Curated by Russell Haswell.
Bernie Krause, Chris Watson, Russell Haswell, Tony Myatt.

Hoffmann Building,
Snape Maltings,
Saturday 7 November,
8pm - midnight

Tickets: £10
Box OfficeL 01728 687110 and www.aldeburgh.co.uk

For this pioneering Faster Than Sound project, leading UK multidisciplinary artist Russell Haswell brings together two of the world’s most acclaimed wildlife sound recordist and electronic music pioneers, UK’s Chris Watson and America’s Bernie Krause. They will join Haswell and surround sound researcher Dr Tony Myatt in a week long residency that will include talks, local field recording and culminate in a four hour three dimensional audio performance. The performance will integrate rarely experienced soundscapes from across the globe and electronic sound, presented over a bespoke three-dimensional sound system as a promenade performance.

We have all heard the work of Watson and Krause, either through the soundtracks of David Attenborough’s wildlife documentaries or in epic films like Apocalypse Now. These two extraordinary talents also have a shared history as pioneers of electronic music, but have never previously met. Krause is also known for bringing the Moog synthesiser to Europe (introducing it to The Beatles and Stones. Chris Watson, prior to his work on BBC’s natural history programmes such as Spring Watch, was a member of Cabaret Voltaire and The Hafer Trio integrating experimental recording techniques and sound manipulations. Both artists have been powerfully influential on the development of electronic music.

For the Faster Than Sound residency Haswell has also invited Ambisonics and surround sound researcher Dr Tony Myatt, Director of the University of York Music Research Centre. Tony will work with the artists to experiment with the latest 360 degree soundfield recording technology, and will develop a new third order ambisonic sound system for the event, combining octagonal and cubic loudspeaker arrays, to provide a three-dimensional canvas for sound projection in the Aldeburgh Music’s Britten Studio. The audience will be able to experience a fully immersive acoustic habitat that combines some of the most incredible sounds from the natural world plus experimental and electronic recordings.

The residency was conceived and curated by Russell Haswell, who has previously curated for PS1/MOMA in New York, All Tomorrows Parties and Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary. Russell also releases computer generated sound recordings on such prestigious labels as Mego, WARP and Warner Classical.

The event is produced by Aldeburgh Music with Joana Seguro. Faster Than Sound continues a long tradition at Aldeburgh of giving artists the space and opportunity to experiment and work in new ways. After three years staging Faster Than Sound at Bentwaters Airbase, as part of the Aldeburgh Festival, the possibilities for forging innovative collaborations between the worlds of classical and electronic music, players and composers and new technologies became apparent. What was needed however was more time to really make these partnerships flourish. Thanks to funding from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, Faster Than Sound now takes the form of five week- long residencies a year which bring composers, players, technology and the natural environment together to create new work that is then premiered in Aldeburgh Music’s new workspace facilities at Snape, the recently converted industrial spaces known as the Hoffmann Building.