This month we’re delighted to hand over the curatorial reins to MW Intern Michelle Nguyen.  The playlist theme centres on the idea of our relationship and place within external environments, both ecological and social, and also our internal selves, looking at identity and memory. In this playlist, place is explored in its physical manifestations, as well as its changing and ephemeral nature.

The interactions we have with the natural environments we inhabit are explored through pieces by David Burraston, May Lyon, and Elissa Goodrich, while Josten Myburgh, Aviva Endean, and Gabrielle Cadenhead’s pieces inquire into our relationship with place in urban, social, and controlled environments. Electro Fractal Gamelan and Connect Four by two amazing members of the Making Waves team, Peggy Polias and Alexis Weaver, take a look inwards to nostalgia, memory, and places in time.

With an overarching soundscape of electronics, field recordings, extended techniques, and musique concrete, these pieces all explore an element of noise and uncertainty, which exposes a lot of our human qualities. In looking for perfection, the glitches, unintended sounds, and accidents have all contributed to our musical culture and the wide variety of sounds we enjoy.

This playlist includes a video of Hapnophobia by Aviva Endean, which is a site-specific work that encompasses the audio, visual, and tactile realms. The video functions as a score for the audience as they move throughout a specific location at the arts centre, and would ideally be watched or performed in location.

SOUNDCLOUD

Hear something that catches your attention? To find out more about a musical work, click on the track name in the playlist and then again on ‘view track’. To find out more about a particular composer, click on their name in the ‘Details’ section below.

DETAILS

1. Josten Myburgh, The silver morning shifts their birds from tree to tree
   For ensemble and generative software. Performed by Josten Myburgh (saxophone, percussion), Nate Wood (violin) and Dan O’Connor (trumpet)
2. Peggy Polias, Electro Fractal Gamelan
   Performed by Kaylie Dunstan (solo percussion)
3. Alexis Weaver, Connect Four
   For electronics, featuring the voices of Mimi Kind, Jack Greenough, Hannah Woolley and Louis Sharpe.
4. May Lyon, Bugs
   Performed by Alister Barker (cello) and Chien-Hsie Ong (cello).
5. Elissa Goodrich, Rarified Air Elegy
   Performed by Caerwen Martin (cello) and Elissa Goodrich (vibraphone).
6. David Burraston, RAINWIRE PROTOTYPE
   For long form Rainwire Prototype recordings at The Wired Lab, NSW, Australia.
7. Gabrielle Cadenhead, She Stands
   For spoken voice, harp and electronics. Words spoken by Gabrielle Cadenhead. Original harp sounds provided by Kaela Phillips.

YouTube

1. Aviva Endean, Hapnophobia
   For audience.

We’d love to hear about your listening experience! Share your thoughts or send messages of support to our featured composers and performers in the comment box below. We also encourage you to click through to Soundcloud or YouTube to like, comment and subscribe to Making Waves as well as the composers, performers, and presenters featured.

The Place Waves playlist will be featured until the 1st of June 2018. All previous playlists from 2015 to present are available in our blog archives for the life of the project, so please do explore the website for previously featured sounds.