[microsound-announce] Field Recording e Soundscape Composition Workshop

[U.S.O. Project]

Speakers: Federico Placidi, Matteo Milani (U.S.O. Project)


"Listening to the environment, contextualizing it objectively and
creatively has always been a priority of the work of U.S.O. Project.

Free from any pseudo-environmental or socio-political implication, the
continuous work on sampling, processing and transfiguration of found
sound and carefully preserved in memory of a digital recorder, has
always played a central role in our compositional practices.

U.S.O. defines Soundscape as the expressive and narrative richness
that comes from the reciprocal and continuous interaction of multiple
sound sources from the real world, and other phenomena which are
perceptible and measurable only through proper and adequate
transduction (electromagnetic signals, for example).

A Soundscape is also an opportunity for reflection and imagination
that has little to share with the real world.

A Soundscape can be a place of the mind, a reminiscence of a future
experienced in dreams, lands far away in space and time.

We try to deal with the possible infinites of the listening
experience, both in their objective and manufactured dimensions.

We believe this represents our primary objective, to render the
endless possibilities of life and its surroundings, sensible and
experienceable in our conscious activity."


Objectives of the Workshop:

Students will be encouraged to actively listen to the rich sound world
around them. Their imagination and creativity will be stimulated, and
at the end of the course they will create a sound composition using
the world around them as a musical instrument.


The workshop offers an introduction to theory and practice as follows:

An historical perspective on the Soundscape Composition.
Tools and methodologies for field recordings.
The listening practice to analyze the characteristics of ambient sound.
A practical approach to the transformation of sound.
Composition with three-dimensional space. The Ambisonics format.
Tools and Advanced spatialization Techniques.


Target

Anyone interested in the Soundscape Composition and sound field experimentation.


Structure of the course

1) Introduction

Brief history of soundscape composition, with examples drawn from the
work of contemporary artists who incorporate the practice of Field
Recording in their compositions.
Introduction to the concept of "soundscape".

2) Tools

Field Recordist's Tools: microphones and recorders.
Conventional microphones techniques and creative miking.

3) Sound Transformation

Manipulation and digital signal processing techniques (VST+AU).
Filtering.
Convolution.
Granular Timeshifting.
PhaseVocoder.

4) Composing in Space

Multichannel Surround Sound.
HOA (Higher-Order Ambisonics).
Tools for encoding and decoding.


At the end of the four-day workshop, participants will develop a short
sound composition (about 6 min.) using the concepts and techniques
acquired during the various modules.


Duration:

4 days / 17-18, 24-25 September 2011

10 a.m. to 7 p.m.


Costs and subscription

To participate in the workshop you must register no later than 10th
September 2011. The fee is € 100.

For more information about the registration, please write to
workshop at sincronie.org.


SoundWalking

Listening paths and outdoor recordings. The participants will take
part in a "sound walk" to "collect" their point of view of a
soundscape with their digital portable recorders, as defined by a
preplanned route. Editing sessions of the collected material.


Requirements:

It is recommended that participants bring their own laptop, a portable
recorder and headphones.

The number is limited to 14 participants.


[Subscribe now]
http://www.sincronie.org/ita/form/workshop/02.php