Experiencing Organised Sounds: The listening experience across sound-based works. Abingdon: Routledge – x, 229p. + copious media examples online.
Experiencing Organised Sounds investigates a wide horizon of sound-based works using a template consistently across its 16 studies. It has been written for both specialist and non-specialist readers aiming to address means of increasing appreciation and understanding related to the experience of sonic creativity (music involving any sounds, not just musical notes) across this repertoire, as well as to launch a discussion about how the reception of sonic creativity can be influenced by the circumstances of listening – in particular, regarding the qualitative difference between the in-situ as opposed to mediated experience. Although listening is the volume’s focus, complementary information from the musicians is offered to facilitate holistic work overviews. As the first composition presented was composed by a 15-year-old, the intention is to demonstrate that what might be considered a niche area of the contemporary arts is one in which both increased appreciation and participation could and should easily be achieved. The book’s work discussions are divided over three central chapters focused on fixed-medium compositions, performed and sound artworks. Experiencing Organised Sounds can be used as an undergraduate textbook, by experienced readers or those new to the area. All works discussed and related materials are available to readers online.
Table of Contents
1 To start
What this book is all about
Building on the author’s previous work
Regarding the central part of the book
2 Work discussions across sound-based creativity – Fixed Medium
Acousmatic/1 – Florian Sulpice: C’est wiizzz!!!
Acousmatic/2 – John Young: Three Spaces in Mid-Air
Soundscape – Katerina Tzedaki: a soundwalk
lowercase – Simon Atkinson: interiorities viii
+ Kerry Francksen/Simon Atkinson: Betwixt & Between
Electronic/formalised – Kevin Dahan: Gravitational Landscape
(with tinnitus)
Visual music – Bret Battey: Three Breaths in Empty Space
Text-sound + sample-based – Leigh Landy: On the Éire
3 Work discussions across sound-based creativity – Live
Mixed music – Simon Emmerson: Solo Flute Quartet
Improvised – James Andean: Third Space
Live coding – Anna Xambó: MTI@20 – Leicester, UK
DIY electronics – John Richards: Motor Music
Turntablism – dj sniff (Takuro Mizuta Lippit):
untitled performance
Performance art – Neal Spowage: Noise Loop Bootstrap
4 Work discussions across sound-based creativity – Sound art
Installations/1 – Francesc Martí: Speech cycle
Installations/2 – Peter Batchelor: Contraption
Objects – Sam Topley: Noisy Pompoms
5 To end
References
Appendix – The Intention/Reception Form Used in the Book
Glossary