state/shaft

15 West 37th Street, NYC, 2004


In January of 2004 I took a full-time position at Reis, a brokerage firm for commercial real estate statistics and analysis, for whom I had previously written a monthly column. The business was located at 15 West 37th Street, and the editorial group within the company was located initially on the top floor. I composed the "state" strips on the roof, which had an excellent view of most of the Empire State Building, from which this series takes its name. This was fortuitous as some years before I had developed a thing for the ESB, as related in ".Before it begins there is the space...". However in June of that year our group moved to the 4th floor, which Reis also leased. Removed from easy rooftop access, I continued to compose through the day, but now standing on the fire escape at the back of building. It was a poor prospect. That area also served as an air shaft. The recordings total about 80 in number.

Mostly the "state/shaft" strips were made standing in place (on the roof or fire escape). This distinguishes them from the "transverse" series, which were mostly made in transit.