Organisms & Mechanisms
In music, I like to create organisms and mechanisms, so I organize the orchestra in different group cells —each group has an essential role for the organism or mechanism to function. I combine written music and improvisational conducting, creating different balances between written and non-written, specific and non-specific qualities.

Organisms
One good example of how I approach the concept of Organism in composition is In The Midst. "Organism. Pulsations and flow approaching and passing our point of stasis. The intangible? A silence of minimal signs. The simple, magnified in the space of time." -Laura Andel
Listen to MP3:
• In The Midst (4:38) Composed by Laura Andel BMI©2001
Recorded live by the Eclectix Orchestra, October 3, 2001, Cami Hall, New York, NY

Mechanisms
And a good example of how I approach the concept of Mechanism in composition is Noise Machine from SomnambulisT. "A human is trapped in a mechanism where is only possible to see/hear fragments of this human expression. It represents the struggle between the human expression and the cage we build around it. We can only catch glimpses of the self." -Laura Andel
Listen to MP3:
• Noise Machine (3:51) (excerpt from SomnambulisT) Composed by Laura Andel BMI©2002
Recorded live by the laura andel orchestra, October 25, 2002, Consulate of Argentina, New York, NY
 
 

Conducting as a performer/improviser/"dancer"/"painter"
The conductor could sometimes be one more performer/improviser. I think sometimes conductors are expected to be like a live metronome, and guide. I like to extend the role of my conducting, and make it flexible to what the music might need. Sometimes a conductor could be a sound generator through "movement/dance", other times could be an improviser which musicians should listen, watch, and follow. Then, it could be the guide or facilitator to organize improvisers in the ensemble. Having all this different uses of a conductor, I think it creates awareness to all the music making of all participants, thus, creating a fresh performance each time.
 
 

Drawings/Conducting/Composing
I like drawing lines, and compose music as if it were just a line of energy. Then, I like to conduct those lines and extract sound out of it, as if I were drawing with my hands in the air, having the musicians reacting to it with sound. View here some of the drawings I like to conduct for creating sound.
 
 

Large Ensembles: Performances & Recording Productions
I enjoy a lot to write for large ensembles. Currently, I have created the laura andel orchestra, a new group of 14 musicians living in the New York city area. Between my introspective and extroverted moments, I bring my artistic projects to life in the form of performances and recording productions
 
 

Workshops & Residencies: Creating in Situ
I'm drawn to those moments when a specific group of artists from different cultural and educational backgrounds meet for the first time at a specific geographic location for a certain amount of time for creation. I'm very interested in opening and developing channels of communication among people, and finding a common ground area where a group of artists can create something together. I like working with large groups of people and try to build bridges of communication for creation.
 
 

Artist Residencies
My periods of introspection are the moments where I "submerge" and conceptualize ideas. The ideal places for this kind of moments are the Artist Residencies I participate.
 
 

Travelling, Researching, Documenting Images & Sound
In my life, I also like "moving", traveling to places not known to me —all it takes me is a MiniDisc recorder, a notebook, a photo camera, and a nomad searching soul... I like the notion of "starting from zero", the notion of becoming a new cell in an already functioning organism / mechanism, and having to find a place in it. My last trip was to Central America during July & August 2003.
 
 

Movement Choir
In accordance to my interest in movement, I participated in New York city during 2001 in a series of workshops as a movement "explorer" in this mix of improvised and choreographed mass of patterns. Based on the techniques of Hungarian dancer and movement theorist Rudolf Laban, choreographer Mariangela Lopez created this movement choir comprised of non-dancers to explore movement group patterns. This exploration concluded in the presentation of The Other which included 18 "movers"/non-dancers, electronic music, and live video images. The Other, by choreographer Mariangela Lopez, was premiered at the University of Settlement in New York city on October 2001.
 
 

Voice exploration
I used to be an instrumentalist/performer since very young. When I was five, I started with the recorder. Then, I explored flute, saxophones, piano, drums, bamboo flutes, and berimbau. I was always scared to use my voice, even worst, to listen to how I sound. A good thing about my artist residence at Music Omi in 2001, is that I started to discover my voice. I find it cathartic.
Listen to MP3:
• La Cueva (3:45) (excerpt) Composed by Laura Andel BMI©2001
Recorded live by La Uña Ensemble (Laura Andel: voice; Ursel Schlicht: piano; Jane Scarpantoni: cello; Ravish Momin: frame drum),
December 9, 2001, St. Marks Church, New York, NY
 
 

Listening Sessions
I organize Listening Sessions since Fall 2001 in New York city as a space to listen and discuss music with other attentive listeners. The listening sessions also happen while I'm out of New York at Artist Residencies.
 
 

Curious to see what's behind the score?
View here the process of creation for SomnambulisT.
 
 

Collaborations
I'm open to any kind of artistic collaborations and experimentation in music or other arts. I'm also open to discuss any ideas, specially adventurous ones.