Interview in The Wall Street Journal
You can read an interview with Phill here in The Wall Street Journal
"Sound can change your perception," he said. "You start off hearing one thing, but when you begin to give up listening to one certain aspect of it or trying to intellectualize it, it opens up and you begin to float."
December 2011
EXPERIMENTAL INTERMEDIA
The Thirty-eighth Anniversary of EI performances at 224 Centre Street, The Forty-third Anniversary of the Founding of Experimental Intermedia, the Forty-third Anniversary of the 224 Centre Street loft, and, not least, The Twenty-second Annual Festival with no fancy name, Part One (or A)
Phill Niblock, curator
December 2011
Marko Ciciliani (Vienna) 6pm until 10:30pm Sunday Sunday 11
In the 4.5 hour long sound-art composition "Pop Wall Alphabet" Ciciliani explores the sound characteristics of 26 pop artists, by working with dense superimposing of songs and their spectral extractions, searching for “the sound” which has gained an almost mythical criteria in pop production; different degrees between abstraction and recognizability, combined with subtle psychoacoustic effects, turn this piece into a personal, immersive and sensual listening experience
Katherine Liberovskaya (Canada), Chantal Dumas (Canada), Shelley Hirsch (NY)
Monday 12
"9-9-18"; Liberovskaya (live video) invites Dumas (field recordings, laptop) and Hirsch (voice, words) to join forces for an evening where disparate fragments of life, scenes, stories, compositions, sounds and images come together and apart as they form a series of ever-changing fleeting audio-visual worlds
Stefano Pilia (Italy) Tuesday Tuesday 13
Will present his electric guitar solo set: a music percourse between textural melodies and sound relations with space, memory and time suspension
www.blindsuncrows.wordpress.com
Hans Tammen (New York) Wednesday 14
With the Third Eye Orchestra, Hans uses Earle Brown’s open form composition idea as a starting point to create a large multi-movement piece for a 15-piece ensemble + live sound
processing. The music is inspired by West African roots of Jazz, Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew, Steve Coleman, and Stravinsky’s layering or Steve Reich’s phase techniques; with Mari Kimura, Jason Hwang, Stephanie Griffin, Tomas Ullrich, Briggan Kraus, Marty Ehrlich, Robert Dick, Detlef Landeck, Dafna Naphtali, Ursel Schlicht, Denman Maroney, Nick Didkovsky and Satoshi Takeishi
http://tammen.org/third-eye-orchestra/
John Driscoll, Phil Edelstein, Tom Hamilton (New York) Thursday 15
Composers Inside Electronics, a group known for its pioneering home-built electronics and early "Circuit Bending," will present an evening of new and classic electronic works including
"Speaking in Tongues" (2011) by John Driscoll for ultrasonic instruments, "Rainforest I" (1968) by David Tudor for amplified table-top resonant objects, and a collaborative improvisation
Maria Chavez (New York) Friday16
As a continuation of Chavez's interest in removing the turntable from her practice, this performance will take place as 2 short pieces; the first piece will represent the diminishment of the turntable as a tool with Chavez using a portable turntable and a single record; the second piece will shift the focus away from the tool and solo performance setting; the piece then becomes a collaboration with Daniel Neumann in an ongoing study on sound placement and individual perspective within a space
www.mariachavez.org www.danielneumann.wordpress.com
Bolsa Ernesto de Sousa, a memorial fellowship named for the Portuguese Intermedia Artist, sponsored by the Luso-Americana Foundation and the Fundacao Calouste Gulbenkian, in Lisbon, coordinated by Isabel Alves, presents an intermedia performance by:
Laetitia Morais (Portugal) Sunday 18
“Missing for 10 years” - this performance articulates concepts like the anxiety caused by the lack of bonds when crossing an ocean, with 10 years of absence defined by law to the term of a life existence; sea salt is the most relevant element in this piece, as it shapes the sound, according to its density
Dani Ploeger (United Kingdom / Netherlands) Monday 19
Body Surveillance #1 (Ruhrpott Boogie) is a performance installation with three chairs (I sit on one of them) a television (I watch it), plastic bag (I breathe into it), a fan (sometimes it switches on), loudspeakers and some other things
www.danielploeger.org www.sussex.ac.uk/profiles/211305
Our programs are supported by the New York State Council on the Arts, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, and the Phaedrus Foundation
224 Centre Street at Grand, Third Floor, N Y 10013
9pm, unless otherwise advised 212 431 5127, 431 6430
www.experimentalintermedia.org and www.XIrecords.org
And for the first time in history, Phill Niblock will be at Roulette in Brooklyn on Wednesday December 21, the Winter Solstice, for six hours of Music and Film/Video – 6pm to 12am
ROULETTE, 509 Atlantic Ave (At the Corner of 3rd Ave), Brooklyn, (917) 267-0363
Autumn 2011
A few present, future and past events, since the last update.
A short list, present (now, today), future, and then the past – passed, but in the full description list.
Sept 14, 1300h ISEA Istanbul – Phill Niblock and Thomas Ankersmit
http://isea2011.sabanciuniv.edu/other-event/phill-niblock-and-thomas-ankersmit-performance
Warsaw Autumn Festival www.warszawska-jesien.art.pl
OCHOTA SPORTS CENTRE, Warsaw, 22:30, September 16
Phill Niblock, sound and image projection - The Movement of People Working
And September 17, 1200 (noon), AUSTRIAN CULTURAL FORUM
Meet the composer: Phill Niblock (Talk), Organized by Warsaw Autumn
Wednesday 21 September 2011 8pm, Agora Hydro-Quebec, Coeur des sciences,
175, avenue du President Kennedy, Montreal, Québec
An Evening of Improvised Images and Sounds - Katherine Liberovskaya (Mtl) live video mixing
with Phill Niblock (NY) live sound collage and David First (NY) live guitar and laptop
Sept 30 - Oct 2 - Grand opening Fabrique "cultural center" - Nantes FR - Installation Phill Niblock - Plateforme intermedia - / Concert Friday the 30th of September Phill Niblock & Katherine Liberovskaya - 6.30pm to 10pm - Plateforme Intermedia / Fabrique.
Neon Marshmallow Music Festival NYC 2011 | October 14 : 15 : 16 | Public Assembly Brooklyn www.neonmarshmallow.com
Friday October 14th - Grouper, Kevin Drumm, The Men, Phill Niblock, James Ferrro
Also, I am curating a series of concerts at “The Stone”: thestonenyc.com
Experimental Intermedia / XI Records at the Stone, curated by Phill Niblock
October 18 - 30 2011 Please check the website for details
The full thing (but not much more info)
Phill Niblock and Katherine Liberovskaya - a residency and performance event (July 30) in the mountains near Catanzaro, Calabria, Italy
At Archiaro (www.archiaro.it), produced by Tommaso Cosco - t.cosco@libero.it
Aug 6 – SoundRes 2011 in Lecce Puglia Italy, KL & PN - www.soundres.org
August 11 – 13 Hotel Pupik (Schrattenberg) Festival, Austria – Phill Niblock and Katherine Liberovskaya make a surprise concert, Sept 13 at 11am - hotelpupik.org
August 15 – Sept 4, Ostrava New Music Days, Ostrava CZ, Phill Niblock, new orchestra piece, Baobab, played Sept 3 www.newmusicostrava.cz
Café Oto, London, Thursday 8 September 2011, 8pm
Listen To This: Micromusic / Apartment House
Listen to This is a series of music concerts curated by composers. Micromusic, the second in the series, is a concert of where music is sampled, transcribed, saturated, over-amplified and held under the microscope. Curated by Joanna Bailie, the evening features three major pieces for chamber ensemble and electronics performed by Apartment House. American composer Phill Niblock’s 5 More String Quartets features four amplified live musicians playing over a stack of overdubbed string quartet recordings. Johannes Kreidler's in hyper intervals smashes expectations of remix culture, creating a rebellious union of the acoustic and electronic. Atopia (hyperamplified) by Yannis Kyriakides explores the relationship between loudness and distance, inspired by the sounds of sand drifting past a kitchen window in Cairo.
http://www.cafeoto.co.uk/micromusic.shtm
Sept 14, 1300h ISEA Istanbul – Phill Niblock and Thomas Ankersmit
http://isea2011.sabanciuniv.edu/other-event/phill-niblock-and-thomas-ankersmit-performance
Warsaw Autumn Festival www.warszawska-jesien.art.pl
OCHOTA SPORTS CENTRE, Warsaw, 22:30, September 16
Phill Niblock, sound and image projection - The Movement of People Working
September 17, 1200 (noon), AUSTRIAN CULTURAL FORUM
Meet the composer: Phill Niblock (Talk), Organized by Warsaw Autumn
Wednesday 21 September 2011 8pm, Agora Hydro-Quebec, Coeur des sciences,
175, avenue du President Kennedy, Montreal, Québec
An Evening of Improvised Images and Sounds - Katherine Liberovskaya (Mtl) live video mixing
with Phill Niblock (NY) live sound collage and David First (NY) live guitar and laptop
Presented by Liberovskaya in partial fulfillment of the requirements for her PhD in The Study and Practice of Art (Doctorat en Etudes et Pratiques des Arts) at the
Universite du Quebec a Montreal (UQAM) http://www.uqam.ca/campus/pavillons/co.htm
Sept 30 - Oct 2 - Grand opening Fabrique "cultural center" - Nantes FR - Installation Phill Niblock - Plateforme intermedia - / Concert Friday the 30th of September Phill Niblock & Katherine Liberovskaya - 6.30pm to 10pm - Plateforme Intermedia / Fabrique.
Neon Marshmallow Music Festival NYC 2011 | October 14 : 15 : 16 | Public Assembly Brooklyn
There will be an hour of Reyka vodka open-bar on Friday & Saturday for all attendees.
We will also have an hour of open-bar with Asahi Beer on all 3 nights.
Seven events in four days. Full spectrum Bunker Sound system. We will also be having an opening reception at the Clocktower Gallery on October 13th.
You can find tickets here: http://www.neonmarshmallow.com/2011newyorkcity/tickets
Friday October 14th - Grouper, Kevin Drumm, The Men, Phill Niblock, James Ferrro
Soiree After Party - Veronica Vascika (DJ sets), Xeno & Oaklander (Performance)
Saturday October 15th - Tim Hecker, Mark Fell, Phoenecia, Blues Control
Soiree After Party - Spinoza (DJ sets), Rene Hell (Performance)
Sunday October 16th | Day Show - Rhys Chatham, Loren Connors, Alan Licht, Ryley Walker
Sunday October 16th | Night Show - Mandelbrott & Sky, La Big Vic, Joe Lentini, Forma
Palmetto Moon Electronic Group www.neonmarshmallow.com
Summer is simmering
A few events by Phill Niblock and others, the summer is simmering...
A synopsis:
Installations by PN and Katherine Liberovskaya – July 8 opening
Kunsthaus Viernheim: Rathausstraße 36, 68519 Viernheim
www.kunsthaus-viernheim.de
Performances by PN, KL, and Al Margolis (If Bwana) at ECHOFLUXX 11, Tracfačka Arena in Prague, The Czech Republic, from July 12-16th, presented by Efemera of Prague (http://efemera-ephemera.org), curated by Dan Senn
2 pieces for flute by PN in a concert by Erik Drescher, July 14,
St.Elisabeth-Kirche,
Invalidenstraße 3, 10115 Berlin
ARTMUSE BOCHOLT, Bocholt, Germany, 16-17. July 2011 - Among many acts, Phill Niblock, Katherine Liberovskaya and Al Margolis (If Bwana) will make presentations – A Variation of Sets, on the 16th at 9pm
PN and KL, A residency and performance event (July 30) in the mountains near Catanzaro, Calabria, Italy
At Archiaro www.archiaro.it, produced by Tommaso Cosco
PHILL NIBLOCK (USA) und KATHERINE LIBEROVSKAYA (Canada)
ELECTRIC CURRENTS Experimental Intermedia 08.07. – 06. 08. 2011
Kunsthaus Viernheim/Kunstverein Viernheim
Eröffnung: Freitag 08.Juli., 19:00 Uhr im Kunsthaus Viernheim Begrüßung: Fritz Stier (Kunstverein Viernheim) Einführung: Georg Dietzler
(Künstler-Kurator für Sparten übergreifende Künste, Köln)
Niblock shows Topolo 1 and 2 (video) and China 86,87,88 slides
Liberovskaya shows Inside Paiva (video KL and sound PN) and Upwind (silent version)
Kunsthaus Viernheim: Rathausstraße 36, 68519 Viernheim www.kunsthaus-viernheim.de
Kunstverein Viernheim: Hügelstraße 24, 68519 Viernheim www.kunstverein-viernheim.de
Öffnungszeiten: Do. und Fr. 15:00 – 18:00 Uhr / Sa. 10:00 – 13:00 Uhr
ECHOFLUXX 11: a 5-day festival of composer-filmmaker presented new music and media art at the Tracfačka Arena in Prague, The Czech Republic, from July 12-16th, presented by Efemera of Prague (http://efemera-ephemera.org)
Guests include: Phill Niblock, Katherine Liberovskaya & Al Margolis, Stanislav Abrahám, Michal Rataj, Peter Szely, Martin Janaček & Petr Ferenc, Martin Blažíček & Krystof Topolski, Anja Kaufmann & Frances Sanders, George Cremaschi, Hana Železná, Petra Dubach & Mario van Horrik, and The International Space Band (PN, KL, and AM on July 12)
EchoFluxx 11, Nova Hudba A Medialni Umeni,
Trafacka Arena, Prague, Cervenec 12 - 16, Zdarma
K O M P L E X X X - 2 Solokonzerte für Flöte & Elektronik
13. & 14. Juli 2011 at St.Elisabeth-Kirche, Invalidenstraße 3, 10115 Berlin
Two concerts produced by and featuring Erik Drescher (flute)
K O M P L E X X X 2 - 14. Juli 2011, 20 Uhr
Gérard Pape Harmonies of Time and Timbre I ( 2011) UA Flöte und 8-kanaliges Tonband
Phill Niblock Winterbloom Too (1983) Baßflöte und Tonband
Held Tones (1982) Flöte und Tonband
Erik Drescher, Flöte
; Daniel Plewe, Elektronik
; Gérard Pape, Klangregie
Phill Niblock expects to be present, but just hanging out
ARTMUSE BOCHOLT, Bocholt, Germany, 16-17. July 2011
Among many acts, Phill Niblock, Katherine Liberovskaya and Al Margolis (If Bwana) will make presentations – A Variation of Sets, on the 16th at 9pm
http://artmuse.eu/bocholt/
The Spinning Mill in Bocholt
The old spinning mill, which is currently under reconstruction, will open its doors for two summer days, the artMUSE Festival in Bolcholt. artMUSE is the very first event taking place at the almost renovated spinning mill. Therefore the curatorial concept is strongly based on the venue’s atmosphere and its future role in forming the culture of Bocholt and the region. The spinning mill was the witness of industrial revolution, the flourish of textile industry; it was abandoned as the postindustrial and digital revolution made it economically inefficient and finally useless. The artists invited to artMUSE Festival are all reflecting on this phenomena, the changes brought by digital revolution in the society , the industry culture and the region’s everyday life. The invited artists using the tools of new media, basically digital equipment to evoke different segments of the above mentioned historical and present issues. Furthermore the artworks are “woven through” with references to textile.
A residency and performance event (July 30) in the mountains near Catanzaro, Calabria, Italy
At Archiaro www.archiaro.it, produced by Tommaso Cosco
Some Live Events In June
June 11, 9pm – Japan Benefit at EI, including Rei Nakajima, Keiko Uenishi, Katherine Liberovskaya, and a screening of Japan89, a film by Phill Niblock, with music.
The film, Japan 89, was filmed in coastal villages north of Sendai, Japan, and along the south coast of Hokkaido Island. These villages were destroyed by the Tsunami of March 11 2011, and many of the people were lost.
Proceeds from this event will go to the Japan Society's "Japan Earthquake Relief Fund" http://www.japansociety.org/earthquake
At Experimental Intermedia, 224 Centre Street, NY experimentalintermedia.org
June 13 (Monday), 7pm – Video screening by Phill Niblock at Microscope Gallery, (Topolo 1 and 2, and Remo Osaka2)
MICROSCOPE, 4 Charles Place, Brooklyn NY 11221, 347.925.1433
www.microscopegallery.com
June 19 (Sunday) at Pianos, 7pm – Music by Phill Niblock and Michael V Waller - NewIdeas MusicSeries @ Pianos (158 Ludlow / Stanton) http://www.michaelvincentwaller.com/newideas-musicseries
End Times festival June 24-26. PN Saturday June 25 at 10:20 at Silent Barn - a noise & experimental music festival at the Silent Barn and Outpost in Brooklyn. it will be 3 nights of music, with movies, workshops, installations, potlucks, BBQs and good times. Al Margolis and Katherine Liberovskaya also have a set that night. Bob Bellerue - halfnormal@gmail.com www.halfnormal.com/endetymes/
PN Calendar | Spring 2011
March 22, 23, 24 - Maerzmusik at Berghain , Berlin www.maerzmusik.de / www.berlinerfestspiele.de - Video and Music Installations by Phill Niblock
March 31 - Borderline Festival, Onassis Cultural Center, Athens, Greece - Phill Niblock & Τhomas Ankersmit http://sgt.gr/en/programme/event/131
April 2 - Cinéma du réel , Centre Pompidou, 25, rue du Renard, Paris, France
http://www.cinemadureel.org
Two films by Phill Niblock – Brasil84 with music, and The Magic Sun
April 7 - Katherine Liberovskaya and Phill Niblock @ the wulf. 1026 s santa fe ave #203 (code 2-0-3 to enter) la ca 90021 **entrance on sacramento side** 9pm http://www.thewulf.org
April 24 - Electron Festival, Geneva, Switzerland - Phill Niblock and Thomas Ankersmit
http://www.electronfestival.ch/2011/fr/dates.html?ditto_gd_documents=316
April 27 - Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia - Phill Niblock and Thomas Ankersmit
http://www.uniandes.edu.co/ (but not yet available on the website)
May 7 - Multiplace Festival, Bratislava, Slovakia - Phill Niblock and Thomas Ankersmit
http://multiplace.org/ (but not yet available on the website)
May 9 Phill Niblock and Thomas Ankersmit - Archa Theater, Prague
http://www.stimul-festival.cz/
May 17 Caen Normandy France ]interstice[ Festival, Phill Niblock and Thomas Ankersmit www.station-mir.com
May 19 – Instants Chavires, Paris, with Thomas Ankersmit http://www.instantschavires.com/
May 20 - A concert in Paris with a piece by Phill Niblock, Ensemble Le Balcon, Eglise Saint Merri, 76 rue de la Verrerie, PARIS, 8pm – “Concert américain” http://lebalcon.com/
Phill Niblock | England, February 2011
Feb 16 at Brunel University, Music Department, London, with Bob Gilmore - A seminar at 6 followed by the concert at 7.30, with a student orchestra playing PN orchestra pieces
Feb 17, 8pm, at Café OTO, London – a Brunel University event, with a student orchestra playing PN orchestra pieces - 22 Ashwin Street, E8 3DL
(see below)
Feb 23 at Bath Spa University, England – Music, sponsored by James Saunders
Live at Café Oto | 17th February 2011
BRUNEL SOUND SERIES: PHILL NIBLOCK
THURSDAY 17th February 2011
Tickets : £8 adv / £10 door
Door Times : 8pm
Phill Niblock's music is the emancipation of the drone, the splitting into atomic parts of dozens of flailing, beating frequencies singing out loudly in close acoustical proximity to each other. His works are broad oceans of sound, where very little really "happens" but where there is a great deal to be heard, felt, and pondered.
His music involves electronic manipulation of acoustical sound sources recorded over the years by several generations of musicians, playing every instrument under the sun from flute, bass clarinet, saxophone, trombone, digeridoo, to electric guitar, bowed piano, cello, organ, hurdy-gurdy, and much else. Recordings of single held tones are layered into textures rich in micro-nuance, building into imposing, complex soundscapes.
Tonight he presents his work with live musicians.
This is the second event in Brunel@Café Oto, a new series of events organised in collaboration with the Music Department at Brunel University, tonight taking advantage of a rare Niblock appearance in the UK.
CHINA '88
CHINA '88 Excerpt from Phill Niblock on Vimeo.
Various Things
On New Music Box, the online magazine published by the American Music Center, Phill Niblock is interviewed by Frank J. Oteri. The December issue. Their front cover blurb on the website (nice, smiley picture there, too):
Phill Niblock: Connecting the Dots
Phill Niblock Niblock never formally studied musical composition and did not even start composing until he was 35. Four decades later, he's more fired up than many composers one-third his age, and his mind-bending sonic experiences attract devotees of experimental music and even the indie rock and laptop crowds.
www.newmusicbox.org
www.amc.net
Phill Niblock and Thomas Ankersmit interviewed by The Wire On Air (Derek Walmsley)
On Resonance FM London – www.resonancefm.com (archived).
Full details: www.thewire.co.uk/articles/5445/
October 27, noon to three – Kurt Gottschalk hosts Phill Niblock on WFMU 91.1, live, playing music by PN and a few hours of PN’s Jazz Faves
“Just prior to his appearance at the Ear to the Earth Festival in NYC, drone pioneer Phill Niblock will pay a visit to the WFMU studios to chat and guest DJ. While his own music is noted for its length and stillness (he does a 6-hour concert at his loft every December), Niblock is a huge fan of early jazz and bebop, and will be bringing some of his favorite high-speed saxophone music to play on the air. “ KG
Miniature Minotaur Radio, Wednesdays at Noon - a link to listen to the live stream or archive (plus the above and anything else anyone could need) is here: http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/KU
Touch Radio 57 | Phill Niblock
A web radio program
19.11.10 - Sound Delta – 39:16 - 192 kbps
1. Zound Delta (21:52)
2. Bells & Timps (5:30)
3. BuchBel (11:54)
Zound Delta was made at a residency with the European Sound Delta Project in 2009. The sounds were recorded from the mouth of the Danube River at the Black Sea, - to about 200km upstream, at Russe Bulgaria. In Russe, there was a festival, and the finished piece was played. There were boats (Belgian barges outfitted as living boats) starting at the mouth of the Danube and the Rhine Rivers, with changing residents, for several months.
Bells & Timps was made using church bells in Gent Belgium, recorded by Godfried Willem Raes of Logos Foundation, in 1986. I modified the time by stretching vastly, and some changes in pitch as well.
BuchBel was recorded during an overnight train ride from Bucharest to Belgrade. All sounds are from the train, with many layerings. The train trip was immediately after the festival in Russe, Bulgaria, in 2009.
All of the pieces were made in ProTools.
Subscribe to the TouchPod podcast of TouchRadio via the iTunes Music Store
Sonic Circuits presents on Saturday, December 11, 2010 at 8:00pm
Artisphere, 1101 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA
A Variation of Sets by Al Margolis (If, Bwana) / Katherine Liberovskaya / Phill Niblock
Part 1: Live Video by Katherine Liberovskaya, with live mixing of audio pieces by Phill Niblock
Part 2: Al Margolis (If, Bwana) music (prerecorded and live sounds)
Part 3: Katherine Liberovskaya, live video and Al Margolis (If, Bwana), music (prerecorded and live sounds)
Part 4: Music and Film (video) by Phill Niblock
www.dc-soniccircuits.org/calendar/show/23/2010-12-11-phill-niblock-katherine-liberovskaya-al-margolis-artisphere/
At Experimental Intermedia, 224 Centre Street, New York, December 21
Phill Niblock (New York)
6pm until 12am Tuesday 21
Now 77 (gulp), and doing still, six hours of films and music for the winter solstice; many new hours of 16mm film transferred to video, and some of that newly modified for the better, plus 16mm film projection
www.experimentalintermedia.org
burble |ˈbərbəl|
verb [ intrans. ]
make a continuous murmuring noise : the wind burbled at his ear.
• speak in an unintelligible or silly way, typically at unnecessary length : he burbled on about annuities | [ trans. ] he was burbling inanities.
• Aeronautics [often as n. ] ( burbling) (of an airflow) break up into turbulence.
noun
continuous murmuring noise.
• rambling speech : an hour of boring burble.
ORIGIN Middle English (in the sense [to bubble] ): imitative. Current senses date from the late 19th cent.
