PORTFOLIO OF ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS
A thesis submitted to the University of Manchester for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Humanities
2020
GUILLAUME DUJAT DES ALLIMES
School of Arts, Languages and Cultures
Table of Contents List of Figures ...... 5 List of Tables ...... 6 Abstract ...... 7 Declaration ...... 8 Copyright statement ...... 8 Portfolio of musical works ...... 9 Musical appendix ...... 9 Folder content ...... 10 File layout ...... 10 Acknowledgements ...... 12 About the author ...... 13 1. Introduction ...... 14 1.1 Portfolio contents ...... 14 1.2 Research inquiry ...... 14 1.3 Context ...... 15 1.4 Space and Place ...... 16 1.5 Chapter outline ...... 17 2. Gōngàn (2017, 10:56) [8 channel] ...... 18 2.1 Wat Khao Noi ...... 19 2.2 Salies de Béarn orchard (Pyr-at France) ...... 20 2.3 Tram line (Manchester, UK) ...... 21 2.4 Computerspiele Museum (Berlin, Germany) ...... 21 3. Après moi la pluie (2017, 9:33) [1st order ambisonics] ...... 23 3.1 Section A ...... 26 3.2 Section B ...... 26 3.3 Section C ...... 27 3.4 Hordijk modular system (control) ...... 27 3.5 Spatial distortion ...... 28 4. Noisy Library (2018, 01:00:26) [7.1 channel] ...... 30 4.1 Loudspeaker arrangement ...... 32 4.2 Recordings ...... 33 4.3 Room acoustics simulation...... 34 4.4 Structure ...... 35 4.5 Composition ...... 36 5. Divine Cut (2018, 11:19) [6 channel / binaural] ...... 39 5.1 Performance...... 41 5.3 Illusion of liveness and the audio-visual contract...... 43 6. Tune of Crackle (2019, 20:58) [3rd order ambisonics]...... 44 6.2 Locations and recording ...... 45 6.2.1 Southbank Undercroft [ca. 6:44 – 14:20] ...... 46 6.2.2 GrayStone Action Sports [ca. 0:00 – 6:44] ...... 47
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6.2.3 Street [ca. 11:16 – 20:44] ...... 49 6.3 Compositional approaches ...... 50 6.4 Mediated perspectives ...... 51 7. Resonating Spaces (2019) [multiformat] ...... 53 7.1 Bottle Kiln (1:00:00) [5.1 channel] ...... 54 7.2 Clay rehydration ...... 55 7.3 Presentation ...... 57 7.4 Green State: Rehydrate (11:06) [5.1 channel] ...... 58 7.5 Sound sources ...... 58 7.6 Structure ...... 59 8. Conclusion ...... 61 8.1 Methodologies ...... 61 8.2 Abstraction ...... 61 8.3 Reduction ...... 61 8.4 Microphone colouration ...... 62 8.5 Speaker colouration ...... 62 8.6 Presentation mode ...... 63 8.7 Space and Place ...... 63 8.8 Composition-bound ...... 65 8.9 Continuation & future works ...... 65 9 Bibliography (APA 7th edition GB) ...... 66 10 Appendices ...... 71 10.1 Multimodal relevance ...... 71 10.2 Gōngàn spatialization techniques...... 72 10.2.1 Gōngàn section A ...... 73 10.2.2 Gōngàn section B ...... 76 10.2.3 Gōngàn section C ...... 77 10.2.4 Gōngàn section D ...... 77 10.3 Noisy Library additional information ...... 78 10.3.1 Noisy Library Virtual representation ...... 78 10.3.2 Noisy Library Visitor Engagement ...... 79 10.4 Divine Cut – Performance Material ...... 80 10.4.1 Divine Cut Performance Instructions ...... 80 10.4.2 Divine Cut Score ...... 81 10.4.3 Divine Cut Tech Rider ...... 84 10.5 Divine Cut Instrumentation...... 86 10.5.1 Fixed ...... 86 10.5.2 Live Instrumentation ...... 87 10.6 Tune of Crackle - Interviews ...... 90 10.7 VX1000 (Tune of Crackle) ...... 91 10.8 Green State : Rehydrate - Performance [13.1 channel] ...... 93 10.9 Ceramic Loudspeaker slabs - Lean-To ...... 94 10.9.1 Approach ...... 94
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10.9.2 Speaker build ...... 95 10.9.3 Resonant Frequencies ...... 96 10.9.4 Physical layout and spatial approach ...... 98 10.9.5 Composition & Structure ...... 99 10.10 Wharf ...... 101 10.11 Portfolio program notes ...... 102 10.11.1 Gōngàn ...... 102 10.11.2 Après Moi La plue ...... 102 10.11.3 Noisy Library ...... 102 10.11.4 Divine Cut ...... 103 10.11.5 Tune of Crackle...... 103 10.11.6 Green State: Rehydrate ...... 103 10.12 List of performances...... 104
Word Count: 17,821
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List of Figures
Figure 1: MANTIS 2019 calibration [photo by Alexander Maschke]...... 13 Figure 2: Salies de Béarn orchard [photo by Nadine Oliver]...... 20 Figure 3: Ambisonic recording in the Manchester Victoria baths females pool...... 23 Figure 4: FOA to Hordijk signal chain ...... 29 Figure 5: Light Bulb with bayonnet fitting photographed from above on a white background. Science Museum Group Collection. CC licence...... 30 Figure 6: Edison Swan Electric Co Ltd half blacked light bulb. Photographed from above on a white background. Science Museum Group Collection. CC licence...... 30 Figure 7: John Rylands Reading Room floor & and loudspeaker plan...... 31 Figure 8: John Rylands Library reading room - balcony speakers (Noisy Library)...... 32 Figure 9: Studio monitoring signal chain for Noisy Library...... 35 Figure 10: Divine Cut - still image from video...... 39 Figure 11: Studio Haircut - Polski Fritzer...... 40 Figure 12: Divine Cut - 6 channel live configuration...... 42 Figure 13: Southbank undercroft ambisonic recording [photo by Nadine Oliver]...... 46 Figure 15: Graystone Action Sports coping recording (Figure 16 position 1)...... 47 Figure 14: Graystone Action Sports launch ramp recording (Figure 16 position 4)...... 47 Figure 16: Graystone Action Sports floor to microphone placement plan...... 49 Figure 17: Bottle Kiln inner chamber view [photo by Jenny Harper]...... 54 Figure 18: Bottle Kiln vessel interaction ...... 54 Figure 19: Bottle Kiln - dissolvable sonic process...... 56 Figure 20: Bottle Kiln dissolvables ...... 57 Figure 21: Bottle Kiln vessel...... 57 Figure 22: GreenState: Rehydrate - Spectrogram and Structure...... 60 Figure 23: place/space work weighting...... 64 Figure 24: Gradually processed stereo pairs...... 73 Figure 25: Quadrophonic diamond from stereo recordings...... 73 Figure 26: Four-channel mirror...... 74 Figure 27: Double quadrophonic off-axis arrangement...... 75 Figure 28: Three channel parabola setup...... 76 Figure 29: Four channel tram recording to speaker arrangement...... 77 Figure 30: John Rylands reading room LIDAR scan render...... 78 Figure 31: VX1000 camera microphone spectrogram...... 92 Figure 32: Rode NTG-5 microphone spectrogram...... 92 Figure 33: Green State : Rehydrate soundcheck at MANTIS19 [photo by: Alexander Maschke]. ... 93 Figure 34: Initial design of ceramic loudspeakers proposed to the group...... 94 Figure 35: Ceramic slab tech routing & order...... 96 Figure 36: Original sketch of panel arrangement...... 98 Figure 37: Final arrangement of slabs in space...... 99 Figure 38: VCV-rack, slabs chord patch...... 100
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List of Tables
Table 1: List of musical works ...... 9 Table 2: AMLP recording locations ...... 25 Table 3: AMLP - Hordijk MIDI to CV control ...... 28 Table 4: Noisy Library - structure analysis ...... 38 Table 5: Graystone recording locations to time ...... 48 Table 6 - Multimodal breakdown ...... 71 Table 7: Ceramic slab resonant frequency table...... 97
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Abstract
This PhD investigates embodiment of place within spatial electroacoustic composition via a portfolio of original works. How each stage of electroacoustic composition can be considered to evoke a locative association within a compositionally driven context. Through a series of acousmatic pieces, site-specific installations and live performances, this portfolio documents and presents works with a defined link to space. Six original works are presented in this portfolio (excluding ancillary works), employing a range of spatial sound configurations.
Gōngàn (8ch); a study of four places, split between urban and rural location exploring multichannel upscaling and linking studio compositional processes to field recordings.
Après Moi la Pluie (1st order ambisonics); water waste and ‘the city’, a piece using water as an impulse to an urban landscape and field recordings to drive parameters of a modular synthesizer.
Noisy Library (7.1ch); an installation for the John Rylands Library and Manchester Science festival uncovering hidden sounds of the reading room and the electric ‘veins’ crucial to its history.
Divine Cut (6ch / binaural); a binaural haircut exploring intersections between ASMR videos, binaural demonstrations and electroacoustic composition as a live performance.
Tune of Crackle (3rd order ambisonics); skateboarding and sound, a dive into the relationship between the practice of skateboarding and sound via the medium of a radiophonic acousmatic work.
Green State: Rehydrate (5.1ch / 13.1ch), clay and sound at Middleport Pottery, stemmed from a collaborative installation commissioned by the British Ceramics Biennial. Exploring reso- nance from ceramic speakers, field recordings of the Burleigh Pottery and clary re-hydration.
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Declaration
I hereby declare that no portion of the work referred to in this thesis has been submitted in support of an application for another degree or qualification of this or any other university or institute of learning.
Copyright statement
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Portfolio of musical works
Table 1: List of musical works
1 Gōngàn 2017 8-channel fixed media 10:36
2 Après Moi la Pluie 2017 First order ambisonic FuMa 9:53
7.1-channel fixed media in- stallation, 3 Noisy Library 2018 01:00:26 Digital representation ambi- sonic 360° video
6-channel – live performance. 4 divine Cut 2018 11:19 Digital: binaural.
5 Tune of Crackle 2019 Third order ambisonic ambix 20:59
13.1-channel live perfor- 6 Green State : Rehydrate 2019 11:06 mance
Musical appendix
Lean to 2019 8-channel installation 37:42
Bottle Kiln 2019 5.1-channel installation 01:00:00
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Folder content
The works in this portfolio are supplied in their original high-resolution formats through a folder accessible online. The folder also includes stereo and binaural reductions where appropriate for ease of listening. The channel to loudspeaker plans along with specific technical information required for playback are included within the folders. Each folder contains an INFO.txt file, this text file contains relevant information for the material in that folder. The total size is nearly 70gb, as such I would advise only downloading the necessary files and accessing the video’s via online streaming links available within the INFO.txt files.
File layout
• GuillaumeDujat_PHD_Files
• Tune of Crackle [binaural reduction].wav ▪ ResonatingSpaces
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Acknowledgements
This submission presents the results of doctoral research conducted at the University of Manchester between 2017 and 2020. This research was funded by the Victor Sayer Studentships for Music.
I am incredibly grateful to everyone involved in the projects and pieces that are part of this portfolio, most of whom are named throughout this commentary with their respective contributions. A ‘quid pro quo’ approach was often the basis for working with instrumentalists or spaces, trading expertise on each other's respective projects.
I would like to thank my supervisor, Prof. David Berezan, and all members of the NOVARS Research Centre, especially: Prof. Ricardo Climent, Jon Tipler, Danny Saul, Adriana Ruiz, and Falk Morawitz for their support over the years.
I would like to thank the MANTIS team, for whom I've had the pleasure of taking on the role of ‘technical director’ during my portfolio, and the many performers who have shared their practice though these events.
Beyond the department, I would like to thank James Bagshaw, Tariq Emam, Abdul Saboor and other friends and family who have supported me through this process, particularity my partner, Nadine Oliver.
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About the author
Figure 1: MANTIS 2019 calibration [photo by Alexander Maschke].
“Guillaume Dujat (b.1993) is a French sound artist and composer based in the UK (Manchester). Guillaume’s work spans spatial composition, sound installations, live performance, multichannel tech, teaching, workshops, mixing and technical support.”
Over the course of this PhD, I have taken on the role of MANTIS1 technical director, as well as leading semi-regular diffusion, modular synthesiser, and multichannel workshops. I have been an active teaching assistant over this period and occasionally supported the music department as music technician (for which at time of writing hold the full-time post).
Up to date information online: www.gdujat.com
1 MANTIS – Manchester theatre in sound, 56-loudspeaker diffusion system part of the University of Manchester NOVARS.
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1. Introduction
1.1 Portfolio contents
This portfolio contains six works with a total runtime of ca.123 minutes (excluding ancillary works). The electronic folder submitted as part of this portfolio includes the works themselves, stereo or binaural reductions, channel patch diagrams where necessary, videos of installations and other supporting material. Each piece uses a different format of spatial audio: Gōngàn (8-channel), Après Moi la Pluie (1st order ambisonic), Noisy Library (installation 7.1-channel, online 360˚ video with spatial audio), Divine Cut (video: binaural / live: 6-channel), Tune of crackle (3rd order ambisonics), and Green State: Rehydrate (installation 5.1-channel, live 13.1-channel).
1.2 Research inquiry
“As both listeners and composers we naturally want to recreate the behaviour of real- world sound, even if that's unconscious in our work.” - Lee Fraser
This portfolio investigates the representation of place through spatial2 electroacoustic works. In particular it addresses the following:
• How does spatial composition lend itself to representing location? • How can environment recognition be considered throughout all compositional steps, from preparation and recording to loudspeaker and presentation? • Methods for electroacoustic works to champion artistic-led decisions, whilst retaining a strong link to place. • What ‘musical’ parameters can be extracted from field recordings to inform compositional decisions?
Using a range of both site-specific and concert-ready works, this portfolio formulates techniques to address these points and reflects on their outcomes.
Calling upon ‘musical’ parameters is perhaps a loaded concept, considering the wide variety of musical content (and my personal listening habits). Within the context of this write-up, I am referring to humans innate and unconscious ability to discern tones, position, dynamics, patterns and rhythms in a musical context, with no regard to musical familiarity or practice level3. These musical parameters, such as prominent pitch centres and harmonic content extracted from field recordings, take on different perceptual properties once contextualised as musical. This is not to say that the use of field recordings’ parameters are limited to this, but that these musical parameters are more likely to be a listening focus4 when attempting to draw recognition. With this
2 Rumsey, F. (2001). Spatial Audio (Music Technology). Taylor & Francis Ltd. 3 University of Amsterdam. (2016). Brain picks up the beat of music automatically. ScienceDaily. 4 Geringer, J., & Madsen, C. (1995). Focus of Attention to Elements: Listening Patterns of Musicians and Nonmusicians.80-
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field-recording driven approach, there is an aspect of co-creation between composer and sonic environment, however the final outcomes of the pieces are very much compositionally led.
Sonic recognition and connection to real world events must be self-evident. While personal experience will alter the level of detail with regard to pinpointing a specific location, a more universal understanding of context (arcades, haircuts, rain) is present. While any sound is referential in some form, this series of pieces aims to enact author-defined locative references (without necessary reliance on program-notes).
The domain of 360˚ spatial sound is a natural fit when representing environments that we experience as such, even if the aim is not necessarily to re-create a realistic spatial image, but rather to use it as a compositional parameter. With stereo reproduction of sound so central to most of the current recorded music, production techniques have developed in parallel and so has the listeners familiarity with them (however ‘unnatural’ the sonic image may be5). The ‘grandeur’ of spatial dimensionality with spatial audio requires a different listening-mode from onset.
There is a multimodality (appendix 10.1) to the outcome of portfolio works, often appearing in different forms/formats depending on the space in which they are presented, weather in a concert hall, on-site or online.
1.3 Context
“My inspiration comes from the immediate sounding matter of the world around us, as well as the way it behaves, the way it is generated, and by systems and the traces that those systems reveal.” - Natasha Barrett
Natasha Barrett6 and Sam Salem7 are two current composers who particularly drew me to spatial compositional in relation to place. The first piece I heard from Salem was the 12-channel Himlen Var (2015), constructed from field recordings and analogue synthesizers, striking a balance between recorded and processed soundscapes that immediately resonated with me. Barrett’s varied body of work ranging from installations, acousmatic fixed media, instrumental & live electronics, field recording, soundwalks, all (for the most part since 2000) within the spatial audio domain opened amongst other aspects of multimodality in this portfolio, (and the use of ambisonics). The Piano Makers (2012)8 by Matthew Barnard is another piece of note leading up to this portfolio, exploring the Kemble Piano Factory through binaural recording and production techniques, combining location recordings historical context and spatial composition.
5 Paraphrasing sound engineer and soundsystem designer Dave Rat in an interview with Event Elevator: ‘hearing the same exact sound out of two playback sources is unnatural’. 6 Barrett, N. WEB: https://www.natashabarrett.org/ 7 Salem, S. WEB: https://www.osamahsalem.co.uk/ 8 Barnard, M. The Piano Makers. WEB: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/459945
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This portfolio takes a lot from Acoustic Ecologists in the approach of capturing recordings and analysing patterns in sonic environments. Beyond the World Soundscape Project9 current practitioners such as Leah Barclay10 (to which I had the pleasure of performing Gōngàn alongside at Sound and Environments 2017) is a particular inspiration for her work with environments and Chantal Dumas11 for her radiophonic approach to electroacoustic composition, dexterity with microphone techniques, (both in studio and in the ‘field’) and utilisation of field recording alongside instruments and synthesizers.
I had already begun to approach some of these compositional queries in a pre-PhD piece, Naufrage12 (2015), that I sought to continue exploring these within a spatial sound13 context in this portfolio.
1.4 Space and Place
This portfolio of works uses two main approaches to space and place. ‘Scientific/geometric’: measuring the acoustics properties and taking audio samples of a place. And ‘lived through’: drawing on phenomenological ideas of spatial practices. These notions originating from Lefebvre’s ‘Representations of space’ and ‘Representational space’14 and are used to construct electroacoustic works. Both informing and affecting compositional decisions.
Differentiations between ‘space’ and ‘place’ are not so clear-cut as they are deeply intertwined, influencing one another15. However, within the context of this commentary, space can be considered as a global, non-localized archetype, whereas place corresponds to localized and identifiable environments. For example, looking at the piece Tune of Crackle (Chapter 6), UK street skateboarding would be considered a spatial practice, a practice linked to space. Whereas in the same piece, the Southbank undercroft is an example of a place. The interconnection between space and places can be seen in the transference of practices: Localized practices in places such as the influential undercroft may become spatial practice, and spatial practice archetypical of a space may or may not be adopted back into the undercroft.
Katherine Norman writes about 'analysing' our relationship to place through feeling, affect, response and perception in the process of responding meaningfully with art16, imbued with the spatial practices and emotions that accompany a place. This personal relationship to place is deeply cultural and temporal, perceptions and emotions influenced by spatial practice and its enveloping architecture alike (be it designed, semi-designed, or non-designed17).
9 Project started by R. Murray Shaefer, Hildergard Westerkamp, Barry Turax and more. 10 Barclay, L. WEB: http://leahbarclay.com/ 11 Dumas, C. WEB: http://chantaldumas.org/ 12 Dujat, G. Naufrage, (2015): WEB: https://gdujat.com/#/naufrage-1/ 13 Spatial sound, use of 360˚ sound technologies. Multichannel point source, binaural and ambisonics. 14 Lefebvre, H & Nicholson-Smith, D. (1992). The Production of Space (1st ed.). Wiley-Blackwell. pp.39 15 Merrifield, A. (1993). Place and Space: A Lefebvrian Reconciliation. 16 Norman, K. (2017). That passing glance - sounding paths between memory and familiarity. 17 Lindborg, P. (2015). Sound perception and design in multimodal environments.
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Place and time being inseparable is crucial to the following approach to location inspired with historical and social context, artistic representation of a place (or art aiming to evoke place) will be inevitably depicting it in time. From the choice of material to draw from, technology available, approach on how to capture the 'material', and context of presentation all define the temporal aspects tied to the work. As the portfolio develops, the pieces increasingly explore these concepts.
Space in this commentary is also referred to in terms of spatial audio. Often referring to multichannel, 360° audio and the use of spatial ‘image’ as a compositional parameter, with terminology based off Smalley’s specropmorphology18 and space-form19.
1.5 Chapter outline
This supporting commentary is presented in chronological order of the with chapters, headed by their respective portfolio piece. Each chapter covers the aspects that are most relevant to my research enquiries from the perspective of the current piece. As a large part of the approach in gathering material for a surround sound format, there is a focus on recording techniques, as well as discussion on how works were spatialised within the specific format and space/place associations.
18 Smalley, D. (1997). Spectromorphology. 19 Smalley, D (2007). Space-form and the acousmatic image.
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2. Gōngàn (2017, 10:56)20 [8 channel]
The first work of the portfolio, Gōngàn is an 8-channel work linking four smaller ‘location études’ into a piece. Gōngàn draws on recordings from four different locations, split into two groups; Urban and Rural (also referred to as lo-fi & hi-fi21 in reference to signal/noise ratio). The chosen locations consist of: Wat Khao Noi (Pak Nam, Thailand), Salies de Bearn orchard (Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France), Computerspiele Museum (Berlin, Germany), and a Metrolink tram line (Manchester, UK). Running a total of 10:39, Gōngàn oscillates between source-bound and surreal soundscapes.
Gōngàn’s overarching structure is relatively simple, articulated on a location basis and split as follows (Table 2):
Table 2: Gōngàn sections
Section Location Type Start End
A Wat Khao Noi (Pak Nam, Thailand) Rural 0:00 ca. 3:30
B Salies de Bearn orchard (Pyr-at France) Rural ca. 3:30 5:50
C New Islington → Piccadilly Tram line (Man- Urban 5:50 ca. 7:07 chester, UK)
D Computerspiele Museum (Berlin, Germany) Urban ca. 7:07 10:39
A technical focus of Gōngàn explores techniques to upscale mono, stereo, three-channel and quadraphonic field recordings onto eight-channel loudspeaker configurations (examined in appendix 10.2). With a predetermined concert format (electroacoustic diffusion22) as the method of public performance, where seating arrangements are traditionally fixed facing a forward direction23, a frontal approach to the 8-channel image was taken from inception. Intertwined with spatial processes are methods of translating and extracting musical gestures from location specific field recordings, shaping studio compositional processes. The aim not necessarily to transport the audience to a realistic sonic location, but to find musical parameters that are recognisable, and to create a piece with an embodied sonic relationship to its source.
20 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/Gōngàn/Gōngàn – [8ch interleaved].wav 21 Schafer, R.M. (1977).The Soundscape. 22 A development stemming from Acousmoniums, where the performer spreads the sound in an acoustic space over a group of loudspeakers around listeners. 23, Mooney, J.R. (2005). Sound Diffusion Systems for the Live Performance of Electroacoustic Music.
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2.1 Wat Khao Noi
The first sound upon entry is a recording from Wat Khao Noi (Pak Nam, Thailand) temple of a Buddhist sunrise chant. The use of a cultural emblem24 immediately places the listener within a specific location and setting, even if the particular whereabouts may not be so clear. Compositionally this made sense, and still works as an effective way to place the listener in a specific setting. However, my feelings towards the use of sounds that have strong cultural and religious associations have changed significantly over the course of this PhD. While my personal upbringing in a Buddhist country25 may exclude it from being an exoticized ‘sonic souvenir’ I cannot state that I am intimately familiar with the meaning of this prayer. When considering its presentation in (mostly) European diffusion concerts, it would be safe to assume that it takes on this role of ‘sonic souvenir’ for most26.
While the particular meaning of the chant may lack associative context, the presence of a human voice evokes the anthropological concept of the ‘ethnographic ear’27, relating the subsequent environmental sounds to a specific human perspective (in this case a recognisably Buddhist monk). Recorded from the opposing side of the temple entrance, the sound lays bare the tile and concrete sonic imprint of modern-built mountain temples28 ubiquitous in large parts of Thailand, capturing a human experience through material reflections.
The chant is immediately punctuated by the temple bonshō29 [0:12], used as a transition from unedited field recordings to increasingly processed material and solidifying the opening chant recording as a identifier of place. The second repetition of the chant, comes filtered and further spatialised (appendix 10.2.1), moving away from the raw field-recorded ‘location establishing’ sounds that opened Gōngàn. Prominent pitches are extracted from the chant and extended to traditional string instruments (khim) and bell (bonshō) resonances, further re-pitched to underpin the second chant iteration and setting the tonal centre for the first section. The second bonshō strike [0:33] marks a departure from the main temple acoustic space towards its immediate surroundings, introducing a range of lifeforms that reside in the mountain vicinity.
Intertwined with a studio-recorded zither, animal sounds (such as the panting dog30 [0:38]) emerge amorphously through convolution processes and amplitude followers, linking the field recorded dynamic movement to musical parameters. This technique is also used for a range of background bird and insect sounds [0:33 - 1:07] before being revealed in their original form [1:07]. The bird song gestures use amplitude gates linked to filter bands in order to trigger and process samples from a curated sound-pool of studio-recorded chime-bells [1:20].
24 Blackburn, M. (2011). Importing the Sonic Souvenir: issues of cross-cultural composition. 25 I lived in Beijing, China from ages 3 – 17. 26 Emmerson, S. (2006). Appropriation, exchange and understanding. 27 Erlmann, V. (2004). Hearing Cultures: Essays on Sound, Listening and Modernity. 28 Khao เขา : Thai term for ‘mountain’. 29 Bonshō: Buddhist temple bell. 30 Thai Buddhist temples are often sanctuaries for local animals.
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A number of spatial arrangements are introduced in this section, becoming central compositional elements throughout Gōngàn. More can be found on this in appendix 10.2.
2.2 Salies de Béarn orchard (Pyr-at France)
Figure 2: Salies de Béarn orchard [photo by Nadine Oliver].
In contrast to the trajectory of section A (table 2) which gradually focuses on the sole sound source of bell resonances, section B is derived from a single field recording of bees and flies around rotting apples (in a now decommissioned orchard), gradually expanding the sonic timbre. This singular sound source is used as an instigator for resulting transformations and spatialisations, focusing on pitch centres sourced from the field recording's main set of frequencies: 60Hz, 190Hz, 320Hz, 720Hz, 1430Hz, 5500Hz, 10880Hz, 16420Hz (rounded as they drift during section B).
Changes in spatial movement and processing parameters (mainly comb-filter feedback and pitch drift amount) are derived from the field recordings, either using pitch, amplitude or spatial positioning, via a series of filter-band defined amplitude thresholds. FFT-based processes are utilised to shape the field recordings, along with rapid delay times [4:25] controlled by the recording’s amplitude by frequency-band.
The gradual increase in intensity of section B grows in parallel to the separation from the original recording, becoming morphed and distorted as the processed sounds take over the field- recorded soundscape [4:40]. The spatial changes adhere to a sort of ‘live diffusion’ principle, where three channel recordings (appendix 10.2.2) are ‘augmented’ to the eight-channel ring while keeping their internal movements. Thus all L and R spatial movement is inherently connected to the field recordings, retaining the link to the original recordings as the sound itself becomes further removed [4:40].
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With little immediate relation to an orchard or definable ‘place’ (without necessitating program-notes), section B is further detached from location in contrast to section A, abstracting the sense of place towards a more generalist space.
2.3 Tram line (Manchester, UK)
At 1:17, section C is the shortest of all four. Following a similar trajectory to section B, focuses on a single recording subject, a Metrolink tram. This section contains the first instance of mechanised space31 in Gōngàn, immediately introducing the source-bonded urban machines.
This environment, perhaps classified as lo-fi by Schafer due to its urban setting, has a wide signal to noise ratio, mostly due to the secluded tram-line and high volume of the subject. Additionally, the wide spectral range of sounds captured allowed for sonic elements to be effectively separated from one another. Once the tram introduced [5:56], section C hones in on a set of high frequency tones [6:11], pushing the auditory limit with a set of sub-harmonics. This was part of a decision to move away from traditional train/tram sounds, and focus on specific parts of the recording through filtering and noise reduction. With still enough recognisable sounds to draw recognition from of a tram (but not enough to form the specific place or a Metrolink M500032 often associated by its recognisable horn).
This section also shifts the spatial movement, which until this point has been mainly left to right, by introducing large front to back gestures due to the recording process (appendix 10.2.3).
6:20 - 7:18 starts a transitional section, introducing time-stretched versions of the arcade sounds to come altered by the rhythmic pulse of the tram recordings [6:55].
2.4 Computerspiele Museum (Berlin, Germany)
The field recordings in section D come from a variety of arcade machines within the Computerspiele Museum in Berlin, including (but not limited to): Tetris, Pong, Donkey Kong, Space Invaders, and Pac-Man. Within an undeniably lo-fi environment, the museum is drowned in a wall of loud synthetic sounds and high level of background noise, mechanical fans, physical controllers and excited human activity. In turn these recordings not only capture the sound originating from arcade machines, but also the loudspeaker setup from the original machines and interactions with the mechanical buttons or joysticks [7:30]. The space was too loud and difficult to isolate a single machine, instead capturing a mixture of recordings from general ambience to placing the microphone directly in front of a single machine's loudspeaker port. Unable to fully isolate these sounds in the museum, a Teenage Engineering PO-2033 was used for further 8bit PSG34 recordings, working with pulse, square and triangle waves alongside pseudo-random-noise
31 Smalley, D (2007). Space-form and the acousmatic image. 32 Metrolink Bombardier M5000 – Manchester (yellow) trams introduced in 2009 33 Teenage Engineering PO-20: 8bit arcade synthesiser. 34 PSG: programmable sound generator
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generators for percussive sounds. Any recognisable melodies from copyrighted material was transformed to be unrecognisable.
This modernisation and repurposing of 1970s arcade sounds has one foot within the realm of chiptune,35 with references [8:40] to its current aesthetic and others mediated through more electroacoustic concepts of gestures and textures. This section does not take into consideration chip architectural limitations of the era (e.g. voices, memory and bit depth), using modern technology and processes to its advantage, while limiting the sound sources to field recordings and the PO-20. Tropes of the genre, such as the frequent use of arpeggios36, are introduced [8:31], gradually deformed [8:52], and converted into strident textures, mirroring the occasionally uncomfortable and piercing noise levels of arcades37.
Transformations of the recordings are reflected by their spatialisation, with some of the more processed sections [<8:56] having sounds moving rapidly around the listener, while less transformed recordings tend to be more spatially static. An example of this is once the raw recording from the PO-20 is re-introduced [9:03] as a return to traditional arcade sounds, the erratic spatialisation movements stop, taking the form of a ‘mono source’ (emitting from all eight speakers, louder in 1 and 2 for frontal focus). This phrase is later referenced between 9:20 – 9:30, no longer taking centre stage spatialised and incorporated within the greater texture. This use of spatialisation to separate raw recordings and processed, highlights the constantly shifting focus of timbre and forms in section D, as an association to the erratic nature of sounds in an arcade.
Embedded within section D is a recapitulation of some earlier sounds: 9:41 chime bells (section A), 9:55 tram sounds (section C), 10:01 birds / insects (section A) hinting at some of the earlier elements for the ending to the piece.
Thematically, while all of Gōngàn’’s sections are drawn from specific places, the sections veer towards four spaces. Thai Buddhist temples, European countryside (bees), trams/metro and arcades, none of the sections adhere to facets that are unique38 to the particular recording location, instead presenting them within the larger space that they inhabit. The compositional decisions in Gōngàn were more concerned with developing methods and processes to extract musical ideas from field recordings, than drawing from ‘lived in’ spatial practices, shaping methods to be used throughout this portfolio.
35 Driscoll, K., & Diaz, J. (2009). Endless loop: A brief history of chiptunes. Transformative Works and Cultures. 36 Collins, K. (2008). Game Sound: An Introduction to the History, Theory, and Practice of Video Game Music and Sound Design. pp.41 37 MIRBOD, S. M., INABA, R., YOSHIDA, H., NAGATA, C., KOMURA, Y., & IWATA, H. (1992). Noise Exposure Level While Operating Electronic Arcade Games as A Leisure Time Activity. 38 Unique in a sense that for example, the specific temple could be recognised from the chant/bell. All recordings can be argued to be unique, this is in the sense of recognisability to a specific place.
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st 3. Après moi la pluie (2017, 9:33)39 [1 order ambisonics]
“The elemental forces of the sky and earth that erode it from above and subvert it from below. Eventually, it cracks and crumbles, and as it does so – as the sub- stances beneath are exposed again to the light, moisture and currents of the air – the earth once more bursts into life, overwhelming human attempts to cover it up.” - Tim Ingold the life of lines p 45
Figure 3: Ambisonic recording in the Manchester Victoria baths females pool. [photo by Elizabeth Ditmanson]
Après moi la pluie (AMLP) is a first order ambisonic piece based on interactions between water and ‘the city’. Inspired largely by Tim Ingold’s ‘the life of lines’, exploring the different ways elemental forces enact and erode. Selected as the focal point of the piece, water is treated as the impulse-emitting-a-response from any surface it interacts with. While composed in Manchester, ‘the city’ referred to here follows Lefebvre’s40 definition of a non-specific co-habited urban space.
The title translates to ‘after me the rain’, a take on the French expression ‘Après nous, le déluge’ credited to King Louis XV (and Madame de Pompadour). While the exact meaning is debated41, the one referenced here has to do with indifference, slowly and subtly eroded by rain,
39 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/AprèsMoiLaPluie/Après moi la pluie [1st order ambisonic FuMa -4ch interleaved].wav 40 Lefebvre, Henri, Hess, R., Deulceux, S., & Weigand, G. (2009). Le droit à la ville 41 Mould, M. (2011). The Routledge Dictionary of Cultural References in Modern French (1st ed.). Routledge. pp 43.
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until breaking-point comes crashing down. While not an intentional theme in the work, subjects of class and inequalities were prevalent reflections during its composition, with the construction sounds of expensive and gentrifying new-builds across Manchester, the class and gender separation of the 19th century Victoria baths pools, and class imbalances in academia42 (and the creative industry for that matter43). This also played a part in the title of the piece referencing Louis XV, while seen as a ‘great’ patron of the arts, he also highlighted great inequality and his reign is largely credited for setting the stage of the French revolution.
AMLP’s sonic world draws from an interplay between field recordings and a Hordijk modular synthesiser44. The majority of these recordings45 made using a Soundfield ST350 microphone (Figure 3), recording in first order B-format ambisonic with Furse-Malham (FuMa) channel ordering, with the exception of some DPA4060 stereo recordings for a more versatile and portable recording setup. A range of locations were scouted for water-based interactions with city architecture and engaging spatial images. A theme of ‘protected perspectives’ took form, using different shelters within a metropolitan area to navigate a series of composed spaces46. As an added benefit this largely circumvented the limitations of placing an expensive microphone directly in the rain. The different field recorded spaces are detailed in Table 2.
The piece can be broken down into three sections for the purpose of this commentary: A [0:00 - 3:02], B [3:02 - 5:48], and C [5:48 - 9:56].
42 Rollock, N. (2017). Race, self-interest and privilege amongst students at elite U.S. and U.K. universities. Ethnic and Racial Studies. 43 Nesta, Carey, H., Florisson, R., O Brien, D., & Lee, N. (2020, August). Getting in and getting on Class, participation and job quality in the UK Creative Industries (No. 01). 44 Hordijk modular synthesiser: at the NOVARS research centre (University of Manchester). 45 I would like to thank Geode, Elizabeth Ditmanson, Vonnegut Collective and the UoM MUMS orchestra for allowing me to record them and spaces they had access to. 46 Smalley, D. (1997). Spectromorphology.
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Table 2: AMLP recording locations
Type of Space Recording Time Subject (Smalley) Type
Egocentric 0:00 Rain on plastic hood FOA Natural
1:08 Spinning wheel from water Prospective Stereo
Panoramic 1:30 Thunder strike FOA Natural
Tonal Pitch 1:53 Sheltered rain recording location 1 FOA Circumspace
Natural 2:04 Sheltered rain recording location 2 FOA Circumspace
Mechanised 2:14 Sheltered rain recording location 3 (building site) FOA Circumspace
Cultural Sheltered recording orchestra tuning (MUMS in 3:41 Circumspace FOA Cosmo Rodewald)
Mechanised 4:17 Building site engine/pump in rain FOA Circumspace
Tonal Pitch 6:30 - Water pipes Victoria baths Stereo Panoramic
Presence 6:56 - Plastic bag in rain (outside perspective) FOA Egocentric
Source Bond 7:35 - Filling the Victoria baths female pool FOA Circumspace
Presence 8:50 - Impulse response of Victoria baths female pool FOA Circumspace
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3.1 Section A
Starting within a small confined egocentric space47, a plastic hood is placed on the Soundfield microphone as raindrops and wind imprint their sonic mark. Some of the previous stereo and quadraphonic microphone-space techniques in Gōngàn are translated onto a b-format array for AMLP, greatly exaggerating small spatial movements to a set of surround loudspeakers. The amplification and central positioning of this recording highlights the relationship between raindrops and wind fluttering the plastic hood [0:31]. The raindrops act somewhat as a physical emulation of side-chain compression to the hood, an aspect that is artificially mirrored later [2:02] between the synthesised raindrops and background chord/pad.
The second field recording [1:08] consists of a rusted, abandoned bicycle wheel, spun by post-rain running water and wind. The spokes ‘pinged’ by an adjacent twig, resulting in a delicate, repeating tonal metallic sound. This hint of a pulse breaks the aleatoric rhythms of the raindrops, momentarily shifting from the rain to an object affected by it.
In dynamic and sonic contrast, the thunder strike [1:30] brings the rain back into the forefront, re-entering in synthetic form [1:31] along with the introduction of a pitched layer of sound. The remainder of section A moves between three additional city-shelters and the neighbouring sounds of construction.
3.2 Section B
Abruptly ceasing the noise and intensity of section A, section B switches solely to the tonal pad48 from 1:38. The stripped back start of this section makes room for subtle synth-rain and rain- driven processing onto the pad, forming a gradual crescendo as more elements are brought in. This section focuses on a ‘protected’ environment, where few outside sounds can be heard, with the chord itself driven by a running water pipe sound comb-filtered and frozen49. Ambisonic recordings of the MUMS50 orchestra tuning before practice in the Cosmo Rodewald concert hall are introduced (3:40, 3:54, 4:05), restarting the momentum of the piece but stopping short of fully doing so, resembling the start-up of machinery introduced in section A (4:18). The orchestral sounds, recorded from the centre of the players, are followed and intertwined by more rain-based gestures after the stuttering momentum (4:34).
Until this point the piece has been informed by the rhythms of rain at different intensities: light, moderate and heavy51. Not present in section A, or my field recordings due to geographical location was the next step; violent rain, which was simulated through a scaled increase of note triggers to the Hordijk, forming the dynamic climax of the work [4:50].
47 Smalley, D. (2007). Space-form and the acousmatic image. 48 pad: a sustained harmonic sound. 49 Ina-GRM. (n.d.). GRM Tools. WEB: https://inagrm.com/en/store 50 Manchester University Music Society (MUMS) Symphony Orchestra. 51 Manual of Surface Weather Observations. (2013). Meteorological Service of Canada, 7, 2.
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3.3 Section C
Section C focuses on the Manchester Victoria baths, with recordings of drain pipes and other internal running water mapped on to the Hordijk modular. Reverberation and tones in this section are introduced prior to the field recordings they reflect, in reverse order to section A. For example, an ambisonic impulse/response of the ‘females pool’ was taken, and is first heard via a convolution reverb accenting select synthesised material [6:33], before the field-recordings enter at 7:35 and fully transition to this new space. The reverberation of the space, with the recording position facing the pool’s deep end (Figure 3), featured a noticeable bass trap and lower frequency emphasis in the forward portion on the ambisonic recordings. Another approach to this can be found with the synthesised bass tones [6:30], matching the frequencies of the power-washer that was being used to clean the pool. The bass frequencies varied depending on the angle of washing, and area of the pool that was being cleaned. Complementary sequenced synth material accompanies the second half of section C, varying the spectral occupancy with high-pitched tones.
3.4 Hordijk modular system (control)
“What we are hearing in any specific synthesizer’s character is not necessarily merely the choice of components and circuitry — we are hearing systematic design and programming choices made by both designer of the machine and player.” - Richard Scott52
My collaborator for all non-field recording derived sounds in AMLP takes the form of the Hordijk modular synthesiser at NOVARS53. The synthesiser consists of both lower level54 analogue modules through a series of VCO, VCA, LFO, VCF and some mid-level such as the dual phaser, rungler55 and frequency shifters. These lower-level modules enable a ground-up approach to changing the sound morphology, in contrast to the post-processing of sounds in Gōngàn. The rain recordings were broken down, with each droplet transient sending a MIDI trigger, and the amplitude range of the recording scaled to MIDI velocity. As the synth tones enter [0:45], this rain MIDI to CV process triggers the VCA gate and amplitude (Table 3) of ‘rain-like’ sounds. The aim was to get as close to the field recording as possible for a seamless transition, then enabling further morphing and transformation of the ‘synth-rain’ sounds.
52 Scott, R. (2016). Back to the Future. eContact!, 17(4), 1.l 53 NOVARS: electroacoustic department of the University of Manchester and where this PhD was conducted. 54 Lbid. 55 Rungler: a mathematical chaos circuit modular synth module by Rob Hordijk.
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Table 3: AMLP - Hordijk MIDI to CV control
Gate / Trig In: Dual Envelope To follow this rhythm of the rain, the gate was triggered according to the MIDI note input.
P1 Mod CV, P2 Mod CV, S&H Gate In:
Twinpeak Filter The P1 & P2 mods are used to automate the twinpeak filters according to the rain MIDI velocity [1:31]. The S&H gate was used similarly to the Dual Envelope gate, with the added ability of be- ing able to hold a pitch until the next trigger [6:00].
Mod CV 1, Mod CV 2, Mix CV 1, Mix CV 2:
Dual Phaser Using the mod & mix cv options, the dual phaser changes resonance & rate according to the MIDI input [0:32]. This is used for longer sounds to still include a modifier controller by the rain- midi.
VCA Shaper VCA Mod CV, Rate Mod CV: FRQ Shifter Used similarly to the dual phaser, primarily on longer tonal material. [0:37]
Mod In A, Mod in B: Rungler Used for a more abstracted connection between the rain MIDI and synth output, creating dense textures. The rain-midi controlled how the rungler affected the rest of the patch. [4:47]
Pitch, Harmonics VCO Used for the later section, matching pitches to frequencies from the Victoria baths field record- ings. [8:00 +]
3.5 Spatial distortion
AMLP marks a shift in spatial compositional approach, working with more realistic and all- encompassing auditory spaces, moving away from the largely point-source approach of Gōngàn. It relies largely on surround sound recordings, to provide accurate representations of a sonic space and information to work with for synthesised material. This adherence to a realistic spatial image allows for subtle alterations [0:50] and more egregious distortions of spatial image [7:30] used as a compositional parameter.
Ambisonic channel relationships are based on spectral and amplitude differences between W, X, Y and Z in a first order Furse-Malham (FuMa) configuration56. To translate the Soundfield recorded image, four synth recordings for each FuMa channel were made on the same exact synth patch. Using the MIDI-CV process, the parameters controlled were the trig-in and velocity on a second VCA, controlling the amplitude of each sound event. Due to the -3db weighting on the W channel in a FuMa configuration, a consistent velocity equivalency between all channels was maintained by a +3db increase prior to conversion, and attenuated -3db after (on the W channel). This spectral unity and amplitude differences on each FuMa channel, kept the realistic ambisonic image [0:50] from the Soundfield recording from which it was derived largely intact (for all listening purposes). On re-entry of the synth-rain sounds [1:31], a sonic and spatial distortion of this
56, Arteaga, D. (2015) Àudio 3D – Escola Superior Politècnica Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Introduction to Ambisonics.
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synthetic rain occurs. By separately modifying timbral parameters of W, X, Y and Z synthesised channels, the FuMa algorithm is warped, breaking this previously realistic spatial image. The channels however, are not equal, with W corresponding to an omnidirectional source and XYZ as the three spatial axes. For this reason, the main timbral changes happen in XYZ, altering their relationship with W and in turn warping the ambisonic image. This warping was achieved by feeding the velocity information to timbal shaping parameters, such as VCO harmonics, frequency shifters and twinpeak filters (Figure 4).
For the most part, the listener is placed within all-encompassing surround sound environment. While the raindrops might be individually locative, as an ensemble they take on flocking properties57, further solidified by the 360˚ reverberance of the location they reside in. Sound objects recorded ambisonically in urban places include building reflections [6:33], placing the listener within a real sonic environment. This behaviour is lost when transferred to the synthesised sounds, removing the reverberant location-driven aspect, while keeping the general spatial placement of the raindrops the same. In AMLP this is deliberately broken, and distinct composer driven spatial gestures take centre stage from ca. 4:48. Large and extreme spatial movements sweep around the audience (particularly given the reserved spatial movement until this point). Ambisonic reverberation is used in section C to contextualise these composer driven erratic movements and to unify the auditory space.
Figure 4: FOA to Hordijk signal chain
57 Emmerson, S. (1986). The Language Electroacoustic Music. Palgrave Macmillan.
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4. Noisy Library (2018, 01:00:26)58 [7.1 channel]
Commissioned by the Manchester Science Festival in conjunction with the John Rylands library59, Noisy Library is a 7.1 surround installation for the John Rylands reading room. Using raw and processed recordings made within the installation space (with additional narration60), this hour- long, looped electroacoustic installation explores the hidden sounds of the reading room. A variety of specialised microphones (electromagnetic, VLF, geophone sensors, ambisonic and DPA4060) were utilised to capture the space.
Figure 6: Edison Swan Electric Co Ltd half Figure 5: Light Bulb with bayonet fitting blacked light bulb. Photographed from above photographed from above on a white on a white background. Science Museum background. Science Museum Group Group Collection. CC licence. Collection. CC licence.
The John Rylands Library, designed by Basil Champneys, is one of the first public buildings in Manchester to use electricity for lighting and air filtration systems to protect its collection61. The thematic focus of the installation was to uncover sounds within the hall that are not necessarily naturally audible, particularly in reference to the electric bulbs (Figures 5 & 6) and ventilation which were integral62 to the original plans, exposing the ‘electrical veins’ running through the hall.
58 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/NoisyLibrary/NoisyLibrary_digital [360video with 1st order ambisonic ambix audio] 59 Special thanks to John Rylands contact: Gemma Henderson 60 Narration by: Nadine Oliver, Abdul Saboor and Tariq Emam. 61 Rylands Our history (The University of Manchester Library). (n.d.). The University of Manchester. WEB: https://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/rylands/about/our-history/ 62 Cliff, A. (2017, November 13). Five Vintage Light Bulbs. Science and Industry Museum Blog.
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Figure 7: John Rylands Reading Room floor & and loudspeaker plan.
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4.1 Loudspeaker arrangement
In accordance with venue restrictions and loudspeaker availability, the number of loudspeakers was reduced from the proposed 12.2 to 7.163. Loudspeaker placement and spatialisation was carefully chosen to complement the hall’s architecture and sound dispersion within the space, after initial tests. The seven loudspeakers (Genelec 8040) were split into three pairs, with the larger centre loudspeaker (Genelec 8050) acting as a spotlight to send audio straight down the hall (Figure 7). The subwoofer was placed within an unused ground floor alcove, to accentuate low frequency build-up from the single woofer. Within such a large and reverberant space, any notion of working to a traditional ‘sweet spot’ was abandoned in favour of a compositional approach, suited the natural flow of visitors within the space. Additionally, due to the loudspeakers not being directed at a central point, the high frequency diffusion was only ever optimal for a specific loudspeaker pair and centre (loudspeaker 2), the loudspeakers not pointing at the listener lost clarity and naturally fell further back in the mix, taking on a different sonic purpose of filling the large hall without specific detail.
While this is a ‘7.1-loudspeaker system’, the distance between speakers and non- convergent orientation required a non-standard approach. While in a ‘three-pairs’ configuration, the composition by no means treats the different pairs as individuals, as most of the loudspeakers are continuously in use, but considerers that the visitors will at one time be in the vicinity of a single ‘pair’ as their main focused listening. The loudspeakers on the balcony are somewhat hidden from view and aren’t easily noticeable from below when first entering the space (Figure 8).
Figure 8: John Rylands Library reading room - balcony speakers (Noisy Library).
63 Thanks to the University of Manchester NOVARS department for the equipment and student set-up help.
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4.2 Recordings
Central to the recording process was the notion of revealing hidden sounds from within the reading room. Following this concept, a set of microphones were chosen to capture sounds often not audible to the human ear. Hints of the recording process are audible (e.g. 15:40) throughout the composition as a way to highlight transparency in this process, including the phone interference of electromagnetic signals (commonly recognisable, e.g. 9:32) , as well as odd phrases of conversations while recording [16:55].
Two types of electromagnetic microphones were used, a stereo pair of JRF coil pick-ups64 and a single VLF radio receiver65. The JRF coils require close proximity (below 30cm in general) to the emitting source and are able to effectively isolate specific electromagnetic waves because of this. In contrast, the VLF antenna microphone is very sensitive to the radio spectrum between 3kHz and 30kHz66, capturing all electromagnetic waves in the vicinity. The latter are often used to record in natural environments such as when capturing distant thunder, ionospheric disturbances67 or the aurora borealis68. When used within an urban environment such as for this project, the VLF receiver is inundated with a variety of continuous signals.
With the original light-bulbs no longer in use, the recordings for Noisy Library focus on the modern electronic devices within the reading room. The JRF microphones recorded isolated objects, such as the panel touch-displays, information panels, fire alarm systems, lighting, computers, handheld transceivers and other electromagnetic sources within the space. The VLF receiver captured a variety of more prominent electromagnetic interference from beyond the reading room walls, resulting in drones and background tones.
Small lapel (DPA4060) microphones allowed for close recording of the inner workings of machinery, and accessing hard-to reach spaces such as the air filtration vents, the original reading room clock (a prominent feature in Noisy Library), inside the glass chandeliers and a variety of other objects present in the reading room.
Contact microphones were used on resonant objects, distinctly the vibrations of the metal grills covering the ventilation shafts (similar to recording wind by focusing on the objects that are affected by it, such as rustling leaves). Drawing upon a similar concept at low frequencies, a geophone captured seismic vibrations and nearby traffic and construction rumble between 5hz and 30hz, as a set of low tones and infrasound to be later pitched up into the audible range. Generally, the original material was not particularly usable, especially considering the use of a single subwoofer (Genelec 7040a) with a frequency response of 30hz to 90hz within a very large space, this was not used apart from a few bass tones [12:31].
64 French, J. R. (n.d.). JrF - coil pick up’s made by Jez Riley French. 65 Very Low Frequency radio frequencies - Union Internationale des Télécommunications ITU: Committed to connecting the world. (2020). International Telecommunication Union (ITU). 66 Tapper, D. (2015). VLF: A Sound Artist’s Guide, Second Edition. 67 Howe, R., & B.S.J. (2010). Sudden Ionispheric Disturbances (SIDs). American Association of Variable Star Observation. 68 Tapper, D. (2015). VLF: A Sound Artist’s Guide, Second Edition.
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Ambisonic recordings (Soundfield) were made capturing a series of impulse responses for the reading room. Feedback loops [28:00] were also captured using the Soundfield, by placing the microphone and speaker at different positions around the reading room, and manually riding the volume fader to record tones prone to feedback in the space. One of the recording sessions using the Soundfield had a failing battery, causing loud descending tones [34:32] at seemingly random times.
Vocal recordings by Nadine Oliver, Tariq Emam and Abdul Saboor made in the NOVARS studios, are the only sound sources not recorded within the reading room.
4.3 Room acoustics simulation.
Composing for a specified location with a unique sonic imprint required a method to effectively simulate the reading room’s acoustic arena69 within the studio. This was achieved using a first order ambisonic (B-format) impulse/response (IR)70, measured using a Soundfield microphone and 60Hz-20kHz sine sweeps played back in the reading room hall. The use of a psycho-acoustic kernel system71 such as ambisonics, as opposed to matrix or discrete approaches, allowed for the use of a single B-format impulse/response measurement, in place of a multitude of IR recordings needed72 to accurately mimic the acoustic colouration of the space using traditional omni microphones. The B-format impulse response uses a 4-channel convolution reverb for studio monitoring (Figure 9).
With this monitoring system in place, I was able to effectively simulate the sonic result within the reading room during the studio composition process. While this system was adequate, there were considerations that had to be made in terms of how it would sound in the reading room. Firstly, the IR was made without the use of a subwoofer, so any frequencies below ca. 120Hz would not be accurately displayed. Secondly, the non-convergent loudspeaker orientation changes in high frequency clarity, depending on visitor position in relation to each loudspeaker's focus point. This could not be effectively replicated with an ambisonic IR decode, especially considering visitor movement around the space, loudspeakers were faced away at times, or filters were used to mimic the high frequency drop-off within the studio, and to test ideas. Beyond monitoring purposes, the recorded IR allowed for creative approaches to re-amplifying sounds within the space by adding multiple iterations of the convolution reverb [25:00].
69 Blesser, B., & Salter, L. (2006). Spaces Speak, Are You Listening?: Experiencing Aural Architecture. pp.202 70 Impulse/response: method of measuring room acoustics. 71 Gerzon, M. (1974). What’s wrong with quadrophonics? 72 Blesser, B., & Salter, L. (2006). Spaces Speak, Are You Listening?: Experiencing Aual Architecture. pp.194
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Figure 9: Studio monitoring signal chain for Noisy Library.
4.4 Structure
The resulting structure of this hour-long installation piece adheres to two main factors that drove the pacing of events in Noisy Library: the recorded sound material itself and the visitor relative to time, movement and space. While spending time in the space prior to the installation, I determined that an active visitor spends an average of five to seven minutes in the reading room. A resulting compositional goal was to include a mixture of faster (gestural led) sections moving around the listener, and slower moving (textural led) passages on static loudspeaker configurations where the spatial image is altered, depending on where the visitor is situated in that time frame.
The piece itself was largely through-composed following this idea, with recurring themes such as the reading room clock [3:18]. Amplitude changes were used to alter the composition's intrusion onto the reading room. Longer, quieter passages required the visitors to listen more intently, making room sounds all the more noticeable within the soundscape, and louder passages filled the space. As such, this piece was designed to work alongside the sounds of the reading room, hence the digital recording provided including a live audience and not being recorded while closed to the public, or using the IR convolution reverb of the space. Moments where you can hear a handheld radio (e.g. 18:50), or the construction works outside are not part of the fixed composition.
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4.5 Composition
Room sounds such as chairs moving, paper flipping and objects shuffling [38:00] were placed on individual loudspeakers as these would naturally emit from a single point source, merging with the sound of the visitors interacting with the space. For example, underneath loudspeaker five a photo opportunity for visitors, with large books and costumes, was mirrored by the sounds emanating from that alcove. Processed versions spread to other loudspeakers around the hall from their point source emulation. A similar technique was used for the narration [33:00]: clean vocals disperse from the centre (Figure 7 #2) loudspeaker, with vocoded variations spreading down the room, getting progressively less intelligible towards speakers six and seven. The passages and quotes are taken from literature in reference to the library's original use of electric bulbs, as opposed to glass bulbs and the importance of these hidden ‘veins’ of the building. Example quoted below73.
“…Thoroughly complete and perfect Installation of Incandescent Lights… to be of 100 Volts or thereabouts and arranged in simple parallel… The Lamps, Lamp holders and Shades will be supplied, but the Contractor must properly fix and connect them up”. – Electrical installation proposal 1893
Further text comes from W.G Sebald’s Max Ferber74, describing a ‘sombre’ and ‘anthracite- coloured’ Manchester, apt descriptors for why there was considerable pushback against a library being built in an industrial city (amongst other classist issues). Resulting in the use of electric bulbs and ventilation to mitigate harm to the manuscripts. Descriptors of ‘grandest of buildings’ as ‘theatrical backdrops’, encapsulates the large and ornate hall in which Noisy Library takes root.
“I never ceased to be amazed by the completeness with which anthracite-coloured Manchester, the city from which industrialization had spread across the entire world, displayed the clearly chronic process of its impoverishment and degradation to anyone who cared to see,” - W.G Sebald in: Max Ferber.
Small and intricate spatial movements are easily lost in the large reverberant space, while larger, seemingly static sections utilise visitor movement to uncover change. In the shepard-like tones, [20:00 – 25:00] the overlapping frequencies are spread between the three pairs (1 and 3, 4 and 5, 6 and 7), changing the tonal focus depending on listener location. This technique was also used in the separation of harmonic content in the electromagnetic recordings. Split between all seven loudspeakers, each harmonic is allocated a loudspeaker channel in sequence, with every eighth harmonic overlapping cyclically if more than seven are present. Rhythmic material was largely derived or directly from the electromagnetic recordings and the reading room clock.
For larger spatial movements, surround-sound panning tools (rea-surround) were adapted to work with the spread-out loudspeaker placements as to avoid dips in volume. Additionally, for
73 Cliff, A. (2017, November 13). Five Vintage Light Bulbs. Science and Industry Museum Blog. 74 Sebald, W. G. (1866). The Emigrants. New Directions.
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sounds that were crucial to the overall soundscape and needed to be heard from all points in the room, two main methods were used: extensive use of the centre spotlight loudspeaker, or by ensuring that one loudspeaker in each pair is used to some degree.
Table 4 outlines this relationship between spatial movement, texture/gesture and amplitude/intrusion.
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Table 4: Noisy Library - structure analysis
Spatial movement Texture & Gesture Volume / Space intrusion Red = Moving Red = Gesture Red = Loud Yellow = Mix Yellow = Mix Yellow = Medium Blue = Static Blue = Texture Blue = Quiet
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5. Divine Cut (2018, 11:19)75 [6 channel / binaural]
Figure 10: Divine Cut - still image from video.
Divine cut is a piece for fixed media and live haircut. Starting as an artistic take on the classic spatial demonstration of a 'binaural haircut', the composition expanded into an exploration of the online viral phenomena of ASMR76 (autonomous sensory meridian response) videos.
A haircut is an unusual and intimate ritual: there are not many settings where we stare at ourselves in a mirror, while a stranger wields sharp utensils at close proximity to our head. The micro sound-pallet from the utensils with the realistic proximity rendered by the binaural head creates a somewhat uneasy intimacy between the performer and audience. Drawing parallels between the intimate sound explorations of ASMR and electroacoustic music’s fascination with the amplification of small, quiet sounds. Divine Cut re-introduces the sonic and theatrical aspects of these videos within an electroacoustic framework, drawing attention to physical movement in relation to microphone space77.
Marking a shift in the space/place approach thus far, this piece does not draw from specific physical locations as the previous works do, in fact all recordings were made in a studio. Divine cut leans further into the spatial practices of hairdressers and online ASMR media, while utilising psychoacoustic parameters from the binaural ‘dummy head’ to carry these (both the online space and auditory space) associations to the listener.
75 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/DivineCut/Divine Cut – [video, stereo].mpeg 76 Barratt, E. L., & Davis, N. J. (2015). Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR): a flow-like mental state. 77 Smalley, D. (2007). Space-form and the acousmatic image.
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Placed in centre frame, the microphone (while disguised as a mannequin head), is both the visual and auditory nucleus of Divine Cut. Referencing Voeglin’s ‘intersubjective self’78, this piece particularly draws from the ‘residue of past hearings’ through aural perspective, bringing the listener into the position of the mannequin head. As you are hearing the perspective of the face you stare at, the piece aims to enact a kind of third person/out of body experience. While many sounds may lack a universal connotation, as I do not expect all listeners to be aware of ASMR, haircuts are a much more ubiquitous experience.
Figure 11: Studio Haircut - Polski Fritzer.
In preparation for this piece I spent time with hairdressers (Sassoon Academy79, Polski Fryzjer80, Urban Cutz81), putting together a pallet of sounds and utensils for composition. The performative aspect was crucial to the composition early on, during the process of studying movements and practices. This approach solidified as I spent time learning how to cut hair through YouTube (appendix 10.4.1), by delving into the weird and wonderful world of tutorials and ASMR haircuts, as well as the viral video from 2007 with over 36 million views on YouTube (at the time of writing), Virtual Barber Shop82 (my first binaural experience years prior).
This set Divine Cut’s ‘location’ not in a traditional hairdresser’s, but mediated through the lens of online culture. With the popularity surge of ASMR content online, I wanted to tap into its musical potential (as opposed to vlogs and online sound presentations83), while keeping
78S. Voegelin, S. (2010). Listening to Noise and Silence: Towards a Philosophy of Sound Art. .pp. 14 79 Sassoon Academy London. (2020). Sassoon Academy London. 80 Polski Fryzjer Manchester. (n.d.). Polski Fryzjer Manchester. 81 URBAN KUTZ LIMITED. (2015). Old Trafford Manchester, UK. 82 Virtual Barber Shop. (2007, May 5). [Video]. WEB:. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUDTlvagjJA 83 Keiles, J. L. (2019, April 5). How A.S.M.R. Became a Sensation.
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composition as the main focus as opposed to a 'binaural demonstration'. The fixed part and visual presentation were composed with this in mind, unveiling a strange and jarring scene, slowly drifting into the absurd as the haircut progresses. A large majority of the fixed-media part is inspired by, or uses hair salon recordings, working with pitched tones (razors), rhythms (hair snips), and space (binaural head), interpreted by instrumentalists and synthesisers (appendix 10.5.1). The piece further explores sounds of a haircut through a 'micro' soundscape, using sensitive DPA4060 microphones in each ear and electromagnetic microphones hidden within the back of the mannequin’s head to record a range of live utensils (appendix 10.5.2).
A type of ‘ethos’ has accompanied Divine Cut: the concept of making a both striking and humorous performance piece, while never relinquishing any compositional and sonic quality. I believe a serious demeanour and approach to a somewhat tongue-in-cheek subject was crucial to Divine Cut, something that was re-iterated by Jean-François Denis84 in conversation after my performance at BEAST FEaST 201985.
5.1 Performance
The work's visual and performative aesthetic, alongside the heightened sound palette through the proximity rendered by the microphone-space of the binaural head, is designed to create an uneasy intimacy between the performer and audience. The performer is not expected to know how to cut hair professionally, although they are expected to have put in some time practising via the YouTube videos provided in the score (appendix 10.4.1). The performative result will intentionally be a wrangled destruction of a haircut (before the wig is eventually removed entirely). The priorities are the sounds created from it, increasingly apparent as the subject is abstracted towards two thirds into the piece.
This piece has strong theatrical and performative elements: a spotlight on dummy head and performer; performer dressed accordingly (black t-shirt, plain dark trousers); and dummy-head covered by a hairdressing drape until the start of the performance. At the end of the piece, the performer steps out of the spotlight leaving the now bald head surrounded by the white hair at its ‘feet’. An additional lighting option is available in the form of an ultraviolet light on the floor, illuminating and highlighting the fallen hair once the performer has left the stage and the main lights have been turned off.
While performing around the mannequin head, it is almost inevitable that at one point a utensil, or hand might come in direct contact to the microphone. While in general this is to be avoided, direct contact with microphones is a particular sound trigger86 (also sometimes referred to as a ‘tingle’) used in ASMR, such as brushing or tapping the microphone grill, and can be used in a performative approach. An equalizer and compressor are present on the microphone channels, to mitigate any large volume spikes due to direct contact with the capsules.
84 Jean-François Denis: Empreintes digitales label director. 85 BEAST FEaST 2019 | BEAST. (2019). BEAST University of Birmingham UK/ 86 Bower, J. R. (2019). Intimate Encounters Within the Ear: Microphone-touching and the Gender Politics of ASMR. Glissando Issue 37.
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The performer, centre stage with the dummy head on a stand and a small table to the side for utensils, is sent a click/tape track87 with live input reference via headphones, while the main stereo tape is sent to the main diffusion system. The four live microphone inputs: DPA4060 x 2, Electromagnetic x2 are spatialised around the speaker array (Figure 12). The DPA4060 pair is sent hard left and right matching the on-stage movements to either side of the audience, acting as a ‘headphone’ pair. The electromagnetic microphones are sent to the rear left and right loudspeakers, mirroring the placement of them in the back of the binaural head. If playing on a stereo system, all channels may be collapsed to work on a stereo pair of speakers.
The ‘fixed’ version of this piece is the provided in-studio video88, filmed and edited by Kieran Hanson (Kenawa Films). A live performance video89 is also provided from Sound-Though 2018 in Glasgow for comparison. The live rendition includes more performative aspects as it evolves through performance iterations.
Figure 12: Divine Cut - 6 channel live configuration.
87 PHDfolder/portfolio_pieces/DivineCut/Divine Cut – tape & click [4ch audio].wav 88 PHDfolder/portfolio_pieces/DivineCut/Divine Cut – [video, stereo].mpeg 89 PHDfolder/portfolio_pieces/DivineCut/Divine Cut – live at Sound Thought 2018 [video, stereo].mp4
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5.3 Illusion of liveness and the audio-visual contract.
“Every sensory interaction relates back to us not the object / phenomenon perceived, but that object / phenomenon filtered, shaped and produced by the sense employed in its perception.” - Voeglin (2010)
While not a piece for moving image, Chion’s Audiovisual contract90 very much applies, where the audience focus is drawn to the visual aesthetic, with the sound ‘adding value’ to the performance, even if the piece in itself was composed from a mainly sonic perspective. This is perhaps heightened through performance in largely audio-centric concerts, where the majority of pieces do not have a visual element (I am only stating from the performances I’ve had of Divine Cut, there were other live performances and AV performances that have visual elements, but acousmatic tended to dominate programming).
Altered haircut recordings and instrumental interpretations of them may not immediately link to a real-world event, therefore the inclusion of a visual element allowed for greater sonic abstraction and compositional freedom, while keeping a strong connection to the subject matter. An example of this was the use of ‘hair-mousse’, placed directly on the ears is not by any means traditional but understandably crucial due to the microphone placement to uncover the minutiae of sounds91 within the foam. Since the relation of the mannequin-ears equals microphones placement had already been made clear in the beginning of the piece, the audience is able to see this rather comical event as also unavoidable for the sonic result.
The use of a click-track for tightly rehearsed events against more free sections, produced an illusion of liveness, where action-to-sonic event links may in fact reside within the tape part. This insight was supported by multiple post-concert conversations, with questions on what was live and predetermined/fixed, and assumptions that live processes were affected by body movement. This relates somewhat to Ricardo Climent's performance of his piece Duel of Strings at EASTN-DC92. Duel of Strings makes use of a visual ‘illusion’, linking a large rubber band to the sound of a plucked string. The result was an effective cause and effect link, leading the audience into believing it was the source triggering a sound (and not the foot pedal). While having only heard this piece after completing Divine Cut it solidified my thoughts on the ‘importance of liveness’. I do not believe that installing live triggers would have brought anything more to the piece so. In fact my ability to carefully craft this choreographed performance ensured a uniform timeline of events, however the physical movements themselves have evolved over the course of performances.
90 Chion, M. (1994). Audio-Vision (0 ed.). Columbia University Press. 91 Voegelin, S. (2010). Listening to Noise and Silence: Towards a Philosophy of Sound Art (1st ed.). 92 R. Climent. (2020) Duel of Strings: Lorenzo Triviño (non-virtual violin) vs. Ricardo Climent (virtual strings). [Video].
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rd 6. Tune of Crackle (2019, 20:58)93 [3 order ambisonics]
Cities worldwide have a history of incorporating design elements with skateboarding in mind, most often through skate prevention measures94, via knobbed railings and skate-stoppers, but also increasingly through positive design. Examples of this can be seen in Hull's recent venture as the UK's first skate-friendly city95, purpose built plazas96, skate-parks97 and skateable public features/art98 used to engage young people and encourage them to visit parks and museums99. Intertwined within mainstream fashion100, admitted to the 2020 Olympics101, derivative art displayed in galleries worldwide102, and subject of academic conferences103, skateboarding is going through a period of change104 and introspection105.
Skateboarding is immediately recognisable via its distinct sonic palette, both by practitioners excited when hearing the distant rattle of wheels, only to be disappointed by a trolley suitcase [20:46], or pedestrians hearing the sound as a warning/danger on the sidewalk. Within the practice there are indicative sonic moments, such as a skater flying out of a loud wooden ramp followed by silence aside from the spinning bearings. Or within media, for example, tropes such as the last trick of a video part106 when the music cuts out, leaving the raw sound107 as a moment of greater impact, followed by slow motion ‘cattle like’ cheering. So much so that some tricks have onomatopoeic names; nose-bonk108, firecracker109 or ‘pop’ as a descriptor of how much height the skater is able to generate from an ollie110. This project enquires into sonic feedback in relation to tricks, surfaces, effort, acoustics and how these are embodied within personal, social, and mediated spaces. The notion of empowerment through sound and action came forward during the interviews conducted: this idea that whether you want to or not, you are loud, unapologetic and within your self-created bubble of sound. This project is the result of listening to those environments and asking skaters to reflect on the sounds around them.
93 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/TuneOfCrackle/TuneOfCrackle [3rd order ambisonic, 16ch interleaved].wav 94 Davis, K. (2018, January 17). The skaters were right: Bristol City Council spent £21,000 on ‘skate stops’ at Cenotaph. BristolLive. 95 Powell, B. (2018, July 15). Hull Venue - the UK’s first officially skate-friendly new development? Sidewalk Skateboarding. 96 King, A. (2020, February 3). Upward slope: how skateboarding transformed the ‘Manchester of Finland’. The Guardian. 97 Ellis, N. (2019, December 29). Skatepark facilities increase throughout the UK in 2019. Skateboard England. 98 Jivcoff, W., & Soblone, A. (2020, May 7). In the Square with Alexis Sablone. Medium Skate Mag. 99 Mock, B. (2015, July 15). Why Philadelphia Is Commissioning Skateable Public Art. Bloomberg. 100 Blum, S. (2017, June 9). How Skateboarding Became a High-Fashion Obsession. Esquire. 101 Skateboarding. (2020). Tokyo 2020 Olympics. 102 Haroshi. (n.d.). Haroshi. Haroshi. WEB: http://haroshi.com 103 Pushing Boarders. (2019). PushingBoarders. WEB: https://www.pushingboarders.com/ 104 Browning, I. (2020, July 21). WHAT’S FUELING SKATEBOARDING’S CURRENT BOOM? Jenkem Magazine. 105 ARTLESS INDUSTRIA®, & Pappalardo, A. (2019, December 27). Skateboarding Is Not Progressive. 106 Video ‘part’: Skate videos are often split into separate parts, focusing on one skater at a time. 107 Thrasher magazine: RAW FILES. Transworld magazine: raw. Video series with unedited footage and no music. 108 Trick: nose-bonk: Hitting the front truck of you skateboard against an obstacle while going over it. 109 Trick: firecracker: Smacking the tail of your skateboard on each step of a staircase while going down it. 110 Ollie: a manoeuvre in skateboarding in which the skater kicks the tail of the board down while jumping in order to make the board ‘pop’ into the air.
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“Like music and dance, skateboarding creates 'repetitions and redundancies of rhythms' and 'symmetries and asymmetries' irreducible to analytic thought”. - Ian Borden
Tune of Crackle111 stemmed from a desire to document and analyse sonic relationships between performers and architectural spaces in which they ‘play’, in this case, skateboarding.
Through the nature of the activity, the majority of skateboarders are both performers and audience, equally participating and watching others as they take their turn. There are two set recording perspectives used while collecting sound material: recorded while skating myself, or from the side-lines. The ‘audience’ often responds to the tricks or bails occurring, cheering on, or reacting out loud to a heavy slam, becoming an integral part of the soundscape.
In this chapter I make use of quotations from skaters, artists and academics, as part of an endeavour to collect material referencing sound in conjunction with skateboarding from a range of sources. Artist, writer and skateboarder Raphaël Zarka references skateboarding in his public sculptural works:
“My idea was that we could see sculptures as scores to be performed by skaters. Skaters would be performers not because they do performance art, but rather because they are some types of musicians.” -Raphaël Zarka112
6.2 Locations and recording
Carefully chosen spaces were used as focal points for a comprehensive spectrum of UK locations: the Southbank Undercroft (the world's oldest continually skated spot)113, a re- appropriated architectural space114 and a prominent cultural hub in the skateboarding scene; Graystone Action Sports, a brand new action sports115 facility in Salford and the team GB Olympic training centre hosting qualifying events and competitions; and a variety of UK street spots, both covered ‘rainy day’116 spots and popular city locations recorded personally and collected from Avenue’s ‘Business’117 video.
The structure of Tune of Crackle is loosely based on this series of locations. While there are similarities to the splitting of sections by locations with the first piece of this portfolio Gōngàn, Tune of Crackle is more intertwined, using the location sectionality as a general guideline, most
111 Title inspired by: Fer, C. (1986, March). Jump in the Leaves. Thrasher Magazine, 6(3), 52 112 Schwinghammer, S., & Zarka, R. (2015, August 29). Raphaël Zarka about skating sculptures. 113 Borden, I. (2013). Southbank skate debate: ‘The undercroft works better culturally than functionally’. Architects Journal 114 Madgin, R., Webb, D., Ruiz, P., & Snelson, T. (2017). Resisting relocation and reconceptualising authenticity: the experiential and emotional values of the Southbank Undercroft, London, UK. International Journal of Heritage Studies. 115 The ‘sports’ connotation within skateboarding is a current debate, many see it as a form of artistic expression or ‘play’ and are not interested regulated competitions. 116 Due to the UKs unfortunate weather, covered street locations are often sought upon. 117 V. (2019, January 1). Business - Avenue - Vague. Vague Skate Mag. WEB: https://www.vaguemag.com/business- avenue/
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apparent after from the street section onwards, where the increasingly processed sounds become a background for further thoughts and narratives.
6.2.1 Southbank Undercroft [ca. 6:44 – 14:20]
“This stems from a huge variety of things: the 40 years of history, the huge number of famous tricks that have been landed there, the aesthetics, the architecture, the graffiti, the street art, the riverside location, the collective creativity of the locals, the acoustics of the place, the locals who don’t skate, the influence of the homeless on the scene, the history of persecution of skating at Southbank, the fact it has its own existence and free from the regulated establishment which surrounds it.” - Southbank Undercroft heritage report 2014 118.
Figure 13: Southbank undercroft ambisonic recording [photo by Nadine Oliver].
Characterised by its central London location, the low ceiling, and pervasive graffiti, the Southbank ‘brutalist landmark119’ has long been the ‘heart’ of British skateboarding. Southbank has a loud and enclosed sonic atmosphere due to the low ceiling and concrete enclosure, around three-quarters of the space. Reverberance is accentuated by joints between 60 x 60cm concrete slabs that floor the space, creating a loud transient sound when rolled over, or the loud ‘skrrrrrrrt’ when doing power-slides over the concrete coating. Furthermore, there is a large community of people who use the space, including graffiti artists, inline skaters, dancers and more, adding to the soundscape of Southbank. Although initially a ‘street spot’, the undercroft has since seen additions
118 Richards, P., Kitching, B., Blayney, S., & Woodhead, L. (2014, September). SOUTHBANK UNDERCROFTCultural & Heritage Assessment Report. Long Live Southbank. 119 Kafka, G. (2019, July 23). A Brutalist Landmark and Skateboarding Mecca in London Is Restored. Metropolis.
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of obstacles such as ledges and manual pads, as well as a concrete quarter pipe built by NikeSB120 for a contest held there which has remained a permanent feature.
The recordings at Southbank were captured using a combination of the Soundfield ST450, VX1000 and Rhode NTG2. The Rhode NTG2 was chosen as a ubiquitous video-camera mounted microphone, often used in current DSLR video rigs and skate filming. This was also the microphone used by Alexander Lamb in Avenue’s 'Business’ video, allowing for greater continuity with other recordings used. The NTG2 was mounted on a boom inside a Rycote windscreen and used as a ‘follow cam’, much like a skate film recordist would use their camera while closely tailing the subject on another skateboard. The NTG2 was also used for most on-location interviews. The Soundfield ST450 was placed in six different locations within the space, focusing on interesting spatial perspectives. A total of 4 days were spent recording at Southbank.
6.2.2 GrayStone Action Sports [ca. 0:00 – 6:44]
“The way everything sounds is different. Every grind has a strange resonating howl”. - Rick Blackhart, 'Ask the Doctor', Thrasher, vol. 5 no. 1 (January 1985), p. 8
Figure 15: Graystone Action Sports Figure 15: Graystone Action Sports coping launch ramp recording (Figure 16 recording (Figure 16 position 1). position 4).
120 In celebration of Long Live South Bank’s securement of the space in 2015, Nike SB work with local skaters to produce 3 concrete features.
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Graystone121 is a somewhat typical wooden ‘indoor warehouse park’, designed by Four One Four Skateparks122 who have been responsible for a large variety of significant indoor UK parks, including the iconic MWADLANDS123. Geared more towards the ‘sport’124 side of skateboarding, the sound and aesthetics of the warehouse resemble many a multi-sport training facility.
The recordings at Graystone were made using a combination of a Soundfield ST450, DPA4060 (pair) and contact microphones running into a Roland R88 8-channel recorder. The contact microphones were made using 50mm piezo disks for better bass frequency response (than smaller alternatives), and attached using acrylic double-sided gel tape for its vibration transferring properties. The Soundfield and contact microphones were used in tandem as a 4 + 4 input setup, while the DPA4060 pair and contact microphones were in a 2 + 6 configuration. Recording positions focused on bowl corners (Figure 16: #1), launch ramp / foam pit (Figure 16: #4), pool coping (Figure 16 #3), mini-ramp (Figure 16: # 6) etc. The recordings were made prior to the official park opening within a five-hour window, and subsequent recordings were made once the park became publicly open, using a smaller portable setup (DPA4060s, two contact microphones. Roland-R44 recorder).
Table 5: Graystone recording locations to time
1 Coping 2 1:42
2 Large bowl, deep end 1:25
3 Coping 1:14
4 Launch ramp / foam pit 0:07
5 Street section 1:43
6 Mini ramp 5:12
121 Graystone Action Sports. (2020). Graystone Action Sports. Graystone Action Sports Manchester. 122 Four One Four Skateparks. (2020, June 30). WEB:. https://www.414skateparks.com 123 Palace Skateboards. (n.d.). MWADLANDS | PALACE. WEB: https://www.palaceskateboards.com/mwadlands/ 124 Evans, S. (1992, November). help! Simon Evan Interview. RAD Skateboard Magazine, 114, 2.
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Figure 16: Graystone Action Sports floor to microphone placement plan.
6.2.3 Street [ca. 11:16 – 20:44]
“The way in which the skater explores the city’s structures, how much speed, pressure, feeling or emphasis he or she puts into the performance, all influences how the city responds sonically.” - Carla J. Maier (2016) Aspects of a Transcultural Anthropology of Sound, The Senses and Society.
The ‘street spots’ are recorded from a variety of Manchester, London and wider UK locations. These include rails, ledges, banks and stairs, with recording of both ‘crusty’ and smooth spots. Manchester recordings are done with a mixture of DPA4060, Rhode NTG2, VX1000 and contact microphones. Additional recordings have been extracted from the raw footage of the Avenue skateboards 'Business’ video, provided by the founder Alexander Lamb. The Avenue footage is recorded with a Rode NTG2 mounted onto a Canon DSLR.
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The aspect of skate media and films is also synonymous with street skating and has been included in this broader section. The majority125 of skate films and parts126 stick to filming at street spots, leading to the narratives and media-focused elements of Tune of Crackle in this later third of the composition.
6.3 Compositional approaches
A paper of note within the preliminary research behind this work was Acousmatic Music as a Medium for Information: A case study of Archipel127. Looking into the notion of field recording, voice, in conjunction with composed musical elements to create an informative work studying a location. The presence of a descriptive narrator over field-recordings also takes influence from works such as Kits Beach Soundwalk (Westerkamp 1989), but here instead starting from interviews which led the sonic focuses such as: slabs [9:00], wheel spin [10:15] or flip tricks (360 flip) [5:02]. Where Westerkamp had control of narrative elements intertwined with field recordings, Tune of Crackle is swayed by these interviews, often seeking to record the sounds mentioned post- conversation.
‘J'aime bien comparer l’expression radio à la peinture et la sculpture. Pour moi, la radio, c’est très proche du fonctionnement d’un peintre ou d’un sculpteur. C’est-à-dire que je manipule les sons comme autant de couleurs, c'est au-delà du sens.’
Yann Paranthoën128 (Translation129)
Perhaps more relevant is Yann Paranthoën’s approach to ‘la création radiophonique’, meticulously arranging speech and field recordings to create engaging narratives and informative journeys130. This approach led to some of the decisions behind accentuating speech rhythms, for example, Ian Bordain’s loud background noise while interviewed at a noisy cafe is selectively gated for emphasis on certain pauses, while not editing the timing to highlight these rhythms [18:38]. The further use of vocal processing changing the reverberant space, or altering its place in the spatial image is used to emphasize phrases or words [7:03]. Creating builds and releases, without altering the volume or front and centre position of the main narrative material for clarity.
Utilizing sounds of skateboarding in music is not a novel idea, such as in Japanese producer Hifana’s 2010 track; Fatbros, or Bonamaze collaborating with Tony Hawk to create a 0:58 piece dubbed ‘the sound of skateboarding’ (2019). However, both these pieces use skateboard sounds in lieu of an instrument (filling in a traditional role), cutting and morphing them to fit a pre- determined musical idea, rather than allowing the sounds to lead the composition. There is also
125This is not the case for transition or vert oriented videos as these often require purpose built architecture. 126Skate part: A ‘part’ refers to what was previously only a section of a longer skateboarding video on VHS. Now in the digital age, these ‘parts’ are often released individually, but the name has stuck. 127 Campion, G., & Côté, G. (2018). Acousmatic Music as a Medium for Information: A case study of Archipel. 128 Paranthoën, Y. France Culture, production: Philippe Garbit. 129 Translated: I like to compare expression in radio to painting and sculpture. For me, radio is very close to the workings of being a painter or sculptor. This is to say, I manipulate sounds like colours, it’s beyond senses. 130 Parantheon’s particularly poetic way of arranging narrative, and its occupancy within the spatial image and mix (although in stereo) in his Les chemins de la connaissance was especially informative.
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Rick Nance’s 2001 stereo fixed media work ‘The Transatlantic Half-Pipe’131, an acousmatic work using skateboard recordings as source sounds. Tune of Crackle occupies a different and unexplored space compared to these (or anything I have been able to find), by using a composition-led radiophonic documentary to portray practitioner’s relationship to sounds.
6.4 Mediated perspectives
“Before the VX1000, it was hard to make a good-looking skate video that was actually visually and aurally pleasing” - Nic Dobija-Nootens [Jenkem Mag 2018].
An additional perspective comes through skate media, for many their first introduction to skateboarding. The way skateboarding is consumed through videos reveals how this soundscape has become altered through editing tropes, filming approaches and equipment. An important piece of equipment within skateboarding’s recorded history is the Sony VX1000 [17:06] (appendix 10.6) camcorder. This has shaped skateboarding’s video aesthetic over the years, and was used to record passages in Tune of Crackle.
The proximity of a filmer (most often another skateboarder) as they ride closely alongside the skater, pointing a fish-eye lens at them captures both the performer's sonic imprint and their own [13:38]. It is worth noting that most filmers use larger and softer132 wheels in order to reduce the impact and noise of floor cracks, pebbles and rough ground. This is taken into account when recording in this manner, using a cruiser board and a short boom pole to mimic the perspective of a follow filmer. Additional classic video editing tropes, such as the last trick synced with the final down beat of the music, then repeated without the music in slow motion while, the others cheer creating this now synonymous cattle-like ‘moooo’133 are highlighted in Tune of Crackle.
Often the left-over footage along with failed attempts, are released a few months after the videos are released134 [18:30]. Through series such as Thrasher magazine’s ‘RAW FILES / Rough Cut’135 and Transworld skateboarding’s ‘Raw / Raw Tapes’136. This has brought on a large repository of skate footage without any music to look at and listen to from around the world (with posted comments often in appreciation of the bare sound of skateboarding).
Skateboard recordings can fall within two distinct paradigms, a DIY/raw approach, which can be messy, the camera often is privy to ‘friendly fire’137 leaving scratches on the lens, the odd audio peak might distort, or fast movement catching wind noise. Or higher budget, often supported
131 Nance, R. (2001) The Transatlantic Half-Pipe. 132Filming wheels: usually around 60mm+ in size and 78 - 82A in durometer. [Subject to exceptions due to personal preferences] 133The slow-motion cattle ‘mooo’ was mentioned in the interview by: Dani, Alex and Cath. 134 Partially due to the ability to cheaply upload content online. 135 Thrasher Magazine: Rough Cut. 136 TransWorld SKATEboarding:.RAW. 137 The skater or board inadvertently hitting the camera.
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by sponsors, using professional audio visual equipment. Both styles of recording have been used within the Tune of Crackle.
Six DIY contact microphones were attached to wooden ramps and metal railings, capturing the sounds from within the physical material, as both an attempt to garner alternative listening perspectives, and to relay the additional physical feeling one might get from rolling over a certain surface. As a rider, sound and vibrations are heard as much as they resonate through your feet. e.g. the smoothness of a wooden bowl or loud, rough tarmac. These contact recordings combined with the Soundfield recordings mapped to an ambisonic image to match the B-format orientation, give a more encompassing sonic experience of what it is like to ride a skateboard. Material considerations were considered: sound travels over eleven times faster through wood (3,960 m/s)138, making it difficult to relate both air and wood recordings based on a similar footprint. For this reason, the microphones were made with greater separation across the ramp’s surface, increasing the spatial separation. Spatial mapping onto the ambisonic field was done by matching placement and amplitude of the contact microphones, in relation to the simultaneous Soundfield recording.
The use of tools such as Izotope RX139 and FluCoMa140 allowed for the deconstruction of field-recordings; separating sonic layers, noise and tonal material; extracted and removed transients; or isolated individual aspects. Short time Fourier transform (STFT) analysis-led sinusoidal modelling was used to reconstruct field recordings, focusing on the tonal material and harmonics within a recording [2:55]. This could then be used to inform tonal material, or applied in its current sinusoidal form within the ambisonic image.
The basis of much soundscape composition is exposing and rearranging field recordings into a musical context. The benefit of the musical context is to structure a narrative and extrude moments of particular interest. This piece ultimately aims to bring reflection on this sonic environment, and to provide wider insights into how sounds shapes the experience and practise of skateboarding.
138 Engineering ToolBox, (2004). Velocity of Sound in Solids and Metals. 139 iZotope. (2020). RX 7 Overview | Professional industry standard software for audio repair. l 140 Flucoma. (2020). Fluid Corpus Manipulation.
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7. Resonating Spaces (2019) [multiformat]
"We have learnt to listen to the voice of pottery, as never imagined before. We have wondered how this place has been kept safe for over 130 years, alive, with all its stories and histories. As we tread the cobble pathways and make together on site, we sense our pasts, our present and futures. Companionship, shared experience and histories shape out time together. A real sense of worth comes through working together, creating something that others will see and be a part of too. We all need more connection with things and each other to understand ourselves. Finding the knowledge and materials to express ourselves is the beginning of a long journey of recovery. This brings confidence, self-respect and self-belief." - Burslem Jubilee Project group
During my participation in the Resonating Spaces multi-artist collaboration, we created a series of works as follows:
• Green State: rehydrate (10:00). Live performance version (Main Portfolio)141. • Bottle-kiln. (60:00) Hour long sound-installation, and playback of the installation version of Green State: rehydrate142. • Lean-To. (37:00) 8-channel composition for ceramic loudspeaker playback. (appendix 10.9)143 • Wharf. Outdoor space intervention (appendix 10.10)144
Resonating Spaces was a series of site-specific interventions and installations commissioned by the British Ceramics Biennial145. These works featured collaborations with Helen Felcey146 (Ceramicist) and Joe Hartley147 (Standard Practice 3D designer), and engagement workshops with the Burslem Jubilee Project148 (Asylum seeker & refugee support group). A filmic response, Resonance149, by Kieran Hanson150 (Kenawa Films) highlights the lead up to the work and its relation to site heritage. The installations were set at Middleport Pottery151 (Stoke on Trent), currently a working factory (Burgess and Leigh152), heritage site (UKHBPT153), and college (Clay
141 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/GreenState Rehydrate – Performance 142 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/BottleKiln 143 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/LeanTo 144 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/Wharf 145 British Ceramic Biennial. (2020, August 26). 146 Felcey, H. WEB. http://www.helenfelcey.co.uk/. 147. Standard Practice. WEB: https://standardpractice.studio/ 148. Burslem Jubilee. Support, companionship and activity for asylum seekers and refugees in Stoke on Trent. 149 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/Resonance (2019) -Kenawa Films [4k].mp4 150.Hanson, K. (n.d.). Kenawa Films. WEB: https://kenawafilms.co.uk/ 151 Re-Form Heritage. (2020). Middleport Pottery. 152 Burleigh Pottery. (est. 1851). Pottry manufacturer in Middleport, Stoke-on-Trent. 153 Re-form Herritage. (est. 2019). independent charity which specialises in the restoration and rejuvenation of heritage buildings at risk of decay or demolition.
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College154). As a collaborative team, we approached clay, sound and place with a strong ideal of equal representation of team members. We had not previously worked in each other’s mediums, so it was important from the start to understand the different context within our disciplines. We aimed to avoid ‘cliches’ within practices, be conscious that norms within one practice may be viewed differently in another, and question how they fit harmoniously and maintain artistic merit155 without favouring one specific audience. We started our collaboration with a 3-day mini-residency on site, to solidify working bonds and artistic approaches. As such, there were three main locations for works at the Middleport site: the bottle-kiln, lean-to and wharf. The collaborative installation work was active between the 7th September and 17th November 2019.
7.1 Bottle Kiln (1:00:00) 156 [5.1 channel]
Figure 18: Bottle Kiln vessel interaction [photo by Jenny Harper].
Figure 17: Bottle Kiln inner chamber view [photo by Jenny Harper].
The sole remaining bottle kiln at Middleport Pottery was the site for a 5.1-channel surround interactive installation, exploring sounds of the factory and re-hydrating clay. The installation was set in two forms on hourly rotation. On the hour, a ten minute 5.1-channel acousmatic piece (Green state: rehydrate) was triggered157. For the remainder of the hour (50 minutes), the installation entered an interactive state, where participants were invited to drop a piece of dried but unfired clay into a vessel containing water and a hydrophone, listening to the re-hydration process as bubbles escape the porous material.
154 Clay College located in Middleport Pottery (Stoke on trent). Two year Diploma course for studio potters. 155 Artistic Merit: I use this lightly as art is subjective, just an active awareness of possible 'faux pas'. 156 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/Bottle Kiln – Kenawa Films.mp4 157 Piece triggered on the hour using ‘Mac-Automator’ controlled via iCalendar events.
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7.2 Clay rehydration158
When speaking to Hartley and Felcey about the sounds surrounding their ceramic practice, Hartley pointed out a few he is drawn to. Notably, the process of re-hydrating clay that had dried: as clay dries and water evaporates it becomes porous, and when dipped into water in order to reuse the dried clay, bubbles emerge making a crackling sound occasionally audible from the surface159. With personal experience using hydrophones and effervescent items in the past160, I brought this idea into the studio for further investigation. Upon uncovering this naturally granular and otherworldly soundscape, full of poly-rhythmic161 and pitched162 material, it became the basis for the interactive portion of the bottle-kiln. Prior to the installation, as a way to engage the group with the process and test audience participation and reaction, the sound material was presented within a workshop to the Burslem Jubilee Group. Their positive response to this soundscape greatly solidified this idea going forward.
A few issues arose during preliminary testing, particularly the large dynamic range and immediacy of ‘activation’163, things that would need to be controlled as much as possible from a material design led approach. The dissolvable (Figure 20) is designed in a such a way that there is an immediate sonic reaction when dropped in water, while also containing some of the more intricate and rhythmic sounds that come from thicker sections of dried clay. To accommodate this, the shape has a thin edge for an immediate activation, and a thicker core that starts releasing air 30 to 45 seconds into the dissolving process.
Mass production requires a quick turnaround to make and dry the dissolvables. These parameters were discussed with Hartley who put together the design. The ‘off the hump’164 approach allows for a production rate of approximately 100 per hour165, with the hollow form accelerating the drying process (2 to 3 days). Similarly, the installation vessel had to accommodate for a number of sonic-driven design elements, mainly the dynamic range between dissolvable dropping or audience touching the water against the re-hydration bubbles, prior to any digital compression or processes. To achieve this, the vessel is low-fired166 in order to help absorb sound due to its porous nature167, and it is then coated with beeswax instead of glaze for waterproofing, adding to its sound absorbent qualities (Figure 21).
158 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/Installation Works /Bottle Kiln/DriedClayRehydration - HydrophoneSoundExample.wav 159 From the surface you can only hear the odd larger bubbles and pockets of air escaping. 160 I first experienced this when watching sound artist Lee Patterson perform at Cut & Splice 2017. 161 Polyrhythmic: ClayRehydration [D] - 1:50 (Figure 19) 162 Pitched: ClayRehydration [C] - 1:05 (Figure 19) 163 Activation: how long it take for the bubbles to start escaping the dried clay when dropped into water. 164 Off-the-hump: Pottery technique utilizing a large mound of clay (aka-hump) thrown on a wheel. 165 ~100ph: This has to be done by an experienced potter. 166 Low-Fired: Biscuit ware ~1000C 167 Zhang, F.-Z., Kato, T., Fuji, M., & Takahashi, M. (2006). Gelcasting fabrication of porous ceramics using a continuous process.
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Figure 19: Bottle Kiln - dissolvable sonic process.
A. Dissolvable is dropped into water, small surface bubbles start being released.
B. Larger air pockets start releasing as water seeps through the outer layers.
C. Main core of air ‘pockets’ activated, air is released in rapid succession creating tonal material.
D. Most tonal material finished, slower releasing pockets of air still active, creating rhythmic content.
E. Some pockets of air remain and are activated periodically.
F. Rate of bubbles slowly become sparse and fade out (4-6 minutes for total silence).
The hydrophone168 audio was further controlled, cleaned and spatialised through a series of digital processes. Equalisation was applied to control feedback within the space with notch filters at 374Hz, 814Hz, 1217Hz, 1589Hz, 2054Hz, 2602Hz, 3204hz, 3981Hz, a high pass filter at 215Hz (48db), a high shelf of +6db at 3174Hz and a low pass filter at 16kHz (48db). A compressor was applied with a high ratio (30:1) and low threshold (-50db) to attenuate initial dissolvable drop and the possibility that someone might grab/touch the hydrophone, followed by a transient shaper to accentuate the individual sounds and a safety limiter169. Once the audio was controlled through this initial processing, it was then delayed by very small amounts (0-50ms) on each channel, differentiating the audio out of each loudspeaker as a process of 5.1 surround spatialisation. The delay time was controlled by the microphone level, with slightly different thresholds and ranges set to each loudspeaker. Sounds below a certain amplitude threshold were affected by a delay with a delay time that was inversely proportional to the sound’s amplitude, causing the louder and more impactful sounds to be played in unison, before spatially spreading out as the sounds got quieter and delay time was increased. The centre channel always remained at a 0ms delay.
168 Hydrophone: Aquarian H2A-XLR Hydrophone. 169 Safety Limiter: This limiter would not activate on normal use, but as a safety on the mic channel.
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7.3 Presentation
Figure 21: Bottle Kiln dissolvables Figure 21: Bottle Kiln vessel [photo by Standard Practice] [photo by Standard Practice]
Presentation of the work was curated in order to influence the audience’s listening approach and paced to their interactions. The dissolvables were placed at the entrance of the outer wall, and individually wrapped in paper stamped with drawings170 made by the Burslem Jubilee group as a response to our workshops and the site. The separation between the pick-up point and vessel acts as a ‘procession’, as the audience brings and examines their item into the inner chamber of the bottle-kiln. A shrine-like experience was created using components of lighting and the hydrophone suspended from the ceiling into the vessel, paired with the detail and care put into the presentation of each dissolvable, encouraging attentiveness toward the work and environment. There is a constant quiet sonic backdrop in the bottle-kiln, urging the audience to listen carefully. Once the participant drops their dissolvable in the vessel the sonic landscape was brought to life.
The vessel is a sensory object in itself, however the ability to hear your own touch as each bump of the uneven surface manifests itself sonically, not unlike a needle on a record, turned out to be essential in the success of this piece. Even though no transformative audio processing occurs171, the sound of clay re-hydration can be quite alien and mystifying as to what is actually being heard. Having the ability to hear the direct result of a simple action such as touching the vessel, or playing with the water solidifies the understanding that the sound is in-fact, a direct result of the physical process undergoing within the water. Once this simple connection is made, the audience approached the listening experience with a heightened awareness, actively controlling the soundscape172.
170 Drawings - as seen at 0:22 & 0:55 : folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/Bottle Kiln – Kenawa Films.mp4 171 As in, no processing that may mask or alter the source sounds to not being recognised. 172 This was observed through our presence on site over the installation period and conversations with attendees.
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7.4 Green State: Rehydrate (11:06) [5.1 channel]
Green State: Rehydrate is a 5.1-channel acousmatic piece, available in two renditions. Firstly, a fixed installation version173 played on the hour within the bottle-kiln as part of Resonating Spaces. Secondly, a live performance rendition (expanded to 13.1-channel) premiered at MANTIS Oct 2019, merging the pre-composed bottle-kiln version with recordings of the lean-to and live clay performance. The following section refers to the live rendition174, as it is the 'stand-alone' version. The title refers to the dry raw clay ready for first firing – items entering the historic bottle-kiln would enter in their green-state, leaving as biscuit-ware175 upon being fired, as opposed to rehydrated in the context of this piece.
7.5 Sound sources
Field recordings were collected during three separate outings, using a portable rig to record ceramics and their ancillary processes: 1. Heritage site – sounds from historic machinery run and restored by Middleport-Pottery volunteers and steam boiler tests [4-channel DPA4060 rig]; 2. Studio-Pottery – potter throwing clay using varying techniques on two different electric wheels [8- channel rig: 4x DPA4060, 4x self-made electromagnetic microphones176; 3. Burleigh Pottery – different stages of the factory chain, sounds used include the blunger room, mould pouring, seaming, plate-pressing, glazing, fracture-checking, and seconds correction process [3-channel rig, 2x Sennheiser MKH 8040 and 1x DPA4060 in a Rycote Windshield]. The field recordings are heavily manipulated in Izotope RX177 to isolate sounds, and used creatively as spectral filtering. Within this PhD portfolio, this piece is the most reliant on raw field recordings.
A sonic approach that particularly interested me while recording in the Burleigh Factory involved the process of 'fracture-checking', an entirely sonic driven product-line, the only one within this factory. Workers tap the fired ceramic objects with a metal rod, determining through the sonic response whether the item has an internal fracture that would be a detriment to its structural integrity (Figure 22 - E 5:10).
Studio recordings were made using a KOMA field kit178 to excite179 ceramic objects collected from Middleport-Pottery, specifically, an unglazed ladle, a set of ceramic bells and a plate [recorded using: 2x Sennheiser MKH 8040 & 2x Schoeps CMC-64]. The ceramic slabs180 were
173 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/BottleKiln/BottleKiln – GreenState Rehydrate Installation Version [2ch stereo reduction]. (full 5.1 verions available at start of 1h fixed installation file). 174 folder/PortfolioPieces/ResonatingSpaces/GreenStareRehydrate-Performance/GreenState:Rehydrate – Live at MANTIS_19 [video].mp4 175 Biscuit is pottery that has been fired in a kiln without a ceramic glaze. 176 DIY electromagnetic mic built using an 10000uH inductor. 177 Izotope RX: Audio repair & isolation tool. 178 KOMA field kit: 'Electro Acoustic Workstation' - analogue motor & solenoid controller. 179 Excite: Using a solenoid and electric motor to strike ceramic objects. 180 Ceramic speaker slabs: (appendix 10.9)
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recorded in full181 prior to being installed on site: parts of the recording were included in the live rendition of Green State: Rehydrate (Figure 22 - F & I).
7.6 Structure
The overarching structure of Green-state: Rehydrate (Figure 22) follows the trajectory of the factory production line itself, from dry/power clay to Burleighware182. The opening re-hydration sounds section [A] bears two compositional informers; the process of mixing dry powder-form clay with water183, and as the piece originally evolved from the installation in the Bottle-Kiln, this made for a seamless transition from the live hydrophone audio into the composition on the hour184. Section [B] introduces the clay mixing sounds from the blunger room185. Highly filtered and gradually taking centre stage, these sounds merge into a relative sound source of clay being poured into a mould.
The machinery186 sounds are introduced from 2:55 before taking the forefront (3:42). At 4:45 two alternate processes of shaping clay occur: one artisanal (on the wheel), and another industrial (pressed with hydraulic machines), layered with studio recordings and a kiln firing sound. From [E] the fracture checking process occurs, using granular processing of field recordings and studio recordings of the ladle resonated much like a 'singing bowl', to create the underlying tonal bed which the recording sits on. At [F], slushing sounds of glaze mixing are layered with slab recordings and live hydration sound. The inclusion of the slab and live clay in [F] is only present in the concert version (appendix 10.8) of Green State: Rehydrate, and was added as a desire to include more aspects of Resonating Spaces and to elaborate on the textures for concert performance. In [G], the powering down cycle of the historic ‘engine-room’187 machinery creates a naturally slowing down rhythm leading into the next section.
Section [H] starts with the final process for correcting errors with a small drill on wares that have some small imperfections, layered with sound of the kilns188 with additional live quadraphonic improvisation using VCVrack to processing studio recordings. At [I], a release from the build-up in section [H] occurs, and all sounds drop out apart from the live hydrophones and a recorded section of the slabs. Through the choice189 of including machinery sounds or focusing on clay, formal organisation of the work emerged as follows:
181 folder/PortfolioPieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/LeanTo/Resonating Spaces Lean To [Ceramic Panels] – Recording [Stereo].wav 182 Burleighware: Ceramic wares produced at Burleigh Pottery (located at Middleport Pottery). 183 Mixing dry clay powder with water in the blunger the first step at Burleigh Pottery. 184 Bottle-kiln transition: On the hour, the live hydrophone fades out as Green-State: Rehydrate starts. 185 The blunger - designed by William Boulton: washes the clay and converts it to slip. 186 Burleigh Machinery: Many of the original historic mechanisms by W.M.Bolton are still used to this day, powered through modern electric means. The disused machinery in the lean-to space is also build by W.M.Bolton. 187 Engine-room: Refurbished site on the middle-port heritage trail: activated once a week by volunteers. 188 Kiln sound: Big air-pumps run along side the kilns, making them sound close to white noise. 189 Most sounds recorded are surrounded by machinery sounds; it is a compositional choice to remove them.
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Figure 22: GreenState: Rehydrate - Spectrogram and Structure.
Live rehydration & clay sounds [A][B][F][I].
Machinery Focus [C][D][H].
Both: Sparse machinery and clay [E][G].
The narrative form of the work is articulated as:
A. Start: live clay re-hydration.
B. Factory sounds from blunger room and clay recycling shoots (heavily filtered / de-noised).
C. Boiler & other steam pressure-based machines.
D. Live audio stops, entry of more prominent machine recordings.
E. Tonal factory material, fracture check with live rendition on top.
F. Return to rehydration, and more aggressive water sounds.
G. Sounds from the motor in historic engine room, recorded in 4-ch.
H. Pneumatic die grinder soundscape.
I. Ceramic slab chords, rehydration.
J. End
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8. Conclusion
This portfolio is an exploration in composition tied to place, using a range of spatial electroacoustic works to develop and demonstrate techniques that retain locative associations. A holistic approach to this process, from recording methods to presentation mediums, was thoroughly considered. Using the deconstruction of field recordings and analysis techniques from the electroacoustic compositional language, several methods emerged.
8.1 Methodologies
Sounds invoking associations through a change of listening context190 is a crucial part to the initial soundscape composition approach, before further extracting musical parameters and moving away from the natural representation of source-bound recordings (mainly in: Gōngàn, Après Moi La Pluie). A few pieces (Noisy Library, Green State: Rehydrate) do not use purely ‘recognisable’ sounds, uncovering an environment’s hidden sounds, through microphones that record alternate perspectives (hydrophone, electromagnetic, etc.). In this case, supplementary methods were drawn upon to create cognitive links by using visual, spatial, narrative, or other experiential elements.
In terms of what musical parameters extracted from field recordings, rhythm, pitch, expression (dynamics), space, texture, gesture and timbre, arguably the most obviously ‘musical’ parameters. However they also contain the strongest links to their source when utilised, as the listener is naturally drawn to them.
8.2 Abstraction
The abstraction process takes on many forms throughout this portfolio of works. From re- spatialising recordings, separating sound objects from within recordings, extracting information to drive new sounds, and broader transformative evolutions of source sounds. The goal here is never to completely alienate the source sounds to the point of being unrecognisable, but by changing select parameters to highlight remaining links to the original sound, while promoting further compositional freedom. Simplifying the number of source-links brings the remainders to the forefront, giving leeway for more artistically driven decisions.
8.3 Reduction
This simplicity gives space to focus on rhythms of a skateboard over concrete slabs (Tune of Crackle), or the pitch correlations between two electric razors (Divine Cut). Embedding them in a musical work, and creating the piece informed by them, invites the listener to analyse the sounds as such (musical elements) and sonic events. Using processing methods to dissect sounds, splitting tonal, noise and transient material of a single sound object enables these elements to be
190 Truax, B. (1996). Soundscape, acoustic communication and environmental sound composition.
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used separately, or expanded onto the spatial image, retaining all facets of a sound, while clearly individualising elements by where they emanate from. Once connections are established, sounds become more malleable and can be abstracted further without losing context.
8.4 Microphone colouration
Microphone transparency became a recurring theme throughout the portfolio. With pieces such as Noisy Library, Green State: Rehydrate and Divine Cut using microphone handling noise (and traces of wind noise in Tune of Crackle), as a means to create a connection between somewhat alien sounds and their recording device, links cause and effect in order to further clarify the source of audible sounds (and therefore context).
A number of specific microphones where chosen due to their particular associative characteristics (Tune of Crackle and Divine Cut). The spectral ‘colouration’ that these devices offer contributes to their associations through the use of mediatic space191. For example, the VX1000 camera, with its sonic characteristics and its impact on the history of skateboarding192, or the use of sensitive binaural microphones to ‘channel’ the online ASMR sound aesthetic, are critical to the character the works.
Alternate perspectives of recognisable sounds can be heard with the use of contact microphone recordings, specifically the wooden skate ramps for Tune of Crackle. Here the microphone colouration does not draw from mediated associations, but instead prompts material sounds, a perspective that we are more inclined to ‘feel’ through the board than to hear (in that form) during practice193. It can be equated to putting your ear to the ground, listening through the ramps.
8.5 Speaker colouration
At the end of the signal chain are the specificities of sound-reproduction systems considered as part of the composition. The most pronounced example is part of Resonant Spaces, with the Lean-to ceramic speakers. Here the particularities of the sound reproduction system (ceramic panel loudspeakers) are the basis of the composition: the Lean-to piece cannot be reproduced without the exact set of ceramic speaker panels it was composed for. In fact, the building process of the speakers was an integral part of the composition as they exist both as a piece of art in themselves, and through materiality become the link to place. Once the sounds are separated from the panels (as they are in Green State: Rehydrate performance version), a significant portion of source-bound partnership is lost.
A no less fundamental sound reproduction colouration was present in Noisy Library, where room acoustics were measured and re-created in studio for composition. This idea that the
191 Smalley, D. (2007). Space-form and the acousmatic image. 192 Jenkem Mag (2020)The History of Skateboarding’s Favorite Camera. (appendix 10.7). 193 *all recordings are in some way a warped representation to how we might hear something in ‘real-life’, a contact microphone perspective is easily differentiated.
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composition is not finished, or more so, does not exist without the acoustic colouration of a specific space is crucial to its location-specific nature.
8.6 Presentation mode
Loudspeakers are required for all the pieces in this portfolio, and while specific models are not compulsory for their reproduction (as long as they are directional and accurately represent the audible frequency range), the speaker arrangement and relative positions to the audience and space are. The way an audience is invited to interact with the work, and draw associations with the performance-space, whether it be seated, free-to-roam or free-to-interact is crucial to how ‘place’ is represented.
For Green State: Rehydrate, the original installation work was within a historic bottle kiln, itself a big factor in representing an environment (literally being in it). Encouraging visitors to both interact (adding dissolvables to the vessel) and roam the space. As for the Lean-to, physically touching the ceramic-speaker and feeling the sound vibrations through the material, had a direct impact on understanding the work. When devising a concert version, changes had to be made to retain these locative associations, through the use of performative approaches such as the ceramic vessel, changes in the sound material and expansion of the multichannel array194.
Divine Cut’s visual aesthetic and use of microphone-to-speaker movement translated its head-space onto the audience. The movement around the audience is no longer an abstracted motion of surround sound panning, but a direct result of a space in front of the listener magnified: as a hand moves towards one side of the mannequin, there is an anticipation of where the next scissor ‘snip’ will emerge from in the spatial image.
This works similarly when using spatial field-recordings: the recognition of a real sonic environment translates to predictable movements in space (e.g. skater from right to left behind listener: Tune of Crackle [6:58]). The use of such a reproduction format allows for further emphasis and deconstruction of these parameters, particularly explored in Après Moi la Pluie and its gradually shifting spatial image. (More on multimodality in appendix 10.1)
8.7 Space and Place
As this portfolio evolved, the works lent further towards representational spaces, drawing increasingly from experiential attributes. I found this to be a powerful tool in understanding and evoking place from a perspective that one might not personally have experiences with, most notably in Tune of Crackle. The sound and reverberation of Southbank, while recognisable as a specific place for those familiar, necessitate explicit annotation otherwise appearing as a generic urban skateboarding space (which is addressed in the form of the latter ‘street’ section in Tune of Crackle). To create a thematic distinction between these places, the audience must be made
194 See difference in composition: GreenState Rehydrate Installation Version [2ch stereo reduction] VS GreenState Rehydrate - Live at MANTIS_19.
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aware of Southbank as a place. Similarly, the bottle kiln, central to Green State: Rehydrate, is one of many built in a similar fashion. It is through the use of recordings and aspects specific to Middleport Pottery, such as the piece structure following the Burleigh factory process that it represents place.
Compositional elements focusing on human aspects of a space through a social ‘ear’, establishes the perspectives from which an environment is being presented. Portraying a space such as a hair-salon via the lens (or ‘space’) of an online subculture such as AMSR binaural videos in Divine Cut, super-imposes two simultaneous spaces while exploring their intersections with electroacoustic composition. In this case, the recordings did not have to drift far from these spaces into an electroacoustic realm, with already abundant crossovers to be explored.
It’s difficult to situate how much each work may enact a place, as specific place- characteristic sound sources require a degree of personal experience (either on-site or mediated). Setting context using site, visual or obvious aural signifiers from the beginning of the piece is one way to equalize the entry point, enabling sounds that may be lesser known but still recognisable once given context to come in later.
Figure 23 attempts to place the portfolio pieces along a space/place scale, the clockwise arrow signifying where each piece sits in relation to each other195, between representations of space and representational space. The distances to the edge/centre correlate to the space/place weighting.
Figure 23: place/space work weighting.
195 This is not scaled, as such Gōngàn does make use of representational space as well as representations of space, however in relation to the other pieces focuses the least on representational space and is therefore placed towards the left of the arc.
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8.8 Composition-bound
The majority of compositional decisions sit within frameworks set by an environment, from Noisy Library setting the pace of changes to happen within a visitors time in the space, the overarching structure of Green State: Rehydrate following the factory process, or smaller events such as the bee informed frequencies and spatial movements in Gōngàn. These decisions, and many others like it, while informed by location and set guidelines, do not (in my opinion) limit compositional freedom. They are often broken and stretched following purely artistic decisions. While ‘bound by location’, the pieces in this portfolio present field recordings altered and morphed for the sake of a musical idea, toying with the tolerance of source-bonding.
8.9 Continuation & future works
This portfolio is by no means exhaustive, being part of a broader compositional inquiry. There have been many ideas during the creation of this portfolio of works that were not feasible due to resources, available technology, or time that I wish to continue exploring. Something I am particularly interested in, is the use of visual stimuli and performance as an enabler for further abstractions of sounds. This is touched on in Divine Cut and the digital representation of Noisy Library (appendix 10.3.1). Having worked on a binaural play (Cheryl Martin’s: One Woman) I am keen to further explore other mediums that can incorporate spatial sound and environment recognition. A medium that I had started working on and testing was a 360° VR composition, which was halted due to lack of access to the necessary resources, but that I hope to come back to in future.
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9 Bibliography (APA 7th edition GB)
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Gerzon, M. (1974). What’s wrong with quadrophonics? Studio Sound, 1. http://www.audiosignal.co.uk/Resources/What_is_wrong_with_quadraphonics_A4.pdf Graystone Action Sports. (2020). Graystone Action Sports. Graystone Action Sports Manchester. https://graystoneactionsports.co.uk/ Hanson, K. (n.d.). Kenawa Films. Kenawa Films. https://kenawafilms.co.uk/ Haroshi. (n.d.). Haroshi. Haroshi. http://haroshi.com Hermann, T. (2008). Taxonomy and Definitions for Sonification and Auditory Display. In P. Susini & O. Warusfel (Eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Auditory Display (ICAD 2008) Paris, France: IRCAM. Hermann, T., Hunt, A., & Neuhoff, J. G. (2011). The Sonification Handbook. Logos Verlag. Hifana. (2010). Fatbros (feat. 啓 Art of Vibes) [Recorded by K. Fukuda & J. Miyata]. Fresh Push Breakin' [CD + DVD-V]. Tokyo: TOKYOLAB. (2010). Howe, R., & B.S.J. (2010). Sudden Ionispheric Disturbances (SIDs). American Association of Variable Star Observation. http://www.aavso.org/solar-sids Engineering ToolBox, (2004). Velocity of Sound in Solids and Metals. [online] Available at: https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/sound-speed-solids-d_713.html [Accessed Day Mo. Year]. ITU: Committed to connecting the world. (2020). International Telecommunication Union (ITU). https://www.itu.int/en/Pages/default.aspx iZotope. (2020). RX 7 Overview | The industry standard for audio repair. https://www.izotope.com/en/products/rx.html JENKEM - The History of Skateboarding’s Favorite Camera. (2020, September 21). [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvzwCPoXclQ Jivcoff, W., & Soblone, A. (2020, May 7). In the Square with Alexis Sablone. Medium Skate Mag. https://mediumskatemag.com/inthesquare/ Kafka, G. (2019, July 23). A Brutalist Landmark and Skateboarding Mecca in London Is Restored. Metropolis. https://www.metropolismag.com/architecture/southbank-centre-undercroft-renovation/ Keiles, J. L. (2019, April 5). How A.S.M.R. Became a Sensation. Https://Www.Nytimes.Com/#publisher. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/04/magazine/how-asmr- videos-became-a-sensation-youtube.html King, A. (2020, February 3). Upward slope: how skateboarding transformed the ‘Manchester of Finland’. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/apr/16/upward-slope-how- skateboarding-transformed-the-manchester-of-finland-tampere Kramer, G., Walker, B., Bonebright, T., Cook, P., Flowers, J., Minor, N., & Neuhoff, J. (1999). Sonification Report. Status of the Field and Research Agenda, 3. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/213802003_The_sonification_report_Status_of_the_field _and_research_agenda_Report_prepared_for_the_National_Science_Foundation_by_members_o f_the_International_Community_for_Auditory_Display Lefebvre, Henri, & Nicholson-Smith, D. (1992). The Production of Space (1st ed.). Wiley-Blackwell. pp.39 Lefebvre, Henri, Hess, R., Deulceux, S., & Weigand, G. (2009). Le droit à la ville (ANTHROPOLOGIE) (ECONOMICA ed.). ECONOMICA. Madgin, R., Webb, D., Ruiz, P., & Snelson, T. (2017). Resisting relocation and reconceptualising authenticity: the experiential and emotional values of the Southbank Undercroft, London, UK. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 24(6), 585–598. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527258.2017.1399283 Manual of Surface Weather Observations. (2013). Meteorological Service of Canada, 7, 2. https://globalcryospherewatch.org/bestpractices/docs/MANOBS_weather_2013.pdf Merrifield, A. (1993). Place and Space: A Lefebvrian Reconciliation. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 18(4), 516. https://doi.org/10.2307/622564 Miles, M. (1997). Art, Space and the City (1st ed.). Routledge. MIRBOD, S. M., INABA, R., YOSHIDA, H., NAGATA, C., KOMURA, Y., & IWATA, H. (1992). Noise Exposure Level While Operating Electronic Arcade Games as A Leisure Time Activity. INDUSTRIAL HEALTH, 30(2), 65–76. https://doi.org/10.2486/indhealth.30.65
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Mock, B. (2015, July 15). Why Philadelphia Is Commissioning Skateable Public Art. Bloomberg. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-15/philadelphia-is-commissioning-public-art-for- skateboarding Mould, M. (2011). The Routledge Dictionary of Cultural References in Modern French (1st ed.). Routledge. Nance, R. (2001). The Transatlantic Halfpipe [Recorded by R. Nance]. Single [digital]. NA: NA. (2001). nesta, Carey, H., Florisson, R., O Brien, D., & Lee, N. (2020, August). Getting in and getting on Class, participation and job quality in the UK Creative Industries (No. 01). Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre. https://www.pec.ac.uk/assets/publications/PEC-report-class-in-the-creative- industries-FINAL.pdf Norman, K. (2017). That passing glance, sounding paths between memory and familiarity. Routledge Companion to Sounding Art. Palace Skateboards. (n.d.). MWADLANDS | PALACE. https://www.palaceskateboards.com/mwadlands/ Permagnus, L. (2015). Sound perception and design in multimodal environments. 10.13140/RG.2.1.3849.6728. Polski Fryzjer Manchester. (n.d.). Polski Fryzjer Manchester. https://www.beautynailhairsalons.com/GB/Manchester/552346228174688/Polski-Fryzjer- Manchester Powell, B. (2018, July 15). Hull Venue - the UK’s first officially skate-friendly new development? Sidewalk Skateboarding. https://sidewalkmag.com/skateboard-news/hull-city-culture-hulls-first- skateboarding-friendly-site-opens.html PUI audio. (2018). Exciter White Paper. PUI audio inc. https://www.puiaudio.com/media/SpecSheet/Exciter_White_Paper.pdf Pushing Boarders. (2019). PushingBoarders. https://www.pushingboarders.com/ R. Climent. (2020) Duel of Strings: Lorenzo Triviño (non-virtual violin) vs. Ricardo Climent (virtual strings). [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/347878372?fbclid=IwAR00SvsRaGIn5Brz8Axtry4QMfevS4FLFGXh0ttvCkM3cJB D41flQkJn9A R. Mooney, J. (2005). Sound Diffusion Systems for the Live Performance of Electroacoustic Music (Ph.D.). The University of Sheffield. Re-Form Heritage. (2020). Middleport Pottery. Re-Form. https://re- form.org/middleportpottery/information Re-form Herritage. (2020). Information. Re-Form. https://re-form.org/ Richards, P., Kitching, B., Blayney, S., & Woodhead, L. (2014, September). SOUTHBANK UNDERCROFTCultural & Heritage Assessment Report. Long Live Southbank. http://www.llsb.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Southbank-Undercroft-Cultural-and-Heritage- Report-September-2014.pdf Roads, C. (2005). The art of articulation: The electroacoustic music of Horacio Vaggione. Contemporary Music Review, 24(4–5), 295–309. https://doi.org/10.1080/07494460500172121 Rollock, N. (2017). Race, self-interest and privilege amongst students at elite U.S. and U.K. universities. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 40(13), 2280–2284. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2017.1344272 Rumsey, F. (2001). Spatial Audio (Music Technology). Taylor & Francis Ltd. Rylands Our history (The University of Manchester Library). (n.d.). The University of Manchester. https://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/rylands/about/our-history/ Salem, S. (2015). Himlen Var [Recorded by S. Salem]. Single [digital]. Stockholm, EMS: Elektromusikstudion. (2015). Salem, S. (2020). Sam Salem. Sam Salem: Composer. https://www.osamahsalem.co.uk/ Sassoon Academy London. (2020). Sassoon Academy London. https://www.sassoon- academy.com/en/academy/uk Schafer, M. R. (1993). The Soundscape (Original ed.). Destiny Books. 69
Schwinghammer, S., & Zarka, R. (2015, August 29). Raphaël Zarka about skating sculptures. SOLO Skateboardmagazine. https://www.soloskatemag.com/raphael-zarka-about-skating- sculptures Scott, R. (2016). Back to the Future. eContact!, 17(4), 1. https://econtact.ca/17_4/scott_misunderstanding.html Sebald, W. G. (1866). The Emigrants. New Directions. Skateboarding. (2020). Tokyo 2020 Olympics. https://tokyo2020.org/en/sports/skateboarding/ Smalley, D. (2007). Space-form and the acousmatic image. Organised Sound, 12(1), 35–58. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1355771807001665 SMALLEY, D. E. N. I. S. (1997). Spectromorphology: explaining sound-shapes. Organised Sound, 2(2), 107–126. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1355771897009059 Standard Practice. (2020). Standard Practice. https://standardpractice.studio/ Tapper, D. (2015). VLF: A Sound Artist’s Guide, Second Edition. https://dantappersounddesign.com/vlf-a-sound-artists-guide-2/ Thrasher Magazine. (2020). Search: Rough Cut. https://www.thrashermagazine.com/search/rough%20cut/ Truax, B. (1996). Soundscape, acoustic communication and environmental sound composition. Contemporary Music Review, 15(1), 49–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/07494469600640351 Universal MK2 - Telinga Parabolic Microphones. (2020). Telinga. https://www.telinga.com/products/pro-series/kits/universal-mk2/ University of Amsterdam. (2016, May 26). Brain picks up the beat of music automatically. ScienceDaily. Retrieved August 26, 2020 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/05/160526125017.htm URBAN KUTZ LIMITED. (2015). Https://Www.Instagram.Com/Urbankutzmanchester/?Hl=en. https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/09777637/officers V. (2019, January 1). Business - Avenue - Vague. Vague Skate Mag. https://www.vaguemag.com/business-avenue/ Virtual Barber Shop (Audio...use headphones, close ur eyes). (2007, May 5). [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUDTlvagjJA Voegelin, S. (2010). Listening to Noise and Silence: Towards a Philosophy of Sound Art (1st ed.). Continuum. Weibel, P. (2019). Sound Art: Sound as a Medium of Art (The MIT Press). The MIT Press. Wishart, T., & Emmerson, S. (1996). On Sonic Art (Contemporary Music Studies). Routledge. Wooden Camera. (2019, March 1). VX Mic Interview with Ty Evans [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8yBBDyFOVY&feature=youtu.be Wooden Camera. (2020). Wooden Camera - VX Skateboard Microphone. https://woodencamera.com/pages/vxmic Zhang, F.-Z., Kato, T., Fuji, M., & Takahashi, M. (2006). Gelcasting fabrication of porous ceramics using a continuous process. Journal of the European Ceramic Society, 26(4–5), 667–671. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2005.07.021
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10 Appendices
10.1 Multimodal relevance
Research into representing place only made it the more apparent how much the presentation affects the desired outcome. A first step is audio quality, particularly better spatial localisation with higher audio quality196. With spatial audio as a core part of the work all of the pieces are at 48khz 24bit uncompressed audio or higher, format ‘reductions’ do not compromise on audio quality. Secondly, is finding the most suitable medium when creating alternative formats of presentation, for concert halls, installation, online etc.... The purpose of these multimodal representations is to come as close to the originally desired outcomes in each presentation setting. ‘Format1’ (Table 6) is always the format in which the specific piece was initially created.
Key:
RD = Reduced format, this is considered a ‘lesser’ experience and not the full piece. OL = Online, format for online consumption, compatible with stereo/headphone listening. CON = Concert, format for live concert performance. INS = Installation, format for site-specific installation. Table 6 - Multimodal breakdown
Piece Format1 Format 2 Format 3
Gongan 8ch [CON] Stereo [OL, RD]
AMLP 1st order ambisonics [CON] Binaural [OL]
Noisy Library 7.1ch [INS] 360° AV [OL] Binaural [OL, RD]
Divine Cut Video [OL] 6ch [CON] Binaural [RD]
Tune of Crackle 3rd order ambisonics [CON] Binaural [OL]
Green State: Rehydrate 5.1ch [INS] 13.1ch [CON] Video [OL]
The versions do not always equate to alternative renders/decodes in another format (even if so, they go through another process of mixing & mastering) but also include variations in the material. This may come in form of a re-work of installation material for concert (Green State: Rehydrate – appendix 10.8), simply due to the nature of live performance changing over-time (Divine Cut, Green State: Rehydrate), or change to an online environment such as the 360° AV representation for Noisy Library (appendix 10.3.1).
196 Permagnus, L. (2015). Sound perception and design in multimodal environments.
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10.2 Gōngàn spatialization techniques.
This following appendix section looks at the use of spatialisation in Gōngàn correlating technical aspects to desired outcomes. Most of these techniques are utilised throughout the piece with different source sounds and transformations, only the first or most prominent use of each technique is used as an example.
A number of diagrams are used (Figures 24 to 29) to outline the positioning of recorded material onto the eight channel ring. Individual recordings are matched onto multiple speakers using differing shades of grey (ie. Figure 26: recording one: quadrophonic onto channels 3,1,2,4. recording two: quadrophonic recording on channels 5,7,8,6).
Something that came to light during this composition is the volume balance over a set of eight loudspeakers. During louder sections that emit from a frontal perspective, this would quickly overdrive the front pair (1 and 2). To counteract this while keeping said perspective, some passages containing lower frequencies in channels 1 and 2 benefited from spreading over the other channels. Most of the sound energy is derived from lower frequencies, and psychoacoustically its directionality is obscured; therefore the desired perspective was maintained while spreading the energy. In my experiences with various diffusion systems197, the 8-channel rings tended to use a smaller set of speakers than the main stereo or quadraphonic setup. As such, during performance, channels 1 and 2 would also occasionally be sent to the main stereo system for added impact, and reduced on 1 and 2 of the 8-channel ring so as not to overload the loudspeakers.
197 Gōngàn live diffusion performances: MANTIS (University of Manchester), HERO (Hull University), Capstone Theatre (Liverpool Hope)
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10.2.1 Gōngàn section A
Figure 24: Gradually processed stereo pairs.
With the original Buddhist chant recordings in stereo, the spatialisation lies in the duplication of the recording onto four pairs of loudspeakers, with a gradually increasing mix of sound transformations from front pair 0% wet to rear pair at 100% (Figure 24). This in turn keeps the recorded stereo image while adding depth and further surrounding the audience.
The large bonshō was recorded from within the bell, using a set of contact microphones in addition to the built-in stereo microphones of a portable recorder198. The combination of contact microphones and condensers allowed for a separation of these four channels across the eight loudspeakers.
Figure 25: Quadrophonic diamond from stereo recordings.
198Tascam Dr-100 MKII portable recorder
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Using this quadraphonic bonshō recording, the condenser recording is placed on the front two channels (1 and 2) and contact microphone recordings spread around the listener (3,4,5,6,7,8) focusing on sub-harmonics and low-frequency content, thus enabling a greater sonic impact around the audience while keeping clarity in front (a recurring theme in this piece).
The field recordings around the temple [0:33] co-indices with a transition of spatialisation processes: four stereo field recordings temporally overlap, captured approximately five meters diagonally out of the four corners of the main temple. Specific sections of longer recordings are chosen for their inter-compatibility, and mapped over the 8-channel ring (Figure 25). With the recordings originating from the same microphone and settings, and similar time of day, convincing sonic interactions occur between the different adjacent pairs, forming a deceptive spatial image, unaffected by the temple’s inner-room reflections. The result is an exaggerated, dense sonic environment spread around the listener unveiling a multitude of animals and insects. The use of four separate ‘groups’, each with their own spatial quadrant (Figure 25), it spatially matched by the chime-bells recorded with a quad microphone rig [1:20].
Figure 26: Four-channel mirror.
Further expanding on the spatialisation technique used for the first bonshō [0:12], a quadraphonic variation is made using the studio zither recordings. The microphones were placed above the zither in the same trapezoid shape as loudspeakers one to four (Figure 26), spreading instrument around the front of the listener. To add impact to the zither hit [1:37] the recording is mirrored across to the rear four channels (Figure 26) and pitched down an octave. This takes advantage of psychoacoustic properties with better clarity to sounds in the front, and the lower octave adding ‘weight’ to the gesture and engulfs the listener in sound. By separating the -1 octave
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audio onto a different set of speakers this also alleviates any potential phasing issues within the audio file itself199 and spreads out the SPL200 over more loudspeakers for smaller systems.
The final notable spatialisation method in section 1 consists of an off-centre double quadraphonic diamond (Figure 27). This is used for certain iterations of the chime-bells [2:26 onwards] by overlaying two quadraphonic recordings off-axis from each other. While the spatial image does not have the original resolution of an 8-channel recording, this configuration allows for full planar movement of two simultaneous interlocked recordings, filling spatial gaps that might be noticeable with quadrophonic recordings.
The chime bells were recorded with four microphones placed 20 c m apart in a square array. Once applied onto one of the quadraphonic planes (Figure 27), this greatly emphasized the recorded microphone-space201 stretched onto the radius of a given loudspeaker setup.
Figure 27: Double quadrophonic off-axis arrangement.
199 Phase issues within the space are always possible, this does not remove them entirely. 200 SPL: Sound Pressure Level 201 Smalley, D. (2007). Space-form and the acousmatic image.
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10.2.2 Gōngàn section B
Figure 28: Three channel parabola setup.
For section B a 3-channel setup was put together using one AT4051a202 and two DPA4060 microphones in a Telinga 22-inch parabolic dish to record the bees. With the parabola is used as a means of sound isolation as opposed to its designed purpose of capturing distant sounds203, the dish was placed directly around the source against the ground, in attempt to reject external sounds. In turn, this accentuated the rural hi-fi environment, further exaggerating the already wide signal to noise ratio. The AT4051a was placed facing outwards in the centre of the dish (as the source was too close to the microphone for the use of dish-reflections to be an effective technique) with the DPA4060s on the left and right about 5cm from the edges, held in place with string (Figure 28). This setup resulted in 3-channel L, C, R recordings with the L and R pair-matched.
202 Audio Technica AT4051a microphone. 203 Universal MK2 - Telinga Parabolic Microphones.
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10.2.3 Gōngàn section C
Figure 29: Four channel tram recording to speaker arrangement.
Four channel recording techniques were used [5:57] to capture front to back movement of a Metrolink204 tram. Using two separate overlapped recordings (Figure 29), due to not having eight matched microphones available and the inability to run audio cabling across the tram tracks safely. Since both of the recordings are of the same model and size of tram travelling at the same (or very similar) speed, they matched relatively seamlessly to create a full 8-channel spatial image once played back at the same time.
10.2.4 Gōngàn section D
For the most part the field recordings in section D are made using a potable Tascam DR- 100MKII linear PCM recorders built in X/Y stereo capsules. Other sound sources are recorded in mono directly into a line-input and transformed/specialised. Spatialisation is done through granular and filter-based techniques used to spread the mono and stereo recording across eight channels as individual point-source mappings.
204Metrolink : Manchester UK, tram system.
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10.3 Noisy Library additional information
10.3.1 Noisy Library Virtual representation205
The 360° video with ambisonic head-tracking audio (available on YouTube206 or using an appropriate 360° video player) was made as a virtual representation of Noisy Library. Using a point cloud LIDAR207 scan to capture the visual element of the space, this mirrored the auditory ‘transparent’ unseen veins aesthetic. Similarly to the use of alternative microphones, it is a viewpoint that is not available to the naked eye. The scan was down sampled using CloudCompare208 and rendered as an 8k 360° image in blender2.80 using the Point Cloud Visualiser (2.80) add-on209. The 8k 1hour long 360° video with first order abisonic (ambix) audio is metadata injected and will play back appropriately on players supporting 360° AV.
Visitor movement is the aspect of the composition that least translates into the digital representation. To simulate this crucial part of the composition, the 360° video is embedded with ambisonic audio, altering the binaural perspective depending on the listener's direction. One drawback, however, is that the change in perspective only happens in orientation on a fixed point, and does not allow for movement within the virtual reading room itself. With such clarity issues arise such as the voice at 44:00: this was intentionally much harder to understand within the reading room, with words chopped between different speakers. When decoded to binaural, it becomes much easier to understand the overall narration and was not the original intention.
The original 7.1ch composition is encoded to first order ambisonic and superimposed onto a recording done with the Soundfield in the reading room during the installation.
Figure 30: John Rylands reading room LIDAR scan render.
205 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/NoisyLibrary/NoisyLibrary_digital [360video with 1st order ambisonic ambix audio 206 Noisy Librry 360° video. WEB: https://youtu.be/10N3SeHnbkQ 207 Scans made by Ken Bagshaw of Reality Capture on a FARO focus 3D laser scanner. 208 CloudCompare (GPL / Open Source) is a 3D point cloud processing software. 209 Rendered using FARO LIDAR scanner, ReCap-pro, Cloud Compare, Blender, Touch Designer, Unreal Engine & Premiere Pro.
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10.3.2 Noisy Library Visitor Engagement
Visitor engagement: (analysis compiled by the John Rylands staff):
• Visitors to the Library the week that Noisy Library was on: 9,122
• There was excellent feedback on the installations with a good mix of visitors coming to hear the pieces as it was part of MSF and those who were not aware of the festival but enjoyed the installations during their visit.
• Well received by staff at the Library, they enjoyed the atmosphere the installations created and were engaged with the idea of engaging visitors with NOVARS work.
• The work has been highlighted as an excellent example of public engagement and has proved fruitful in JRL piloting new ways to engage visitors with research.
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10.4 Divine Cut – Performance Material
10.4.1 Divine Cut Performance Instructions
General Info
Outfit:
Performer should wear plain all black smart clothes. With short sleeves or rolled up to elbows.
Tool handling:
As part of the performance, some (little) techniques are required in how to hold & manipulate the tools, please view the following instruction links.
Scissors: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PorWyYg3Xs
Scissor& comb: https://www.londonschoolofbarbering.com/scissor-comb/
Body positioning: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXqEimWfKcY
Movements:
Accentuate movements for dynamic range, keep in mind that each instrument/sound used has a different volume. Control volume with distance from ears. Try to keep a calm demeanour for the first 3 minutes be- fore gradually getting more into the performative aspect.
Reveal:
The mannequin head must be set-up prior to performance (during soundcheck) and left in position covered by the gown. When the gown is removed in the beginning of the performance it must be the first time the audience sees the mannequin head.
Lighting:
Single spotlight, from above or below, shining onto the mannequin's face (and not the performer), the de- sired effect is that only the mannequin and performer’s hands will be lit up. The spotlight should be on be- fore the performer walks on stage. This should be the only light on stage. By then end of the performance, the performer exits stage, and the spotlight is turned.
If available: a UV light on the floor to illuminate the fallen white hair once the lights are all turned off.
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10.4.2 Divine Cut Score
The live score is a mixture of an audio score210 (with click) and sonic items described and numbered below. In the aural score, the performer will hear the name of the item (i.e. “1, start) followed by a 4 click count in if the section needs to be in sync with a specific sound on the fixed part. There are freer passages (labelled: ∢ ) where the performer is given a global instruction (i.e. cut hair / comb hair). This leniency is so that the performer may focus on a believable performance aspect making the haircut look more natural and less constricted. The performer is expected to have studied the video prior to playing the piece, the score is only to be used as a guidance while learning the piece, it should not be visible on stage.
If there is time between sections: comb or prepare hair for next section (in a non-intrusive way).
0 (prep)
• Before the performance place the mannequin head centre stage with the microphones plugged in. • Channels: DPA L = 1 (+48v), DPA R = 2 (+48v), Emag L = 3. Emag R = 4. • Place new wig on mannequin, tie hair un bunch using hair clip. • Place gown over mannequin.
1 (Start)
• Remove gown from over mannequin head & shake it out in front of the it. • Clip it around mannequin's neck by removing hair clip. Brush it to make sure it's all even & down. • Start cutting straight along the neck-line, using comb and scissor #1, moving from side to side. ∢
2 (Spray)
• Start getting the spray ready and shake bottle for water sound. • After count in: Spray following pattern, on top of head facing audience (do not wet microphones).
3 (razor)
• Start with razor B (red) at ~1m from head as to gradually come in. Use comb to limit hair and cut hair naturally. • After approx. 35seconds, place razor firmly down on head for main resonant tone. • Stop razor after second countdown (Move away from head/microphone as motor takes a few seconds to fully stop).
4 (scissor beat)
• Take scissor #2 and start freely cutting ∢ • Follow rhythm in the audio-score once it enters. • The ‘blip' signals last rhythmic iteration, • Finish with the last sound at [4:04].
210 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/DivineCut/DivineCut – tape & click [4ch audio].wav
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5 (e-mag razor)
• Bring in razor #A first on cue, and razor #B nine seconds later (with blip on click track). • Use L-R movement to weave the two razors in and out & add vibrato/pitch wobble. ∢ • Turn both off simultaneously on cue (with tape track).
6: (Ear comb)
• Place the plastic combs around the ears embedded into the hair, using the thumbs rake across each comb 'prong'. ∢
7: (head beat)
• Follow the rhythm in the tape track, playing it with the two combs on queue.
8: (mousse)
• Release a blob of mousse in your hand (point downwards while using cannister). • Place two blobs of mousse over each ear. This must be done before [5:30]. • After the gap in the part, remove the mousse using a comb.
9: (Head Tap)
• Start massaging the mannequin head. ∢ • Following the tape part, start playing rolls on different parts of the head using flat finger tips. ∢ • Study the tape part in order to improvise along side it, try to follow sonic gestures. ∢
10: (Head Tap Nail)
• Continue #9 using nails on the mannequin forehead. ∢
11: (Hair removal)
• Unstrap the wig. • Remove wig with count in (support the head/stand when doing this).
12: (scissor ear)
• Scrape the scissors over each ear (ear helix). ∢ • Use scissor A – right ear, scissor B – left ear. • Try to match tone of bass clarinet / water-horn.
13: (scissor teeth scrape)
• Place scissor B on top of the mannequin head. • Scrape scissor B with Scissor A along the edge. • Follow count in for snip cue.
14: (scissor wheel)
• Take both scissors and hold them at ~30cm from the L & R sides. • Slowly spin the scissor tension wheels. ∢ • Build up with fixed track & gradually get closer to mics. ∢ • End on count in.
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15: (drape removal)
• Remove gown and place it on head. • On count in start massaging the head through the drape. ∢ • Massage head through drape & run fingers down sides further down from ears following fade-out. ∢
16 : (EXIT)
• Exit Stage. • Turn on UV light. • Spotlight off.
Video and more info at: https://gdujat.com/#/divine-cut/
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10.4.3 Divine Cut Tech Rider
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10.5 Divine Cut Instrumentation
10.5.1 Fixed
I played a series of field-recordings from hairdressers (scissor cuts, razor tones, hairdryer etc.) for a cellist, bass clarinet and Gubal (pan art) players to take inspiration from, imitating the sounds/rhythmic patterns using extended techniques and attempting to match the sound morphologies of the recordings as best as possible. The chosen instrumentalists have a history of improvisation and experimental music playing, having a strong grasp of this kind of musical approach.
Bass Clarinet (Michael Perrett)
I wanted to get some low tonal material approximating hairdryer sounds, while splitting the sonic focus of the instrument on the bell and the player's breath, two very distinctly different sounds that work in unison, while introducing another layer of ASMR/microphone-space with closely recorded mouth sounds. The water-horn, sometimes called bubbling bell (filling the bass clarinet bell with water), was used for the hair wash-like splashing sounds [ca. 7:34]. These recordings were pitched to work with the scissor scrape on the ears matching the mannequin head’s resonance. The bass clarinet was recorded with a set of five microphones: left and right (AKGC414), top & bottom (Schoeps CMC-64), and DPA4060 (mouthpiece).
Cello (Ecka Mordecai)
Recordings of a cello imitating the razor tones [ca. 2:35] and hair brushing using soft/un- taut bows for ‘airy’ scraping sounds. Some more general cello drones and harmonics were also recorded for later processing. The cello was recorded using a set of six microphones: over shoulder (Schoeps CMC-64), bridge close (Schoeps CMC-64), bridge medium (AKG414), room (AKG414), body left and right (DPA4060).
Hang Gubal (Tariq Eman)
The mannequin’s head resonance had very tuneful qualities reminiscent of some tuned percussion such as hang and steel pan drums. The gubal is an instrument specifically created as a rhythm-based low frequency instrument, timbrally fitting with the performative soundscape (tapping on the head, ca.6:35) while filling in the lower spectral space. The gubal was recorded using a set of five microphones: left and right (AKG C414), front and back (DPA4060), and top bass port (RODE M3).
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Hordijk modular synth (Guillaume Dujat)
The synth was used to create a lot of the background textures and strident sounds imitating electronic equipment and the electromagnetic microphones. The expert sleepers211 OSC to CV module was used, feeding the synth rhythmic patterns taken from haircut recordings [8:35].
Snare-drum (Guillaume Dujat)
The main fundamental Hz of the hairdryer recording [2:20] was analysed and played back through a sine wave generator into a snare drum using a transducer (contact speaker). The snare was prepared with added objects (metal foil, nails etc.) spread around the surface [ca. 2:27]. The recording was done with four DPA4060 microphones: snare front, back, left and right. This somewhat unusual approach to recording a snare (usually top & bottom), captured the movement of objects as they moved across the snare skin due to the transducer vibrations.
10.5.2 Live Instrumentation
Utensils and instruments were chosen after experimentation with a variety of tools. All of these tools used are standard hairdressing equipment one would expect to find in a hair-salon or barber-shop.
Binaural Dummy Head
The mannequin head is the central ‘live instrument’ of this piece, which is acted upon with a variety of tools during performance. Three mannequin heads were tested before finding the one with adequate physical, sonic and visual properties. Physically, the dummy head had to be hollow, enabling holes to be drilled into the ears for microphone access, it also needed to be sturdy and stand-mountable for performance, robust for transport and able to don a replaceable wig212. Sonically, I was searching for a dummy head that would allow for a range of results depending on how it was played while having defined pitch, allowing for the fixed tonal material to work around it. Visually, it needed to be striking to be effective with theatrical lighting. The androgyny of the mannequin aided in distancing this piece from the gender politics and often sexualised nature of ASMR213. The synthetic fibre wig214 is 23 inches long, straight and bright white, the inclusion of a chin strap enables it to stay sturdy on the mannequin head, and has also been incorporated into the performance [7:18].
211Expert Sleepers eurorack module: ADAT(digital) to CV convertor 212Most entry point hairdresser practice heads have the hair stitched into the dummy’s scalp, needing to replace the dummy after use. 213 Bower, J. R. (2019). Intimate Encounters Within the Ear: Microphone-touching and the Gender Politics of ASMR. Glissando Issue 37. 214S-noilite® White Wig Fancy Dress Long Layered Wig Full Head Cosplay Wigs [ 23"-Straight / White ]
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The final mannequin head is a blue fiberglass hat mannequin with an approximate resonance of F#3 (ca. 180Hz) when struck. Depending on how and where the mannequin head is struck, and weather the wig is present to dampen resonance, the pitch-effluvium continuum215 shifts from noise to note. This is utilized as part of the narrative of the piece, turning an abstracted haircut into a musical instrument as the piece progresses (this is present in both the tape and live parts).
Scissors A (hairdressing shears)
Using standard hairdressing shears, the sonic pallet consists of the scissor ‘snip’ [0:40], scraping [8:00] and the ‘clicks’ [0:34, 8:54] from the adjustable tension knob. The profiled width of the blades enabled a change in pitch as different parts of the blade are used, lower pitched near the screw and higher towards the tip. Visually the ‘finger rest’ and silver colour are particularly recognisable as professional hairdressing utensils.
Scissors B (thinning scissors / texturizing shears)
Scissors B are a set of toothed shears that are made to cut only half of the hair in its path. The shears are only ‘toothed’ on the thumb blade which allows for two distinctly different scraping sounds [8:15], one continuous (finger blade - standard) and the other pulsed (thumb blade - toothed). As the teeth get shorter toward the tip of the blade, the pitch rises, allowing for descending or rising pulses. These shears result in a duller and dampened ‘snip’ sound as there is less contact between the blades and less hair is being cut. This set of shears also contains an adjustable tension knob [8:54].
Water Spray (micro diffusion water spray bottle)
This standard micro diffusion water spray bottle has two main sounds, the shaking of the bottle prior to spraying and the spray itself. The nozzle is set to create a wide cloud of water droplets instead of a jet of water for two purposes. Firstly, due to the added resistance of the setting when spaying the nozzle, it has a louder sonic outcome (this can be ‘tuned’ on different nozzles). Secondly, with the spotlight on the mannequin this creates a large cloud of illuminated water droplets when sprayed. This performance aspect is not as pronounced in the original video [1:24], but has evolved since during live performances216.
215 Emmerson, S. (1986). The Language Electroacoustic Music. Palgrave Macmillan. 216 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/DivineCut/Divine Cut – live at Sound Thought 2018.mp4 -
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Electric Razor A (nose hair trimmer)
This trimmer has the advantage of having a very easily affected motor speed depending on the angle it’s held. When shaking electric razor A the rpm (revolutions per minute) are affected by the movement and in turn creating a vibrato effect [4:28].
Electric Razor B (clipper shaver)
Main electric razor (red) has all the functions from Razor A at a lower base pitch with some additions. The larger blade footprint and motor enable the transfer of vibrations directly into the mannequin head, resulting in a lower pitch drone on contact [2:39]. Applying pressure in this full- contact position [2:39] puts stress on the motor slowing it down and lowering the pitch. Using Razor B against a comb (a common hairdressing technique) opens up different sonic and performative possibilities as a combination of both sounds [2:03]. If this razor is not fully charged it quickly runs slower and therefore at a lower pitch. For consistency it needed to be fully charged before every performance.
Comb x2 (Comb A- dual tooth / Comb B - thin tooth)
The two combs used have similar basic functions but differences in sounds due to material hardness and teeth separation distance. Comb A, a dual tooth comb, consists of two different sets of tooth distance separation on each half. The harder material and greater rigidity of comb A’s teeth, make for louder and a more defined pitch centre when ‘pinged’ or scraped. Comb B has a single tooth separation distance (not too dissimilar from the larger side of comb A) and a duller sound due to the softer plastic. When combing the hair, wider teeth separations are beneficial as to not get caught on knots during performance.
Hair mousse (mousse extra firm hold in pressurized canister)
The hair mousse, when amplified, creates, not unlike its physical form, a micro-sound cloud of thousands of crackling bubbles [5:38]. This is preceded by two other sonic events, the shaking of the pressurized bottle [5:03] and the sprayed application of it [5:12].
Gown (hairdressing gown / cape / drape)
The gown was initially selected on a purely performative basis, covering the mannequin head at both extremities of the piece, and the stand during. In turn, sonic exploration of the synthetic cloth led to it becoming an integral part of the sound world both as the first gesture [0:11] and final section [9:35]. Similarly to the water spray these gestures became more theatrical after a few performances.
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10.6 Tune of Crackle - Interviews
A series of interviews were made both on-location and in the studio. Interviewees were selected from a range of backgrounds and because of their further contributions within the skateboarding scene. All are skateboarders and see themselves as such.
Stuart Maclure: Project manager - Long Live Southbank. Author of: ‘An Exploration Into the Skateboard Community’s Relevance to Public Space Governance in London'.
Dani Abulhawa: Artist-researcher and Senior Lecturer in performance at Sheffield Hallam University. Organiser for the ‘pushing borders’ conference and author of Skateboarding and Femininity - Gender, Space-making and Expressive Movement217
Iain Borden: Architectural historian and urban commentator. Vice-Dean of Education and Professor of Architecture and Urban Culture at The Bartlett, University College London. Author of: Skateboarding, Space and the City: Architecture and the Body and Skateboarding and the City.
Matt Nelms: Creative Associate - Long Live Southbank.
Henry Edwards-Wood: Freelance Director / DOP / Cameraman / Editor based in South London. Long-time contributor to the UK skateboarding scene.
Cath Shanks: Skater, Coach, Competitor.
Alexander Lamb: Founder of Avenue Skateboards, a UK based Independent Skateboard company.
Brandon Slezak: Southbank regular.
Henry Mcquaid: Southbank regular.
217 Abulhawa, D. (2020). Skateboarding and Femininity: Gender, Space-making and Expressive Movement.
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10.7 VX1000 (Tune of Crackle)
The Sony VX1000 DV tape camcorder released in 1995 has had a large impact on the filming and recording of skateboarding. While the VX1000 has largely been replaced by HD cameras at this point218 the VX still influences the sound of videos filmed on newer cameras to this day. As a result of this, cinematographer Ty Evans219 has teamed up with Wooden Camera220 to create a remake of the VX1000 microphone compatible with his modern cameras (RED), while others such as Gustav Tønnesen221, Ryan Garshell and Brian Panebianco, still use the original VX cameras due to a mixture of nostalgia, look, and sound222. In a product interview with Wooden Camera223, Evans states that after his move to full-HD cameras, most videos he produced over a period of 10 years (before the VX wooden mic remake) used audio from his VX1000 archives overdubbed. The unique microphone of the VX was not the only sonic aspect that the camera changed, due to the pairing of the VX1000 with a ‘death lense’ ultrawide fisheye224, this led the camera (and as such the microphone) to be very close to the subject filmed, arguably shaping this ‘aggressive’ sound associated with it. According to Jenkem-mag, a large part of why is was never replaced by its successors, the Sony VX2000 or VX2100, which have similar features is the is the microphone quality225.
This ‘in your face’ nature of the VX1000 microphone can be examined using two spectrograph comparisons. Figure 31 and 32 display the same recording using a VX1000 microphone next to a popular current filming microphone, the Rode NTG-5 (also used extensively in Tune of Crackle). A few aspects are immediately apparent in the VX1000: the dip in high frequencies above 16.3khz cutting background noise but still allowing the ‘impact’ transients through, the compressed dynamic range below 16.3khz bringing the sound between ‘impact transients’ forward, this reduction in dynamic range also boosts the low end (sub ~700hz) in between tricks, and the two constant tones at 15.7khz and 16.3khz often associated with older audio visual equipment. Some of these high frequency tones have been used within the piece alongside VX1000, making it’s qualities and compression apparent.
218 There are still avid users of the VX1000 who produce professional videos, but the majority are now using full HD. 219 Ty Evans: Founder of Ghost Digital Cinema, part of the RED Collective, Cinematographer. 220 Wooden Camera. (2020). Wooden Camera - VX Skateboard Microphone remake. 221 Gustav Tønnesen: Filmer, Cinematographer, Skater (Sour Skateboards, Adidas). 222 Busenitz, D. (2019, December 20). Gustav Tønnesen Interview. Thrasher Magazine.] 223 Wooden Camera. (2019, March 1). VX Mic Interview with Ty Evans. 224 Fisheyes had been used prior to the VX1000, notably for the ‘Shackle Me Not’ (1988) video. 225 Dobija-Nootens, N. (2018, July 14). TRACING THE HISTORY OF SKATEBOARDING’S MOST FAMOUS CAMERA.
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Figure 31: VX1000 camera microphone spectrogram.
Figure 32: Rode NTG-5 microphone spectrogram.
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10.8 Green State : Rehydrate - Performance226 [13.1 channel]
Figure 33: Green State : Rehydrate soundcheck at MANTIS19 [photo by: Alexander Maschke].
The performance rendition of Green State : Rehydrate adds live clay re-hydration and sound generation/processing using a VCVrack patch controlled with a game-pad (see video). The vessel is a spare made by Hartley (unused in the installation) of the three that were initially fired (the third collapsed while drying and is now my plant-pot). The more open top allows for easier access when performing and a better viewing angle for the audience.
The dissolvables are larger than ones used in the bottle kiln and of stretched shapes and sizes for more immediate and long-lasting sounds. Two hydrophones are used instead of the one during installation for a stereo spatial image. The piece is performed to a tape/fixed track with live implementation over the top.
226 folder/PortfolioPieces/ResonatingSpaces/GreenStareRehydrate-Performance/GreenState:Rehydrate – Live at MANTIS_19 [video].mp4
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10.9 Ceramic Loudspeaker slabs - Lean-To227
"Within this quiet corner of Middleport factory, we encounter a new composition of immersive sound. This is a space for discovering the natural resonance and harmonics of clay. The lean-to was historically the point on site where the raw pottery materials were lifted from the canal boat into the factory. When transportation moved from canal to road, this once buzzing area became somewhat dormant. Decades on, the quiet presence and traces of the former factory processes remain. The machinery, marks of production and material residue, now revealed, have provided space for new production. A series of clay slabs are arrayed within the space. Each slab has a specific series of natural frequencies, which are defined by the clay body, the surface treatment and firing. The sound composition is shaped entirely by the resonant tones of each clay slab, emitted by sending vibrations through the material." - BCB Resonating Spaces
10.9.1 Approach
Figure 34: Initial design of ceramic loudspeakers proposed to the group.
When first approaching clay and sound, I was keen to delve into the materiality and natural resonance of ceramics. Having seen artists228 use ceramic bowls and solenoids/mallets/hands to play them, I wanted to explore a different approach that would allow me to use my strengths as an electroacoustic composer using multi-channel audio that I have developed during this portfolio. Hence the decision to build ceramic loudspeakers, drawing from concepts pioneered in Bayle’s acousmonium229, where each loudspeaker has defining characteristics, working with them as a unique ensemble. As opposed to making traditional loudspeakers out of ceramics, I wanted to
227 Folder/PortfolioPieces/ResonatingSpaces/installationWorks/Kewana Films - LeanTo 228 Ceramic bowls: Josh Horsley (Ekhe), Tomoko Sauvage 229 Acousmonium: Loudspeaker Orchestra designed and inaugurate by Francois Bayle 1974. inaGRM.
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embed as much of the material characteristics and resonances into each loudspeaker as possible, something that exciters/transducers would allow. Initial plans (Figure 34) were proposed to discuss feasibility and time scales.
Felcey, had recently completed a residency in Sweden230 exploring large ceramic slab forms, much like the ones I proposed. I Initially worked with a smaller more manageable piece of Felcey's work (which ended up in the final 8 - small red) and my IKEA231 plates, as a proof of concept in terms of resonant tones and sound projection levels. Initial tests232, seem to indicate that differences in harmonic content were variable depending on size, clay body, firing temperature and glaze.
The slabs used in the final arrangement were obtained from three sources, all using different production methods:233 Felcey's aforementioned residency works234 designed by Hartley; made collaboratively235 and an industrial Kiln Shelf236 from a local Stokian retailer.
10.9.2 Speaker build
"An exciter’s frequency response and sensitivity are completely dependent on the exciter’s designated surface. Thicker, larger materials (with multiple exciters) will be slightly quieter but result in a more full-range sound. Thinner, smaller materials will tend to be louder and create a mid/tweeter response." - Dayton audio exciter manual
After careful consideration, two different Dayton237 transducers/exciters were tested, and I opted for the DAEX32QMB-4 due to their higher wattage238 and extra surface area for attachment to the slabs. Two DAEX32QMB-4 units are daisy-chained per slab for higher SPL239 and continuous/nominal power240 headroom as they would be running for long periods of time. The main factors taken into account when placing the exciters are: 1. determining the most naturally resonant points on each slab via a set of impulse/responses, and 2. following the 1/5th exciter placement rule,241 placing them at uneven distances from one another to avoid comb filtering. All
230 Helen Felcey slab forms: Artist-in-Residence Program, European Ceramic Work Centre (EKWC) 2018 231 IKEA plate: VARDAGEN 232 Folder/portfolio_pieces/ResonatingSpaces/InstallationWorks/CeramicPanel – Attic Tests.mp4 233 Felcey: pressed slabs, Hartley: moulded slabs, Kiln Shelf: dry press slabs. 234 Felcey slabs: #1-Green ,#2-Pink, #5-Black/Red, #6-Black, #8-SmallRed 235 Hartley's slabs: #3-Wavy1 & #7-Wavy2 - process of creation followed in the 'Resonance' film [Kenawa Films] 236 Industrial Kiln Shelf: #4-KilnShelf 237 Dayton. (2020). Home. Dayton Audio. https://www.daytonaudio.com/ 238 Dayton Audio DAEX32QMB-4 Quad Feet Mega Bass 32mm Exciter 40W 4 Ohm 239 SPL: Sound Pressure Level 240 Continuous/nominal power: Power a speaker can withstand for continuous duration. 241 PUI audio. (2018). Exciter White Paper. PUI audio inc.
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eight slabs are driven by two Fame QUAD-415059 amplifiers, with audio fed from the Tsunami Super-WAV trigger's242 eight analogue outputs (Figure 35). The Tsunami Super-WAV trigger is set to start all eight channels in sync when powered on, looping the piece when the end is reached. A 're-start' switch was added for set-up and testing.
Figure 35: Ceramic slab tech routing & order.
10.9.3 Resonant Frequencies
Manual sine wave sweeps from 50Hz - 17kHz243 were used to determine the set of resonant frequencies for each ceramic slab. Each resonant frequency increases in amplitude greatly when excited and is easily audible – a microphone and spectrogram was used for confirmation. Initially, all resonant frequencies, however small, were listed, but as testing went on and the quieter resonances did not seem as compositionally attractive, later slabs only had the main louder set of tones recorded (Table 7). Phasing and amplitude modulation happened when sweeping back and forth in small increments over the resonant frequencies, as the resonant tone lingers on over the new frequency; this feature was taken advantage of during the composition period. Once all resonant frequencies were listed, a 'test-sequence' was devised, to ensure that each speaker-slab was working properly at the start of the composition session. This test sequence ended up as the start of Lean-To.
242 Tsunami SUPER WAV trigger: 8channel playback device for 44.1/16 wav by Robertsonics/SparkFun 243 50hz-17hz: Sweeps did not span 20hz-20khz as to not damage the transducers in the low ranges. Using maxMSP.
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Table 7: Ceramic slab resonant frequency table.
Bold = main tones.
Kiln Shelf Black Wavy1 Pink Black/Red Small Red Green Wavy 2
Hz Note Hz Note Hz Note Hz Note Hz Note Hz Note Hz Note Hz Note
164 E3-9 138 C#3-7 202 G#3-48 165 E3+2 166 A#2-8 375 F#4+23 194 G3-18 194 G3-18
199 G3+29 198 G3+18 271 C#4-39 212 G#3+36 225 A3+39 738 F#5-5 394 G4+9 221 A3+8
225 A3+39 218 A3-16 470 A#4+14 390 G4-9 250 B3+21 842 G#5+24 581 D5-19 520 C5-11
302 D4+48 414 G#4-5 530 C5+22 537 C5+45 283 C#4+36 1009 B5+37 855 G#5+50 660 E5+2
347 F4-11 549 C#5-17 610 D#5-34 575 D5-37 302 D4+48 1122 C#6+21 1055 C6+14 830 G#5-1
448 A4+31 595 D5+22 689 F5-24 868 A5-24 346 F4-16 1479 F#6-1 870 A5-20
499 B4+18 810 G#5-43 746 F#5+14 1074 C6+45 387 G4-22 1600 G6+35 1100 C#6-14
519 G5-14 885 A5+10 882 A5+4 414 G#4-5
639 D#5+39 1040 C6-11 1184 D6+14 567 G#5+39
757 F#5+39 1112 C#6+5 1288 E6-41 597 D5+28
823 G#5-16 1220 D#6-34 1468 F#6-14 849 G#5+38
950 A#5+33 1321 E6+3 1644 G#6-18 951 A#5+34
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10.9.4 Physical layout and spatial approach
An approximate right to left ordering was agreed on early on (Figure 36), with the knowledge that when installing the loudspeakers in a space there is scope to be re-arranged slightly. While this general arrangement was an important consideration during the composition process, due to the bi-directional planar244 sound projection of the ceramic-slabs and the hard to localize nature of sine-waves as a result of their narrow bandwidth245, standard multi-channel concepts of spatiality and sound propagation246 are not as relevant. Instead, I focused on the resonant tones and combination of slabs to engulf247 the lean-to in sound. An interesting spatial phenomenon occurred when playing sustained chords through the slabs: while most of the chord keeps its directionality from the emitting slabs (admittedly not easily determined as to which precise slab, but a general direction), any accentuated resonant tones leapt into the space losing any semblance of source. Final placement of the slabs was done by Felcey and myself, using the slabs to frame the historic machinery and space within the Lean-To (Figure 37).
Figure 36: Original sketch of panel arrangement.
244 PUI audio. (2018). Exciter White Paper. PUI audio inc. https://www.puiaudio.com/media/SpecSheet/Exciter_White_Paper.pdf 245 Hermann, T., Hunt, A., & Neuhoff, J. G. (2011). The Sonification Handbook. Logos Verlag. pp.54 246 Standard Multichannel Concepts: Working on multichannel arrays using traditional directional loudspeakers. 247 Some resonant tones seemed to not have a specific directionality, instead coming from all parts of the lean-to.
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The emblematic loudspeaker248 upon first entering the lean-to is seemingly unseen, it is only after spending time in the space and reading the information display that the slabs are revealed as the source of the sound. The beauty of the slab as an object and its departure from associations carried by loudspeakers249 free them from being perceived as technological means of sound re-production250, enhancing each other as audio-visual collaborators. The hanging wire rope and audio cables connecting the amps to slabs were weathered and hung to match the original machinery cabling still visible.
Figure 37: Final arrangement of slabs in space.
10.9.5 Composition & Structure
The 37 minute composition revolves around sine tones, initially introduced following the resonant tones of specific slabs (appendix Table 7 - 1:04 - 5:28) and later evolving into more elaborate stacks through additive synthesis, with harmonics blooming from the original tones [7:36 - 15:04]. Treated as individual voices within this slab ensemble, the piece rarely uses less than half of the slabs at a time251, focusing on the combinations of these voices to create a soundscape and filling the space. An exception to this was the initial test-sequence [0:00 - 1:04] and [24:20 - 24:53], where sounds move between slabs 1-8 individually. My decision to include the test-sequence as an opening section stemmed from wanting the audience to hear the audio signature of each ceramic
248 Weibel, P. (2019). Sound Art: Sound as a Medium of Art (The MIT Press). The MIT Press. pp. 476 249 lbid pp. 480 250 I am not disregarding speaker design, and ability to make the speaker a beautiful object. Merely that as once a cone or recognizable shape is seen, the associations are inseparable. 251 This decision was also due to lack of volume within the space with only one slab active.
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slab individually. Again252 recognisable source sounds were used to create a connection between material and sound. Quick and abrupt sounds created a lingering resonance253 through the slabs, but did not provide enough time for the resonant frequencies to build up within the material. This was a consideration for using slower moving gestures and passages, focusing on the creation of sonic spaces, with smaller intricate changes within them. Textural and slow-moving multi-channel works also allow the listeners to move through the space, changing the balance and tonal colour of the piece. Sounds for this piece were generated using MAX, VCVrack and an FG601 Function Generator254, further transformed and edited in a DAW. Besides the slabs' Hz-specific tones and additive variations, chords in a D-Dorian scale form part of the composition. First heard at [5:28], they are generated from a VCVrack patch (Figure 38) outputting two voices per channel in an 8- channel configuration (sixteen voices in total), with the accentuated notes depending on slab resonant frequencies. These two approaches complement each other between sections that are constructed to trigger the panel resonances, and sections that are shaped by them (and the area in between). The slow oscillation between microtonal and tonal soundscapes aimed to create an enjoyable and meditative place to spend time in.
'Is not listening then a process of inhabitation? To nestle, to dwell, to be absorbed, captured, and to occupy (or be occupied)” - Seth Cluett
Figure 38: VCV-rack, slabs chord patch.
252 Similar to the bottle-kiln vessel interactions [7.3] 253 Lingering resonance: as herd with the white noise blasts during the test sequence [0:00 – 0:40] 254 Feedback Systems: Function Generator FG601 - electronic test equipment.
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10.10 Wharf255
Lengths of hazel have been re-introduced to the canal wharf. Historically, these materials were used extensively for the making of crates, transporting fragile wares on their journey along the canal and out into the world. Here, they are utilised in building temporary structures, which look over the water. Enclosing the side, the hazel units create a social space for sitting and making by the canal, where the material and human exchange continues to take place. To the left of the enclosure, a structure has been built over the settling tanks, to protect the working part of the factory. The tanks are continually filtering the clay from the water as it leaves the Middleport site. There will be workshops on the canal wharf every Wednesday and Saturday. These will include brick-making activities and component assembly for structures on site. Throughout the festival, hazel and clay components will be freely available for visitors to explore and create structures daily. - BCB Resonating Spaces
Concluding the Journey between 3 sites. From the bottle kiln, a sonically intense and visually dark space, to the lean-to, a partially covered and textural soundscape, ending on the quiet Wharf. The wharf is a space for community, contemplation and making. It has no active sound intervention; distant sounds from the lean-to are audible with the running water of the canal, settling tanks256, rustling of leaves and Canadian geese.
The lean-to panels are faintly audible from the wharf, changing with the direction of the wind.
Resonating spaces, from a sonic perspective, is a work about the materiality and ancillary process of clay. Explored and distributed through a variety of methods, each bringing a new connection and understanding to ceramics.
255 Folder/Portfolio_Pieces/ResonatingSpaces/Installation Words/Resonating Spaces Wharf – Kenawa Films. 256 Settling Tanks: Clay filtration tank system for the factory.
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10.11 Portfolio program notes
10.11.1 Gōngàn
Gōngàn (10:39) is an 8ch electroacoustic composition blending field recording and studio recorded/generated sounds. The composition and spatial movement is informed by gestures found in field recordings over four different settings; two from urban soundscapes: tramline & vintage games arcade, and two rural: Buddhist temple & farm. In an attempt to capture the life in these areas, and how they interact with the space, recordings include living beings such as humans, dogs, hedgehogs, birds & bees (amongst others). The piece reflects on the loud 'in your face' noise in urban and human habited areas against the dense layers of microscopic sounds in nature and rural places. Part of the concept for the piece was to oscillate between a source-bound and surreal soundscapes. Utilising the sounds contained within the field recordings and overly focusing on a single element or transforming them while keeping a clear relationship to its source.
10.11.2 Après Moi La plue
Après moi la pluie [Fixed media 9:56] is an ambisonic acousmatic work exploring the sounds of water interacting with the city of Manchester. Recordings include the Manchester Victoria baths (opened 1906) being power-washed & filled, water down drainpipes of iconic Manchester buildings and sounds of rain on a large variety of materials found in the city. Water constitutes a substantial part of Manchester's soundscape playing each object it hits or runs against. As new architecture is built this creates new instruments for the water to act upon, this pieces probes the idea of water/waste as performer to the city. Exploring the spatial aspect of B-format Soundfield recordings and mapping rain patterns onto a Hordijk modular synthesiser. The title is derived from the French expression Après moi, le déluge (Louis XV).
10.11.3 Noisy Library
If walls could talk…would a library have much to say? Find out for yourself at The John Rylands Library. The brainchild of electroacoustic composer Guillaume Dujat, hear the space around you come to life with sound, inspired and created by the building itself. Hear the Library being ‘played’ in a multi-channel electromagnetic sound installation, designed by the ‘electrical veins’ of the library itself. The symphonies behind the tomes and the stones mean you’ll certainly never judge a book by its cover again.
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10.11.4 Divine Cut
Divine cut is an electroacoustic piece for fixed media & live haircut. Starting as an artistic take on the classic 'binaural haircut', the composition expanded into an exploration on the viral phenomena of ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) videos online. Having you hair cut is a strange intimate ritual, there are not many setting where stare at ourselves in a mirror while a stranger wields sharp utensils at close proximity to our head. The micro sound-pallet from the utensils with the realistic proximity rendered by the binaural head create a somewhat un-easy intimacy between the performer and audience. Drawing parallels between the intimate sound collages of ASMR and micro-sound montage techniques used in acousmatic music long before the (ASMR) term was coined, Divine Cut re-introduces the sonic and theatrical aspects of these videos within an electroacoustic framework.
10.11.5 Tune of Crackle
Tune of Crackle is a result of asking skateboarders to reflect on the sounds that surround their practice. Interweaving field recording and interviews, the piece focuses on three typographies of UK skate locations, Southbank, Graystone Action Sports, and various street-spots. Special thanks the interviewees: Stuart Maclure, Dani Abulhawa, Iain Borden, Matthey Nelms, Henry Edwards-Wood, Cath Shanks, Alexander Lamb, Brandon Slezak, Henry Mcquaid.
10.11.6 Green State: Rehydrate
Green State: Rehydrate (13.1 surround) is a concert version of the piece within the historic Bottle Kiln; one of the interventions for Resonating Spaces at Middleport Pottery, commissioned by the British Ceramic Biennial 2019. Green State: Rehydrate uses sounds of live-clay re-hydration, as the porous, dry but unfired clay is placed in water; merged with recordings from Burslem Wares Factory (Burgess & Leigh). The vessel was thrown and waxed by Standard Practice [Joe Hartley]. The below performance is a stereo reduction from MANTIS [October 2019].
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10.12 List of performances
• MANTIS (UoM): ‘Darkest Hour’ (with Falk Morawitz) - 25/10/16 [Performance] • MANTIS (UoM)– 'Gōngàn'. - 04/03/17 [Performance] • Elektro Arts 2017 (Romania): 'Naufrage' – 13/05/17 [Performance] • Sound & Environments (Hull Uni): 'Gōngàn' – 30/06/17 [Performance] • MANTIS (UoM): 'Après Moi la Pluie' – 07/10/17 [Performance] • New Music North West: 'Après Moi La Pluie' – 13/11/17 [Performance] • Sonic Interactions (Liverpool Hope Uni): 'Gōngàn' – 06/11/17 [Performance] • MANTIS (UoM): ‘modular sonication w. Luke Dobbin’ - 03/03/18 [Performance] • Mini-BEAST (Birmingham Uni): 'Après Moi La Plue' – 31/01/18 [Performance] • John Rylands Library: 'Noisy Library' – 20to26/10/17 [Installation] • Reform Radio: ‘Après Moi La Pluie’ – 29/04/18 [Playback] • Noise Floor (Staffs Uni) – 09/05/18 [Performance] • EASTN-DC: ‘Divine Cut’ – 29/06/18 [Performance] • Reform Radio: ‘Divine Cut’ – 08/08/18 [Playback] • MANTIS: ‘Divine Cut’ – 27/10/18 [Performance] • Sound Thought (Glasgow Centre for Contemporary Arts): ‘Divine Cut’ – 18/11/18 [Perfor- mance] • EMAS 40th Anniversary Celebration (Greenwich Uni)– 27/01/19 [Performance] • Composer Forum ‘UoM’ ‘Tune of Crackle’ – 14/03/19 [Presentation] • The Ear Has To Travel (Radio): ‘Noisy Library’ – 22/03/19 [Playback] • BEAST FEaST (Birmingham Uni): ‘Divine Cut’ – 02/05/19 [Performance] • British Ceramic Biennial (Middle-port Pottery): ‘Resonating Spaces’ - 07/0919 to 13/10/19 [Installation] • Convergence (De Montfort Uni): ‘Divine Cut’ – 14/09/19 [Performance] • BCB activation (Middle-port Pottery): ‘Ceramic performance’ – 28/09/19 [Performance] • Late Junction (BBC Radio): ‘Green State: Rehydrate’ – 04/10/19 [Playback] • Making As Paradox (Baltic Centre for Contemporary Arts): ‘Resonating Spaces’ - 26/10/19 [Talk & Panel discussion] • MANTIS (UoM): Green State: Rehydrate – 27/10/19 [Performance] • Lower Liths (Cafe OTO): ‘Green State: Rehydrate’ – 16/01/20 [Performance] • Performances cancelled due to COVID19. • MANTIS (UoM) online: Tune of Crackle - 31/10/20 [Performance]
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