Materiality in Sound Art

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 225-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asbjørn Blokkum Flø
Keyword(s):  
Spectral Composition ◽  
Sound Art ◽  
Acoustic Properties ◽  
Western Art ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Art Forms ◽  
History Of ◽  
Surrounding Space ◽  
Sound Objects ◽  
The Relationship

This article investigates the recent resurgence of kinetic sound art in light of the relationship between art and material. It does this by studying the history of mechanical musical instruments and kinetic art, the role of immateriality in the history of Western art, and the renewed focus on materiality in the arts. Materiality is key to understanding the resurgence of kinetics in sound art. The first part of this article studies the historical narratives of materiality in sound art, while the second part investigates materiality in my own works as more contemporary examples. Here the text turns to exploration of the material and acoustic properties of metal rods and plates, and suggests that direct contact with sound-producing objects provides opportunities for new art forms where the morphology of sound can be developed in dialogue with the physical objects and the surrounding space. By examining the underlying acoustic principles of rods and plates, we get a deeper understanding of the relationship between mathematical models and the actual sounding objects. Using the acoustic model with basic input parameters enables us to explore the timbral possibilities of the sound objects. This allows us to shape the spectrum of acoustic sound objects with great attention to detail, and makes models from spectromorphology relevant during the construction of the objects. The physical production of sound objects becomes both spectral composition and shaping of spatial objects. This highlights the importance of knowledge of both materials and acoustic principles, and questions the traditional perception of sound art and music as immaterial art forms.

Understanding Culture

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Babette Hellemans
Keyword(s):  
Gender Studies ◽  
Duration Analysis ◽  
International Perspective ◽  
Theoretical Background ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Long Duration ◽  
Historical Investigation ◽  
History Of ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Relationship

This pioneering textbook explores the theoretical background of cultural variety, both in past and present. How is it possible to study 'culture' when the topic covers the arts, literature, movies, history, sociology, anthropology and gender studies? Understanding Culture examines the evolution of a concept with varying meanings depending on changing norms. Offering a long-duration analysis of the relationship between culture and nature, this book looks at the origins of studying culture from an international perspective. Using examples from the several scholarly traditions in the practice of studying culture, Understanding Culture is a key introduction to the area. It identifies the history of interpreting culture as a meeting point between the long-standing historical investigation of 'humanism' and 'postmodernism' and is a comprehensive resource for those who wish to further their engagement with culture as both a historical and contemporary phenomenon.

The Anthropomorphic Analogy: Humanising musical machines in the early modern and contemporary eras

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-180
Author(s):  
Rebecca Cypess ◽  
Steven Kemper
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Musical Instrument ◽  
Musical Instruments ◽  
Physical Computing ◽  
Western Art ◽  
History Of ◽  
Musical Systems ◽  
Historical Contextualisation ◽  
Sensor Interfaces ◽  
The Relationship

Since the late twentieth century, the development of cybernetics, physical computing and robotics has led artists and researchers to create musical systems that explore the relationship between human bodies and mechanical systems. Anthropomorphic musical robots and bodily integrated ‘cyborg’ sensor interfaces explore complementary manifestations of what we call the ‘anthropomorphic analogy’, which probes the boundary between human artificer and artificial machine, encouraging listeners and viewers to humanise non-musical machines and understand the human body itself as a mechanical instrument.These new approaches to the anthropomorphic analogy benefit from historical contextualisation. At numerous points in the history of Western art music, philosophers, critics, composers, performers and instrument designers have considered the relationship between human musician and musical instrument, often blurring the line between the two. Consideration of historical examples enriches understandings of anthropomorphism in contemporary music technology.This article juxtaposes the anthropomorphic analogy in contemporary musical culture with manifestations of anthropomorphism in early seventeenth-century Europe. The first half of the seventeenth century witnessed a flourishing of instrumentality of all sorts. Musical instruments were linked with the telescope, the clock, the barometer, the paintbrush, and many other instruments and machines, and these came to be understood as vehicles for the creation of knowledge. This flourishing of instrumental culture created new opportunities for contemplation and aesthetic wonder, as theorists considered the line between human being and machine – between nature and artifice. Manifestations of the anthropomorphic analogy in seventeenth-century conceptions of musical instruments help to contextualise and explain similar articulations of the anthropomorphic analogy in the present day.

Parody—Nature and Definition

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-37
Author(s):  
Sabine Jacques
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Copyright Law ◽  
The European Union ◽  
International Human Rights ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The Arts ◽  
History Of ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter provides an overview of the nature and definition of parody in the context of copyright law. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has introduced two requirements that must be satisfied before a work may be considered a ‘parody’: firstly, it must ‘evoke an existing work while being noticeably different from it’, and secondly, it must ‘constitute an expression of humour or mockery’. The chapter first traces the origin and history of parody in the arts, including music, before discussing the relationship of parody with concepts such as satire, caricature, and pastiche. It then examines why a parody exception has been considered necessary in copyright law. The chapter goes on to analyse the legal evolution of parody in France, Australia, Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom, showing that the existing international human rights framework may influence the definition of parody in intellectual property law.

Acoustic Art Forms in the Age of Recordability

2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 200-206
Author(s):  
Gerald Fiebig
Keyword(s):  
Visual Art ◽  
Electroacoustic Music ◽  
Sound Art ◽  
Sound Recording ◽  
Technological Basis ◽  
Sonic Art ◽  
Art Forms ◽  
The Status ◽  
History Of ◽  
Radio Art

Many theoretical accounts of sound art tend to treat it as a subcategory of either music or visual art. I argue that this dualism prevents many works of sound art from being fully appreciated. My subsequent attempt of finding a basis for a more comprehensive aesthetic of acoustic art forms is helped along by Trevor Wishart’s concept of ‘sonic art’. I follow Wishart’s insight that the status of music was changed by the invention of sound recording and go on to argue that an even more important ontological consequence of recording was the new possibility of storing and manipulating any acoustic event. This media-historic condition, which I refer to as ‘recordability’, spawned three distinct art forms with different degrees of abstraction – electroacoustic music in the tradition of Pierre Schaeffer, gallery-oriented sound art and radiogenic Ars Acustica. Introducing Ars Acustica, or radio art, as a third term provides some perspective on the music/sound art binarism. A brief look at the history of radio art aims at substantiating my claim that all art forms based on recordable sounds can be fruitfully discussed by appreciating their shared technological basis and the multiplicity of their reference systems rather than by subsuming one into another.

scholarly journals Comparative Analysis of the Rattle Calls in Corvus and Nucifraga: The Effect of Body Size, Bill Size, and Phylogeny

The Condor ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 105 (1) ◽  
pp. 139-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paola Laiolo ◽  
Antonio Rolando
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Spectral Properties ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Acoustic Properties ◽  
Frequency Peak ◽  
History Of ◽  
Patterns And Processes ◽  
Bill Length ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Study Species

Abstract We assessed the effect of body size and bill length on the acoustic properties of the rattle calls of 15 corvid species. First, we correlated body traits and the acoustic properties of rattles, regardless of the evolutionary history of the study species. Then we repeated the analysis, taking into account phylogeny and thus excluding its effect on morphological and acoustic characters. When the potential effects of phylogeny were ruled out, the second frequency peak was negatively correlated to body size. The carrying frequency also decreased with decreasing body size, but the relationship was weaker than that resulting from a phylogeny-free analysis. This pattern is consistent with the demonstrated body-size–frequency allometry in the vocalizations of many birds. Bill length also influenced rattle spectral properties. We emphasize that patterns and processes elucidated with comparative studies can be biased if species relatedness is not considered. Análisis Comparativo de las Llamadas de Matraqueo entre Corvus y Nucifraga: Efecto del Tamaño Corporal, Tamaño del Pico y Filogenia Resumen. Evaluamos el efecto del tamaño corporal y la longitud del pico sobre las propiedades acústicas de los llamados de matraqueo de 15 especies de córvidos. Primero, correlacionamos los caracteres corporales con las propiedades acústicas del matraqueo independientemente de la historia evolutiva de las especies estudiadas. Luego, repetimos el análisis tomando en cuenta la filogenia, excluyendo su efecto sobre los caracteres morfológicos y acústicos. Cuando los potenciales efectos filogenéticos fueron removidos, el segundo pico en la frecuencia se correlacionó negativamente con el tamaño corporal. La frecuencia principal también decreció con la disminución del tamaño corporal, pero esta relación fue más débil que la resultante de un análisis sin considerar la filogenia. Este patrón es consistente con la alometría entre el tamaño corporal y la frecuencia de las vocalizaciones de muchas aves. La longitud del pico también influyó sobre las propiedades espectrales del matraqueo. Enfatizamos que los patrones y procesos elucidados a través de estudios comparativos pueden encontrarse sesgados si no se consideran las relaciones entre las especies.

scholarly journals Architecture and music/sound: Points of meeting, networking, interactions

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-88
Author(s):  
Biljana Srećković
Keyword(s):  
Sound Art ◽  
Avant Garde ◽  
Formal Level ◽  
History Of ◽  
Music And Architecture ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Architecture And Music

This paper is devoted to perceiving the relationship between music and architecture, namely, the discourses which interpret, research, value these two practices in the context of their mutual networking. In that respect it is possible to set aside several problem strongholds which will make the focus of this paper, and which concern: the history of forming and evolution of discourse on the inter-relationship of these two practices; modernist, avant-garde and postmodernist problematization of music and architecture; theories of the artists as a field of music and architecture networking; the interaction of music and architecture on the technical and formal level; spatiality of sound, i.e., sound/music propagation in space and the emergence of the new art concepts based on this principle (sound architecture, aural architecture, sound art).

scholarly journals From Orpheus to Bob Dylan: the Story of "Words and Music"

2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 277-301
Author(s):  
Walter Bernhart
Keyword(s):  
Cultural History ◽  
Musical Theatre ◽  
Bob Dylan ◽  
Cultural Conditions ◽  
The Arts ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Relationship

This paper tells a story of the relationship between “words and music” from the viewpoint of changing tendencies to either convergence or distance between the two forms of communication, depending on whether aesthetic dispositions and cultural conditions favour the merging or the drifting apart of both media. Thus, “fusionist” and “separatist” tendencies in the development of the arts are identified as manifested, in Western cultural history, by the impressive span of intermedial interaction extending from early mythical origins (Orpheus) to most recent manifestations (Bob Dylan). The focus is on the history of European musical theatre and the European song tradition. In the latter case, “interpretive” and “non-interpretive” songs are distinguished depending on whether the link between “words and music” is on the semantic or on the prosodic level. Contemporary pop songs, as represented by Dylan, are finally discussed in the context of the terminological framework presented and in view of the age-old tradition of singer-poets.

Sound Art and Time

2021 ◽  
pp. 68-86
Author(s):  
Christoph Cox
Keyword(s):  
Sound Art ◽  
John Cage ◽  
Philosophy Of Time ◽  
Time Duration ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter explores the relationship between sound art and time, focusing on a set of works that mark milestones in the history of sound art and that explicitly engage varieties of temporality. It begins with a discussion of Thomas Edison’s invention of phonography, which allowed sound to be captured and gave it an untimely existence. It then turns to the work of John Cage, analysing it by way of Henri Bergson’s philosophy of time. The essay goes on to discuss the notions of time, duration, and eternity in Maryanne Amacher’s radio works, Max Neuhaus’s installations, La Monte Young’s Dream House, Jem Finer’s Longplayer, and other works.

VISUAL COMMUNICATION OF THE TRADITIONAL HOUSE IN NEGERI SEMBILAN

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 112-123
Author(s):  
Mohd Haizra Hashim ◽  
Abdul Mu’ati Zamri Ahmad ◽  
Muhammad Pauzi Abdul Latif ◽  
Mohd Yazid Mohd Yunos
Keyword(s):  
Visual Communication ◽  
Islamic Law ◽  
Early History ◽  
Islamic Art ◽  
Structural Elements ◽  
History Of ◽  
Surrounding Space ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Selection Of

Visual communication in architecture is a genuine aspiration in realizing the relationship between the Malays and other communities. The composition of the models in this communication is very well organized and will remain relevant to be developed from time to time. It is an observation on the symbols, types of motifs and design aspects of the carvings, also the structural elements in the Malay architecture of Negeri Sembilan. This also comprises the study of the chronology of the early history of the Malay architecture of Negeri Sembilan which has its linkages with the Islamic art. Emphasis is given to the diversity in the carving characteristics as a comparison regarding historical, cultural and environmental backgrounds. The delicacy of the craftsmanship among Malay carvers in Negeri Sembilan is reflected in their maturity and ability to fuse traditional elements and Islam. Symbols that have motifs in the carvings result from the carvers' observation and experience. The selection of these motifs is carefully made to ensure that they are the Islamic teachings and not deviating with the Islamic law. Carvings in the Malay architecture of Negeri Sembilan are also crafted with an aim to beautify a piece of architecture made of various motifs. Those carved parts are always assured to maintain the balance with the surrounding space. Floral motifs are often combined with cosmic or geometrical motifs. In many cases, plant-based motifs are also prevalence translated into carvings. This is a tribute from the Malay carvers to beauty, perfection, and harmony of nature.

Devine Intervention: Collaboration and Conspiracy in the History of the Royal Court

2012 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 363-378 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taryn Storey
Keyword(s):  
Great Britain ◽  
Royal Court ◽  
The Arts ◽  
History Of ◽  
English Stage ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Post War ◽  
The University ◽  
Phd Thesis ◽  
The Relationship

Taryn Storey believes that a series of letters recently discovered in the archive of the Arts Council of Great Britain (ACGB) makes it important that we reassess the genesis of the English Stage Company at the Royal Court. Dating from November 1952, the correspondence between George Devine and William Emrys Williams, the Secretary General of the ACGB, offers an insight into a professional and personal relationship that was to have a profound influence on the emerging Arts Council policy for drama. Storey makes the case that in 1953 Devine not only shaped his Royal Court proposal to fit the priorities of the ACGB Drama Panel, but that Devine and senior members of the ACGB then collaborated to ensure that the proposal became a key part of Arts Council strategic planning. Furthermore, she puts forward the argument that the relationship between Devine and Williams was instrumental to new writing and innovation becoming central to the future rationale for state subsidy to the theatre. Taryn Storey is a doctoral student at the University of Reading. Her PhD thesis examines the relationship between practice and policy in the development of new writing in post-war British theatre, and forms part of the AHRC-funded project ‘Giving Voice to the Nation: The Arts Council of Great Britain and the Development of Theatre and Performance in Britain 1945–1995’, a collaboration between the University of Reading and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

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