what a loop has to say

[Dennis Montgomery <morpheus@speakeasy.net>]

Hi all,

  I've been doing a lot of looping this year since I went stereo with a 
2nd EDP+.  I'm on one of my existential 'why do we loop' trips again.  
This time though, I'm not asking 'why we loop' but 'what are we trying 
to say' when we create a looping piece?  My recent looping pieces seem 
to be defined by the texture of the sound I put into them.  The texture 
determines the mood.  After I build it up then I'll try to contrast it 
with a new loop.  After building that up, I'll return to the initial 
loop like a theme restatement thing.  The whole process though is very 
abstract, the meaning is defined and always shifting with whatever happy 
accidents occur in the loop itself.

  How are others doing this?  Before you start building a loop, do you 
have a preconceived idea of what the loop should express or do you just 
let the sound of the loop guide you?  Those out there who perform for an 
audience, do you ever introduce a loop like, "this is a loop about <my 
dog><France><groundhog day><whatever>"?  One of the exciting things I'm 
finding about looping is it's a whole new musical form of communication 
with a new language of techniques and a new way of saying things. 

Dennis