An important piece from my Humans as Machines ontology, “Maquina Latina” is based on nested (Matryoshka doll-style) metronomic inaccuracies. A first accelerating metronome is used to rule a first performance to be recorded (audio and video) and used to generate all further materials. The instructions text for the performance is this one:

One hour duration. Each accent on the accelerando metronome on video you play a chord (keyboard) or a note (other instrument) Ad Lib. Perform the following actions Ad Lib:

You are at home. You love your home, but there is always stress: you want to relax, but time always pushes you. You try to do things at home, but the clock, the metronome, is calling you, bidding you to play your instrument. A totalitarian time-regime. This horrible clock accelerates. At the beginning you don’t know it, but later, because of the increased speed, you slowly can’t do what you want at home and have to be near your instrument. You talk with yourself, you try to read, to eat, you try to sleep, to do some yoga, to go about your daily life, your home tasks...but the clock is always ticking, faster and faster. When you cannot move away from your instrument anymore, you slowly start playing higher and higher notes, and when you cannot put up with the situation anymore, you play the highest pitches on your instrument, as if you were yelling in despair. After “yelling” things go slowly back to normal.

The recording derived from the first metronome will be shrunk from one hour to Ca. 14 minutes and use as accompaniment to the live piano performer. The recorded human inaccuracies of this performance are used to generate a second metronome, to be used at stage. “Maquina Latina” requires some pre- and post-production work.