Sonic Art & Sound Design- P26 ppsx

4 QC Preflight Point 1 st 33 p125 Job no : 76098 Title : The Fundamentals Of Sonic Art Client : AVA Scn : # 150 Size : 200(w)230(h)mm Co : M3 C0 (All To Spot)(Coagl) Dept : DTP D/O : 16.02.07(Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:23 AM Page 125 1 st p125 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:23 AM Page 125 1 st p125 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:23 AM Page 125 125124 1 st p125 PERFORMANCE ‘THE STUDIO MUST BE LIKE A LIVING THING. THE MACHINE MUST BE LIVE AND INTELLIGENT. THEN I PUT MY MIND INTO THE MACHINE BY SENDING IT THROUGH THE CONTROLS AND THE KNOBS OR INTO THE JACK PANEL. THE JACK PANEL IS THE BRAIN ITSELF, SO YOU’VE GOT TO PATCH UP THE BRAIN AND MAKE THE BRAIN A LIVING MAN, BUT THE BRAIN CAN TAKE WHAT YOU’RE SENDING INTO IT AND LIVE.’ LEE ‘SCRATCH’ PERRY, ‘AUDIO CULTURE’ M DUB Dub is a a musical form originating in the reggae studies of the West Indies and pioneered by such artists as Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry and Augustus Pablo. It is characterised by the ‘unmixing’ of a multitrack recording such that individual tracks are presented by themselves or in small groups rather than being conventionally mixed together. These tracks are often subjected to processes such as repeat echo, spot reverberation, swept equalisation etc. 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:23 AM Page 125 QC Preflight Point 1 st 33 p126 Job no : 76098 Title : The Fundamentals Of Sonic Art Client : AVA Scn : # 150 Size : 200(w)230(h)mm Co : M3 C0 (All To Spot)(Coagl) Dept : DTP D/O : 16.02.07 (Job no:000000 D/O : 00.00.07 Co: CM0) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:24 AM Page 126 1 st p126 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:24 AM Page 126 1 st p126 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:24 AM Page 126 Interactivity and multimedia So far, we have considered what we may regard as relatively conventional forms of performance: those where the artist is literally or metaphorically ‘on stage’ and delivers a performance to an audience. Here the medium is simple and the relationship with the audience is traditional and unambiguous. Other forms of performance exist and, unsurprisingly, sound artists are often involved in these too. A new and radical concept of performance emerged in the 1950s and 1960s, particularly in the USA. This took the form of events (‘happenings’), predominantly staged not by performers in theatres or concert halls, but by artists in galleries. Some of these blurred the distinctions between established art forms by introducing elements of performance. Works such as Joseph Beuys’ I like America and America likes me – in which he spent several days in a room with a wild coyote – introduced elements of performance into other forms or at least demanded that the visitor become more of an audience member at a performance rather than a viewer at an exhibition. Unsurprisingly, this re-definition of what might be embraced by the term ‘performance’ suits the practice of sonic art very well indeed. A number of recent sound works have involved the interaction between artist and audience becoming more of an encounter or dialogue than the presentation that is the basis of most ‘conventional’ performance. This results in the performance becoming, to some extent, interactive but this time at an interpersonal rather than human/machine level. Sound as a performance medium can be remarkably un-engaging by itself.There is often a perceived need for some form of visual accompaniment, as anyone who has attended concerts of serious electroacoustic music will attest: the absence of visible performers seems to many to demand some alternative visual focus other than spinning tape reels or vibrating loudspeaker cones. It is therefore no surprise to discover that many sound performers incorporate a significant visual element in their work. This may simply act as a background to the sound or may be an important part of the actual content of the piece. Going further, the idea of Mlaptop and other forms of electronic performance can be extended beyond sound alone. With the advent of powerful computers and specialist hardware, the idea of genuinely audiovisual performance has become readily achievable. Initially seen as an adjunct to the work of the DJ, we now see the emergence of the VJ as his/her visual equivalent, working in a similar fashion but with samples not of sound but of video and image, cutting, remixing and thereby recontextualising the original material. Going further still, we can see in the work of groups such as the international ensemble 242.pilots, an attempt to create improvised performances that combine both visual and sonic elements in a single integrated form. REALISATION AND PRESENTATION 1 st p126 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:24 AM Page 126 4 p127 QC Preflight Point 3 rd 33 Job no : 76098 Title : The Fundamentals Of Sonic Art Client : AVA Scn : # 150 Size : 200(w)230(h)mm Co : M3 C0 (All To Spot)(Coagl) Dept : DTP D/O : 16.02.07 (Job no:76098C2 D/O : 22.03.07 Co: CM3) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:24 AM Page 127 p127 3 rd (Job no:76098C2 D/O : 22.03.07 Co: CM3) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:24 AM Page 127 p127 3 rd (Job no:76098C2 D/O : 22.03.07 Co: CM3) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:24 AM Page 127 127126 p127 Summary Performance is a common activity in sonic art, in a way and to an extent that is relatively uncommon in most other art forms. Whether or to what extent this is a reflection of its relationship to music is, of course, open to discussion: some of the artists in this book would cheerfully describe themselves as musicians whereas others would refute any such connection. This raises the question of whether the way in which performance is defined in sonic art is necessarily quite the same as it is in areas such as music or dance.The range of performance forms that we encounter in sonic art is certainly unusually wide and this is perhaps one of its most attractive features, allowing it to stimulate interest and find favour amongst diverse audiences, from serious concert-goers and gallery visitors to club-goers. PERFORMANCE 3 rd (Job no:76098C2 D/O : 22.03.07 Co: CM3) ‘ WE CAN NO LONGER MAKE A CLEAR-CUT DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE VISUAL AND THE ACOUSTIC. THE COMPUTER WILL GUIDE US TOWARDS AN ALL- ENCOMPASSING FORM OF PERCEPTION AND CREATION THAT CLEARLY REPRESENTS BOTH THE PRESENT AND FUTURE STATES OF HUMAN CREATIVITY.’ NICOLAS SCHOFFER, ‘DIGITAL & VIDEO ART’ M LAPTOP PERFORMANCE Although by no means the only technology used by sound performers, the idea of using the laptop computer as either an instrument, a processor of sound generated elsewhere, a reproducer of previously recorded material, or in other performance roles, has become widely accepted. Through the use of appropriate software, the laptop performance may take a range of forms, sometimes including video and image-based material as well as sound. Considerable debate exists as to whether or not it is appropriate to regard the laptop as an instrument in the conventional sense and whether a performer who uses it necessarily does so in the same way as a musician might use a conventional instrument. 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:24 AM Page 127 REALISATION AND PRESENTATION p128 Nick Rothwell Nick Rothwell’s work covers a wide range of activities, from composition and performance to sound design, but he is perhaps most widely known for his innovative software design and programming work, which often focuses upon various forms of interaction between sound and video and performers, especially dancers. He has created soundtracks for the choreographers Aydin Teker and Richard Siegal and performed with Laurie Booth of Dance Umbrella at the Different Skies Festival in Arizona and the Institute of Contemporary Arts and the Science Museum’s Dana Centre (both in London). He has also created performance systems for the Ballet Frankfurt, Vienna Volksoper and Braunarts and other projects have included work at STEIM (Studio for Electro-Instrumental Music) in Amsterdam, the interdisciplinary art centre CAMAC near Paris and ZKM (Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie) at Karlsruhe, Germany. Below: ’ Triptychos’ Rothwell was commissioned by Sonic Arts Network to create Triptychos as part of the Cut and Splice Festival in May/June 2005. He describes Triptychos as ‘a digital media triptych, transforming the real-time images from a video camera into an abstract graphical music score, and interpreting the score to play an interactive, algorithmic soundtrack. The panes of the triptych expose the analytical process from left to right: video capture (left), thresholding and downsampling (centre), and graphical score (right). The sound engine is a sophisticated sample manipulation instrument. Instructions from the score recall different audio selections, tunings and key intervals, and individual instrument voices play samples forwards or backwards, often changing direction and speed within a single note.’ Image courtesy of Nick Rothwell. 2 nd (Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:25 AM Page 128 p128 2 nd (Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:25 AM Page 128 p128 2 nd (Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:25 AM Page 128 p128 QC Preflight Point 2 nd 33 Job no : 76098 Title : The Fundamentals Of Sonic Art Client : AVA Scn : # 150 Size : 200(w)230(h)mm Co : M3 C0 (All To Spot)(Coagl) Dept : DTP D/O : 16.02.07 (Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:25 AM Page 128 Student works Patrick Furness Right: ‘Are we nearly there yet?’ A large sheet of MDF is covered with pre-recorded strips of magnetic tape. The visitor guides a radio-controlled model car over this. Underneath the car is a tape recorder’s playback head, which is connected to a radio transmitter and thence to a receiver and loudspeakers. Image courtesy of Tony Gibbs. Jonathan Pigrem Right, below: ‘Global Warning’ A series of electronic sensors detect the concentration of various atmospheric pollutants. This information is processed through a microcontroller system and, according to what is detected, solenoids are triggered, which ‘play’ the suspended chime bars below. Image courtesy of Tony Gibbs. Johnny Pavlatos Far right: ‘Inprint’ ‘The concept of the Inprint installation was rooted in a direct inquiry to the way technology affects identity. Through the processes of construction, conceptualisation and exploration within Inprint we aim to explore how relationships with these specific structures affect subjectivity. More specifically, through the process of fingerprinting and gifting, Inprint aims to expose how gender, acquisition, storage, classification and manipulation of information affects each of our identities in everyday living.’ As part of the work, Pavlatos invited visitors to have personal data apparently recorded into a computer system that would ‘create’ a personal sonic identity on a CD, which could then be taken away with them. Image courtesy of Tony Gibbs. p129 PERFORMANCE 2 nd (Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:25 AM Page 129 p129 2 nd (Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:25 AM Page 129 p129 2 nd (Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:25 AM Page 129 p129 QC Preflight Point 2 nd 33 Job no : 76098 Title : The Fundamentals Of Sonic Art Client : AVA Scn : # 150 Size : 200(w)230(h)mm Co : M3 C0 (All To Spot)(Coagl) Dept : DTP D/O : 16.02.07 (Job no:776098C1 D/O : 09.03.07 Co: CM11) 76098_CTP_108-157.qxd 3/24/07 6:25 AM Page 129 . by the term ‘performance’ suits the practice of sonic art very well indeed. A number of recent sound works have involved the interaction between artist and audience becoming more of an encounter. performance is defined in sonic art is necessarily quite the same as it is in areas such as music or dance.The range of performance forms that we encounter in sonic art is certainly unusually. ‘DIGITAL & VIDEO ART M LAPTOP PERFORMANCE Although by no means the only technology used by sound performers, the idea of using the laptop computer as either an instrument, a processor of sound