Re: [microsound] Ars Electronica

[Derek Holzer <derek@xxxxxx>]

Chris, et al,

I guess sarcasm is the hardest thing to get accross in cyberspace. [without 
emoticons, that is  :)   ]  my hyperbolic commentary was meant to arouse 
suspicion...

your points about Ars Electronica's corperate sponsership, high profile, and 
potential detachedness are exactly what i was hoping to point out. i think it 
is interesting to keep an eye on who those "on the top of the heap" choose to 
pick from those further down. when naut humon starts to talk about 
groundbreaking electronic music, then fishes up missy elliot and radiohead, i 
start to wonder who hands out these awards, and what is really going on anyway.

(by contrast, Rhizome's Mark Tribe uses his interview on the Ars E site to 
spotlight several young, lesser-known net.artists, while Pete Barr-Wilson only 
discusses the work of his own animation company, which all goes to show that 
everyone comes with their own set of priorities.)

in the last couple of years, the "star artists" of the electronic-experimental 
music scene --people like ryoji ikeda and carsten nikolai-- have been "honored" 
by Ars Electronica, and this exposure seems to go hand in hand with what people 
expect to hear when you talk about these area of music in the widest sense. my 
point, really, is who gets to pick the poster-children...

of course, there are festivals (like Impakt, Earrational, DEAF, KRAAAK, and 
others) willing to dig a bit deeper and look past the names and trend-spotting 
to find quality artists of all different kinds of genres. thanks for bringing 
these up in response.

best,
derek


Quoting Chris Parsons <cparse@xxxxxxxxxx>:

--> 
--> 
-->  
--> > 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?
--> 
--> Was this post a press release? It seems like a bit of a strech to cast
--> Ars Electronica as the "Oscars night" of new electronic music.
--> 
--> Ars Electronica is a very well-funded festival, with corporate
--> sponsorship
--> from the likes of Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Compaq, Siemens, etc.
--> That guarantees it is a large well-organized event, but it does not
--> guarantee that it is necessarily in tune with the latest + most important
--> creative developments.
--> 
--> There are numerous other similar festivals: Transmediale in Berlin,
--> DEAF in Rotterdam, Impakt in Utrecht, Lovebytes in Sheffield, etc.
--> You're probably more likely to hear/see really innovative work at any of
--> these.
--> 
--> Don't mean to imply anything negative about Ars Electronica,
--> of course it is a great festival. ...it's just, the phrase "arch-bishop
--> of
--> the electro-avant-garde" seems a bit over the top to me.
--> 
--> I suppose, money talks. And it's saying what people want to hear...
--> 
--> Chris
--> 
--> 
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