Renowned champion of contemporary music, acclaimed pianist and composer, and the artistic director of Soundstream New Music, Gabriella Smart, is releasing a CD featuring the unique and wondrous instrument, the Electric Cristal.
The CD is entitled Parasymbiosis and it comprises eight tracks, Parasymbiosis I – VIII, which were recorded live at the Music Meeting Festival, Nijmegen, the Netherlands, in May 2024. The recording was a finalist in the APRA AMCOS work of the year in the electroacoustic sound art category in 2025.
The term parasymbiosis refers to the interdependent coexistence of two organisms, but Smart uses the term to refer more broadly to the interconnectedness of all life. In her notes accompanying the CD, she makes an impassioned plea for the recognition of this interrelationship, and says,
“Through Parasymbiosis I imagined sounds of the inherent connection between the earth and the universe. Contemporary society has rendered invisible the heritage of the night sky and what it teaches us. The wonder and awe it inspires, in its pure, unadulterated form untouched by light pollution and modern satellite activity, has always informed non-human and human life cycles and human culture… We have forgotten that the dark sky and the earth reflect each other — they are, as a metaphor, parasymbiotic.”
The Electric Cristal was devised specifically for Smart by Adelaide composer and musician, Wiradjuri man Dylan Crismani, and it was designed to be easily disassembled and carried in a suitcase so she could travel with it.
The Electric Cristal (photo supplied)
It comprises a set of interchangeable, microtonally-tuned glass rods which the performer strokes with moistened fingers. It can also be bowed with a violin bow, and other objects can be used to stimulate the glass rods. Metal plates affixed to the frame resonate with the vibrations produced by the rods.
The vibrations of the glass rods are also picked up by a series of contact microphones for relay either directly to an amplifier or routed through electronic devices to enable the performer to use the Electric Cristal’s vibrations and resonances as sonic raw material for further modification and elaboration.
The Electric Cristal’s unique sound arises from the performer’s careful control of finger pressure, the slipperiness of the rods and the speed at which the rods are stroked. The performer can generate a wide range of sound from low droning to high-pitched humming and squealing. The instrument is ideally suited to the generation of single or multiple long-duration tones or drones which can be shaped into a complex orchestration with textural shifts and changes in dynamics and key registers.
Smart has performed solo with the Electric Cristal and frequently with other collaborators in Australia and overseas. For the 2024 Parasymbiosis performance, Smart was joined by Polish-born French musician and composer Kasper Toeplitz on bass and electronics, and Didier Casamitjana on percussion and electronics. Toeplitz uses a specially designed electric bass to generate long, resonant tones that variously complement and contrast the sounds made by the Electric Cristal.
The overall effect is to immerse the listener in an evocative, arhythmic, slowly-evolving soundscape that stimulates the listener’s imagination and visualisation. The first track, Parasymbiosis I, opens quietly but portentously, as if signalling the irresistible flow of cosmic forces. In some tracks, such as Parasymbiosis V, the intensity and complexity of the sound increase to an overwhelming level, creating a visceral impact on the listener.
In the longest track, Parasymbiosis VII, a succession of bass drumbeats suggests earth-bound thunder; deep rumbling emerges periodically to evoke tectonic shifts in the earth’s surface; high-pitched twittering sounds could suggest twinkling starlight, and occasional booming sounds could refer to solar eruptions. At times the sound reduces to a chattering whisper and then builds again to a crescendo. The eight densely orchestrated tracks proceed without any breaks in between, generating all kinds of imagery in the listener’s mind.
Smart’s adroit use of the Electric Cristal represents a significant development musically, and the use of bass guitar and percussion greatly extends the sonic and compositional possibilities of such music.
Chris Reid
The CD will be available on Bandcamp from 1 May 2026 and can be pre-ordered before then: bandcamp.com/album/parasymbiosis
More Info: gabriellasmart.com/parasymbiosis
