Bergen Centre for Electronic Arts

The workshop aims at providing an introduction to the topic for newcomers as well as being a forum for exchange between artists that already have experience in the field. Along the way there will be ample space for discussions.

A light meal will be served between the workshop and concert sessions. In the evening we’ll organize a more informal and social follow-up dinner somewhere in the center of Bergen.

Participation

If you want to participate, please send us a mail by Wednesday November 2 12:00 at the latest. Also let us know if you want to come along for a dinner in the evening. Participation is free, but pre-registration is mandatory.

The workshop and concert takes place at WRAP, Møllendalsveien 46A, Bergen.

Program

Workshop

• 1300: Trond Lossius: An introduction to spatialisation techniques, with a particular emphasis on work with ambisonic recordings
• Short break
• 1430: Thorolf Thuestad: Surround sound production in Cockos Reaper
• 1530: Hans-Gunter Lock: On Enlighted Sounds

Break – Light meal

Concert (starts at 1700)

• Ruben Sverre Gjertsen: Excerpt from Gamelan Terrain [20’] for 16 musicians
• Ruben Sverre Gjertsen: Sound installation in progress
• Hans-Gunter Lock: Enlighted Sounds

Workshop

*Trond Lossius
An introduction to spatialisation techniques, with a particular emphasis on work with ambisonic recordings*

This hands-on presentation will give a general overview of and demo of some common techniques for spatialisation, with an emphasis on fundamental assumptions, abilities and limitations. Jamoma and SpatDIF will be used to present a standardised interface in Max for exploring the various techniques.

In the last year BEK has aquired a SoundField SPS250 microphone for surround sound ambisonics recordings. Ambisonics records 3D surround sound as a 4-channel encoded B-format signal. The advantage of this solution is that spatial information can be captured and synthesised independently of the speaker layout, and later on decoded for varying loudspeaker setups. The second part of the presentation will discuss the workflow when recording with this microphone, intermediate ambisonics formats (A- and B-format) and further processing of sound files for decoding. Various approaches to decoding will be demonstrated and discussed, including matrix-based decoding, the Harpex plugin, and experimental approaches towards using B-format signals as input for Distance-based amplitude panning (DBAP).

http://harpex.net
http://jamoma.org
http://spatdif.org
http://soundfield.co.uk

*Thorolf Thuestad
Surround sound production in Cockos Reaper*

Reaper is a fairly new DAW that strongly facilitates surround sound production. In this presentation I will talk about using Reaper for surround sound productions in various projects, mainly focusing on works for stage. As Reaper has developed, so has the production techniques. After a short introduction to these developments I will focus on the current version of Reaper.

In the presentation I will demonstrate how to use Reaper with ambisonics, the built in 64 channel surround panner, ITU oriented as well as more custom speaker setups, polar and cartesian panning, multichannel effects busses, random/generative pan walks, as well as sending multichannel audio to other applications using ReaSend. Time permitting we will have a look at use of surround panners as effects matrixes and a general discussion covering the motivations for using surround sound.

https://bek1.wpengine.com/~thor/
http://reaper.fm

*Hans-Gunter Lock
On Enlighted Sounds*

Hans-Gunther Lock has been artist in residency at BEK this year. He will give a brief presentation of his work on the the audio-visual composition Enlighted Sounds that will be premiered as part of the subsequent concert.

http://www.schoenberg.ee/hansgunterlock/index.html

Concert

*Ruben Sverre Gjertsen
Excerpt from Gamelan Terrain [20’] for 16 musicians
Sound installation in progress*

As a research fellow at Grieg Academy within the framework of the Norwegian Artistic Reseach Fellowship Programme, I am working on the project “Between instrument and everyday sound”. My focus is on musical multi-dimensionality, morphing between musics and sounds, the sound repertoire of instruments and the voice, with explorations of space by placing of musicians and/or through the use of electronics. As examples of current research I will present an instrumental work, and how I seek to expand this language in a sound installation (work in progress), exploring virtual orchestras against textures of concrete sound.

https://bek1.wpengine.com/~ruben/

*Hans-Gunter Lock
Enlighted Sounds*

The experience of live electronic sound is substansially influenced by how sound is presented, and here light may play an important role. The composer/performer has searched for new lighting solutions for every piece. Partly, the lighting constitutes a compositional layer in itself, partly it depends on the produced sound. Enlighted Sounds unites preproduced sections with live-electronic compositions-improvisations. There offers possibilities for a wide spectre of electronic sounds, from acoustic sources to synthetic sound. The sound of every day objects such as metal sheets serves as a contrast to the highly stylised and cultured sound of the violin, but both are amplificated and further electronically treated. The audio of the work extends into space though the use of a multichannel speaker setup as well as a half-circle of light encompassing the audience.

Photos by Anne Marthe Dyvi