April 13 / 14
Un/natural Field Recordings//Natural Overdubs is a workshop which utilizes urban, architectural, and natural spaces as both a source for cultivating and processing/re-recording sound. This workshop is open to artists of any level of experience with sound, who work in a various mediums including: dance, visual art, sound art, experimental music, performance, etc; who are interested in experimenting with sound.
The goal of the workshop is to develop and/or expand upon your personal approach to sound, and to create sound palettes which can be used for composition, experimentation, and performance.
Un/natural Field Recordings / Natural Overdubs: Workshop Vol.2 is the second installment of the workshops at Liebig 12, which began in March of this year. Participants from the previous workshop are very welcomed to attend, as well as new participants. Rather than continuing where we left off in March, we will begin anew: approaching established and newly proposed ideas, techniques, and methods.
In this workshop we will visit different areas of interest to experiment, solo, duo, and in small groups, with recording and overdubbing. We will then proceed back to the studio at Liebig for organizing sounds, creating scores, etc. During the time in the studio, Bilwa will share his methods of creating scores, and techniques for multi-track playback. Unlike the previous workshop, we will not make a public performance. Instead, we will perform a series of short performances for each other throughout the workshop; allowing us more time to experiment.
Un/natural Field Recordings
Audio recordings comprised of man-made, digital, analogue, and mechanical sounds, as well as many other incidental sounds, which make up a city’s soundscape in public spaces. They can be recorded systematically, intentionally, or at random; using various quality levels of recording devices.
Natural Overdubs
Recordings are played back, in the same space as the original recording and/or in various spaces with different sound qualities, using portable speakers; essentially “overdubbing” the recording with the sound event happening in the current space. Additionally, sound making devices are played back and recorded. We will experiment with recorder – speaker relationships, alternating the foreground and background sounds; as well as utilizing a spaces sound qualities (reverberation, reflection, echo, noise, etc.) This process can be looked at as a sound intervention/concert and/or a recording session which utilizes public spaces as well as a way to process and effect sounds (phasing, panning, filtering, reverberation, delay, etc) with out the use of plug-ins or out board effects.
Un/natural Field Recordings//Natural Overdubs Workshop is based on the project Un/natural Fields, in which William “Bilwa” Costa records man-made, digital, analogue, and mechanical sounds, as well as many other incidental sounds, which make up a city’s soundscape on metros and other indoor and outside public spaces. These recordings are arranged in sound palettes which, combined with sine-tones, are used for experimental sound compositions, installations, and live performances. Employing techniques associated with Musique Concrète, electronic music, and sound phenomena; including: multi-track phasing, oscillation, binaural beating, panning, cancellation, etc., this project uses no plug-in effects. His palettes are comprised of sounds from many cities including: Istanbul, Mexico City, Shanghai, Beijing, Tokyo, NY, Berlin,Vienna, Prague, Kaunas, Riga, etc.
Audio Samples here: soundcloud.com/bilwa
PRACTICAL
Working in small groups, we will:
– record a series of unnatural field recordings
– make a series of “overdub” recordings in different locations
– create a sound palette of these recordings
– experiment with playback options through loudspeakers, hand held speakers, etc.
– create scores (graphic, time-based, thematic, etc.) based on research during the workshop
– experiment with ways of utilizing individual sound palettes to perform these scores
– create and perform scores with/for other participants
WHAT TO BRING (if possible)
Note: If you don’t have all of the things listed, no problem, please bring what you have and we will manage.
-audio recorders (digital, tape, etc.)
-smart phone
-headphones (preferably over-ear)
-portable speaker(s)
-cables (mini to stereo jack or cinch)
-laptop/tablets/samplers (sound-card/controller/cables)
-small audio mixer/cables
-small sound making devices (timers, metronomes, beepers, alarms, tuners, etc.)
-sketchbook /graph paper/ pens
-food/drink
ABOUT
William “Bilwa” Costa is an artist who works in the performing, sound, and visual arts contexts. His work includes: performance, installation, experimental / electro-acoustic music, sound art, field recordings, real-time composition, graphic scores and conceptual structures for sound and movement.
Collaboration with other artists is essential to his work. He works internationally, generating research, labs, workshops, and performance projects, actively cultivating opportunities for artists to work together on new interdisciplinary experiments.
Currently based in Berlin, Bilwa has performed this project in duo, trio, and group ensembles, led workshops, and has lectured in N. America, UK, Europe, Asia, and Australia.