phase space | john grzinich : sound + site + artistic research

anamorphic eye

By john grzinich | Published: September 1, 2010

Anamorphic Eye was one of my first video and sound works, produced back in late 2000. The images are of tea and organic debris floating in water while the sound is a mix of electronically generated tones using supercollider and field recordings. I attempted to connect the natural chaotic course of how the materials flows in water to the generative process of the sounds.

Posted in moving image | Tagged DV, generative sound, material flows, video | Leave a comment

berlin events, september 15-19

By john grzinich | Published: August 28, 2010

15.9 -film screening

“Sound Aspects of Material Elements”
Altes Finanzamt
http://altesfinanzamt.blogspot.com/

18.9 -sound performance ‘strings’

21.00 Roter Salon at Volkbühne
http://www.roter-salon-berlin.de/

17.9 and 19.9 -workshop

Sound Mapping
exploring perspectives in listening

a workshop by John Grzinich

4 hours per day (14:00-18:00)

8 people maximum

30 euros per person

This workshop is about the perception of sound and using observation to direct attention for understanding how sound affects the way we think about space. Space can be understood in many ways, but for our purposes we will focus on the “mapping” of space through experiences that range from cartography (map reading and making) to more personal perspectives that explore subjectivity (drawings, notes, sketches). The workshop is based on making a series of listening and soundwalk exercises in the public spaces of Berlin to use as material for creating different types of maps. The maps made help reflect our experiences and will be created using a range of means from drawing or photo collage to cartography and gps tracking. Through these exercises we will look at different ways of expressing the connections between sound and space that zoom from small details to the big picture.

Participants from a diverse range of disciplines are encouraged to join (Art, Architecture, Music, Performance, Design, the Social Sciences etc.). No previous experience in working with sound is necessary. Please bring a pen, pencil and notebook.

keywords: sonic cartography, psycho-geography, subjectivity, mapping, gps, spatial perception, cognitive maps

to participate: workshop[at]staalplaat[dot]com

Posted in event / performance, moving image, project / workshop | Tagged Berlin, sound film, sound geography, sound mapping, sound performance, subjectivity, workshop | Leave a comment

new maps of time article

By john grzinich | Published: August 12, 2010

An article I wrote about my ‘New Maps of Time’ workshop was just published in the most recent issue of handheld media arts magazine in Canada. A .pdf version can be downloaded from the emmedia website.

New Maps of Time, A workshop about sound, site and social signification

http://emmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/HH_SUMMER2010_website.pdf

Posted in project / workshop, text / writings | Tagged emmedia, text, workshop | Leave a comment

midnight afterglow

By john grzinich | Published: July 13, 2010

The time of the white nights is quickly passing. In this part of the year I try to make regular excursions out into the countryside to record during the late evening and early morning solitude. One of my favorite places to visit is an embankment on the western shore of Peipsi lake (bordering with Russia). If the air is still enough, the subtly changing colors of the sky reflect beautifully off the surface of the water. The photos above are just a humble tribute to this magical display of light. On this particular night, it was so quiet, there was almost nothing to record sound-wise except for the occasional fish leaping up to catch insects. Below are two excepts from longer recordings made in the past month.

This first recording was made by a small pond in the forest. There are frogs moving around directly in front of the mics, but you can hear many soft sounds in the distance from the forest and a remote farm.

This recording was made after the traditional mid-summer day (St. Johns day or Jaanipäev), when the evening soundscape shifts dramatically from bird life up in the trees to cricket and grasshopper life in the grassy open fields. Unfortunately there are mosquitoes present nearly all the time and they seem to like the furry wind covers on my microphones.

Posted in location / site, mp3 / sound recordings, photo / image | Tagged AT4021, Estonia, field recording, forest, frogs, insect sounds, Lake Peipsi, twilight, white nights | Leave a comment

helikoosolek: tartu, vol 4 – a soundwalk

By john grzinich | Published: June 27, 2010

June 30th, 18:00 – Estonian National Museum

For the 4th Helikoosolek, I conducted a soundwalk through Tartu. The soundwalk was designed to highlight different sounding environments of this city. The idea of a soundwalk is primarily to simply listen and understand our surroundings from the perspective of our ears. By listening we shift our attention away from the visual world and question the ways in which we orientate ourselves. It is also an exercise in attention, to be reminded of the way we hear and select the sounds that are important for us as opposed to what we tune out.

The soundwalk participants stayed together as a group. The group was organized in such a way that the participants worked in pairs. One person was blindfolded while the other person acted as a guide. It is the responsibility of the guide to allow the blindfolded person to listen carefully and navigate through space with their ears and yet protect their partner from any potential dangers. Communication between the guide and the blind person should kept to a minimum to orient the attention to the surrounding environment and what is taking place there.

The soundwalk began at ERM at 18:00 and lasted approximately 1 hour. After 30 minutes the roles of the partners switched. So the one who was blind then became the guide. This gave each person the experience of being “blind” and being a guide. Both roles are equally important. The walk ended at ERM where we had a short follow up discussion sharing experiences.

For such an event, wear comfortable shoes and appropriate outdoor clothing. Anyone who did not feel comfortable being blindfolded was also free to join the walk.

—
Eesti Rahva Muuseumi näitusemajas (Kuperjanovi 9)

Kolmapäeval, 30 juunil kell 18.00

MOKS esitleb – Helikoosolek: Tartu, vol 4

Kolmapäeval, 30. juunil viib helikunstnik John Grzinich Helikoosolekul osalejad helikõnnile läbi Tartu linna. Jalutuskäigu eesmärgiks on tuua esile Tartu linna erinevaid helikeskkondi. Helikõnni juhtmõtteks on panna tähele ja mõista ümbritsevat kuulmismeele kaudu. Helikõnd seab kahtluse alla tavapärase arusaama ruumis orienteerumisest. See on ka tähelepanuharjutus, millega uurida seda, kuidas me kuulame, valime ja teadvustame enda jaoks olulisi / ebaolulisi helisid.

Helikõnd toimub grupitööna. Grupp korraldatakse selliselt, et osalejad liiguvad paarides. Ühel paarilisest on silmad kinni seotud ning teine on talle juhiks. Juhi ülesandeks on võimaldada kinni seotud silmadega inimesel keskenduda ümbruse kuulamisele ning kuulmismeele järgi ruumis liikumisele, see tähendab ka kaaslase kaitsmist võimalike ohtude eest.

Helikõnd algab ERMi juurest kell 18.00 ning kestab umbes tund aega. Pärast 30 minutilist jalutuskäiku vahetavad paarilised osad, nii et juhitavast saab juht. See annab mõlemale paarilisele võimaluse olla nii ‘pime’ kui juht, kuna mõlemad osad on võrdselt tähtsad. Jalutuskäigu lõppedes kogunetakse Eesti Rahva Muuseumi näitusemajja, et vahetada kogemusi ja nende üle arutleda.

Osalejatel palume panna jalga mugavad jalanõud ja ilmale vastav riietus. Kes end kinniste silmadega seotult ebamugavalt tunneb, võib lihtsalt helikõnniga liituda. Meeles tuleb pidada siiski peamist reeglit: lubada juhitavatel segamatult tajuda maailma kuulmise kaudu. Tugeva vihmasaju ja halva ilma korral toimub ERMi näitusemajas Helikoosoleku alternatiivprogramm.

Eestis elav Ameerikast pärit helikunstnik John Grzinich töötab Põlvamaal MoKS Kunsti ja Sotsiaalpraktika Keskuses. Ta on tegelenud heliuuringutega üle 15 aasta ning töötab praegu Eesti helimaastike analüüsimise ning tutvustamisega.

Helikoosolek on regulaarselt toimuv kohtumine inimestele, keda huvitab heli meie ümber kõigis oma väljendustes. Kohtumiste raames leiavad aset jutuajamised, esitlused, kontserdid, töötoad, arutelud ning väljasõidud. Kõigi nende tegevuste eesmärgiks on uurida heli esinemist ning kasutusvõimalusi kõikvõimalikes kontekstides: kunstis, muusikas, arhitektuuris, ökoloogias, filosoofias, sotsiaalses ja kultuurilises vastasmõjus jms. Ka osalejatel endil on võimalus pakkuda välja tegevusi või arutlus-teemasid vastavalt oma huvidele või tegevustele. Helikoosoleku kohtumisõhtud toimuvad iga kuu viimasel kolmapäeval kell 18-20.

Helikoosolekute sari saab teoks tänu Tartu Linnavalitsusele, Eesti Kultuurkapitalile ja Eesti Rahva Muuseumile

Posted in event / performance | Tagged Eesti Rahva Muuseum, helikõnd, helikoosolek, listening exercise, moks, soundwalk, tartu | Leave a comment

sea plane hangar of tallinn, anatomy of an acoustic space

By john grzinich | Published: June 8, 2010

We had the good fortune during the recent Tuned City pre-event, to spend some time in the historic Sea Plane Hanger currently under renovation in Tallinn. The idea of working in the Hangar was initiated by sculptor Lukas Kühne who happened to walk by the structure on an earlier visit to Tallinn and hear some echoes emanating from inside. The particular acoustic effect of this site slowly developed into the notion of a ‘sonic landmark’ the general theme for Tuned City Tallinn 2011. While being a sonic landmark for us, the building is also a historic landmark on the national scale. It was commissioned by the last czar of Russia and built just before the communist revolution of 1917. The domes that make up the roof characterize a style of light freestanding concrete structures designed and built well before such forms were found in the modernist era. The fact that it survived two world wars and the soviet era is also rather remarkable. The hangar is now under renovation and will be turned into a Maritime Museum.

For the purposes of Tuned City, the unique arched dome structure of the hangar offered a great example of ‘aural architecture‘ with the possibility of artistic exploration and intervention. Below are some examples and clips from the pre-preparation events of May 18-29, 2010. The three examples shown here each take a different approach to working with the space, from the technical precision of Granchow’s ‘Crescents’ to the social improvisatory group process of Lukas Kühne’s ‘Sound and Form’ workshop. What is clear in the recordings is the effect the curved ceiling has on the impulse of the sound which comes out as a traveling echo that disperses throughout the space. What does not come across is how strongly the effect changes with the relative position of the listener in the space. The recordings below were made by me and are shorter excerpts from longer pieces by each author.

Raviv Granchow – Crescents

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photo by: Carsten Stabenow

Thomas Ankersmit – site-specific performance

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Lukas Kühne – Form and Sound workshop

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video showing the process within the space (sound quality is basic as this was filmed on a digital camera)

It should be noted that getting access to the Hangar was a challenging feat in itself particularly as it is under construction. As you can see in the photos, hard hats were mandatory in the space. Occasionally pieces of old concrete would fall from above making working conditions rather precarious. Both Carsten Stabenow and Lukas Kühne were good in keeping their vision to use the space while Ott Sarapuu (Estonian Maritime Museum) and Triin Kapp (2011 Foundation) helped on the official levels. The construction company and particularly the night guard were very generous to allow the artists access to the space after hours.

Posted in location / site, moving image, mp3 / sound recordings | Tagged aural architecture, echo, Lennusadam, Lukas Kuhne, Raviv Granchow, tallinn, Thomas Ankersmit, tuned city, workshop | Leave a comment

sonic surveys of tallinn

By john grzinich | Published: May 14, 2010

MOKS and Tuned City present:

Sonic Surveys of Tallinn

exploring, mapping and field recording of urban soundscapes

SOUND WORKSHOP
May 18-22, 2010
5 days, 12-15 people

led by: John Grzinich, Derek Holzer, Patrick McGinley
workshop module conducted in the frame of Tuned City, Tallinn 2011 Culture Capital

free and open to the public
questions and registration to: info[ät]maaheli.ee

This interdisciplinary workshop (of artists, architects, anthropologists, geographers) concentrates on exploring working methods for mapping and documenting urban spaces and architectural structures of the city of Tallinn. The methods used will combine research and practical skills in surveying and recording the “sonic geographies” found throughout the city. As Tallinn has radically different zones, both architecturally and socially our research aims to reflect expose and reflect the variety of soundscapes to be found there.

This would include the practical elements of an overall “field recording” and “listening” workshop with an introduction to sound, soundscape and field recording techniques. The structure of the workshop divides the overall group of participants into several small scouting teams (3 groups of 4 or 5 people) that make excursions to different districts of the city. A range of locations could include the Soviet ‘plattenbau’ districts like Lasnamäe and Õismäe, the park areas of Kadriorg and Nõmme and the seaside districts of Pirita and Kopli (or whatever else can be introduced) for example.

Mapping the possible overlays of sonic regions or even specific sounds will help define potential “sonic landmarks”, as one of the main themes for the Tuned City event to be held in July of 2011. Afterward we can pool the coordinates and recordings into a “map” or Survey of Acoustic Geography of Tallinn.

satellite view on radio aporee maps

Program:

Tuesday 18.5
Introductory session: soundscape listening, sonic geographies, survey methodologies

Wednesday 19.5 – Friday 21.5
Survey sessions: field work with location scouting and sonic surveys of Tallinn city districts (parks, neighborhoods, buildings, abandoned spaces etc.), 3 groups

Saturday 22.5
working session: preparation of the Sonic Survey Map of Tallinn, assembling documents from the survey sessions (recordings, photos, videos, sketches, notes).

Saturday 29.5
presentation/exhibition at Tuned City public event, project introduction of “Tuned City – Sonic Landmarks Tallinn 2011″

About the workshop leaders:

John Grzinich (1970) has been conducting various forms of sound research for over 15 years, including field recording, kinetic sculptures, electro-acoustic composition, performance, group workshops and exercises in listening. Currently he lives in Estonia and works as a program and media lab coordinator for MoKS, a non-profit artist-run center in south Estonia.

Derek Holzer (1972) is an American sound artist living in Berlin, whose current interests include DIY analog electronics, sound art, field recording and the meeting points of electroacoustic, noise, improv and extreme music. He has played live experimental sound, as well as taught workshops in Pure Data and electronics, across Europe, North America, Brazil and New Zealand.Holzer is currently a fellow at the KHM (Kunsthochschule für Medien Köln) in Cologne. http://macumbista.net/

Patrick McGinley (1974) is an american born sound and performance artist who has lived and worked in europe since 1996. from 1996 until 1998 he lived in paris, where he studied theatre, and began his sound experiments in the context of those studies. he has composed works for several theatre performances, including the works of his own company, as well as performing live soundworks for others. in 2002 he co-founded framework an organisation that produces a weekly radio show on london’s resonance 104.4fm. his work concentrates on the framing of sounds from our environment which normally pass through our ears unnoticed and unremarked, but which out of context become unrecognisable, alien and extraordinary. http://www.murmerings.com/

About Tuned City:

Tuned City is a platform which proposes an examination of the relations between architecture and sound. This ongoing project draws the traditions of critical discussion about urban space within architecture and urban planning discourse – as well as its strategies and working methods – into the context of sound art. This expanded discussion reinforces the potential of the spatial and communicative properties of sound as a tool and means of urban practice. Tuned City continues as a platform, exploring other cities and locations with their own cultural and social settings, working theoretically and practically on the question how sound and architecture are related.
http://www.tunedcity.net/

Posted in event / performance, location / site, project / workshop | Tagged aural architecture, derek holzer, field recording, moks, murmer, sound mapping, soundscape, tallinn, tuned city, workshop | Leave a comment

new maps of time, malmö

By john grzinich | Published: May 12, 2010

Report from the New Maps of Time sound workshop Malmö Sweden

‘New Maps of Time’ is a project and workshop about mapping architectural structures and urban spaces using sound as a means to analyze and express actions within a space. read the full project description…

Workshop organized by Full Pull, and hosted by MEDEA, on May 10th, 2010. Special thanks to Mathias Holmberg and the helpful people at MEDEA for arranging this workshop.

Below is a gallery of images taken while walking blindfolded during a soundwalk. The camera was pointed at sounds that I heard.

The afternoon was spent making coordinated sound exercises in the bunker-like former ship building structure.

Posted in location / site, project / workshop | Tagged full pull, Malmö, MEDEA, sound mapping, soundwalk, workshop | 1 Comment

convento de cristo, tomar portugal

By john grzinich | Published: May 12, 2010

Here are several field recording made during a recent visit to Portugal. These recordings were made in several different spaces throughout the Convent of the Order of Christ, inside well preserved castle of the Knights Templar. When the castle opens at 9:00 there are few people in the off season. For the sake of discreetness I used the internal mics of the Sony PCM-D50.

Small chapel off the first cloister (sounds of cleaning women)

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Main cloister (water fountain and bird sounds)

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Third cloister (with circling sparrows)

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Posted in mp3 / sound recordings, photo / image | Tagged aural architecture, convent, field recording, portugal, Sony PCM-D50, tomar | Leave a comment

new maps of time, calgary

By john grzinich | Published: April 24, 2010

Report from the New Maps of Time sound workshop Calgary Canada

‘New Maps of Time’ is a project and workshop about mapping architectural structures and urban spaces using sound as a means to analyze and express actions within a space. read more…

Workshop organized by EMMEDIA, artist-run project space, from April 20th – 23rd, 2010. Special thanks to Tomas Jonsson and the helpful crew at EMMEDIA for coordinating this event and to Eesti Kultuurkapital for travel support.

Click the image to see the Calgary Sound Map on Radio Aporee

Some notes… Calgary is a modern city that sprawls out on the plains of western Canada just east of the Canadian rocky mountains. On the surface the usual urban soundscape of car traffic and construction noise blankets the subtleties of the larger environmental context that could potentially link the city’s relatively close proximity to nature (there are few industrial relics downtown). An abundance of paths along the river and an active public life offer more space to more diverse aspects of navigating the city. This where I found some of the more unique elements explored during the workshop. There were two pedestrian suspension bridges over the river that are highly dynamic structures rich with sonic qualities. The pedestrian network downtown known as the +15 walkway system is a feature of the city that blurs the boundary of public and commercial space. A study of the bridges of the +15 system gave a different sonic and visual perspective than the standard street level counterpart. This can be seen in the videos compiled below.

The Sound Locations channel on Vimeo has 3 videos made during the workshop. All sounds were left as they were recorded (no effects or processing done during post production):

Posted in location / site, moving image, project / workshop | Tagged aural architecture, Calgary, emmedia, singing bridges, sound geography, sound mapping, urbanism, workshop | Comments closed

sound aspects of material elements

By john grzinich | Published: April 17, 2010

a location sound film by: John Grzinich

B/W, 57 minutes
PAL HD, 16:9

filmed/recorded: 2006-2009
edited: 2009

concept, camera, editing: John Grzinich

additional sound: Patrick Mcginley

collaborative recordings made with: Patrick McGinley, Jim Haynes, Toomas Thetloff, Maksims Shentelevs, Kaspars Kalninsh, Eamon Sprod, Hitoshi Kojo, Evelyn Müürsepp

equipment and support: MoKS – Center for Art and Social Practice, Mooste Estonia.

Sound Aspects of Material Elements is a film that shows a specific approach to the artistic use of sound. It covers a 3 year period of the authors solo work and in collaboration with a number of close colleagues. The film documents the in-situ process of exploration and sonification of the landscape along with the numerous objects and structures found there using sound as a medium for interaction and activation.

As most of the sound recordings emphasize the use of certain materials (metal, wood, glass) in combination with natural elements (water, wind fire) the processes take on alchemical characteristics as we listen in. We see and hear aeolian metal wires in the wind, structures affected by fire, water, snow and the casual effects of human interventions in insect worlds. The sonic outcomes can be subtle and sometimes below our own perception so a variety of recording techniques are employed. Contact microphones are placed on surfaces shifting our attention toward the internal resonances of the materials themselves while mini microphones reveal spaces normally inaccessible by our ears.

With its minimal editing style and durational shots, Sound Aspects of Material Elements shifts our attention toward and extended view of time and place, of the ever changing micro-processes that hint to eternal growth and decay inherent to cycles of nature itself. The possibilities to intercept, shape, disrupt, recombine and capture the elements through creative experiments is what this film attempts to document in he hope that it may inspire the viewer to do the same.

premiere screening April 17th, 2010 : CUFF – Calgary Underground Film Festival

DVD release info coming soon…

Posted in cd / dvd / web release, event / performance, moving image | Tagged CUFF, Estonia, moks, sound film | 2 Comments

windswept landscapes of the headlands

By john grzinich | Published: April 16, 2010

During the week of April 7th-15th 2010 I was fortunate enough to be able to stay at the Headlands Center for the Arts in Marin just north of San Francisco.