Sound Topographies – In A♭ (Hi-fi) & Opéra Concrète
Sound Topographies are acoustic interventions in public spaces with a simple intention: to make us listen to the world around us, thus making ourselves more empathetic towards it. To achieve this goal, the artistic collective ooo staged 2 events called In A♭ (Hi-fi) and Opéra Concrète in 2 different locations in Bratislava in late spring of 2022. These were conceived as "concerts without musicians" and stemmed from the practices of deep listening introduced by R. M. Schaffer and P. Oliveros.
National
Slovakia
Two original events:
Bratislava, Slovakia
1st adaptation of the project after its official completion – upon invitation from Kiosk festival 2022
Žilina, Slovakia
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
Yes
2022-06-01
As a representative of an organisation
Name of the organisation(s): ooo Type of organisation: civic association / artistic collective First name of representative: Eva Last name of representative: Vozárová Gender: Female Nationality: Slovakia Function: Director and staturory body Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Vyšehradská 14 Town: Bratislava Postal code: 85106 Country: Slovakia Direct Tel:+421 903 103 015 E-mail:eva@zdruzenie.ooo Website:https://zdruzenie.ooo/
The project Sound Topographies is a series of acoustic interventions staged in public spaces and natural environments with a simple intention: to make us listen to the world around us and observe it primarily through our ears. To achieve this goal, the artistic collective ooo (Fero Király & Eva Vozárová) staged two happenings called Sound Topography: In A♭ (Hi-fi) and Sound Topography: Opéra Concrète in two different locations in Bratislava, Slovakia, in late spring of 2022. These interventions were conceived as "concerts without musicians" – with classical concert/theatre props, seating, buffet... but without interprets and without musical material per se in the usual sense. Both events stemmed from the concept of deep listening practices introduced in the second half of the 20th century by artists such as R. M. Schaffer and P. Oliveros.
The purpose of the project was to draw the audience's attention to the soundscape that forms the world's acoustic exoskeleton. As both science and art have recently concluded, listening can provide a way of paying the closest possible attention to the world around us (and in terms of medicinal diagnostics – also within ourselves). Listening creates opportunities for new questions and answers to arise. By hearing, we observe – we study – the acoustic manifestations of the landscape and its sound quality. In an era where we are unable to make sense of the world by seeing and talking, we need to hone our skills of advanced perception and empathy. By listening to the soundscapes of the world, both man-made and natural, we map the world, discover acoustic spaces, and look for connections within various fields of arts, natural sciences and humanities.
The project was primarily intended to take place only in and around Bratislava. However, after its completion, it was adapted to partly repeat in Žilina in July 2022 upon invitation of Kiosk festival, and will again be repeated in Trenčín, Slovakia, upon request of ECoC Trenčín 202
environment
interconnectedness
soundscape
anthropocene
deep listening
Sound Topographies is a project rooted in the concepts of acoustic ecology, non-interference, and biological interconnectedness. It was designed to draw attention to the topics of sound pollution, biodiversity, and environmental care and to do this in a sustainable, unobtrusive way on one hand – in contrast to modern large-scale cultural/entertainment events such as summer festivals etc – and on the other hand to lower the barrier for non-traditional audiences that usually don’t seek out contemporary art experiences.
Sound Topographies aimed to highlight these ideas through artistic practice, by creating a palpable collective experience – thus raising more interest in sound ecology and deep listening and encouraging a larger debate to which the project can later add in its possible future adaptations and reprisals.
The project was exceptional as a low-threshold activity, with little-to-no disturbance to the environments in which it was staged, and highly flexible in terms of realization. Possible future adaptations can be scaled to various locations ranging from natural environments to industrial ones, with larger production value or with a small budget. Although the two main events have been completed in 2022, they can be reprised as site-specific events flexibly upon invitations from outside actors with various capacities (as they already were in Žilina in July 2022).
A plus factor to be considerded is the persisitng long-term interest of Fero Király and Eva Vozárová, the project's authors, in acoustic ecology, climate care, sound pollution and other related topics, thus enabling further development of the topics presented in future adaptations of the project.
In the second half of the 20th century, R. Murray Schafer proposed the idea that the way to assess the "well-being of the world" is to listen to it.
Deep listening offers the audience this infinite opportunity – an unlimited soundscape once discovered and perceived, can be both aesthetically pleasing, as well as bring knowledge and improve the quality of life. The positive reactions to the project – ranging from instant grasp of the topics of sound pollution and acoustic ecology by the general public, to a sense of positive surprise that these topics are finally getting more space in the public debate – show that we may have succeeded, to a certain degree, in making this experience both pleasant and relevant to everyday life, having a positive effect on the day-to-day habits and awareness of its audiences.
Be it listening and watching the wetlands in a suburban forest in the spring where you can hear the frogs singing with an occasional drone of a flying aircraft disturbing the peace and quiet, or observing a busy intersection in the city center with its noises and natural choreographies of everyday life, both of these contrasting environments offer their unique aesthetics.
Today, clearer information and relatable emotional experiences might be the better part of what we need to get a more concrete idea of where we are and what world we are creating for ourselves and for others on the brink of the Anthropocene. And it is contemporary art, after all, that – apart from science and general education – best enables our search for answers to the most pressing questions of today's world.
The project activities were staged in public spaces and natural locations (on the street in Bratislava city center / in the forest near a popular recreational area) to make them easily accessible to audiences from different backgrounds, including audiences that would normally avoid going to cultural centers or galleries for an artistic experience.
Both events were attended by adults, youths, and senior citizens. Among the visitors were art professionals, but also random curious passers-by and residents of the neighborhoods where the project was staged. We further tried to motivate non-traditional audiences by framing the project in the promotional phases in terms of environmental awareness and sound pollution, instead of topics connected to contemporary art & sound art. In the interest of motivating passers-by to attend, we decided to go with free entry to both concerts and prepare an information bulletin popularly explaining the subject matter at hand.
To lower the aesthetic barrier for less-experienced participants, one part of the project in its pre-production phase consisted of popular lectures briefly mapping out the development and history of Western music – from the Gregorian chant to field recordings – to introduce new audiences to contemporary art.
Judging by the reactions to the projects (individual as well as media feedback), the topics presented within the project seemed to be both relevant and intuitively understandable to the general public. As the Sound Topographies were connected to a wider undergoing debate about ecology and environmental responsibility, the individual audiences (mentioned in more detail in the answer above) benefited from getting a new perspective on the themes of sound pollution, public health and acoustic ecology as topics relevant for a wider public debate – so far largely omitted in the general discourse in Slovakia.
Furthermore, the participants got access to an entry-level information package about sound ecology, sound pollution and bioacoustics, which was part of the program bulletin for the project.
It is our aim as creators of Sound Topographies to continue spreading awareness on these issues in future, be it through articles and essays that we currently have in development, or through future artistic projects.
The project was realized in cooperation with regional and national stakeholders: Bratislava as the capital city helped fund the project and search for an optimal location. Bratislava Region co-funded the project, the borough of Ružinov helped co-organize the seminars for new audiences. The project was further supported by the Slovak Arts Council.
The project was consulted on with experts on biology and ecology from the Slovak Academy of Sciences and Comenius University.
The concept and design of Sound Topographies stemmed from various fields of humanities and sciences.
The project constitutes a continuation and development of the ideas of composers of the late 20th century, such as John Cage, Pauline Oliveros, R. Murray Schafer, and Bernie Krause, and practices such as deep listening, field recording, and acoustic ecology.
Philosophically, the project correlates and builds upon ideas of contemporary thinkers of the early Anthropocene like Bruno Latour, Theodore Lessing, and Timothy Morton.
From the scientific background, we cooperated with Slovak scientists researching the fileds of bioacoustics and ecology – Mária Šibíková from the Slovak Academy of Sciences and Vladimír Kováč from the Faculty of Natural Sciences at the Comenius University in Bratislava. The scientists submitted short popular articles for the project bulletin and gave lectures relevant to the topics at a later event in autumn 2022.
The category in which we are applying is the Reconnectiong with nature. But what is nature? Are we nature, too? According to contemporary philosopher T. Morton, the concept of nature is one that we have created in the past centuries to distinguish between man and the “other” existing organisms on Earth – and if we want to find a way out of the ecological crisis we are currently facing (which we ourselves have caused), we need to define ecology as a concept encompassing all organisms and ecosystems in one interconnected whole.
Sound Topographies succeeded in pointing out this concept of ecology to a wider audience, as well as in drawing attention to the topics of bioacoustics and sound pollution. There was extensive media coverage dedicated to both of these topics in mainstream media in Slovakia in late spring and summer, as well as to the artistic project itself, including coverage on national radio stations.
Sound Topographies also led to the opportunity to realize one of the concerts in another city – Žilina – in July 2022 and also to the invitation for ooo to work on another project in Trenčin, Slovakia, later in 2022 – that was also on the topic of acoustic ecology and climate care and led to widespread media attention and positive acclaim from citizens of Trenčín.
Among the benefits of Sound Topographies, it is also good to mention the fact that due to the conceptual nature of the project, every participant had the opportunity to create her own interpretation of the project, which can serve as a kind of manual for her next personal life.
Sound Topographies show the world to the audience as it is – without anesthetizing and without preaching. The only thing the project does is provide a comfortable space to observe and give sufficient informational context to understand the concept and subject matter of the project.
The innovative character of the project lies in the search for the acoustic beauty and purity of the world (be it in a rural or urban context) and offering this experience to the participant. In music, whether classical or contemporary, there is a strong inclination to enhance natural sounds and scenes with man-made harmonies and narratives. But the ethos of today's crises bids us to think differently: let us observe our wolrd unenhanced, without additions, as it is. Let us find beauty in it and learn from this experience. What is there to add, after all?
Linking art with science and contemporary philosophy creates a basis for a strong collective and personal experience, which can have a great impact on further quality of life.
Sound Topographies are a site-specific project, and so – apart from creating a theoretical baseline / concept idea in the beginning – the development mainly stems from location selection and goes forward from there.
1. Concept creation
2. Selection of location
The first important preparation point of the project is to find a suitable location with a specific soundscape.
3. Preparation of concept and dramaturgy of the individual event
A specific dramaturgy/narrative was created for each location, based on the specific landscape and soundscape. Thus, the Sound Topography Opéra Concrète was created as an “imaginary urban opera” while In A♭ (Hi-fi) was a concert for a frog choir.
4. Consultations with experts and artistic research
In parallel, a consultation with scientists and a phase of further artistic research happened, which materialzed itself in the form of the project bulletin.
5. Lectures for various groups
The preparatory phase of the project also included reach-out to new audiences through organizing seminars and workshops for various target groups, such as senior citizens etc. These were organized with the help of municipal cultural organizations.
6. Production and project realizaton
Everything from handling permits and ensuring the necessary equipment through to the realization of the happenings itself.
7. Evaluation and archiving
During the project, sound, video and photo documentation was created, testimonials from participants gathered. In the final stage, these materials are evaluated, archived and – to some extent – published. Also an internal evaluation within the project team took place based on the quality of the happenings and feedback gathered.
Since the project (although being site-specific), does not depend on one specific location or other non-replicable parameters, it is quite flexible and can be replicated freely in other locations and circumstances – as it already was in Žilina in a shopping center in the summer of 2022 and as it will be in Trenčín in spring of 2023 on the banks of the river Váh.
However, each site chosen for Sound Topographies requires a specific preparation according to the specifics of the given space and circumstances, as described above.
It might be said that the topic of Sound Topographies is Planet Earth itself and its current qualities – positive and negative. The age of the Anthropocene, in which we live now, brings various new consequences we have to deal with. Impacts of human actions can be observed almost everywhere on the planet. And so the project tries to be an easily graspable and understandable reminder of this state of the world, in which we currently find ourselves.
Although the project does not offer concrete solutions, it tries to offer a manual on how to search for them: orienting more attention, empathy, and mindfulness towards our surroundings, the natural and the common instead of focusing on the self and on man-made reality.
