silant.bou.room

Vienna 08.01.2011

digital : an audiovisual love affair presents:

the world premiere of the installation – silant.bou.room

featuring excerpt from a release by i8u, und transit on non visual objects

silant aka Ilan Katin

bou from Geneva

starts at 00h00

Metropol Theater.
Hernalser Hauptstr. 55,
1170 Wien

also :

Acts (Auswahl):
♦ Solo Live Act by T.RAUMSCHMIERE (Shitkatapult / Kompakt) ♦ MARKUS LINDNER (Stadtpark) ♦ SCHEIBOSAN (scheibosan.at) ♦ BURT REYNOLD (Cosmic Resident) ♦ SIMONLEBON (Market / Tjummy) ♦SILANT (Modul8) ♦ BOU (Le Zoo) ♦ BLACKDATA (Hamburg) ♦ PIXKOMPRESSOR (Lichttapete) uvm.

Specials:
♦ Digital 1 Year Anniversary ♦ SOLO LIVE ACT by T.Raumschmiere ♦ Video-Mapping Installation by Silant & Bou ♦ Special Location: Metropol …♦

Wenn Digital am 8. Jänner seinen 1.Geburstag im Wiener Metropol feiert, darf man sich auf einige Überraschungen freuen.
Viel ist im letzten Jahr passiert und das soll auch gebührend gefeiert werden. Neben einer legendären Free Party in der Ankerbrotfabrik kann man zufrieden auf bahnbrechende Kuppelprojektionen, 3D Visuals, fulminante Live-Sets von Kollektiv Turmstrasse oder Apparat, visuelle Darbietungen der besten internationalen und nationalen Visualisten, Ausstellungen, Lesungen und vieles mehr zurückblicken.

Zu diesem besonderen Anlass zieht Digital auch in eine ganz besondere Location. Selten hat man die Gelegenheit im Wiener Metropol – einem Jahrhundertwendetheater – zu feiern, aber am 08. Jänner ist es soweit.

Als besonders extravaganter Gratulant, der sich weder in Schubladen stecken lässt noch in Kategorien denkt, erwartet euch T.Raumschmiere mit einem seiner legendären Solo Live Acts. Mit wilden Performances, die so manchen Rockstar in den Schatten stellen, begeistert der Mann mit Punk-Rock Vergangenheit, der nie ein Techno Artist sein wollte und gerne Aphex Twin als Inspiration nennt, Kritiker, Musikbegeisterte und Clubgänger gleichermaßen. Nach zahlreichen, erfolgreichen genreübergreifenden Releases auf Labels wie Kompakt, Sender oder Shitkatapult und Kollaborationen mit Miss Kittin oder Ellen Allien gratuliert er nun endlich am Digital.

Ein weiterer außergewöhnlicher Gratulant ist niemand geringerer als Silant aka Ilan Katin von der zur Zeit führenden Visualsoftware Modul8 und Allroundkünstler in Personalunion, der eine extra vorbereitete innovative Video-Mapping Installation gemeinsam mit seinem Kollegen Bou aufwartet. Und obendrein tauchen Blackdata, T.Raumschmiere`s VJ-Freund aus Hamburg, Pixkompressor vom Lichtkunstkollektiv Lichttapete, Wemakevisuals, Fitzke Family und der lustige Astronaut die gesamte Location in vollkommen neue Sphären und sorgen für visuelles Vergnügen der Extraklasse.

Nationaler Support in musikalischer Hinsicht kommt vom Stadtpark Mastermind Markus Lindner, dessen Name allein schon für höchste Qualität steht, Cosmic Resident Burt Reynold, dem umtriebigen Scheibosan und Simon Lebon von Tjumy Records.

Wir gratulieren herzlich!

♫ LINE UP (komplett) ♫

●●● DIGITAL FLOOR ●●●
minimal / techno / electro / house

▲T.RAUMSCHMIERE▲ Solo Live Act!
(Random Rave Sessions – LIVE / Shitkatapult / Berlin, Germany)
MARKUS LINDNER (Stadtpark Nacht)
SCHEIBOSAN (scheibosan.at)
BURT REYNOLD (Cosmic Resident)
SIMON LEBON (Market / Tjumy Records)

● VISUELLE GESTALTUNG VON ● :
SILANT (Modul8 Team, Berlin)
BOU (Le Zoo, Geneva)
BLACKDATA (Hamburg)
PIXKOMPRESSOR (Lichttapete, Wien)
WEMAKEVISUALS (Wien)
DER LUSTIGE ASTRONAUT (Optical Matrix)
FITZKE FAMILY (Wien)

und transit on NVO 022 (2010)

NVO 022 christophe charles / i8u
unter den linden / und transit
on nonvisuelobjects

unter den linden

The “Grundton” of this 30-minute composition is the recording of the concert given at SND STUDIOS SHEFFIELD (UK) in March 2009, entitled “Why is there something rather than nothing?” by Mark Fell and powered with d&b speakers by Tony Myatt (MRC, University of York). The sounds of planes have been recorded in Mallorca (Spain) in 1987, and in Pilat (France) in 2009. This music comes after HCDC, composed in November 2008 after the death of Daniel Charles – his last days were darkened by breathing difficulties, hence the overall presence of the “wind”. The last five minutes were composed in 1987 with telephone bells, a silo and a Spanish garbage truck, under the name “unter den linden”. The piece is not related with Berlin, but with Jules Massenet’s “Sous les tilleuls” (from “Scenes alsaciennes” where bells are heard in a distance and thus modified by the wind), and evokes a peaceful atmosphere just before the bombs begin to fall.

Christophe Charles, September 2009


This world of ours is one relative world. Any number of other possible or actual worlds are conceivable. Each such world is able to reflect all the others without ceasing
to be the real world that it is of itself.

Nishitani Keiji

und transit

The conceptual framework of “und transit” was conceived while taking part in a 3 months artist residency in Krems, Austria (2008/09). While in transit (daily walks) to my studio, I was inspired by a particular passageway in Minoritenplatz.
Like most passageways, which are a means to an end – and are rarely treated as an end in itself – I was immediately struck by the loneliness and practicality of this space as well as the capacity of the users to ignore it on a daily basis. During the course of my residency I collected a number of field recordings in and around Krems, in order to create a series of soundscapes based on Minoritenplatz’s sound of emptiness through the means of a quadraphonic installation.
These compositions represent some of the pieces composed for “und transit”.

i8u (France Jobin)


Follow your bliss.

Joseph Campell

+

NVO 021
Tim Blechmann / Seijiro Murayama
347
NVO 023
asher / fourm
selected passages / set.grey

Vienna 01.18.2009 – Amann Studios

January 18.09

Live recording #100 at Amann Studios in Vienna.

This performance will include new material based on “und transit”,
a sound installation which was presented in Krems this past month
at Kreuzgang / Minoritenkloster

Sunday, Jan.18.09 – 21:00

Amann Studio
Neustiftgasse 68/23b
A-1070Wien

see below for info on installation

und transit (english below)

Eine Klanginstallation von i8u (France Jobin)

15.12.2008 – 16.01.2009 tägl ab 11 Uhr

Kreuzgang / Minoritenkloster

Wir alle besitzen die Angewohnheit, den Raum der unseren Weg zu unserem Ziel umgibt zu ignorieren. Wie viele Durchgänge scheinen sie zu einem Ende zu führen, in Wirklichkeit aber sind sie das Ende selber. Als ich das erste Mal den Kreuzgang betreten habe war ich von der Einsamkeit und der Praktikabilität berührt. Ich habe begonnen, die verschiedensten Klänge in Krems UND Stein aufzunehmen, um daraus Klanglandschaften für die Leere dieses Raumes zu schaffen. So enstand diese Installation „und transit“

klangraum

und transit

A sound installation by i8u (France Jobin)

15.12.2008 – 16.01.2009  from 11am to 5pm

Kreuzgang / Minoritenkloster

We all have a capacity to ignore the space we must use to get to our destination. Like most passage ways, they are a means to an end, and rarely are treated as an end in itself. Upon being introduced to minoritenplatz, I was immediately struck by the loneliness and practicality of this passage way. Since then, I have collected a number of field recordings from in and around Krems, in order to create a series of soundscapes based on the sound of emptiness in this space.

I acknowledge the support of the Canada  Council for the Arts

Vienna 11.20.2008 – Shut up and Listen!

SHUT UP AND LISTEN 2008!

November 21st  2008

Shut up and Listen! 2008

Interdisciplinary Festival for Music and Sound Art, Vienna, November
20th-21st, 2008

small – silent – lowercase

The interdisciplinary festival ‘Shut up and Listen!’ enters 2008 into its
third season. After ‘hoerspiel, radio art and acusmatic music’ in 2006, and
‘soundscape – field recording – phonography’ in 2007, this year’s focus is
‘small – silent – lowercase’. We’d like to concentrate on ‘small sounds’,
on music and sound art projects that work with reduced means,
and often take place at the threshold of perception.

Once again, our motto is: Let’s shut up and listen!

Ernst Reitermaier and Bernhard Gál
(curators)

raum35
(Theresianumgasse 35, 1040 Vienna)

Thursday, November 20th, 2008, from 19.30

Dimitrios Polisoidis (GRE/AUT) – Viola: Klaus Lang – ägäische eisberge.
Heribert Friedl / non visual objects (AUT) – Laptop
Berndt Thurner (AUT) – Triangel, Große Trommel:
Werke von Alvin Lucier und Nader Mashayekhi
Klaus Filip (AUT) – Sinus: ein drei fünftel

Quadrophonic sound installation
Martin Supper (GER) geXX

Friday, November 21st, 2008, from 19.30

Tim Blechmann (GER/AUT) – Laptop
Erin Gee (USA/AUT) – Stimme: Mouthpieces
i8u (CAN) – Laptop: 10-33 cm
Duo i8u (CAN) & Tim Blechmann (GER/AUT)
The International Nothing (Fagaschinski/Thieke, GER) – Klarinetten

Quadrophonic sound installation
Martin Supper (GER) geXX

Shut up and Listen! 2008

Interdisziplinäres Festival für Musik und Klangkunst

small – silent – lowercase

Das interdisziplinäre Festival *Shut up and Listen! *wird 2008 zum dritten Mal stattfinden. Nach den Schwerpunkten „Hörspiel, Radiokunst, Akusmatische Musik“ im Jahr 2006 und „Soundscape – Field Recording – Phonographie“ im Jahr 2007 lautet das diesjährige Festivalthema „*small – silent – lowercase*“. Die Aufmerksamkeit gilt also den ‚kleinen Klängen’ – jenen Musik- und Klangkunstprojekten, welche sich reduziertester Mittel bedienen und sich oftmals am Rand des Hörbaren ereignen. *Shut up and Listen! 2008* will herausragenden künstlerischen Arbeiten ein Podium bieten, welche diese Qualitäten zur Grundlage haben und sich damit vom lauthalsigen Mediengeschrei des vorherrschenden Musikbetriebs abheben.

Auch dieses Jahr gilt: Let’s shut up and listen!

Ernst Reitermaier und Bernhard Gál
……………..
20.11.08 19:30
mit klaus filip, berndt thurner (lucier, mashajekhi),
dimitri polisoidis (klaus lang) und anderen.

21.11.08 19:30
mit fagaschinski/thieke (the international nothing),
tim blechmann,erin gee, i8u und anderen.

an beiden tagen:
klanginstallation von martin supper

unterstützt von bmukk, stadt wien, bezirk wieden und ske fonds

nähere informationen folgen in kürze…

raum35

I acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts

Vienna 02.19.2008 – V’elak-gala #30

v´elak-gala #30:19 / 02 / 2008 _ brut/Konzerthaus lothringerstr. 3; 1030 vienna

February 19, 2008

v´elak-gala #30:
19.02.2008
20:00

i8u (Can)
Bernhard Gal
Greg Haines (Uk)
Bruzek / Schwab (v´elak)
Heribert Friedl

V´EL:AK
is a no-profit organisation/platform for artist who work in fields of experimental music, video, dance, performance etc.

one aspect is the organisation of the concert series “Elak-Gala”, which was originally founded by students from the inst. for electroacoustics of the univ. for music & interpretative arts of vienna, someday in late summer of 2004 ;
there have been 28 non-funded elak-galas on various places in vienna since then;
with 1st of jannuary 2008 we are supported by the ske-fonds -> so elak-gala became v´elak-gala.
Brut/Konzerthaus
Lothringerstrasse 3
1030 Vienna

Review – Extract, Portrait of Soundartists(nvo) 2007 – by Heinrich Deisl, skug

V. A. : EXTRACT-PORTRAITS OF SOUNDARTISTS (NVO_011)
Das Wiener Label Nonvisualobjects legt mit “Extract. Portraits of Soundartists” als formschönes Buch plus DCD akustische Fährten Richtung Mikrosounds und schickt die Ohren auf Entdeckungsreise.
Stille: Spätestens seit John Cage eine ernstzunehmende kompositorische Praxis, von David Toop und anderen kontextualisiert, eine Art Gegenbewegung innerhalb experimenteller Soundart, die zum aktiven Zuhören zwingt. Die minimalisierten Soundcluster und -flächen gehen zwar schon als eigenständige Musik durch, dienen aber vor allem als Transportmedium, um die uns umgebenden Alltagsgeräusche musikalisch bewusster wahrzunehmen.
Bislang fehlte eine österreichische VÖ mit internationaler Relevanz, die sich ausschließlich mit derartigen Phänomenen auseinandersetzt. Nonvisualobjects war 2005 vom Musiker Heribert Friedl und dem Grafiker Raphael Moser gegründet worden. Von Anfang an hatte man sich dabei auf Sounds zwischen Installation, Ambient, Fieldrecordings und Stille verlegt, die Arbeitsmethode ist programmatisch: Reduktion. Experimente e-musikalischer Prägung stehen hier an, als Fluchtlinie sei etwa Bernhard Günter genannt.
Die 22 Tracks von Richard Cartier, Nao Sugimoto, Taylor Duprée, Steinbrüchel, Asmus Tietchens, Jos Smolders und klarerweise Günter und Friedl erforschen jene Klangfelder, die sich sozusagen hinter der Musik aufhalten. Mit der aus Montréal stammenden France Jobin aka I8U ist die einzige Frau auf dieser Compilation vertreten. Wenn auch in sich recht stringent, verzichtet dieser “Beginner’s Guide” auf überbordende Theoretisierungen sondern verlegt sich auf die Personen selbst. Ein löbliches Unterfangen, wenn man endlich mal erfährt, wie eben diese Musik entsteht. “Extract” zeichnet ein vielschichtiges Portrait der Künstler und ihrer interdisziplinären Herangehensweise, die sich vor allem an der Schnittstelle zwischen akustischer/visueller Präsenz/Absenz manifestiert. Dies passiert mittels Interviews, eigenen Texten oder biografischen Skizzen, dazu kommen selektierte Diskografien. Schließlich ist “Extract” reich illustriert mit Projektfotos, Grafiken, Zeichnungen und John Hudak liefert Comics ab. Ambitioniertes Projekt.
(heinrich deisl, skug)

Review – Extract, Portrait of Soundartists(nvo) 2007 – by Massimo Ricci, touching extremes

EXTRACT (2CD + book by Non Visual Objects)

The thought of having passed a whole life transferring tapes to CD and DVD only to clutch at flies at the end is enough to think of myself as a cretin but hey, one has to find something to “enjoy the passage of time”, as James Taylor would have it. Seriously, once upon a time I could only have dreamed about a honest publication containing news and pictures about artists whose music I follow and mostly respect, and that in this case are sonically represented by two CDs containing tracks that they recorded for this special occasion.
The names in question are Keith Berry, Richard Chartier, Taylor Deupree, Heribert Friedl, Richard Garet, Andy Graydon, Bernhard Günter, John Hudak, i8u, Dean King, Dale Lloyd, Roel Meelkop, Will Montgomery, Tomas Phillips, Steve Roden, Jos Smolders, Steinbrüchel, Nao Sugimoto, Asmus Tietchens, Toshiya Tsunoda, Ubeboet, Michael Vorfeld.

Every chapter presents an interview or some personal considerations by the artist about his own work and his/her relationships with other members of the same community. Most of them describe their approach and influences, others let drawings and photographs do the speaking while only a few – like Keith Berry, whose splendid track opens the first disc – report about the intimate sensations that unconsciously introduced them to certain types of withdrawn awareness. It is of course very interesting to know how these people have reached goals while still struggling to develop new means to synthesize determinate conclusions, but it’s equally nice reading about a man like Asmus Tietchens, who distances himself from most everything while being capable of producing music whose level of efficacy on the perceptive system is portentous to say the least.

The discs contain a lot of great moments, the perfect means to complement a very useful reading, and there is no actual sense in defining a “best of”. But, since you asked, Berry, Deupree, Lloyd, Roden, Tietchens and Ubeboet are the tracks that I liked in particular, and it was not an easy choice. What I really suggest is using both the book and the CDs like a breviary: open your windows, turn the volume up, let the sounds mix and read a few pages. Everything will make sense then.
(massimo ricci, touching extremes)

Review – Extract, Portrait of Soundartists (nvo) 2007 – by Larry Johnson, earlabs


EXTRACT (2CD + book by Non Visual Objects)

For anyone interested in modern-day approaches to experimental electro-acoustic music, especially the more minimal interpretations, Extract | Portraits of Soundartists is a valuable, practical, and enjoyable reference. Conceived by Heribert Friedl and Raphael Moser, the release consists of two compact discs featuring compositions from twenty-two contemporary artists involved in making electro-acoustic music. The discs are housed in a 96-page hardcover book containing text and/or images from each artist. View complete artist/track listing here .

I’ve had Extract | Portraits of Soundartists in my possession for about a month now. It has accompanied me wherever I go throughout the day. Sometimes I just listen to compositions on the discs, other I times I sneak in a few minutes to read (and re-read) the essays, interviews, etc. in the book, but the most rewarding times are early mornings/late afternoons when I can sit down, relax, listen and read at the same time. It’s at these moments that things begin to come together as the text that I read and the images that I see help make sense of and give context to the intricate, abstract, and beautiful sounds that these artists are producing. I’m also humbled by what I’ve read realizing now that so much of what I’ve written and reviewed in the past is way off the mark. If only I knew then what I know now.

Describing the music found on the discs is difficult. In the broadest sense, it’s about artists exploring the seemingly infinite and non-traditional ways in which sound can be manipulated, transformed, sculptured, recontextualized, disassembled, and reassembled. Dean King summed it all up nicely in the form of a question – “how far can music be reduced and still be understood as music? (p.47)”

At a minimum, Extract certainly achieves two important purposes: First, it provides a representative, international cross-section of the many sound artists involved in composing experimental electro-acoustic music (although I would liked to have seen more female artists included). Of the twenty-two artists included, there were only five whose work I was not at all acquainted with. For the remaining seventeen artists, my awareness ranges from very familiar to just a mediocre knowledge. Richard Chartier, Taylor Deupree, Heribert Friedl, Bernhard Günter, John Hudak, Dale Lloyd, Steve Roden, Jos Smolders, Ralph Steinbrüchel, Asmus Tietchens, and Ubeboet are common names to me. Also known to me, but not quite as familiar, are Richard Garet, Andy Graydon, I8U, Dean King, Roel Meelkop, and Tomas Phillips. Now, with deference to Extract, I’ve been introduced to the work of Keith Barry, Will Montgomery, Nao Sugimoto, Toshiya Tsundo, and Michael Vorfeld.

Secondly, we get multiple viewpoints in varying formats (interviews, essays, photos, drawings) detailing the inspiration, influences, purpose, and techniques behind the process of sound construction and revealing mutual threads of interest and other commonalities. Examples are plentiful – Dean King gives a wonderfully articulate and philosophical exposé concerning his methods establishing connections and drawing parallels to literature, abstract painting, and photography. He also writes about disassembling and decontextualizing sound and how granular processing makes possible the “transformation of time.” Tomas Phillips goes into some detail about “minimalist tendencies” and the “minimizing of sound.” Bernhard Günter draws interesting analogies between photography and music viewing both cameras and audio recorders as samplers capturing visible and auditory frequencies, respectively, that can then be digitally manipulated, and the title of his accompanying track “Listen to what you see” says a lot about his methods. France Jobin (I8U) gives a short biographical essay outlining the “environmental and technological landmarks” encountered during the “creative process.” Keith Berry and Richard Chartier each reveal the importance of early childhood “sound memories” and discuss the significance of visual art in their musical development. John Hudak writes about the similarities in the creative processes of drawing and music creation. Heribert Friedl writes about his interest in combining sound art with his work in “non visual objects.” Andy Graydon expounds on the influences of music concrète, film/cinema, and environmental art on his sound work. Toshiya Tsunoda discusses his interest in “vibration phenomenon” and the role it plays in his compositions and installations. Jos Smolders labels much of his sound work as “abstract” explaining that it’s often constructed from concrete sounds, but not necessarily connected to reality, and he makes an interesting analogy between his methods and the expressionistic school of painting. Nao Sugimoto explains that “the sounds, textures, and colors of nature” are essential to his current work. In a similar fashion, Richard Garet regards his sound art as a “constant response to the complexities of the environment“ taking in everything around him and then “putting it out in different reconfigurations.“ Will Montgomery makes reference to the element of “uncertainty” in his work and speculates on the indirect influence of his interest in contemporary avant-garde poetry on his music. Steinbrüchel speaks for several artists when he says that “I feel more connected to other artists throughout the world than in my local area.” There’s a common theme of local “isolation” tempered somewhat by a connectedness with like-minded people outside their locale via collaborations made possible by the internet. Finally, more than one artist made it known that regardless of how much intent and purpose is put into a composition, among the best pieces are the ones in which chance takes over and allows the work to “unfold” naturally on its own.

My only wish now is that enough people see the worth and importance of such a dual media work like Extract that we see more of the same. A free, virtual/downloadable online follow-up to this reaching out to anyone interested would be the ideal. A fresh roster of sound artists might include names like William Basinski, Marc Behrens, Esther Bourdages, Joda Clément, Anne Guthrie, John Kannenberg, K. M. Krebs, Francisco Lopez, Stephan Mathieu. Christopher McFall, Nathan McNinch, Michael Northam, Ben Owen, Pablo Reche, Asher Thal-nir, and Sabine Vogel to name just a few.
(larry johnson, earlabs)

Review – Extract, Portrait of Soundartists(nvo) 2007 – by Tom Sekowski, gaz-eta

EXTRACT (2CD + book by Non Visual Objects)

V. A. : EXTRACT-PORTRAITS OF SOUNDARTISTS (NVO_011)
The premise sounds simple. Vienna based Non Visual Objects imprint invited twenty-two sound artists to present a piece of work. Over time, two CDs worth of sounds were filed. What are more impressive though are the non-musical aspects each of the musicians offers in “Extract” project, which not only consists of the music, but a nearly 100 page book. As the two project leaders – Heribert Friedl and Raphael Moser – explain in the introduction, “We would like to present artists that work in different areas in this field of electroacoustic music, to cover a large spectrum even in this quite specific area. With essays, interviews, photos, drawings and other materials presented in this book, we try to look at the motivation and intention behind the sound production from different perspectives, to possibly allow for a new/extended approach to this form of music.” Though each of the artists is somehow tied in to the electro-acoustic and microsound scene, variety of artists included in the project fluctuates greatly. Taylor Deupree chooses to express himself with a variety of photos taken over three year journeys to Japan. Many of these are intensely personal and to get an inside scoop into his work is real difficult. On the other hand, his “Live in Osaka” piece is a rather pleasant, gliding, and ear-ringing glitch of soothing proportions. As many of the artists favour the question and answer interview scheme, so does sound manipulator Richard Garet. His contribution in the form of “Précis” is inundated with off-the-wall, distant crackles and glissando waves of buzzing. Bernhard Günter chooses to display some of his photos and his attached “Listen to what you see (audio sample of location of all Koblenz photos)” is a serene journey into oblique concoction of unidentifiable sound. John Hudak shares some of his drawings [which honestly remind me of Daniel Johnston’s better work], while his “Radio” piece is a glistening sound world full of cricket-like appropriations. Steve Roden’s distant-echo call of old, crackly records “Air Into Form/Voice Into Breath” is accompanied with a four pages of his working diary, which ultimately lets us peak into his thought process. Package ends on a high note with German audio-manipulator and visual artist Michael Vorfeld whose masterful percussive manipulations turn out to be as eerie as they are enlightening. In between all of these are contributions from Toshiya Tsunoda, Ubeboet, Keith Barry, I8U, Dean King, Tomas Phillips, Asmus Tietchens, Richard Chartier and a dozen others. In a nutshell, “Extract” fulfils its goal quite well. In showing the visual aspect behind many of these artists work, their music takes on an entirely new meaning. It’s true that the more you know someone, the more you’re bound to love them.
(tom sekowski, gaz-eta)

Review – Extract Portrait of Soundartists(nvo) 2007 by BGN, WHITE-LINE

EXTRACT-PORTRAITS OF SOUNDARTISTS (NVO_011)

It is encouraging that at last there seems to be a genuine groundswell of interest in the sonic arts here in the UK, in part stimlulated, no doubt by groundbreaking tomes by David Toop, followed by his inspirational Sonic Boom Festival in London some years back, which to some extent defined the paradigm shift in public understanding and acceptance of sound art. The accompanying book/catalogue was also representative of a weighty cross- section of sound artists in the world at the time. This was followed by another thoroughly defining book, “Blocks of Consciousness” issued by Sounds323, that has quickly become a kind of ready reference manual for neophytes, would-be sound artists, and sonic art adherents alike. The arrival in the UK of artists such as Alva Noto, Ryoji Ikeda, and RLW, playing in prestigious venues such as the Barbican, Tate Modern, and Sage Centre, also indicate a subtle shift of interest into more obscure, and radical approaches to sound work. Now comes the beautifully produced EXTRACT, by specialist label Non Visual Objects, whose output over the last couple of years has cast a bright light over the genre of minimalism, with a series of exquisitely produced releases that focus primarily on the ultra-minimal, both in terms of design and presentation.
This book, rather than following tried and tested routes trawling the theoretical aspects of sound, takes a warmer, and more intimate approach by selecting sound artists who are very much “of the moment”, and gaining insights into their psyche by asking stock questions about early influences, recent influences, working methods, collaborations, connections to local art scenes, etc ,etc.
What is interesting about this approach is that it becomes a kind of census of a representative cross section of artists, which in itself reveals patterns and commonalities that perhaps may not be obvious to the layman, and are refreshingly re-assuring to others, like myself, who operate within this field. Some of these commonalities such as encounters with the sounds of air conditioning systems, heating systems, refrigerators etc in formative years are deeply interesting, as they become the catalyst for experiments in later life for many of these artists, and indicate a predisposition to the more cerebral and marginalised elements of contemporary culture.
The majority of these artists also appear to be operating in relative isolation with respect to local music scenes and the art establishment, and it is only via the internet, and their respective record labels that they have been able to connect with like-minded individuals and audience alike. Other common themes appear to be that many of these artists are also deeply interested in nature, and natural systems; they also have great sensitivity to the visual arts (many also being visual artists as well). Recurring themes also appear to be Kraftwerk, Burroughs, Cage, Eno, all in themselves highly revealing as sources and origins of inspiration, as very few of these influences are inherently “minimal” in their approach.
I have deliberately not singled out any one artist for scrutiny here, preferring to deal with EXTRACT as a product to be dealt with holistically. From a purely subjective point of view, the strength of this book lies in it’s position of defining minimalism not only as a musical/sonic genre, but as a microcosmic social network, a spiritual economy based upon the communal exchange of information, goods, and most importantly, ideas. The selection of artists in the spotlight in this publication is by no means exhaustive, and prominent figures such as Chartier and Deupree, Tietchens, Günter, Steinbrüchel, Roden, are positioned alongside relative newcomers such as Dale Lloyd, Tomas Philips, Michael Vorfeld for example. This in turn presents a wider spectrum of possibility for those interested in pursuing the work of all of these artists, and in a wider sense, stimulating interest in minimalism in general. The CD’s enlcosed within the end papers of the book will surely emerge as a “who’s who” of the genre, very much in the way that Selektion’s “Tulpas” did in the 90’s, and will be reviewed here at some later point.
EXTRACT itself is a relatively quick read (I did it in under an hour), but it’s influence, and implications will remain with me, and others for many years, I am certain. An absolutely essential insight for anyone interested in minimalism.
(bgn, white line)