Media Resources

NEW ADVENTURES IN SOUND ART Presents
SOUND TRAVELS FESTIVAL of SOUND ART
Various venues at and around the Artscape Wychwood Barns
Outdoors on Centre Island
July 16 to September
www.naisa.ca/soundtravels

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - TORONTO, ON - July 5, 2011: New Adventures in Sound Art (NAISA) is pleased to present the 13th edition of the Sound Travels Festival of Sound Art, which opens July 16 and runs until September 3, 2011. As part of a summer-long celebration of sound art, NAISA presents indoor and outdoor performances, sound installations, an outdoor interactive sound sculpture, SOUNDwalks, a series of workshop intensives and the fifth annual Toronto Electroacoustic Symposium at various venues at the Artscape Wychwood Barns (601 Christie Street) as well as outdoors on Centre Island and around the Barns. In a world that often focuses too much on the visual, Sound Travels brings about a refreshing change as it presents works by sound artists that extract compelling musicality and wordless dramas from everyday sounds often taken for granted. From this lush auditory experience, audiences author their own imaginary world in their mind’s eye – Darren Copeland, Artistic Director, New Adventures in Sound Art.

Outdoor opening events celebrate World Listening Day
The summer-long festival will launch on July 16th at 1PM with a SOUNDwalk and soundscape concert at the NAISA space and on July 18th at 1PM on Toronto Island with another SOUNDwalk and the opening of the annual Synthecyletron installation - all to celebrate World Listening Day. The first SOUNDwalk will begin at the NAISA space at the Artscape Wychwood Barns and explore sound environments in and around the area of the Barns and nearby neighbourhood ending back at the NAISA space with a soundscape concert that will include an excerpt of a documentary called Inside the Music of Murray Schafer by Andrew O’Connor. The second SOUNDwalk will meet at the Pavilion (where the ferry to Centre Island disembarks) and end with an artist talk by Toronto artist Barry Prophet about his interactive sound sculpture - Synthecycletron (a favourite amongst cyclists – near the pier on Centre Island) - with a chance to ride the sound sculpture to create your own sound art. Participants should be sure to wear appropriate footwear and clothing for any weather condition.

In a SOUNDwalk, the listening “audience” moves through a place and the environment “performs.” In a SOUNDwalk we take the time to hear the environment: we are its true ear witnesses. And like any musician, the environment offers us its sounds for our consideration. The second annual World Listening Day on July 18th coincides with the birthday of Canadian composer R. Murray Schafer, the director of the World Soundscape Project and one of the founders of the acoustic ecology movement. An excerpt of Inside the Music of Murray Schafer by Andrew O’Connor will be presented at the July 16th soundscape concert at the NAISA space.

Indoor at Artscape Wychwood Barns
This year Sound Travels will include the interactive sound sculpture Welcome to My Parlour by Chan Ka Nin which will open on July 22nd at the NAISA space and continue to September 3rd Fridays and Saturdays. Welcome to My Parlour consists of a six foot spider-shaped sound sculpture in which visitors are encouraged to touch the strings both at the front and back and of the sculpture which includes alternative tunings. More than one participant can jam on it at the same time, producing both tonal and atonal sounds.

Breakfast - a morning ritual + music by world renowned sound artist Jonty Harrison and more…
The Sound Travels concerts once again create a cinema for the ear entirely through sound. The first set of concerts begins on August 6th during the Saturday morning market at the Artscape Wychwood Barn with Breakfast: a morning Ritual - performances by Rob Piilonen, Matt Miller and Samuel Morgenstein that combines the sounds or breakfast with flute and percussion. Concerts on August 10th & 11th open the Toronto Electroacoustic Symposium with works by international participants in the symposium. August 12th and 13th includes works by world renown UK artist Jonty Harrison, as well as evocative soundscape works by Chiyoko Szlavnics, Nick Storiring and David Berezan, the Toronto première of the L’horloger a live performance that uses various clocks as instruments by Quebec composer Martin Messier, alongside works by Quebec artists Dominic Thibault and Yves Daoust amongst others.

Opportunities abound for artists of all ages and backgrounds at this year’s Sound Travels Festival. August 10-13 includes the fifth annual Toronto Electroacoustic Symposium – once again co-presented by the Canadian Electroacoustic Community – will include 18 papers and several concert works curated by an international jury and to be presented August 11, 12 and 13. The following week includes the second annual Sound Travels Intensive, this time a 5-day series of workshops for emerging and mid-career artists offering them the opportunity to hone their craft with world renowned artists Jonty Harrison,, David Ogborn, Darren Copeland, Rob Cruickshank with guest lectures by Marla Hlady and Jessica Thonpson. The August 20 performances showcase works by the participants in the Sound Travels intensive and invite discussion by both audience and participants.

Sound Travels closing event - 3-sided Square performance at New Music Marathon September 3
The final weekend of Sound Travels coincides with the New Music Marathon at Yonge-Dundas Square and will include a performance of 3-sided Square from 2 - 9 pm during the marathon curated by NAISA artistic director, Darren Copeland.

Sound Travels Festival of Sound Art is partially funded by the government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the Toronto Arts Council and the SOCAN foundation.

New Adventures in Sound Art is a non-profit organization that produces performances and installations spanning the entire spectrum of electroacoustic and experimental sound art. Included in its Toronto productions are: Deep Wireless, Art’s Birthday, Sound Travels, and SOUNDplay.

SOUND TRAVELS FESTIVAL of SOUND ART
July 16 until September 3, 2011
At various venues at the Artscape Wychwood Barns, 601 Christie Street including:
the NAISA Space (#252), Theatre Direct’s Christie Studio (#170), Theatre Direct’s Wychwood Theatre (#176) as well as outdoors on Centre Island and at the Barns.

Workshop Intensive Pass $175 / Symposium/Performance Pass $70/$35 / Single Tickets $5 - $15
Toronto Island events free / Installations are Pay What You Can

www.soundtravels.ca

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Media contact: Michael Postma or Nadene Thériault-Copeland
416 652 5115 / 416 910 7231
info@naisa.ca or naisa@naisa.ca
New Adventures in Sound Art
Artscape Wychwood Barns, 601 Christie St #252, Toronto, ON M6G 4C7
naisa@naisa.ca, Tel 416-652-5115; Fax 416-652-5139