Serenity and Serendipity (Madras-Madrid) (2010)
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Produced by Auditorio Nacional de Musica de Madrid for indian music festival (June 15 – June 31 2010) Serenity and Serendipity (Madras-Madrid) by Robin Meier and Ali Momeni is a sonic work inspired by superstition, premonition and observation. In the winter of 2009-2010, Meier and Momeni travelled through Sri Lanka and South India in search of practices and practitioners of soothsaying, astrology, prophecy and the like. This work is presented as a musical installation made with recordings from these travels and composed specifically for a garden of hanging loudspeakers in the entry hall of Auditorio Nacional de Musica in Madrid. The musical composition is comprised of Indian soundscapes, electronic sounds, and recordings of astrologers, oracles and rituals that we met or attended during our travels. Sounds are diffused among the array of speakers to create a series of immersive sonic environments that transport the acoustic world of India into the Auditorio Nacional de Musica in Madrid. This version uses an analog-digital spatialisation system diffused through a twenty four channel suspended loud speaker installation.                           |
Relaxation Exercises for the Apocalypse
Inhale, exhale and relax for the ultimate apocalypse. Embark on an astral projection to the astrophysical end of the universe.
Relaxation Exercises for the Apocalypse
Inhale, exhale and relax for the ultimate apocalypse. Embark on an astral projection to the astrophysical end of the universe.
Apophenia – Meaningful Connections Between Things
A neuroscientist, a dancer, a pigeon fancier and a string trio connect neuronal patterns in the brain with patterns in bird flocks, dance, music and language : “neuromancer meets ornithomancer”.
Apophenia – Meaningful Connections Between Things
A neuroscientist, a dancer, a pigeon fancier and a string trio connect neuronal patterns in the brain with patterns in bird flocks, dance, music and language : “neuromancer meets ornithomancer”.
Synchronicity (16mm)
16mm photographic film was directly exposed to the light of two captive fireflies (Pteroptyx malaccae). Inside a dark space, without camera or optics, the insects were simply placed on an analogue film strip.
Synchronicity (16mm)
16mm photographic film was directly exposed to the light of two captive fireflies (Pteroptyx malaccae). Inside a dark space, without camera or optics, the insects were simply placed on an analogue film strip.
Singing with the Insect Choir: A culicomorpha swarm reacting to voices of two scientists
In 1861, the entomologist Osten-Sacken refers to a Cuban naturalist who once told him that whenever the note ‘A’ was played by a band, the swarm of mosquitoes hovering over his head suddenly flew downward toward his face. More recently, during their research on mosquitoes and chironomids, scientists Lionel Feugère and Gabriella Gibson also noticed how these insects react to the sound of their voices. A musical relationship unfolds as night falls on the marshes of Northward Hill in northern Kent.
Singing with the Insect Choir: A culicomorpha swarm reacting to voices of two scientists
In 1861, the entomologist Osten-Sacken refers to a Cuban naturalist who once told him that whenever the note ‘A’ was played by a band, the swarm of mosquitoes hovering over his head suddenly flew downward toward his face. More recently, during their research on mosquitoes and chironomids, scientists Lionel Feugère and Gabriella Gibson also noticed how these insects react to the sound of their voices. A musical relationship unfolds as night falls on the marshes of Northward Hill in northern Kent.
Chimera States: Synchronicity exhibition at EPFL, Switzerland
Current mathematical models don’t capture the complexities of the fireflies’ synchronizing behaviour, instigating the creation of new models called Chimera States. A collaboration with the mathematics department of Northwestern University resulted in a multichannel video installation “Chimera States”, displayed at EPFL Pavilions in 2023.
Chimera States: Synchronicity exhibition at EPFL, Switzerland
Current mathematical models don’t capture the complexities of the fireflies’ synchronizing behaviour, instigating the creation of new models called Chimera States. A collaboration with the mathematics department of Northwestern University resulted in a multichannel video installation “Chimera States”, displayed at EPFL Pavilions in 2023.
Truce (Concert Version)
Concert for live mosquitoes, Dhrupad singer and Ondes Martenot
Dreamachine
During la Nuit Blanche in Paris, Dream Machine transformed the Paris Art Lab pavilion into a hypnotic sound installation. This concert-installation channeled the ghosts of Brion Gysin, Marian Zazeela and La Monte Young propagating clouds of psychedelic beat culture into the parisian air. Several musicians connect with this sensorial experience through a series of concerts – a trip to be enjoyed with your eyes closed.
Dreamachine
During la Nuit Blanche in Paris, Dream Machine transformed the Paris Art Lab pavilion into a hypnotic sound installation. This concert-installation channeled the ghosts of Brion Gysin, Marian Zazeela and La Monte Young propagating clouds of psychedelic beat culture into the parisian air. Several musicians connect with this sensorial experience through a series of concerts – a trip to be enjoyed with your eyes closed.
Satie Variations (Offspring)
Satie Variations is a generative composition commissioned by Pierre Huyghe for a new version of his Untitled (Light Show). The composition is a custom algorithm based on a recurrent neural network (Performance RNN, Max, Bach library, etc.) and is trained to play infinite variations of Erik Satie’s Gymnopédies 1 & 3.
Satie Variations (Offspring)
Satie Variations is a generative composition commissioned by Pierre Huyghe for a new version of his Untitled (Light Show). The composition is a custom algorithm based on a recurrent neural network (Performance RNN, Max, Bach library, etc.) and is trained to play infinite variations of Erik Satie’s Gymnopédies 1 & 3.
Collective Feeding
In 2014, Dutch authorities began to kill a small population of house crows (corvus splendens) near the Port of Rotterdam. The crows likely arrived from Sri Lanka around 1994 as stowaways on a commercial container boat. Apparently, international trade in a country is now understood to be the most reliable predictor of the number of introduced species found there. The house crows were all killed, except for one that found shelter in a Dutch apartment.
Collective Feeding
In 2014, Dutch authorities began to kill a small population of house crows (corvus splendens) near the Port of Rotterdam. The crows likely arrived from Sri Lanka around 1994 as stowaways on a commercial container boat. Apparently, international trade in a country is now understood to be the most reliable predictor of the number of introduced species found there. The house crows were all killed, except for one that found shelter in a Dutch apartment.
The Vanishing Actor
A contribution by Bastien Gallet and myself to a special issue of Architectural Design (Volume 87, Issue 4 – July 2017) edited by Skylar Tibbits, “AD Autonomous Assembly: Designing for a New Era of Collective Construction“. PDF link below:
The Vanishing Actor
A contribution by Bastien Gallet and myself to a special issue of Architectural Design (Volume 87, Issue 4 – July 2017) edited by Skylar Tibbits, “AD Autonomous Assembly: Designing for a New Era of Collective Construction“. PDF link below:
