About Terasonic / Nicholas Hender, and the Music

Terasonic was established in the year 2000, by me, Nicholas Hender, as a means of publicising my compositional work.

Prior to founding Terasonic, I studied at La Trobe University, Australia, within a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Music, specialising in Computer Music, Synthesis, and Composition. I completed these studies in 1997, achieving First Class Honours with the thesis titled Tuning Systems Derived from Timbre, and Timbres Derived from Tuning Systems, as Realised in Electronic Music (1.07MB ZIP file). In 2002, I completed my Graduate Diploma in Education (Secondary), specialising in the teaching methods of Music and Physics, at Monash University, Australia. In 2004, some of my work was accepted to be represented in the collection of the Australian Music Centre.

Like many composers, I prefer that my music is not categorised. This is for the sake of avoiding being "pigeon holed" as a composer who works in only a single style. If my music must be categorised, I like to be experimental, in that I prefer discovering the world of what music can be, rather than only the world of what music already is. I attempt to achieve this by focusing on often neglected compositional concepts such as tuning and timbre, and to an extent, rhythmic texture. The methods by which most of my music has been constructed is inspired by a range of 20th Century compositional techniques, mainly including Minimalism (in terms of the processes by which materials are organised and developed) and Serialism (in terms of the numerical means by which pitch, rhythm, texture, and form are realised). As I continue to compose, I'm also tending strongly towards algorithmic and stochastic methods of melodic and rhythmic construction.

Not all of my work is experimental. Occasionally, I have attempted to incorporate a level of Experimentalism into conventional music, in order to provide works that are accessible to the average listener, yet still interesting to a more broad-minded audience. I have also made music that is quite conventional, or of a given existing genre. Regardless of style, I always learn more about Music by exploring the varied intricacies of its construction.

My work up to 1998 was done as a student. My earliest works (from the early 90s) usually attempted to reference subjective perceptions of, and responses to, experienced events, but achieved this to only a superficial degree, and are the result of being (quite forgivably) an ignorant novice who thought such references were necessary.

Much of the music I've made since about 1995 is intentionally non-programmatic; it's not meant to depict images or feelings, and has very little literal meaning. Hence, the aim of most of my music is not to deliberately represent, symbolise, or be associated with, anything beyond the nature of its construction. To me, the majority of my works are only musical statements; they are about Music itself. Any psychological, emotional, or spiritual, response they might evoke is unpredictable, left almost entirely to audience interpretation, and probably varies greatly between individuals. Nonetheless, the result of listening to music is indeed an important aspect of its final purpose. Beyond the statements about musical construction made by many of my works, it is each individual listener's response (the way in which they react) that makes the music expressive, and hence allows it to have meaning beyond itself, regardless of the meaning being initially unintended. Expression, of course, along with creativity and originality, is a fundamental goal of any artistic work; I think of the expression in the bulk my music as a result, or an effect, caused by its creation.

A lot of my work since 2004 has been as a teacher creating music merely to exemplify a particular musical concept, or to demonstrate the use of specific music production equipment or software. I've avoided the composition of any deeply considered music over the last few years while I've developed new skills in programming and, with regard to what I've learnt about Music to this point in time, carefully deliberated over my musical philosophies and aspirations. It is with my very latest work (2011 onwards) that I feel refreshed by what, for me, is a new musical direction, that connects with my older works and who I was when they were made, and I think blends and balances technical creativity with personal expression more closely than before. I now rely more on intuition and less on rigorous adherence to calculated processes than previously, and have abandoned a lot of what I now think of as rather inane control and decision making, allowing me to concentrate more on making an honest and hopefully meaningful personal statement with my music. While no less technical than many of my previous works, strict application of technique is no longer my focus; my newest music, Anomalous Divergences in the Course of Fate, has direct parallels with possible and imaginary situations and circumstances.

Aside from whatever its meaning might be, to me or anyone else, my music is intended to be contemplated, as opposed to simply enjoyed (although, of course, enjoyment is totally permissible!). For me there is a distinction (even if there can be a broad overlap) between appreciating music as entertainment, and appreciating the aesthetic of its execution as Art. Entertainment has the ultimate objective of making its audience enjoy themselves and feel good, and this is not usually the aim of my music; generally, I do not design music for the purpose of being sung along with and/or danced to. I would be most fulfilled as a composer if my music could provide for a listener what can be referred to as an immersive experience. If an audience can allow themselves to be completely surrounded by music, such that its every aspect may be simultaneously absorbed, to the point where the audience feels integrated with and part of the music, then the music is successful in its communication, enabling an empathy with the inspiration of its creator.

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© 2000 - 2012, Nicholas Hender / Terasonic, ABN 55 077 342 706.
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