[-empyre-] Forward from John

[Christina McPhee <christina112@earthlink.net>]

From: "Stasisfield.com" <john@stasisfield.com>
Date: Sun, 3 Aug 2003 20:50:46 -0500
To: empyre@lists.cofa.unsw.edu.au
Subject: microsound intro from john kannenberg

Apologies if you receive this more than once...I sent this earlier today and
it did not appear to go through.

j.

---------------


Hello, empyre, and thanks for inviting me to participate this month!

I've created a web page with links to all of the material I am offering for
discussion, located here:

[ http://www.stasisfield.com/empyre/ ]


Introduction
----------------

I think I should start off with a caveat: although I feel my sound work is
heavily influenced by the microsound movement, I think it is safe to say
that the work I produce may not necessarily be microsound per se. Like Glenn
Bach, I am also very interested in making quiet music, but due to my
previous work as a drummer, there tends to be a heavy percussive element in
some of my pieces which may at times counteract the microsound portions. My
work covers a variety of disciplines: sound, graphic and interactive design,
conventional drawing, and digitally manipulated photography and
illustration. I also curate and design the net label and digital art space
Stasisfield.com.

My formal training as an artist concerned only visual art. Aside from six
weeks of drum lessons in the third grade, I have no musical training. I
began making sound art long after I left art school, and at that time I
concentrated primarily on sound in an attempt to hone my skills in using
what was (to me) a new medium.


Sound-only works
-------------------------
I've included two pieces which were composed as purely sonic statements:
_aero_, which is a full-length release on my Stasisfield label, deals with
the sonic qualities of air and atmosphere. [You can read an artist's
statement on the aero mini-site, which is linked to on my Empyre web page as
mentioned above.]

_gelidus_ is the latest full-length sound-only composition I've created. It
attempts to be a sonic representation of a human being's experience of
extreme cold, and was recorded on Christmas morning 2002. [An excerpt is
included on my Empyre page.]


Between Sound + Vision
----------------------------------

_miles._ is an mp3 EP also available from Stasisfield.com that has served as
a bridge between my purely sonic work and its next phase. I composed most of
these pieces with specific visual elements in mind, and the packaging for
the release includes some of the images I created based on these pieces.
_miles._ deals with themes of melancholy, nostalgia and adaptation, having
been composed during a time of personal transition.


Toward an Integration of Visual + Sonic
-------------------------------------------------------

Recently I have begun to incorporate visual art practices into my sound work
and vice versa. Stasisfield's  Stasis_Space gallery has so far presented
three exhibitions of works I have curated along specific themes. I believe
my curation work is now an integral part of my identity as an artist, and I
am currently finishing a new exhibition project which I believe will help
define a new direction for both the gallery and my own personal art work.

Entitled _the audible still-life_, this exhibition contains sonic and visual
artworks derived from still-life set ups. The exhibition includes the visual
record of the still-lifes (photos, video, or drawings) as well as field
recordings of the still-lifes in situ. A companion compilation CD will
contain audio compositions that the artists have made using samples of their
still-life field recordings.

On my Empyre web page I have included an mp3 file of my track from the
compilation ("still-life with beakers, water, sand, heat & pop-rocks"), as
well as links to my piece's page in the exhibition (which includes an
artist's statement as well as the visuals) and the essay I have written for
the exhibition catalog. I am hoping this piece will be the beginning of a
new direction for me creatively in which I combine both sonic and visual
elements and their working methods more fluidly. My still-life piece
consists of a recording of my still-life, photos of the still-life, and a
digitally manipulated drawing of the still-life set up. My final audio piece
for the compilation includes samples of the still-life's sound as well as
the sound of me drawing it.

[ Note: Please keep in mind that this exhibition is currently under
construction and will hopefully be complete at the end of this month, when
the compilation CD should also be available. ]

--------------

If you're still reading this, thank you for your patience--I realize I've
thrown a lot at you, and I hope you enjoy the work! I look forward to
discussing these pieces with everyone.


>>

john kannenberg

[ http://www.stasisfield.com/empyre/ ]


>>

[ http://www.whistlingpariah.com ]

[ http://www.stasisfield.com ]




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