Sonic Art & Sound Design- P30:Sonic art is a new art form, or rather, forms. As we shall see, it can encompass a wide range of activities, perhaps wider than almost any other art form. It is an unusual case, based upon a medium that has traditionally been regarded as inferior and subservient to other creative or expressive forms. | EXHIBITING O O O O O Ralf Nuhn Ralf Nuhn born in 1971 near Kassel is a London- and Lille-based intermedia artist who has exhibited and performed internationally. He is currently working as a practice-based researcher at the Lansdown Centre for Electronic Arts London where he is also completing his PhD in Media Arts. Right Staccato Death Life This 2000 work won Nuhn the prestigious Bourges Prize while still an undergraduate student. Staccato Death Life is a sculptural collage of eleven household objects taken from the artist s kitchen which are set into vibration by the plunger strokes of twelve electromagnets. MAX MSP software environment hosts different often chance-based algorithms which are randomly selected over time. Some of these algorithms were written by the artist but the majority had been sent to the artist by composers from all over the world. Secondly members of the audience can trigger the electromagnets individually by pressing the corresponding bang buttons on the computer screen. The underlying concept for this project was to transpose the artist s own composition and performance practice - which often evolves around collaborative projects audience participation and the use of every-day objects as sound sources as well as sculptural objects - into an interactive installation that invites to play but can ultimately also perform itself. By eliminating the necessity of a human performer the artist intends to create a performance situation that is focused on the objects and their sonic characteristics rather than on the musical gestures and interpretations of a live player. Image courtesy of Chris Amey 144 145 Barney Strachan Barney Strachan s background is as a musician producer of a broad range of styles of music including composing using environmental sounds. As a member of more mainstream bands he has been signed recorded albums made music videos and played promotional gigs in America Holland and extensively across the UK. He has also been involved
