Kagel’s interest in the theatricality of objects is also a demonstration of the detachment he wishes to keep between an object and its function, presenting situations with diverse interpretative possibilities, keeping the audience frustrated as to the purpose of the actions and the objects connected with them. Repertoire, a movement taken from his major theatre work Staatstheater, presents a hundred …

In 1962 the Argentine-German composer Mauricio Kagel (1931-2008) completed an innovative multimedia/interdisciplinary piece, Antithese für einen Darsteller mit elektronischen und öffentlichen Klängen. The unique compositional style and formal structure consisting of heterogeneous compositional components reflected his profound insights into issues inherent in postwar avant-garde music. Kagel remarked strikingly that “anarchy in the piece was omnipresent.” Indeed, his use of the …

Viktor Vladimirovich Khlebnikov was born in 1885 in Malye Derbety, Astrakhan Governorate, Russian Empire ( in present-day Kalmykia). He was of Russian, Armenian and Zaporozhian Cossack descent. He moved to Kazan, where he attended school. He then attended school in Saint Petersburg. He eventually quit school to become a full-time writer. Khlebnikov belonged to Hylaea, the most significant Russian Futurist …

Caten . 2012 Kinetic sound installation by David Letellier davidletellier.net Created for the Saint Sauveur chapel in Caen, Caten is a levitating sculpture, determined by gravity and guiding the evolution of a sound composition. 300 fine wires suspended from two ropes, connected themselves at each end to a slowly rotating arm, form an evanescent surface which interacts with the architecture. …

Home of the Brave is a 1986 American concert film directed by and featuring the music of Laurie Anderson. The film’s full on-screen title is Home of the Brave: A Film by Laurie Anderson. The performances were filmed at the Park Theater in Union City, NJ, during the summer of 1985. Good Evening (instrumental) Zero and One (spoken word) Excellent …

Maryanne Amacher (1943-2009) October 22, 2009 by Kyle Gann [For emendation to the above dates, see updates below.] The music world lost one of its most bizarre characters today, and I say that with the utmost affection. Maryanne Amacher was an amazing composer of sound installations, who occasionally taught courses at Bard. I first encountered her in 1980 at New Music America …

Ned Lagin (born March 17, 1948) is an American artist, photographer, scientist, composer, and keyboardist. Lagin is considered a pioneer in the development and use of minicomputers and personal computers in real-time stage and studio music composition and performance. Ned Lagin was born in New York City and raised on Long Island in Roslyn Heights, New York. Growing up, Lagin …

“Bacchus”, a new installation by DissoNoiSex (Asia Piascik, Stefan Kersten and Miguel Álvarez-Fernández), presented at the Vinfonies Festival (Vilafranca del Penedès, Barcelona), 10-13 November 2011. “Bacchus” is based on the electrical conductivity of wine: even the slightest trace of fluid on the smooth, white surface closes an oscillatory feedback loop between three metal electrodes and produces a manifold of sounds, …

Kenji Kojima has been experimenting with the relationships between perception and cognition, technology, music and visual art since early 90s. Born in Japan, and moved to New York in 1980. He created RGB Music series, an interdisciplinary work exploring the relation between images and music. In 2008, as part of the series, the sound installation “Subway Synesthesia” exhibited in New York …

Milan Adamčiak (1946) is a Slovak composer, cellist and musicologist; author of acoustic objects, installations and unconventional musical instruments; a performer, visual artist, experimental poet, and mystifier. Biography Born 1946 in Ružomberok. After studying cello at the Music school in Žilina (1962-1968) he continued his music studies at the Faculty of Philosophy of Comenius University Bratislava (1968-1973). In 1972-1991 he worked at the Institute of …