French composer Leo Magnien has recently released Clarières, a series of 14 tracks on Ryoanji Records. The label was formed in 2021 and is supported by Arts Council England. As a result of this funding, Clarières represents the second commission in a series of calls for electroacoustic works by Ryoanji Records. Magnien's work was launched in Norwich, where the label is based.The core of Clarières' sonic landscape stems from Magnien's practice of listening and recording—a dual creative role. Magnien's work, overall, suggests a need to frame, or capture at the micro level, a sense of movement among his sonic fragments. Magnien's total practice begins with his use of recordings that are between 10 and 20 minutes in duration, capturing what the composer describes as a “path for listening,” inclusive of any sound events found. Another aspect of Magnien's recording practice is his aim to highlight the “barely perceptible.” Overall, his strategy could be viewed as guiding the listener in a manner that allows one to hear the formation of a range of relationships or links between the various scales of captured material.Magnien describes the origins of Clarières: “When I make sounds in the studio (be it using offline processes or in real.figure.ime), I tend to use the same ‘long take’ mindset as in the field. The initial project of this album started when I realized that I had quite a large archive of sounds that had been unused, under-used, or discarded… I needed a collection of tracks rather than making a single standalone piece as usual. Most material is from a selection of these personal found sounds.”Ultimately, Magnien would consider a broad form overall when arranging the order of the tracks. However, each track was crafted in “relative isolation” from one another. Magnien used the Reaper digital audio workstation (DAW) to shape his sound materials. He also used DSP tools such as granulation in the Cecilia environment, digital manipulation of playback speed and filtering, and Csound patches for further processing.It is important to note that, although Magnien's material is layered in a variety of ways, his approach to sonic organization denotes a musical narrative where one is guided through successive listening environments. As such, with regard to the issue of movement, this idea could be viewed as capturing what seems to be the composer's approach to generating his material.A good example of Magnien's compositional technique can be heard immediately in “cercles,” the first track. In relatively short tracks such as “cercles” the composer views these as miniatures, exploring only a single idea. The start of this track can be characterized as two morphologies combined, which demonstrate a rich range of high and low registration. As the track progresses, another delicate filament, or finely shaped utterance, is added. Then the track develops further. Throughout this track there are also bursts of noise-infused motifs. Another distinctive feature in “cercles” is the inherent sense of physicality throughout. The composer mentions how this arises: “The crackling texture throughout the track comes from the manipulation of a turntable with paper under the stylus, instead of a record… There is also a field recording of wind in the leaves (from using an insufficiently protected microphone).” Magnien goes on to use this recorded wind material in other tracks, leaving in any clicks or discontinuities from the original recordings that “convey a feeling of physicality of the signal.”By contrast, track 2, “friction,” begins with degraded sounds. This dirtier process is also coupled with a deliberate stereo panning. The results of this antiphonal patterning suggest that the more delicate sonic threads present could be hidden within the track.Track 3, “littoral intérieur,” begins with an ambient background, lasting for approximately one minute. After, a waterfront-like environment is introduced that stems from recordings Magnien made while on a pier at the Columbia River. The background mentioned initially is then pitted against this natural environmental fragment. As the track progresses, these layers create a counterpoint, almost merging into a singular sound stream. Other salient elements of this track include processed crotales and the use of feedback.Track 4, “latence,” demonstrates a distinctive sonic environment. Magnien describes the following creative actions using a Csound patch to construct the track: “a field recording (wind and branches crackling) is played, while also going through a transient detector that triggers the sending of the file through narrowly-tuned bandpass filters. The tuning frequencies come from a pool that rotates with each trigger.”Track 5, “en longeant le chemin des aulnes,” is one of the tracks in the set with a longer duration. Magnien develops his materials using distinctive audio processing techniques in FScape, as well as a Norm script for making an FM-sine drone synth. Another important source used is a sound created by striking a large fence-wire.In track 6, “présage,” Magnien composes a primary layer using a sound class consisting of vibraphone pitches that have been transposed down several octaves. These sounds are pitted against a light rain-accompaniment. This recording was taken in a Zen-inspired garden, which contained the sound of crows in the distance.Track 7, “danses,” begins with a cloudy, degraded sound, which then allows for a new listening environment of burning wood to emerge. Again, using the Cecilia program, Magnien was able to shape processed fireplace sounds in a manner that highlights specific aspects of ``crackling” burning wood particles.“Passages de l'hiver” is approximately six minutes in duration, and demonstrates a distinctive range of sonic nuance. The core sound source used stems from a recording of falling snow. Regarding this recording process, the composer was able to capture the environmental contrast present between the snowflakes and their background ambience. Magnien experiments with his recording, separating it into four frequency bands, while triggering independently the inversion of the stereo field of each band. Other forms of processing were applied to the recording, such as spectral freeze and resynthesis. Magnien ultimately organized the resulting material for this track in a DAW—two stereo pairs, including two mono parts. Magnien's overall technique used for composing this track seems to stem from a relatively minimal collection of sounds, or root material, which then proliferates. This track in particular demonstrates an increasing complexity regarding the composer's ability to provide the listener with subtle transformations that are clearly heard.Track 9, “traverse,” suggests a musical performance setup due to the composer's use of conventional-instrument sources. There is also the prominence of degraded audio processing throughout. In “observations diffuses,” Magnien seems to have captured an electronic improvisation that constantly explores variations of noise made in Csound. Track 11, “glissements,” highlights a range of tonal inflections. This action is due to the use of “multi-band variable time-stretching applied to some chords played on the piano,” the composer explained. “Un relief suspendu, par transparence,” with its use of environmental source material, sampled speech, and electronic processing, provides the listener with memorable layers of sonic depth.Track 13, “effacement,” references tonal source material stemming from a piano. In contrast, “Couleurs de la lande,” begins a demonstrative and capricious, high-spirited character. One unique aspect of this track is the use of a Revox A77 analog tape machine. Magnien captures sounds from the machine as it is played. Other material present in this track includes environmental sounds from a recording made during a holiday break in Galicia. The composer has also programmed relationships between EQ-ing and filtering, processes that are applied throughout the mix. At times, what results is a relatively dense texture, wherein a range of transitions lead the listener to a darker, noisier landscape.Clarières, with its distinctive blend of digital processing, environmental sound, and analog instrumental sound, as well as its highlighting of inherent sound physicality in the studio, not only provides the listener with a complex electroacoustic sonic palette, but also shapes an aesthetic exploring the boundaries between sonic art and computer music.