satellite event in conjunction with New Music America 1980, Walker Art Center

performing with the Metal Skirt Sound Sculpture
photo: Janet Groenert

In my last semester of art school I built and performed in my Metal Skirt Sound Sculpture, a landmark piece in my career because it worked on many levels. It was funny and provocative, and produced simultaneous rising and falling glissandos simply through the mechanics of walking. Four guitar strings were attached to the edges of the skirt that extended down to the toes and heels of my shoes. As each leg stepped forward, the back string stretched out while the front slackened. A contact microphone on the skirt amplified the sound of these strings through a small battery-powered amplifier that I wore strapped over my shoulder as a handbag. The restriction of the metal construction mechanized and exaggerated the sway of my hip motion. I looked like a cartoon cutout wearing armor. I walked on the street where the prostitutes worked and called my performance, literally, Streetwalker.

I performed “Any Woman Blues”, backwards, and played the 12-bar blues sequence, backwards. I made the stick guitar, tuned to an open seventh chord. I built up a blob of epoxy on a glass slide and carved it into a plectrum. I scrubbed the slide to simultaneously strum and slide bar chords. I recorded my performance with the tape machine (in the background) and then flipped the tape for backwards playback. The words were understandable. I had been memorizing the backwards song for months.