I have been invited to give a lecture on optical sound synthesis as well as perform the TONEWHEELS live set as part of the Eye for an Ear Festival in Berlin later this month. There are quite a few other amazing people involved in this, namely Andrei Smirnov, whose recent book “Sound in Z: Experiments In Sound And Electronic Music In Early 20th Century Russia” is one of the best things I’ve read in the last year.

Full details should be available on the NK website soon, and those of you with FaceBook can access the event page here.

LECTURE

“A Brief History of Optical Synthesis”, a lecture by Derek Holzer, Wed June 26th 21:00 at NK Projekt Berlin

The technology of direct optical synthesis arose with the first sound-on-film motion pictures. In the 1930′s, several designs for optical synthesizers were produced in the USSR, Germany and United States, with a handful even being commercially realized to great amount of techno-utopian hype. The future of sound, we were assured, was made of light.

However, the use of optical synthesis for electronic music creation was largely abandoned after the Second World War in favor of techniques derived from new military technologies which made the V2 rocket and the atomic bomb possible. Thus, contemporary research into optical sound synthesis represents a media-archaeology of “the road not taken”, that of a connection to the culture of film and music versus the science of destruction and death.

PERFORMANCE

TONEWHEELS (Derek Holzer: sounds, electronics), Friday June 28th 20:00 at NK Projekt Berlin

TONEWHEELS is an experiment in converting graphical imagery to sound, inspired by some of the pioneering 20th Century electronic music inventions. Transparent tonewheels with repeating patterns are spun over light-sensitive electronic circuitry to produce sound and light pulsations and textures. This all-analog set is performed entirely live without the use of computers, using only overhead projectors as light source, performance interface and audience display. In this way, TONEWHEELS aims to open up the “black box” of electronic music and video by exposing the working processes of the performance for the audience to see.

The Benjolin is a standalone synthesizer designed by Rob Hordijk from the Netherlands. It contains two oscillators (one LFO and one VCO), a low pass filter and a circuit called a “Rungler”, which allows chaotic cross-modulation possibilities between the different parts of the circuit. Hordijk refers to the Benjolin as a circuit which has been “bent by design.”

These hand-made Macumbista Benjolins have been further customized with a patchbay, which can be used to interface with other modular synthesizers, or to setup further feedback systems within the Benjolin itself, a switchable external line input to the Benjolin filter and LEDs displaying the internal state of the Rungler.

For Spring 2013, I will produce five of these Benjolins, housed in antique wooden slide/dia boxes. One Benjolin from this run has been sold, and four more are available for order, with shipping on or before 21 June 2013.

The price for each is EUR 465 (incl EU VAT) / EUR 390 (non-EU) plus shipping (approx EUR 18 Europe, EUR 20 World). These Benjolins are produced under licensed agreement with Rob Hordijk.

This instrument ships with an external 110V or 220V AC/AC converter wall power supply.

Please email MACUMBISTA at the domain GMAIL dot COM with orders and inquiries. Other customizations are available on request. Thank you for your kind attention.

AUDIO DEMOS

Quick and dirty demo of Benjolin 2013v1, the first of several Benjolins to be built for sale in 2013.

A familiar old loop run through the filter section of the Macumbista Benjolin2013v2 via simple line-in modification. Filter cutoff frequency modulated by hand, by the two oscillators and Rungler sections of the Benjolin and by various control voltages available from the banana-jack patchbay.

I am pleased to finally announce that I will be the co-curator of the next LAK Festival for Nordic Sound Art in Copenhagen, over the weekend of 26-29 September 2013.

My main contribution to the festival program is a series of workshops around the theme of the “Fifth Wall”. If the well-known “fourth wall” refers to the boundary between the artist and their audience, often “broken” through techniques of meta-narrative in theater and film, the term “fifth wall” could describe the boundaries between the audience members themselves during a shared artistic experience. The Fifth Wall Workshops series for the LAK Festival 2013 concerns itself with how this boundary can be broken within the traditional festival format of performance, installation and lecture, and in a world where almost everyone has become a digital art producer. These workshops emphasize participatory situations which transform festival visitors from passive receivers to active creators of sound art. Eventually, both “artist” and “wall” dissolve away, leaving the responsibility of presenting the workshop results with the participants themselves.

I look forward to sharing the list of invited workshop artists next month when everything is confirmed. Further information on the festival itself should soon be available at the following locations:

http://www.lakfestival.dk/

http://www.facebook.com/Lakfestival

SOUNDBOXES WORKSHOP with DEREK HOLZER

DATE: 25 May 2013
TIME: 12pm – 7pm
LOCATION: Stpln, Stapelbäddsgatan 3, Malmö (map at : http://stpln.se/ )
PUBLIC PRESENTATION: 8pm (please invite your friends!)
COST: 100 SEK (plus one box to bring, see below)

Strictly limited to 12 places! Please register by sending an email to ljudlek (at) gmail (dot) com with ‘Soundboxes Workshop’ as the subject.

WHAT IT’S ALL ABOUT

Discover the hidden sonic qualities of objects from our everyday world in this hands-on workshop, combining the arts of electronics, noise, sculpture and collage. The basic elements we will employ are a wooden box, a speaker, a small audio amplifier and a contact microphone. To this, brave box-builders will add their own found objects, graphics, images, memories and ideas to create a unique electroacoustic cabinet of curiosities.

WHAT TO BRING

I will provide most of the tools and materials necessary for constructing the box, however there are a few things you should bring yourself:

1) A BOX (REQUIRED): This should be made of thin wood or very strong cardboard. No metal! This box should be a minimum of 10x10x4cm. Cigar boxes, small suitcases, instrument cases or jewelry/silverware boxes are all good things to look for.

IMPORTANT: The lid of the box should be no more than 5mm thick, to allow the hardware to be mounted.

2) A SPEAKER (OPTIONAL): If you want a speaker larger than the 92mm ones I will provide, you can salvage one from old hi-fi systems, clock radios or portable stereos. Please make sure it fits in the box you have chosen!

3) FOUND/SOUND OBJECTS (OPTIONAL): Please bring as many found objects as you can to decorate your soundbox or use as a sound source via the contact microphone. See VIDEOS and PHOTOS links below for inspiration.

VIDEOS

http://vimeo.com/16567547
https://vimeo.com/34477093

MORE INFO + PHOTOS

http://macumbista.net/?page_id=1897

ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR

Derek Holzer (1972) is an American instrument builder and sound artist based in Berlin DE, whose current interests include DIY analog electronics, field recording, media archaeology and the meeting points of electroacoustic, noise, improv and extreme music. He has played live experimental sound, as well as taught noise art technology workshops across Europe, North America, Brazil and New Zealand.

This workshop has been organized by James Brewster with support from Kulturbryggan.

These SoundBoxes are unique, handmade works of sonic art, made from German cigar boxes dating from the 1930′s to the 1960′s, and feature transparent and backlit 77mm black speakers, a resonant-spring contact mic, a line-out for recording and “circuit-bending” body contacts. They can also simply be used as cigar-box amplifiers for whatever other electronic instruments you might have.

Each of these SoundBoxes can be purchased for EUR 95 (incl. 19% EU VAT) / EUR 80 (non-EU) plus postage costs. Please include the number in the edition which interests you.

This is the second ten of an edition of thirty this season. The first ten, featuring a larger, black speaker, may be seen here.

Contact “macumbista” AT_THE_DOMAIN “gmail.com”. And thanks for your kind attention.

REMAINING BOXES FROM THIS LINE: 14/30, 16/30, 17/30, 18/30. All others reserved or sold.

Saturday May 11 2013, 14:00-18:00
Sunday May 12 2013, 14:00-18:00

Discover the hidden sonic qualities of objects from our everyday world in this one day workshop, combining the arts of electronics, noise, sculpture and collage. The basic elements of this workshop are a wooden box, a speaker, a small audio amplifier, and a contact microphone. To this, brave box-builders will add their own found objects, graphics, images, memories and ideas to create a unique electroacoustic cabinet of curiosities.

No previous electronics experience is necessary for this workshop. Each participant is required to bring several items to the workshop, please see below.

WHAT TO BRING:

I will provide most of the tools and materials necessary for constructing the box, however there are a few things you should bring yourself:

1) A BOX: This should be made of thin wood or very strong cardboard. Plastic can be also used, but it doesn’t sound very good. And please, no metal! It is too difficult to cut and drill with the tools we will have. This box should be a minimum of 10x10x4cm, or bigger if you want to use a larger speaker or have more room to decorate and add objects. Cigar boxes, small suitcases, instrument cases or jewelry/silverware boxes are all good things to look for. At least one side of the box should be no more than 5mm thick, to allow the hardware to be mounted.

2) A SPEAKER (OPTIONAL): I will have a selection of speakers for participants to use. However, if you have something special please bring it along, but please make sure it fits in the box you have chosen!

3) FOUND OBJECTS: Please bring as many found objects as you can to decorate your soundbox or use as a sound source via the contact microphone. Bones, shells, small sticks, bells, strings, wires, springs (especially!) or anything else made out of solid yet resonant material make great sound sources. Photographs, cloth, leather, paper or any other kind of material can be useful for covering the box and making collages. Paint, markers and pens may also be useful.

FURTHER INFO:

You can see videos and photos from previous SoundBoxes workshops here:

http://macumbista.net/?page_id=1897

You can see all posts related to SoundBoxes, including ones I have made for sale recently, here:

http://macumbista.net/?tag=soundboxes

ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR:

Derek Holzer (1972) is an American sound artist based in Berlin, whose current interests include DIY analog electronics, sound art, field recording and the meeting points of electroacoustic, noise, improv and extreme music. He has played live experimental sound, as well as taught workshops in noise art technology, across Europe, North America, Brazil and New Zealand.

http://macumbista.net/

BASIC INFO:

Fee: EUR 30 (participation) + EUR 10 (materials)

Registration is required and can be done by sending an email to info@nkprojekt.de with the subject line “SoundBoxes”. This is a one day workshop, please indicate which day (SAT or SUN) you would like to attend when making your reservation.

Number of Participants: Minimum 6/Maximum 12

LOCATION:

NK Projekt
Elsenstr. 52 2HH 2Etage
12059 Berlin
+49(0)17620626386

I have been doing a lot of soul-searching lately about my relationship with this fine arts world. So much of it seems like pretentious, hyper-conceptual rubbish made by and for an over-educated elite whose values I am increasingly coming not to share.

But my main problem is with the economics of the whole thing. As an “artist” (rather than a “craftsman”, “designer”, “technician” or some other lower life form in the fine arts food chain), you are expected to live almost entirely on symbolic compensation for your labor.

Thus, I have reached the conclusion that I can no longer afford to be a “free artist”. Until my debts, rent, grocery bills, health insurance, therapy for my messed-up mind (an unaffordable luxury!) and the material costs of making my art become merely symbolic, I will no longer make art for symbolic compensation–travel, drinks, dinner or that elusive non-thing referred to as “exposure”.

The academics who write those long, convoluted essays about how REVOLUTIONARY everything is, or even the carpenter who makes the fittings for the gallery, all have a better and more stable income than most professional artists. Give me an honest day’s wage for an honest day’s labor!

Why most of my friends, the new slave class of the 21st Century, are relegating themselves to anything less is beyond me.

Derek Holzer
Berlin, 27 April 2013.

These SoundBoxes are unique, handmade works of sonic art, made from German cigar boxes dating from the 1930′s to the 1960′s, and feature 92mm black speakers, a resonant-spring contact mic, a line-out for recording and “circuit-bending” body contacts. They can also simply be used as cigar-box amplifiers for whatever other electronic instruments you might have.

Each of these SoundBoxes can be purchased for EUR 83 (EU) / EUR 69.75 (non-EU) plus postage costs. Please include the number in the edition which interests you.

This is the first ten of an edition of thirty this season. The second ten SoundBoxes in this edition feature a smaller, backlit 77mm transparent speaker with artwork inside the boxes, and can be seen here.

Contact “macumbista” AT_THE_DOMAIN “gmail.com”. Thank you for your kind attention.

REMAINING BOXES FROM THIS LINE: 4/30 (RESERVED), 8/30 (RESERVED). All others SOLD.

The Benjolin is a standalone synthesizer designed by Rob Hordijk from the Netherlands. It contains two oscillators (one LFO and one VCO), a pair of band-pass filters and a circuit Hordijk calls a “Rungler”, which allows chaotic cross-modulation possibilities between the different parts of the circuit. This hand-made Benjolin has been further customized with a patchbay, which can be used to interface with other modular synthesizers, or to setup further feedback systems within the Benjolin itself, as well as LEDs displaying the internal state of the Rungler. It includes a European power supply (other power supplies available on request). This Benjolin is for sale for EUR 400 (EU)/ EUR 336,13 (non-EU), plus shipping, and is produced under license from Rob Hordijk. Contact “macumbista” AT THE DOMAIN “gmail.com”.

This Benjolin is SOLD! Will be working on a few more in the coming weeks. Get in touch if interested.

SADLY, I WAS FORCED TO CANCEL THIS APPEARANCE DUE TO ILLNESS

Konspirationen #4.13

Fylkingen, Stockholm 13 April 2013

This gig comes at the end of a short residency at EMS Stockholm with Icelandic artist and instrument-builder Halldor Ulfarsson, whose eponymous “Halldorophone” augments the traditional cello form with a controlled electronic feedback system, allowing new tones and timbres to emerge from the instrument. During this collaborative performance, Berlin-based American sound artist Derek Holzer will insert the EMS studio’s legendary Buchla synthesizer into that feedback loop to further control and manipulate the sonic spectrum produced by this unique instrument.

I will also begin a new line of Spring SoundBoxes for 2013 very soon!

Solstice SoundBox 9/30 SOLD!

This box features a 92mm black paper speaker, a hi-gain input (silver jack), volume control, audio-responsive LED light, and six “cracklebox” style body contacts housed in a vintage cardboard silverware case. This SoundBox ships with a resonant coil contact microphone. Price: EUR 55 + shipping from Berlin and European VAT (if applicable).

Solstice SoundBox 28/30 SOLD!

This box features a 92mm black paper speaker, a hi-gain input (silver jack), a line out (black jack), volume control, audio-responsive LED light, and six “cracklebox” style body contacts housed in a 1950′s cedar cigar box. The original paper hinge has been reenforced with archival bookbinder’s tape. This SoundBox ships with a resonant coil contact microphone. Price: EUR 75 + shipping from Berlin and European VAT (if applicable).

Solstice SoundBox 29/30 SOLD!

This box features a 92mm black paper speaker, a hi-gain input (silver jack), a line out (black jack), volume control, audio-responsive LED light, and six “cracklebox” style body contacts housed in a contemporary cigar box. The original paper hinge has been reenforced with archival bookbinder’s tape. This SoundBox ships with a resonant coil contact microphone. Price: EUR 65 + shipping from Berlin and European VAT (if applicable). Please note that this box clearly says “Made in Cuba” in several places, therefore I cannot guarantee delivery to customers in the USA.

Solstice SoundBox 30/30

This box has been retained as an artist’s proof.

Contact: macumbista AT_THE_DOMAIN gmail DOT com

[Image: block diagram of the Triadex Muse, from "Musical Applications of Microprocessors", 2nd Edition, Hal Chamberlin (1987)]

The deadline for applications for the next Migrating Art Academies titled “Aesthetic – Responsibility – Drones” (2-7 May 2013, Berlin) is still a couple weeks away. We will select a few European participants to be sponsored with travel, accommodation and per diem.

Find info on MIGAA here: http://www.migaa.eu/aesthetic-responsibility-drones/

Info on my electronics workshop follows.

Autonomous Sonic Agents Workshop with Derek Holzer

In sonic terms, a “drone” can be considered an ongoing process which acts of its own accord. While this is commonly thought of as a steady tone or chord, much of my own work involves the creation of more complex, autonomous agents responsible for various parts of an audio composition. In this workshop, we will investigate different methods, involving loudspeakers, feedback and simple 9-Volt electronics, for creating such generative, self-playing sound systems. Each participant will construct their own primitive noise synthesizer, which they will present on the final day of the workshop. Please bring some type of wooden (preferred–cigar boxes are perfect!) or plastic enclosure to hold your circuit as well as any kind of speaker you can salvage from toys, radios, portable stereos or hi-fi systems.

Info/inspiration:

http://macumbista.net/?page_id=497
http://macumbista.net/?page_id=1187
http://macumbista.net/?page_id=1897

Derek Holzer-ExperiMontag set-11.03.13(edit)

Solo performance for self-made analog synthesizer, speaker box, found objects and room @ ExperiMontag (Madame Claude), Berlin, 11 MAR 2013. Edited and mixed to be played at maximum volume.

Maulex [DK] turntables, textures
Jelena Glazova [LV] voices, drones
Derek Holzer [USA/DE] modulars, rooms

Mon, 11.03.13 21:00
Madame Claude Berlin, Lübbener Straße 19, 10997 Berlin, Germany

An evening of experimental instruments and deep sound textures at one of Berlin’s best-known nights for adventurous music.

-=Maulex=-

René Middelhede is a graduate student at DIEM (Danish Institute for Electro-Acoustic Music) and is working with drone and abstract textural music under the artist name Maulex.

It’s not music that flows rapidly from room to room, rather it moves slowly across the room and fills it with microscopic nuances that constantly change color.

The concert is based on an alternative use of the turntable as a medium. It is developed into an instrument by which complex textures and repetitive rhythms can be generated.

www.phloq.dk | www.soundcloud.com/maulex

-=Jelena Glazova=-

Sound artist/visual artist and poet based in Riga, Latvia. Working in interdisciplinary areas of contemporary art, combining in her works image, poetic text, experimental sound and installation.

Experimental music activity field – noise/drone, usually constructed from processed vocals.

www.jelena-glazova.com | jelenaglazova.bandcamp.com

Jelena will perform with the visuals by Latvian video artist Zane Raudina.

www.zaneraudina.net

-=Derek Holzer=-

Solo performance for self-made analog synthesizer, speaker box, found objects and room.

Derek Holzer (1972) is an American sound artist based in Berlin DE, whose current interests include DIY analog electronics, sound art, field recording and the meeting points of electroacoustic, noise, improv and extreme music. He has played live experimental sound, as well as taught workshops in noise art technology, across Europe, North America, Brazil and New Zealand.

macumbista.net

Experimental Sound Instruments Workshop, TAIK MediaLab Helsinki from macumbista on Vimeo.

Students from my Experimental Sound Instruments workshop demonstrate their hand-made projects on the final day. Their instruments involved a variety of technologies, including Arduinos, solenoids, motors, transducers, pickups and amplifiers which I presented over the week. This workshop, which I give at the school annually, ran from 04-08 February 2013 at the TAIK MediaLab in Helsinki, Finland. The students presenting were Johanna Storm, Ari-Pekka Leinonen, Scott McGregor, Saku Kamarainen, Ana Gutierrez, Thomas Svedstrom and Rajeev Siewnath.

My next MLab workshop should be in Oct/Nov.