From the sounds of the natural world to the noise of bustling city life, the Folkways Records catalog is overflowing with recordings fantastic and familiar. To celebrate the label’s 75th anniversary, Smithsonian Folkways and the Hirshhorn Museum present a commissioned performance in octophonic sound by the innovative electronic music duo Matmos, who will dice, loop, stretch and recontextualize many “non-musical” sounds released by Folkways since the 1950s.
In a three-hour demonstration of audio alchemy, sounds extracted from the grooves of LPs like Sounds of North American Frogs, Sounds of the Junk Yard, Speech After the Removal of the Larynx, and Science of Sound will be expanded into original electronic compositions that probe the boundary between music and noise. Expect beating insect wings tessellating across the audio field, cut-ups made from self-hypnosis tutorials, beats constructed from the sounds of infants learning to speak, and many other sonic metamorphoses.
Matmos will create an immersive sound environment by positioning eight speakers around the Hirshhorn Plaza on Saturday, Sept. 9, 1-4pm. Visitors can engross themselves in the entire three-hour duration or wander in and out of the performance. This event is free and open to the public. Stay tuned for more from Matmos and Smithsonian Folkways this fall.
Come early to experiment with your own sonic production at a special Hirshhorn Art Cart inspired by Laurie Anderson from 10 am – 1 pm. Artists of all ages can look closely at Anderson’s Four Talks and use sounds and science to create their own art. Hide a noise, play with the science of vibration, or perform to the beat of your own drum. Find our more here.
https://hirshhorn.si.edu/event/matm...-records/?mc_cid=7a2fd217be&mc_eid=6ca1fec4b2
In a three-hour demonstration of audio alchemy, sounds extracted from the grooves of LPs like Sounds of North American Frogs, Sounds of the Junk Yard, Speech After the Removal of the Larynx, and Science of Sound will be expanded into original electronic compositions that probe the boundary between music and noise. Expect beating insect wings tessellating across the audio field, cut-ups made from self-hypnosis tutorials, beats constructed from the sounds of infants learning to speak, and many other sonic metamorphoses.
Matmos will create an immersive sound environment by positioning eight speakers around the Hirshhorn Plaza on Saturday, Sept. 9, 1-4pm. Visitors can engross themselves in the entire three-hour duration or wander in and out of the performance. This event is free and open to the public. Stay tuned for more from Matmos and Smithsonian Folkways this fall.
Come early to experiment with your own sonic production at a special Hirshhorn Art Cart inspired by Laurie Anderson from 10 am – 1 pm. Artists of all ages can look closely at Anderson’s Four Talks and use sounds and science to create their own art. Hide a noise, play with the science of vibration, or perform to the beat of your own drum. Find our more here.
https://hirshhorn.si.edu/event/matm...-records/?mc_cid=7a2fd217be&mc_eid=6ca1fec4b2
