Posted on

review – the illusion of infinitesimal – (baskaru) 2014 – ondarock (it)

Il concetto di infinitesimo è forse fra i più dibattuti nella storia della logica, sia a livello filosofico che strettamente matematico. Quando Leibniz li introdusse come sostanziale traduzione del concetto di monade in ambito logico fu rivoluzione, poi per un secolo vennero accantonati e subordinati ai limiti per mancanza di rigore logico, salvo poi ricomparire nel secolo scorso nell’ambito dell’analisi non standard. Cosa c’entra tutto questo con la musica? Proprio a questa domanda che sorge spontanea vuole rispondere la canadese France Jobin, nota quei pochi già vicini alla sua longeva opera come I8U.

Il tentativo è quello di considerare ciascun singolo suono come fosse una particella, e dunque un infinitesimo di materia a dimensione zero: le tre lunghe digressioni di “The Illusion Of Infinitesimal” ne studiano l’interazione, andando in particolare a verificare la natura del presunto movimento rotatorio che lega i suoni stessi.
La ricerca, in realtà, non si discosta troppo dalle sperimentazioni degli ultimi allievi di Morton Feldman eTony Conrad (Phill Niblock in testa), ma a questo Jobin concilia pure il concetto di musica generativa, musica che si autocrea e autoproduce a cui il compositore fissa esclusivamente le coordinate-base, il sentiero da percorrere.

Il risultato di questa mediazione è dunque un lavoro di pura contemplazione sonora, che in sostanza va a collocarsi su quel sentiero di minimalismo ambientale da sempre tanto caro a Richard Chartier – non è un caso che il precedente lavoro a proprio nome di Jobin sia uscito, due anni fa, proprio per L_NE. “1/2” lascia estendere dunque un drone docile e liquido fino a raggiungere la massima estensione, e gioca con i livelli di volume sfruttandoli sostanzialmente come lente d’ingrandimento di un microscopio. Unica forma di intervento, resa quantitativamente dal titolo, sta nel sibilo che cerca ciclicamente di fare da acceleratore per le microparticelle sonore, senza però ottenere altro risultato dal “disturbare”.

In “0”, più breve e compatta, la velocità del moto sonoro si riduce ulteriormente complice la totale assenza di azione. I ventitré minuti di pura ambient-drone di “+1” aggiungono finalmente un po’ di sostanza alla forma, ma recuperando anche il legame con la realtà che gli scopi sperimentali dei due monologhi precedenti avevano finito col lacerare.
Vien da chiedersi dove possa portare questo proliferare di tentativi di lavorare sulla natura logica della musica prescindendo paradossalmente da ciò che la distingue da un puro succedersi di suoni: il sentimento. Jobin ci riesce, probabilmente suo malgrado, dando vita a una forma la cui gracilità melodica consente un ascolto suggestivo anche a chi volesse tenersi lontano dalla complessa dimensione concettuale su cui si fonda.

Matteo Meda

ondarock

Posted on

review – the illusion of infinitesimal – (baskaru) 2014 – blackaudio

FRANCE JOBIN: The Illusion of Infinitesimal CD Baskaru

Canadian sound installation expert France Jobin started her career as a Blues artist, so all in all this release under her own name is nothing but a departure from the path she started out on.

Over the course of three tracks Jobin plays on a varying degree of subtle harmonies and droning pads, the atmosphere creeping upward, approaching the ear with blissful grace and attention to detail. Understated and minimalistic, there are hidden ranges within ‘The Illusion of Infinitesimal’ that infiltrate your ears and play on your imagination, leaving you questioning the source of the sounds that filter through the speakers.

Reminiscent of the ‘live @ Synaesthsia’ 3”CD I first encountered in 2000 from Fennesz and Rosy Parlane, this approaches the listener with the same oozing warmth of Summer twilight, where the sun sits low in the sky and all is well with the world.

With a varying degree of swells and pitches, France lets her actions glide enigmatically from start to finish, over the course of just under an hour. The beauty of this creation is that time simply flies by and becomes irrelevant once everything comes to its conclusion.

Tony Young

Blackaudio

9/10

Posted on

review – the illusion of infinitesimal – (baskaru) 2014 – felthat – (UK)

 

France Jobim, a sound artist based in Montreal, Canada has a very unique, poetic approach to sound design. A very experienced sound artists with huge background in installations, participant of numerous experimental music festivals. Her philosphy of immersion is clearly present here.

A multilayered sound of minute qualities of grainy structures and clean cut walls of sound brick by brick bring the atmoshpere of  musical architecture which is embellished with both subtleness and extensive harmony that has a beautiful feminine feel.

Clean cut of technologies and back up of digital artistry have a deep influence on the shape of the tracks which haunting power has a great universal meaning – it could be perceived as something of a background music, an ambience that helps to immerse yourself into it and develop a serious mood.

On the other hand there is strong emphasis on the contextual element – shapeshifting composing like in the example of her album is definitely a great asset when you consider how much you could get of this minimalistic music – a soundscape that really heals you.

Hubert Heathertoes

felthat

Posted on

review – the illusion of infinitesimal – (baskaru) 2014 – CHAIN D.L.K. – NY

The Illusion of Infinitesimal CD Baskaru

If some sonic diggers accidentally begin to listen to this album by Montreal-based sound installation/artist and minimalist composer France Jobin aka I8U without knowing anything about its conceptual aspect, I’m pretty sure some of them could surmise that a maladroit nipper foolishly forgot to calibrate input controls on mixer while listening the opening track “1/2” where just some delicate frequencies, high beeps (not so different from pure tones for audiometric tests) and thin piercing sounds cross the microscopic holes left by knitted pad-synths which got intentionally mastered at a very low volume and seem to act like a filter for unnecessary and maybe unwanted sonic intrusions. According to a different way of listening the same track, you could imagine it’s like an unobtrusive diaphragm between listeners and surrounding world, that you keep on feeling whether you are wearing headphones or you are listening to it from loudspeakers, where just some delicate sonic entities occasionally detach from the above-mentioned stream of frequencies as if “1/2” tries to render moments of temporary partinf from “outer world”. Even the only trace of noise on the second part of the suite doesn’t get under your skin as it rather resembles the noise of distant engines (a car, a watercraft, a helicopter o maybe a tractor) when you are on a desolate beach at dawn. A similar route between barely audible loops to resurfacing sonic entities has been followed on the other two long-lasting suites: whereas the central track “0” could evoke a peaceful reverie in a countryside farm, this talented Canadian woman pulls the initial pure tones and bleeps out of the sonic sphere before letting that previously almost silenced drone wrap the listener into a warmer embrace on the final “+1”. That’s a very good rapture in the fertile plot of minimalist ambient.

Vito Camarretta

CHAIN D.L.K

Posted on

review – the illusion of infinitesimal – (baskaru) 2014 – DMute – (FR)

The Illusion of Infinitesimal CD Baskaru

Pianiste de blues expérimentée, la montréalaise France Jobin a débuté sa carrière d’electro-acousticienne sous le pseudonyme de I8U en 1999. Elle a publié depuis une dizaine d’albums d’ambient music sur des labels prestigieux tels que Atak, Non Visual Object, Room40 ou Dragon’s Eye Recording. Elle a notamment collaboré avec Thomas Phillips et Martin Treteault et inventé un concept d’écoute en live basé sur l’exploration des sensations de l’auditoire appelé Immersound, pour lequel elle a reçu la reconnaissance du Conseil québécois de la musique en 2013. Depuis 2012, elle produit une musique toujours plus raffinée et exigeante, mais cette fois sous son nom de baptème. Après Valence chez Line en 2012, The Illusion Of Infinitesimal est paru en début d’année chez Baskaru.

L’oeuvre de la montréalaise impressionne par ses manifestations métamusicales. Sa puissance d’absorption révèle son affinité étrange avec la transe inductive. L’artiste, qui se joue constamment des lois de la perception auditive et des échelles de grandeur, évoque elle-même des liens organiques avec la physique quantique: de multiples concentrations focales font systématiquement apparaître des univers dissimulés sous les couches les plus apparentes du spectres sonore, dans un emboîtement qui paraît infini.

Ces deux univers se conjuguent constamment à l’intérieur des trois longues compositions de The Illusion Of Infinitesimal pour donner lieux à des évènements sonores particulièrement denses et abstraits: glissements tectoniques imperceptibles, formations d’ectoplasmes, diffractions harmoniques…etc. La musique de Jobinpasse ainsi aisément de l’ambient au minimalisme – voir à ses occurrences les plus extrêmes – et explose allègrement la frontière entre sonorités digitales et analogiques. Enfin, elle dépasse la dichotomie qui opposent bien souvent installations et enregistrements studio à proprement parlé pour proposer une expérience d’écoute inédite.

On est bien là dans quelque chose de total, mas qui, on s’en aperçoit très vite, masque en réalité l’essentiel: au-delà de sa haute technicité sonore et de la minutie apporté à la moindres de ses variations, la musique de Jobinculmine dans un ravissement de la conscience qui rappelle l’art d’Eliane Radigue ou les précieuses atmosphères des disques de Stars Of The Lid.

Mickael B.

dMute

Posted on

review – the illusion of infinitesimal – (baskaru) 2014 – Blow UP magazine (IT)

 

 

The Illusion of Infinitesimal CD Baskaru 3T-58:15

Soundscapes che procedono per variazioni infinitesimali (come del resto preannuncia il titolo), universi sonori dai confini iperdilatati, frutto di uno corposo lavoro  di sound processing. Le creazioni della CanadeseFrancia Jobin sono assimilabili  alle forme più pure e stilizzata del’ ambient music e come tali  pioni demandare al l’ascoltatore lo sforzo di completare con la propria immaginazione un quadro di cui troppo spesso  risulta visibile solo la cornice .

(6)M. Busti

Blow UP

Posted on

Interview by Jack Chuter on ATTN:MAGAZINE UK

02186-02193 b 100light

ATTN:MAGAZINE

Tell me about your philosophy/event series, immersound. It’s fantastic to see that sound is being presented in an environment where every aspect of the experience is taken into consideration (lighting, sound reproduction, physical comfort etc). How and why did the series begin? How is the space itself optimised for the listener experience?

The series began following a lengthy reflection on the listening process of audio art within the framework of public presentations. Experiences I encountered, both as a sound artist and member of the public during various audio art performances, led me to realize that a proper context of presentation for minimal sound art was clearly needed. I set out to create an event in which I would like to perform in, one dedicated to the listening environment by focusing on the physical comfort of the audience through a specifically designed space. My premise for immersound-immerson was simple:  if people are physically uncomfortable, they are not in a state “to receive” challenging, minimal sound art; if they are comfortable, they will be more receptive.

I consulted with Stéphane Claude, Head of Research of the media lab’s audio sector at the artist centre Oboro, where immersound-immerson has been held annually since 2011. I shared my thoughts about having the audience lying down and we decided to use a 6.1 surround sound system and 26 zafutons (Japanese style cushions) specifically made for the event, in order to transform the space into an intimate listening room.

The zafutons are placed on the floor inside a perimeter defined by the speakers which are set up around the room low to the floor, using special stands that enable their positioning at an angle toward ear level. A “shower” of small speakers hangs from the ceiling in order to create a continuous multidirectional movement in constant flux. Only the speakers are lit by low intensity blue ceiling lighting, dimmed at the beginning of the performance.

I find it very important to set the right mood for the evening. I have people waiting outside of the concert space when they arrive, as a playlist created for the event unfolds in the background. The atmosphere is quite relaxed and gives people a chance to wind down from their day as well as creates anticipation for the event. When all is ready, I bring 2 – 3 people at the time through this dimly blue lit anti chamber where, for a moment, they are literally in between 2 worlds,  this enables me to draw them in so that, at the moment they enter the space, their mood is already set.

immersound_architecture

Such an emphasis on listening environment brings me back to thoughts on your most recent record, The Illusion Of Infinitesimal. The nature of your sounds – delicate, low in volume – evoke an awareness of my own listening space and the noise within it. Is there any particular reason behind your preference for quieter constructions?

The decision to move towards quieter dynamics and constructions happened gradually as I began questioning myself musically and I felt no longer challenged. One moment in particular stands out, while listening to Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue, it occurred to me that I may have been looking at this all wrong. I thought of a staff and notes and wondered: “what if it’s not the notes that create music, but the spaces between the notes, the rests and silences?” I applied this concept to my approach in programming sounds, it subsequently led me to minimal sound art, which, in turn, led to a new-found interest in science, quantum physics, the elegant universe, and the tiny world of particle science.

I discovered that presenting quieter works engages the listener in a different manner regarding their listening habits. Quieter dynamics does confront one to one’s act of listening, perhaps there is a need to re-educate ourselves. We often listen now while being busy doing many different things. I am hoping to make people stop and listen, simply listen.

Do you have a personal favourite space in which to listen to The Illusion Of Infinitesimal (that is, if you listen back to your own work at all)? For me, the record struck its most potent connection when I listened on headphones in one of empty meeting rooms at work, long after everyone else had gone home.

I am more inclined to listen to the work I am currently involved in rather than past works.  However, I did spend a lot of time listening to The Illusion Of Infinitesimal during the mastering phase. These were very “concentrated listening” sessions taking place in my studio.

Is there a particular set of circumstances (time, location, disposition) that you find optimum for composing your music?

Part of the liner notes I wrote for Valence on LINE convey my state of mind best: “my compositions start with a feeling or emotional state. There is a likelihood of finding a certain emotion in a piece, but it is not guaranteed, nor do I know exactly when or where I will find it. The act of looking for that emotion in of itself will distort it.” This still holds true today.

My studio is my place of choice for programming sounds and composing. All that is important to me relating to music and art is in this room. I have my equipment, gear, monitors, my father’s old 35m camera, projector and editing table. The walls are painted neutral grey in order to minimize distractions. Only one print on the wall facing me, Mono.Poly.Chr Print by Richard Chartier, based on his designs for the 2 double cd releases on LINE by Bernhard Günter. This print is a solid grounding force.

You were recently involved in Quark: How Does The Invisible Sound?, which came out last month. Can you tell me about your own contribution? How did you find the experience of using the Cconfin software?

Quark’s approach was defined by its creators, Fabio Perletta (farmacia901) and Ennio Mazzon, Cconfin (custom software).

The project is based on the intent of exploring the possible inter-relationship between sound and the invisible, strictly related to science and physics.

I was thrilled to participate in this project, it enabled me to delve deeper into areas of science I have been interested in. Cconfin, the software, is inspired by elementary particles interactions and a physical phenomenon known as Colour Confinement, the software defined the guidelines for programming sounds.  I managed to explore melodic textures to create a work that holds a visibility that is not quite discernible.

You refer to your pieces as “sound sculpture” in your website biography. I’ve spoken to a number of other artists who perceive their work as “sculptural”, although the interpretation of the term has been different on each occasion. How is your approach to your work informed by your perception of it as “sculpture”?

If I may start with a small parallel, an architect creates works that occupies a space, I would say I create sculptures that fit in the flow of time and perception. The environment architecturally shapes the pieces and how they will be heard. In installation and concert works for instance, I may position speakers in specific ways to respond to the architecture therefore creating a sound sculpture without it being an object. It is about presenting a work that is much different that what one hears, dependent on one’s placement.

You also put together a wonderful sonic self-portrait for our livingvoid compilation. Can you tell me about your own interpretation of the term “self-portrait”, particularly in a sonic context?

For me, the term self-portrait elicits feelings of awkwardness and artistic nudity.  In finding that nudity, as painful as it may be, I began by peeling away superfluous layers of sounds in order to uncover their true essence. The time limit imposed by the project led me to apply this notion of “removal” to both sound and time simultaneously.

What’s next for you? 

Following The Illusion of Infinitesimal on Baskaru, the vinyl album sans repères is being released in Japan on the new popmuzik label in the spring- early summer.  In late May, I will present a concert at Manif d’Arts, part of Guérilla du bruit series in Quebec city, and the world premiere concert version of sans repères at EM15 (ELEKTRA MUTEK 15) in Montreal.

In June, I am presenting immerson 6, and after, I will be off to Italy for 2 concerts and residencies being held respectively by Portobeseno festival in Trentino, and Liminaria 2014 (Interferenze festival) in the Fortore region. I will return to Italy in August to play at Flussi Festival. Another tour in Japan as well is in the works later in 2014 or early 2015.

Finally, a new collaborative audio/visual project entitled “Mirror Neurons”:

Sound : France Jobin and Fabio Perletta,

video by xx+xy visuals.

You can view a short promo here : http://vimeo.com/95506484

 

 

Posted on

Review – The Illusion of Infinitesimal – (Baskaru) 2014 – Déphasage – Objets Sonores Non Identifiés

 

The Illusion of infinitesimal on Baksaru 027 – 2014

Diffusion: Déphasage – Soundcloud

J’ai poursuivi dans l’infiniment petit avec France Jobin et justement « The Illusion of Infinitesimal », sortie récemment sur le label français Baskaru en compagnie de celles de Laurent Perrier et de Yoshio Machida, que je vous ai déjà diffusé. Cette musique donc microscopique, est presque à la taille de l’atome, et tout comme lui on sait qu’il est là mais on ne le perçoit presque pas, presque, oui, puisque tout ce que l’on voit est constitué d’atomes. C’est donc une présence suggérée qui le défini, tout comme la musique de France Jobin, qui est bien là dans nos oreilles sans que l’on s’en rende compte. Ce silence qui n’en est pas un, mais il n’existe pas de vrai silence, de véritable vide, l’atome est là, les sons sont là. Cette qualité est celle qui fait aussi la musique de France Jobin, qui après avoir été pianiste de blues dans les années 80 revient à la musique en partant de presque rien. Effectivement, elle a réussi à abstraire un nombre incalculable d’élements pour en arriver à ce dépouillement surprême. N’ayez pas peur à l’écoute si le volume vous paraît anormalement bas, c’est bien le volume auquel elle souhaite que vous entendiez sa musique. Un bel afront aux volumes archi-élévés encore, qui eux sont hors-normes pour le coup, des grosses productions qui souhaitent seulement s’extirper du bruit ambiant, mais jamais ne réclame votre attention si particulière et si fine, ce qu’elles ne sont pas par ailleurs, cela va de pair.

Posted on

Review – The Illusion of Infinitesimal – (Baskaru) 2014 – skug – AT

The Illusion of Infinitesimal on Baksaru 027 – 2014

Die Wüste von Sonora, das ist also auch die Frage: Wann hat das angefangen mit diesen Klangflächen, mit diesen ambientartigen Soundskulpturen, mit dieser Erstarrung in sphärischer Schönheit, mit diesem Zwischenreich zwischen Anspruch und Meditation? Ein absolutes Meisterinnenstück in dieser Hinsicht ist etwa die CD »The Illusion Of Infinitesimal« der Französin France Jobin, die sich vor vielen Jahren als Blues-Keyboarderin verdingte, dabei aber offenbar immer mehr in das Reich der minimalistischen Sphärik abgedriftet ist. In »The Illusion Of Infinitesimal« ist dieses Reich dahingehauchter denn je, schwebende Synthiesounds ziehen am Hörer bzw. der Hörerin vorbei wie Nebelhörner an einem esoterischen Massagesalon. Dass hier auch noch »recorded sounds« eine Rolle spielen sollen, vernimmt man mit erstarrtem Erstaunen. Oder erstaunter Erstarrung. Je nachdem. Ist das noch Kunst, fragt man sich, oder doch eher ein akustischer Meditationsausflug? In exakt dieselbe Kerbe schlagen der Texaner Will Long und der Deutsche Christoph Heemann.

Posted on

Live May.29.2014 – EM15 Play 1 @ Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal salle BWR

EM15 – PLAY 1

The depths of Montréal’s sound-art spectrum submerge all who enter the exemplary PLAY 1, where radical experimenters astound with enchanted circuitry, found sounds and feedback, rendering music sensually physical in the bold strokes of live painting, contemporary dance and large-screen abstractions.

France Jobin will present the world premiere of  ”sans repères“. Created entirely with actual field recordings gathered while on tour in Japan, “sans repères” explores the possibilities brought forth in the absence of absolute points of reference.

Photo – Eri Makita  

May 29, 2014
22:00 – 02:00

Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal – Salle BWR
185 Ste-Catherine St. Ouest
Montréal, Canada