photo : Natalie Pfeiffer, Berlin 2024
Canadian composer of Ukrainian descent Marc Sabat (*1965) is based in Berlin since 1999. He makes pieces for concerts and installations, drawing inspiration from ongoing research about the sound and perception of microtonal rational intonation (JI). With Wolfgang von Schweinitz he co-developed the Extended Helmholtz-Ellis JI Pitch Notation (HEJI), and he is a pioneer of instrumental music written and performed in JI. His practice relates to various music forms, seeking points of shared exploration and dialogue between different modes of experience and cultural traditions. Largely self-taught as a composer, Sabat studied violin at the University of Toronto, the Juilliard School in New York, and computer music at McGill University, as well as working privately with Malcolm Goldstein, James Tenney and Walter Zimmermann, among others. His work is presented internationally, shared through the open access PLAINSOUND website and in numerous releases and publications. He also performs, teaches and writes about composition and the theory and practice of intonation. Sabat is currently completing a doctorate at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. Together with colleagues Catherine Lamb, Rebecca Lane, and Thomas Nicholson he co-initiated Harmonic Space Orchestra. Sabat and Nicholson have an ongoing collaboration (2018–) creating texts and software with respect to JI music creation.
