A composition by Iannis Xenakis, Pleaides was originally commissioned for Les Percussions de Strasbourg, to premiere at the Opera du Rhin in May 1979. A sextet for percussion, it is here performed by the Yale Percussion Group.
Colorfilm (1971) - Standish Lawder
Further examining the medium of film itself, Colorfilm is a work Lawder made while trying to make a minimalist, "pure color" film. Using spliced-together strips of colored film leader in white, yellow, blue, red, green, etc., Lawder ran the film through a projector and found the results to be quite boring. While he was running the film, though, he noticed how beautiful the colored strips of film looked as they ran through the projector. So, he turned a camera on the projector and filmed the colored film gorgeously winding its way through the projector's machinery." - Noel Black, Colorado Springs Independent
Music by The Mothers of Invention.
Steve Goodman's "Sonic Warfare: Sound, Affect and the Ecology of Fear"
In Krystof Wodiczko's striking installation Out of Here: The Veterans Project, currently on view at the ICA in Boston, choppers roar overhead. People scream in the distance. Glass breaks and shatters on the floor. The viewer can see almost nothing; the large room is dark, except for a few windows high above, created by a row of video projections. The view from these windows is obscured; the piece is as much about what you can't see than what you do see. But even more importantly, the piece is about what you hear--and what you can't hear. The chants of an imam become the sounds of women wailing. Gunshots begin to fire sporadically. Military officers yell harsh commands. The rumble of bass—a swarm of Humvees in the distance, drawing closer—gets louder and more threatening. The longer you stay in the room, immersed in the increasing racket, the more palpable the sense of dread becomes. The harrowing sounds of war are not simply about the sounds themselves, but the spaces in between.
In the intriguing new book Sonic Warfare: Sound, Affect, and the Ecology of Fear [MIT Press], Steve Goodman explores the power of sound as a tactic of irritation, intimidation, or even permanent harm. Goodman analyzes "environments, or ecologies, in which sound contributes to an immersive atmosphere or ambience of fear and dread--where sound helps produce a bad vibe."
Top 5 - 10
Nick Hasty is Rhizome's Director of Technology
Here's my top 5 list of DIY audio art kits to keep you busy in 2010.
Open source, Arduino-based version of the monome controller interface that utilizes usb midi and open sound control. Great for controlling instruments, installations, and performances.
► Casper Electronics Drone Lab
Peter Edwards' Drone Lab is a 4 voice analog drone synth, rhythm generator and FX processor. A great kit from one of the kings of circuit bending.
Simple but powerful kit from the Loud Objects performance group. You can easily integrate your own code to write new low-bit jams.
► Triwave Picogenerator and other assorted kits by 4ms
4ms has been making a wide variety of wonderful and novel instruments for nearly 15 years. These guys are pros and extremely nice to boot.
Open-source version of the Roland TB-303. What more could you ask for?
Top 5 - 10
Travess Smalley is an artist who lives in New York City. He is currently showing work in Art Since the Summer of '69's show "Objects, Furniture and Patterns", and is part of internet collectives Loshadka and Computers Club. He is also one half of the design duo Poster Company. He is an intern at Rhizome.
20 Jazz Funk Greats strength is in their rampant use of cosmic and cryptic verbs. "Jacky Daw" by Pumajaw presents a combination of CAN grooves and pagan howls.
Kingdom's own mp3 blog Patent Leather Daddy has had its share of amazing mixes and posts this year (hello Latin Freestyle & Gym Jams). But he also made a phenomenal mix for discobelle.net. The last 15 minutes give me goosebumps.
Further listening: Lower End Spasm - BOK BOK b2b KINGDOM - Night Slugs Show - Sub FM 27 . 06 . 09 and Nguzunguzu's Mix for Discobelle
Synergy's Larry Fast is best known on Rhizome as the music in Ron Hayes Delta Videos. I found this song on Momus's livejournal, Click Opera, before finding Aesoteric Sounds had uploaded a vinyl copy of the full album.
Crystal Vibrations consistently posts rare and ethereal new age and meditation music from gem spas and yogi shops around the world.
Sounds of Our Time, a compilation by Hammer. Ghana club music from 2004, quite relevant to English and American dance music in 2009.
Found on Travis Hallenbeck's tumblr, Mondshine is an electronic musician from the 80's. You can find Clara Mondshine's discography on Mutant Sounds, the godmother of all mp3 blogs.
Further Listening: Doris Norton - Personal Computer
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Caitlin Jones is the Executive Director of the Western Front Society in Vancouver, BC. Prior to this appointment she had a combined curatorial and conservation position at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and was the Director of Programming at the Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery in New York. A key member of the Variable Media Network, Caitlin has also been responsible for developing important tools and policy for the preservation of electronic and ephemeral artworks. She has been a contributor to Rhizome and her other writings have appeared in a wide range of exhibition catalogues, periodicals and other international publications.
► The Real Thing« curated by VVORK
VVORK taking it to the next level.
► Donk -- Music World.
Never thought I would be so into something that Vice Magazine was responsible for, but this documentary is fantastic.
Thanks Michael Bell-Smith for telling me about it.
► The Bichon Frisé in Art @ Art since the Summer 69
http://www.artsince69.com/index.php?/upcoming/the-bichon-frise-in-art/
http://bingweb.binghamton.edu/~eshephar/bichoninart/bichoninart.html
C-U-T-E
► See This Sound
http://www.lentos.at/en/45_1769.asp
http://beta.see-this-sound.at/
One of the best "historical" shows I've seen in years.
► Digital Folklore Reader
(full disclosure, I worked as an editor on this book)
Smart, original and has unicorns on the cover.
Edited by Olia Lialina & Dragan Espenschied
Designed by Manuel Buerger
Texts and projects by: Cory Arcangel, Julia Böger, Manuel Buerger, Helene Dams, Dragan Espenschied, Jörg Frohnmayer, Mark Grimm, Christopher Heller, Yunchul Kim, Dennis Knopf, Stefan Krappitz, Florian Kröner, Tobias Leingruber, Olia Lialina, Leo Merz, Bernadette Neuroth, o+ro, johannes p osterhoff, Isabel Pettinato, Michael Ruß, Theo Seemann, Alexander Schlegel, Bert Schutzbach, Siegfried Zielinsky
Top 5 - 10
Jenny Jaskey is Rhizome's Curatorial Fellow
It's no secret that the internet, particularly with the help of social media, has birthed a whole new kind of celebrity. Here are a few of the highlights from the past year that demonstrate the power of viral media and the changing face of fame.
► Three Wolf Moon T-Shirt
In early Summer 2009, a t-shirt featuring three wolves howling at the
moon appeared on Amazon.com. The Customer Reviews got a lot of
attention (there are 1,598 to date), and by October the shirt made its
first celebrity appearance on The Office. Three Wolf Moon is now a
souvenir of itself.
► Tavi: The New Girl in Town
Her blog has been around since 2008, but Tavi’s had a big year, the
thirteen-year old pixie fashion blogger recently appeared on the cover of Editor
Dasha Zhukova’s debut edition of Pop Magazine. She is one of the most
sought-after editorial voices in fashion and has not yet finished
eighth grade.
► Susan Boyle
In April, Susan Boyle appeared on “Britain’s Got Talent.” The 47-year
old, who says she lives with her cat Pebbles and has never been
kissed, performed the song “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Miserables.
When the clip appeared on YouTube, there were over 100 million views
within the first weeks, making it one of the top Internet videos of
all time.
► Kanye West
Kanye’s unforgettable appearance at the 2009 VMAs sparked a host of
memes and memes within memes. Even Obama weighed in on the issue.
The event that started it all:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1z8gCZ7zpsQ
Call for Submissions:
IEEE VISAP'15 / Data Improvisations / Call for Papers and Artworks
Posted by Angus Forbes
Edwin VanGorder