64. Playing in Traffic (2000-2001)( TWO CD )

A 110 minute cycle of 8 computer and traffic noise pieces. Some of the pieces are filled with more notes per square second than you'll hear this side of Conlon Nancarrow, another is a fierce political denunciations of General Electric's environmental destruction; still another is a gentle wash of pure sine waves evoking Fitzroy, Melbourne in the summer heat. Birdcalls are stretched, samba samples are mangled, and in the end, a recalcitrant steam radiator triumphs.

62. Five Environmental Displacements (2000)

Five unedited slices of the environment, each 10 minutes long. Originally recorded for correspondence artist David Dellafiora, these recordings are designed to be used by the listener to make personal environmental soundscapes.

61. Two Live Computer Improvisations May and August 2000

Ruth Westheimer meets the currawongs of Canberra in the first of two pieces on this CD. Recorded live at La Mama, Melbourne, it's 30 minutes of AudioMulching harmonies, words and birds. The second piece is an early version of Burt's working with the poems of New Zealand socialist realist poet Rewi Alley. Recorded live at Exp @ Centriphugal.

57. Installations, Radio Pieces, etc. (August - November 1999)

Includes Burt's essay in semi-artificial almost-intelligence (or is it an emulation of a bureaucratic bungle structure?) “Installation for 3 Laptops”, where 3 laptops talk to each other, each one telling the other what to do, - imagine Kenneth Gaburo jamming with Art Tatum on electric pianos. And “Summerlake,” an installation for the Ripponlea Estate, designed to appeal to the swamphens and ducks in the lake. Human listeners can take their chances. Plus Burt's cut-up/homage to Melbourne improvising legend David Tolley.

51. Sound Installations 1998: Horsham, Warrnambool and Sale ( TWO CD )

Twelve pieces from three sound sculpture installations in Victorian country regions. The first CD has remixes of sounds from nine installations, including Burt's award winning “La Strega Bianca della Luna II” (also released on Innova), and Sines/Forks 3, featuring the legendary Al Wunder on percussion and Alison Thomson on flutes. The second CD mixes environmental sounds from the areas surrounding the galleries. Each consists of at least two or three layers of environmental sound, mixed to make a “faster” progression of events from the environment.

VISIT INNOVA WEBSITE for “SONIC CIRCUITS VI”

31. A 1987 Sampler

Early sampler pieces. “String Quartet No. 4" is a piece for computer controlled string quartet samples. An elegant fake that approaches the complexity of the real thing. “for Caroline” is a multitracked environment for both sunny sounds (Burt's tuning forks), and subterranean ones (cellist Sarah Hopkins and poet Chris Mann in a storm drain). “Justice, Equality and Beatings IV” continues Burt's explorations in drones at the edge of consonance and dissonance.

25. Three Environmental Compositions (84-85) and Two Environmental Pieces (FOUR CD )

Environmental recording, and Acoustic Ecology have been an interest of Burt's since the early 1970s. In 1984 and 85, he made a series of ground breaking soundscape pieces, which were broadcast extensively in that period. Here they are collected together for the first time, with two more recent pieces as a bonus. “Yarra for Annea”, Burt's contribution to Annea Lockwood's “World Rivers Archive” is a sonic journey up the Yarra River, from the docks to the source. “Peebles Island Tapes” is an intimate exploration of a State Park and Native American sacred site in northern New York State. “Four Environments” is four sonic snapshots, from a steel grate bridge to a drunk singing on a Collingwood tram. Burt's approach to the environment is reminiscent of Walt Whitman's all-embracing transcendental poetry.

23. Four Pieces for Radio (1981-3)

Wires, Texts, Acoustic Music, and Natural Rhythm were four pieces exploring acoustics, feedback, environmental sounds and interactivity, made for various Australian radio venues. “Acoustic Music” is a feedback piece made in a five story underground parking cylinder. “Natural Rhythm” uses sounds from an underwater microphone at St. Kilda Pier to control a synthesizer, creating a duet for tinkling electronic bells and shrimp. Are shrimp better composers than people? Listen to “Natural Rhythm” and judge for yourself. “Texts” uses a cut-up text and subjects it to very subtle electronic manipulation. “Wires” is a piece using four very long wires set up to feedback on themselves, and be resonated by an upright piano sound board.

19. From the Dreambooks and Lo-Fi Proposals (1980 & 86)

“The thing about Warren Burt is, he can take any thin thread of trashy material, and make a piece out of it.” -Ron Robboy. The trashy materials here are Dreambooks, gambling charts formerly used in the numbers racket in the US. Using these as a source of random information, Burt makes one of the earliest Synclavier pieces, basing each highly cyclical piece on the bogus numerology of the Dreambooks. “Lo Fi Proposals”, on the other hand, continues Burt's love affair with cheap technology and it's defects as a source for art. Here the mighty Casio SK1 toy sampler is put through its paces in a series of environmental, political, orchestral, and structural miniatures.

3. Anthology 1970-73

A collection of analog and live-performance pieces from the early 70s. "Lullabies II" for briefcase synth and tape delay was an early minimalist piece. "For Charlemagne Palestine," a tribute to his friend, was Burt's first microtonal electronic drone piece. "John Lilly Meets the Dolphins" is a piece based on the voices of consciousness-studies pioneer John Lilly and his dolphin collaborators, as well as the sounds of whales and walruses. This is Burt's first piece dealing with underwater soundscapes, a theme that he would continue to explore.