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Christopher Stewart's Blog (141)

The Music Of Poligraf : The Dam part 7

("Between the waves" by Ivan Aivazovsky)

The seventh chapter of "The Dam" is entitled "Flow" and presents our protagonist/narrator having passed the test, overcome the obstacle, levelled the dam, and…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on August 24, 2009 at 7:57pm — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Stereoscopy

(Pocket Stereoscope by Joaquim Alves Gaspar )

“Stereoscopy” is the definitive title of a song which I used to refer to as “Point Of View.” I changed my mind about the title while writing and singing the melodies, thinking that the word doesn’t get the chance to be…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on August 21, 2009 at 5:38am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : The Chrome Lake part 3

("Introspection" by Alberto Baumann)

"Introspection I" is the third part, and first vocal section, of "The Chrome Lake," which itself constitutes the core middle chapter of the "Entering The Stream" trilogy.

The title of the whole suite was inspired by Voivod's…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on August 15, 2009 at 3:32pm — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : The Dam part 4

(Daniel-Johnson's Manic 5 dam in Quebec, Canada - photo by Pierre cb)

Part 4 of The Dam is entitled simply “Dam.” In the storyline, this is when the obstacle is recognized and the necessity of dealing with it is…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on August 10, 2009 at 11:28am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : The Winged Life

("The Winged Man" by Odilon Redon)

"The Winged Life" takes its name from the following verse by William Blake :

He who binds himself to a joy

Does the winged life…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on August 7, 2009 at 3:19pm — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : The Dam part 2

Clocking in at 22 minutes “The Dam” is my longest composition thus far. The piece uses the metaphor of water flowing from source to ocean to illustrate this mysterious process that we usually refer to as life. It comprises eight distinct movements, identified as follows :

1. Source
2. River
3. Rapids
4. Dam
5. Immersion
6.…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on August 6, 2009 at 12:43pm — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : The Chrome Lake part 7

(Globe of Integration by Eugen Hofbauer, Herbert Kalleitner, and Susi Müller. Photo by Manfred Kielnhofer)

“The Chrome Lake” is the core middle part of “Entering The Stream,” the trilogy which begins with "Into The Ashram" and is completed by "Leaving The…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on August 4, 2009 at 2:00pm — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Juggernaut part 2

(Ratha Yatra Festival in Puri, India / Painting by James Fergusson)

Juggernaut. Lots to say about this one. Make sure your seat is confortable...

I’ve started the writing for this singular piece on November…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on July 30, 2009 at 7:35am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Void part 2

("Primeval Center" )

On a background of Wall Street Bailout and the Large Hadron Collider, “Void” paints the Buddhist concept of emptiness.

From Wikipedia :…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on July 28, 2009 at 6:43pm — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Leaving The Ashram part 3 & 4

("Enigma" by Matías Argudín)

The third and fourth parts of “Leaving The Ashram” are respectively entitled “The Tabla Master’s Enigma” and “The Ordinary II.” Our unidentified introspective hero has completed his retreat and is going back to ordinary life.…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on July 26, 2009 at 3:02pm — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Leftoverturned part 2

(Detail from "Lenticular cloud")

Given its structure and contents, the second part of “Leftoverturned” could have been entitled “Informaëlstrom II” (ref: "1000 Radios"), but because of the undeniable influence of Modest Mussorgsky’s “Night on Bald Mountain,” the full…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on July 21, 2009 at 8:04am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Leftoverturned part 1

(Detail from "American quilt" )

When I complete a composition there are often unused ideas left. Some of those I find actually pretty good but if I can’t see how to fit them into the piece then there’s not much choice but to discard them. For a while.

I…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on July 8, 2009 at 8:58am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Leaving The Ashram part 1 & 2

(Detail from a Postcard, Unknown Artist)

“Leaving The Ashram” is the third chapter of "Entering The Stream," a trilogy describing an episode of intense introspection that will most likely open our second album.

An instrumental suite in four movements (Meditative Walk, Running The Last Stretch, The Tabla Master’s Enigma, and The…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on June 30, 2009 at 5:24am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Polygraph part 1

(Polygraph from U.S. Patent 4,333,084)

The first part of "Polygraph" is entitled “Exposition” and aims to evoke a somewhat peaceful and relaxed dialogue, before the relationship slowly degrades to the point of sourness as personal values and beliefs are questioned and subjected to…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on June 26, 2009 at 7:00am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Waking In Heaven

(Dante and Beatrice gaze upon the highest Heaven by Gustave Doré)

"Waking In Heaven" is a relatively short composition that starts with a minimalist…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on June 21, 2009 at 11:12am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Polygraph parts 2 & 3

("Deliberation" by Ronn Boef)

"Polygraph" is a portrait of human relations turning from sweet to sour, hinting at the necessity and difficulty of constant genuineness. The suite lasts about 10 minutes and is composed of the following four sections : Exposition,…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on June 15, 2009 at 10:32am — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Stonecutter

(“Quarryman” by Gustave Courbet)

"Stonecutter" is intended as an anthem to perseverance and is based on the following quote by Jacob August Riis…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on June 14, 2009 at 3:49pm — No Comments

The Music Of Poligraf : Into The Ashram

(Ashram by Nicholas Roerich)

An instrumental in 4 movements (The Ordinary, Running Out Of Breath, Dweller On The Threshold, Jambudvipa), the composition aims to evoke the progress of an individual getting fed up with their day to day life to the point of taking an extended time off…

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Added by Christopher Stewart on June 12, 2009 at 8:54am — No Comments

Music and Spiritual Practice - An Overview of Poligraf (part 4)

(The Wheel of Becoming - Symbolic Representation of Saṃsāra in Tibetan Buddhism)

Poligraf's first album is entitled "Samsara." Traditionally, the term refers to the Buddhist concept of the cycle of birth and death in which all beings in the universe take part and which can be escaped only through enlightenment. Personally, I agree with the view that it is rather that very same process of… Continue

Added by Christopher Stewart on May 22, 2009 at 9:19am — No Comments

Music and Spiritual Practice - An Overview of Poligraf (part 3)

Poligraf has been an essential part of my life since its inception at the beginning of February 1998.

The adventure began after the collapse of a band that probably never really existed as it only had a handful of rehearsals, but for which I had already written a lot of material. Left alone at the helm, I connected with a group of experienced musicians via a co-worker friend and after agreeing on a general aim and formula, we raised sail… Continue

Added by Christopher Stewart on May 20, 2009 at 12:31pm — No Comments