For her Junior Recital in Oberlin’s TIMARA department, Fae Ordaz created a custom instrument inspired by spinning music boxes, marionette dolls, and the fairy tale The Red Shoes. Drawing from her exposure to her mother’s violin repair background as well as her recent experience in a TIMARA Music and Machines course with Steven Kemper and a woodworking sculpture course, Fae constructed an instrument with a focus on both sonic and visual expression.
Her inspiration and building process came from a mixture of harps, dulcimers, and fiber spinning wheels as she explored the intersection of movement and sound. The instrument utilized an antique sewing treadle to control the spinning and numerous cords, wire types, and finger picking to activate the sound.
Using a variety of condenser and contact microphones as well as electronic processing Fae was able to bring the instrument to life in a variety of ways for the various pieces in her performance.
