This is an octophonic concert of soundscape compositions by Vancouver composers, presented in an 8-channel surround-sound format. SFU is the home the World Soundscape Project, founded in the early 1970s by R. Murray Schafer, and its audio documentation practices have created some of the materials heard in these works. For instance, Barry Truax’s Pacific Fanfare includes several Vancouver soundmarks from the 1970s and recently, heard both in their original state, and digitally resonated and time-stretched so they can "resonate" in our own memories. In Ben Wilson’s Sediment, layering plays a key role as it does within sedimentary formations, heard as descending (or ascending) through a rock formation, passing through each level of strata. Maureen Liang’s No Destination is about a melancholy individual openly sharing her emotions with Siri — the virtual assistant on her mobile device. Hildegard Westerkamp’s Into the Labyrinth is a sonic journey into India's culture on the edge between dream and reality, similar to how many visitors experience this country. Yves Candau constructs a magical and delicate soundscape within an imaginary forest, and Truax’s Earth and Steel takes the listener back to a time when large steel ships were built in enclosed slips, and rich metallic resonances rang out.
Program
Barry Truax Pacific Fanfare (1996), 8 soundtracks, 3’
Ben Wilson Sediment (2003), 8 soundtracks, 8:20
Maureen Liang No Destination (2014), 8 soundtracks, 7’
Hildegard Westerkamp Into the Labyrinth (2000), 8 soundtracks, 15’
Yves Candau Silva Incognita (2015), 8 soundtracks, 10:40
Barry Truax Earth and Steel (2013), 8 soundtracks, 11’
