Video still from live performance © Tate 2005

Music is the aural form par excellence. Yet between composer and listener lies the score: a set of visual notations. Why must music pass through the visual on its way to the ear?

To redress the balance, a mix of prominent and promising composers: Luc Ferrari, Kaffe Matthews, David Grubbs, Achim Wollscheid, Eric Roth, and Olias Nil, each composed an audio score for an ensemble of equally prominent musicians from the contemporary classical and improvisation worlds. The scores could take any form, from verbal instruction, found sound and poetry, to other music, so long as it is delivered exclusively in audio, with no written text, conducting, physical cues or gestures.

The musical ensemble remained consistent as the composers each took a turn leading them. Follow the yellow links to the right above for each composer - their composition, performance recording and biography.

Instrumentation included: Bass by John Edwards, Bass Saxophone by Tony Bevan, Electronics by Andrew Morgan, Electronics and Flutes by David Toop, Harp by Rhodri Davies and Cello by Neil Heyde. The ensemble was put together by Andrew Morgan.

Conceived and curated by Seth Kim-Cohen. Part of Heaven and Earth, a multidisciplinary conference organised in collaboration with Goethe Institute London and the London Consortium.