcing the release on CD of SEQUENCIA, music composed by Susan Alexjander, in partnership with biologist David Deamer.

All the compositions on this CD are derived from the molecular vibrations of DNA, adjusted to the registers of the human ear.

In SEQUENCIA, raw data derived from the light absorption spectra of the four bases (adenine, cytosine, thymine, guanine) that make up the DNA molecule are converted into audible frequencies. These are processed by a Macintosh computer and performed by a music synthesizer, and are arranged into four pitch collections, or "scales", based on the individual base molecules. The synthesized material, mixed with vocals, cello, tabla, and violin, become the palettes for Alexjander's compositions, which range from somber and minimal to improvisational.

The SEQUENCIA CD, released by Science & the Arts as part of their Logos Series, which explores processes in the natural world, contains 3 works by Alexjander based on DNA: Eikos, Sequencia, and Pataphysical Thymine. The performers include Susan Alexjander, synthesizer; Don Lax and Wendy Reid, violins; Karen Andrie, cello; Diana Nieves, voice; Andrew McLester, tabla; William Trimble, alto saxophone.

Susan Alexjander is a San Francisco Bay Area composer, performer, teacher, and radio broadcaster. She has taught courses and seminars on the physics and metaphysics of sound and music for over ten years. Currently Ms Alexjander is gathering material on the geometry and patterns in the mineral domain for her second Logos Series CD. SEQUENCIA has appeared internationally on radio, CNN, and has been used as art music for dance.

For more information about this very unusual recording, contact:

Science and the Arts, PO Box 8162, Berkeley CA 94707

(CD $15, cassette $10. Add $2 for postage & handling.)