The 6th iteration of the soundcamp at Stave HIll Ecological Park will take place over the International Dawn Chorus Day weekend (4-5 May) with a program of live sounds of daybreak together with installations, walks, workshops and discussions exploring urban ecologies and sound.
The event is organised by Dr Maria Papadomanolaki and her colleagues at Soundcamp. This year it will also feature a new ‘Single-Material Performance’ by Joshua Legallienne (DMSA Team and DMSA alumni).
In Single-Material Performance, one or more performers manipulate a giant, bio-degradable plastic sheet to produce a range of complex sounds and rhythms. Due to the particular physical properties of the material, the sheet animates with very subtle changes in air pressure; causing the material to create sound as it interacts with itself. Performers respond to the fluctuations in air pressure by altering the form of the material to shape the sounds produced. The piece reveals the invisible and inaudible; sonifying infrasonic (sound waves below the lower limit of human audibility) variations in air pressure of the environment.
More info on the soundcamp project can be found here. The full program is here.
Fraser Owen, currently in his second year on our course, offers a unique perspective merging gender-bending electronic music production and cross-dressing. This month we talk to him about his inspirations, visions and current projects. Fraser will be performing under his ‘Vince Vanity’ alias as part of the IDS showcase, this thursday @ Werks Central.
DMSA: Three important words that represent you as a creative person
FO: Ambitious, Provocative, Contemporary.
DMSA: When did you start working with sound and music?
FO: In my early teens I discovered electronic music and began to experiment using software belonging to my father (a video editor).
DMSA: In what ways has the DMSA course supported or helped you to develop into who you are today creatively and professionally?
FO: The exposure to a wide range of existing work has broadened my horizons and pushed me to re-evaluate my relationship to both sound, and the wider world of art. In my practical work I have begun to realize my aesthetic approach and apply it through a range of mediums and purposes.
DMSA: Can you tell us a bit more about your project Vince Vanity?
FO: Vince is the pseudonym I created for drag performance. Although Vince is a character/aesthetic, I also wanted her to reflect the thoughts and emotions in ourselves we try to ignore or hide, to provoke and connect to people on a personal level, and also as an experiment of self-discovery. Drag has also proved to be a way of expressing the thoughts, emotions, and interests which I do acknowledge but would rather not personify in my everyday life. I knew early on that I wanted to release music as Vince but delayed it until I felt completely comfortable expressing myself through this format. Working under the pseudonym, I found I had a much more focused approach by not letting too many of my personal feelings leak into the creative process. I also found a sense of liberation, possibly from the idea of hiding behind a character, and began to experiment a lot more. I have now created music, visuals, performance work, and combinations of these under this name.
DMSA: Other plans for the future? projects, events, visions?
FO: I would like to continue working in nightlife as a performer, to contribute to ensuring art maintains its place in the forefront. I am currently working on more music and more elaborate performances. I would like to work on more collaborative projects and begin to offer my skills as a freelance artist; where this will take me, I am unsure of, but I am excited for the future regardless.
The student-led label IDSpectral will be hosting a showcase this thursday 11th of April, 6-10pm GMT at Werks Central in collaboration with Casa Creativa. Expect a range of sounds, frequencies and vibrations by our students with live performances by Vince Vanity, Cyphon, Luke Vosper and Winnipeg, MN.
