Ars Electronica

[Derek Holzer <derek@xxxxxx>]

Dear [micronauts]:

The site is up for next year's Ars Electronica festival, taking place (as 
always) in Linz, Austria. The theme this year is "Unplugged: Art as the Scene 
of Global Conflicts" (quite probably as a response to last year's heavy 
criticism that the festival completely ignored the political realities of 
Haider and the New Right in Austria). I for one hope that this theme is a bit 
more than trend-watching on their part, and not just a token pat-on-the-back 
for folks like Indymedia, or that it breaks down into black-vs-white/pro-vs-
anti -globalisation debate. 

But what does this have to do with [microsound], or with music in general?

Ars Electronica is also one of the places where the big-names of the Digital 
Music scene come to claim their crown. The "buzz" in the music world is that 
time has run out for glitch and minimalism, and the "next big thing" is surely 
on the horizon. One wonders how long process, content and concept in music 
creation can really hold out against the trend-driven market machine that sinks 
its roots into the underground at every turn, and --of course, and with 
shallow, giddy breaths-- what that "next big thing" will be. 

What does Ars Electronica, arch-bishop of the electro-avant-garde, say about 
this publically? Will this year's shining jewels in their crown be 
those "unplugged" from an attention-deficit, mass-market model, or will a 
vital, vibrant scene of experimentation be "Unplugged" to make way for 
more "real things", like Aphex Twin, Bjork, Missy Elliott, Timbaland, Radiohead 
and others. Asphodel Records' Naut Humon is a Jury member this year, and here 
is the interview published on the Ars Electronica site on the subject.

Cheers,
Derek
----------------


Ars Electronica 2002
http://www.aec.at/unplugged/  

 Naut Humon: Digital Musics Jury Member

AE: Last year's awarded works seem to suggest that there has been some sort 
of 'takeover' in the field of Digital Musics: it's the 'musician' with 
autodidactic background and roots in all facets of post-industrial youth 
culture. Is it there where the 'real' thing in Ditital Musics is going on? What 
about more 'established' music? 

Humon: Let us say a 'takeover' already took place in 1999 for the Prix Ars 
Electronica sound category when the 'Digital Musics' moniker replaced 
the 'Computer Music' title to describe imperfectly the substantive, symbolic 
change toward a call for works from the entire global field rather than the 
previously predominant electroacoustic sector. Now that message has been 
conveyed much more clearly during the last three years and the diversity of 
music styles within the Cyber-Arts definition has expanded. We need more 
developments to be recognized! 

The so-called 'real thing' in the general Digital Musics area is not just from 
post-industrial youth culture but from practitioners of all ages and 
influences. More 'established' pop music is being affected by the likes of 
Bjork , Missy Elliott, Timbaland, Radiohead and others who experiment with 
fracturing the form a bit to tantalize their listeners into alternatives to 
formulaic structures that traditionally rule the airwaves. The subterranean 
electronic scene which includes everything from IDM to the experimental noise 
operators is constantly testing its mercurial underpinnings by its attractive 
tendencies to remain destabilized. 

AE: The production modus seems to be radically different: electronic music 
production is organized and produced and consumed in a very 'dislocated' way. 
In the same time the 'curator' is becoming more important. How will these 
production conditions influence the whole field of DM? 

Humon: Formerly the classic electronic studios in broadcast stations and 
university centers was where most of the access to specialized equipment 
happened . The possibilities presented in the home PC audio software during the 
nineties opened the door to the general public privatized production world we 
find today. In that manner the source of most music creation was 
actively 'relocated' from the top studio business places to the composers 
bedroom. The bigger recording facilities that have survived this industry wide 
transformation serve more as finishing houses for mastering or for higher 
budget orchestral / band projects with cinema or major label releases. 

Meanwhile many of the independent artists are choosing to start their own small 
labels by 'curating' from the communities they work with in the pervasive DIY 
mode that dominates the underground genres. 

This is a core way in which this music is noticed, disseminated, distributed 
and consumed. The challenge here is to find adequate avenues for exposure via 
concerts, installations, and internet webcasts. The Prix Ars Electronica serves 
as one such avenue to this hub of activities in its efforts to recognize the 
pioneers who push the sonic envelopes of the digital audio umbrella. 

AE: What kind of entries would you like to see this year? To what kind of music 
would you like to award the golden nica? 

Humon: First off this is not some popularity contest! Music according to the 
latest trend or software may be fashionable but does it really rock? Innovation 
may be important here but where is the listener being taken? The so-called 
innovative movements today are marked by the glitch, click and the minimal 
hi/lo frequencies artists who are stripping back the excess tendencies common 
to broadstream electronica and coming up with a fundamental fuel for re-
examining the organic nature of sound and its imperfections. So as this 
examination continues where do we find its saturation threshold? As with the 
drum & bass scene before the intriguing frequency/ glitch glut may be 
approaching another similar zenith so fresh indicators and musical directions 
are sought. This does not mean there isn't still a lot of room for these 
contemporary audio currents to continue growing but we need to find the special 
drivers traveling down some fresher, lesser known trails. 

Are we talking the process or processed? Are we talking creative substance or 
use of software demonstrations? Are we playing interesting music or merely 
manipulating new softwares? How 'electronic' does an entry have to truly be? 
All these and more are questions to keep considering. 

The prizes should reflect what's going on today and perhaps indicate some 
directions for tomorrow. The DM category needs to see more action from the 
sound art sector whose profile is the subject of a number of new museum and 
festival exhibitions. We should see an increasing population from web based 
labels as well whose methods of musical ignition are gradually infiltrating a 
broader network. The sound driven music video sector should also show some new 
adventure beyond the routes already recognized by Prix Ars Electronica 99's 
Aphex Twin Come To Daddy Golden Nica and last years minimalistic Ryoji Ikeda 
concert film. DVD audio / video is on the horizon so original composition in 
these realms will be highly anticipated. 

And what about the NEW electro-acousmatic? This area is already undergoing some 
much needed renovation and reinvention. So the ears are primed for potential 
breakthroughs that demonstrate a fresh experimentation with many of the tried 
and true electro -acoustic methodologies. 

Over the many years every panel has wished for a higher percentage of women 
participants and keen desire to see a better representation of artists from 
countries outside the Euro-American/Japan axis. How to encourage this remains a 
challenge and a foremost task to the Prix in general. 

And finally Digital Musics is looking for sound design pieces from film, gaming 
and environmental formats that transcend these commercial applications and 
introduce other variations in special effects and musical formation. 

One other thing: trying to be weird for the sake of being 'new' doesn't always 
work anymore. Some attempts at obvious 'strangeness' are at times quite 
predictable. As we all delve deeper in the search or the unknown there is 
occasionally a lack of historical perspective. At Prix Ars Electronica we 
welcome the strong radical elements who strive to break from the past by 
presenting powerful new experiences. Reinventions of the form, however, can be 
an elusive quest and not always necessary. Quality expressions utilizing the 
commonly seen platforms, tools and sub-genres will still be highly regarded if 
its distinctive elements provide a vital character. 

AE: Which project are you working on now? 

Humon: As director of Recombinant Media Labs in San Francisco I find myself in 
a comparable situation to that of helping the Digital Musics of the Prix Ars. 
We are in contact with many international sound, visual and installation 
projects which we can help incubate or finalize for performance exhibitions. 
After several 'Recombinant' festivals over the years we have consolidated our 
base at a new production facility which currently is under construction. Our 
current studio has hosted residencies for many visitors who have appeared at 
various events which utilize the customized Surround Traffic Control AV system. 
Along with the Asphodel label and video hookups with the Obscura Digital 
company we are in the formation stages of a North American new media orchestral 
coalition. Curiosity seekers can contact my e-mail at if anyone likes to submit 
project proposals etc.