Nice review of our Kings Place performance here
” ‘Sound Walk’ was a collaboration between sound artists Tony Whitehead and Matthew Sansom, presented by the Society for the Promotion of New Music. Tony Whitehead had spent a day in and around Kings Cross, keeping a sound diary in which he wrote descriptions of the noises he heard, then honing these descriptions into a poem. Whitehead’s words were projected, verse by verse, onto a screen while we listened to Matthew Sansom’s composition – a soundscape constructed from recordings he had made of the ambient sounds of Kings Cross. This was serious, contemplative work which benefited from being presented in a concert hall: had I encountered it in a gallery or on a CD my attention span might not have been long enough to appreciate it, but sitting in a darkened room, concentrating on the patterns of sounds and words, it was fascinating how things were gradually revealed.”
New text compositions to be posted regularly here.
This text accompanied Mathew Sansom’s field recording based composition performed at King’s Place yesterday as part of a series of SPNM performances. One audience member described it as the “writing of a rural poet with culture shock”!
In a series of short simple texts accompanying a new work by composer Matthew Sansom, Tony will describe his personal impressions of the sounds of Kings Cross. These are based on a close listening to the area in a number of visits over the past few weeks. From footsteps and voices at St Pancras to robins and falling leaves in Argyle Square the descriptions hope to encourage others to consider their relationship to the often overlooked everyday sounds and silences that accompany our lives.
My response to Score 6 of the 17 project here.
Sat quietly at Bellever Tor for one hour just after dawn this morning, watching the driving southerly wind and rain, considering my respose to the 17 score (see previous post).
Dawn, Friday 5 September 2008
As the sun rises I will clamber onto one of the low, flat granite blocks of Bellever Tor. The walk from Bellever Youth Hostel will take an hour, a gentle steady climb through coniferous plantation and heather moor. It may be misty with drizzle. Or the sky may be clear; the air cool, moist and still. I will sit. I will listen, in my head, to the sound of a choir consisting of precisely 17 people. I will remain seated, quietly listening, for one hour, and note what
happens. I will then have a cup of tea.
This will be my requested response to this score.
Details of a performance at Kings Place, London on Sunday 5 October here. Commissioned by SPNM.
Led a couple of soundwalks for LiveArt Falmouth yesterday. A huge programme of activity from artists, video, performance and so on, taking place around town. Particularly interesting, along the main street sound artist Tim Crowley had placed speakers high up in rooms above shops playing sounds recorded on the Seregheti. Some were obviously alien to the high street, but many blended in so much so that they didn’t turn heads of the shoppers and tourists. Indeed, even the sounds of elephants didn’t turn some heads!
… did a show with Richard Povall from Aune Head Arts on Dartington’s Soundart Radio. Find the podcast here. Details of Soundart Radio here.