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Mark Fell premieres 7 Facts In Logical Space—his new multi-channel project for the Chicago Architecture Biennial and Lampo. The UK composer will position 24 speakers around Preston Bradley Hall and manipulate electronic sound in dialogue with the acoustic and architectural space.
Conceived as a sonic framework for the Chicago-based bassoonist and improviser Katherine Young, the piece develops Fell’s concern with the spatial distribution of synthetic sound in response to the architectural environment and the interplay of geometries. Fell describes the piece in terms of the relationships between shapes and textures, between the oblique network of synthetic lines and the visceral, organic pacing of Young’s turbulent acoustic timbres.
In contrast to many spatial pieces, the work does not employ any surround-sound systems to create the appearance of sonic movement around the space and audience. Fell uses “concrete” approaches to the treatment of sonic and musical space that reject illusion and decoration in favor of the objective presence of material form.
Mark Fell is a multidisciplinary artist based in Sheffield (UK). Fell is widely known for exploring the relationships between popular music styles, such as electronica and club musics, and typically academic approaches to computer-based composition with a particular emphasis on algorithmic and mathematical systems. Since his early electronic music pieces Fell’s practice has expanded to include moving image works, sound and light installation, choregoraphy, critical texts, curatorial projects and educational activities. He has worked with a number of artists including Yasunao Tone, Keith Fullerton Whitman, Okkyung Lee, Luke Fowler, Peter Gidal, John Chowning, Ernest Edmonds, Peter Rehberg, Oren Ambarchi and Carl Michael von Hausswolff
As a bassoonist and improviser, Katherine Young amplifies her instrument and employs a flexible electronics set-up. The curious timbres, expressive noises, and kinetic structures of her electro-acoustic music explore the dramatic physicality of sound, shifting interpersonal dynamics, and associations with the familiar and the strange. Ensemble Dal Niente, Wet Ink, Talea, String Orchestra of Brooklyn, Spektral Quartet and Fonema Consort have performed her music. Collaboration is central to her practice, and she has documented such work on numerous recordings. At Oberlin, Katherine studied bassoon performance and comparative literature; she completed her masters in composition at Wesleyan University, working with Anthony Braxton, Ron Kuivila and Alvin Lucier.
This event is presented in partnership with Lampo. Founded in 1997, it is the mission of Lampo to promote and support artists working in experimental music by commissioning, producing, and presenting new works for performance in Chicago; organizing workshops and lectures; and collaborating with both the Chicago arts community and national partners. The organization carefully curates each season of concerts—bringing musicians and composers from around the world to Chicago, and supporting the creation and presentation of new works. By design, Lampo produces few projects annually, focusing special attention on each one, and making each a distinct experience for the artists and their audience.
