Disputas:
24 september 2024
Veiledere:
Natasha Barrett (hovedveileder)
Bedømmelseskomite:
Førsteopponent, Simon Emmerson, professor ved De Montfort University, Leicester, Storbritannia
Andreopponent, Annie Mahtani, professor ved University of Birmingham, Storbritannia
Komiteleder: Trond Lossius, professor ved Den norske filmskolen, Høgskolen i Innlandet
The Artistic Research project is accessable here: Embodied/Encoded
See also: robertseaback.com
Presence in Embodied/Encoded is concerned with the physical and embodied dimensions of musicking in relation to digital-informational representations of such phenomena. I explore presence through practices of recording, creative coding, audio production, and spatial electronic music composition. Of particular interest is the link between presence and the sensual/corporeal aspects of sound production and listening. Research in embodied music cognition and extended reality provide a foundation for this type of meaning formation.
In the context of immersive electronic music, I suggest that physical presence – a sense of ‘being somewhere’—emerges not just from images/representations of place, but from peripheral aspects of the (embodied) acoustic experience such as spatial proximity and distance, diffuseness, resonance and reverberation, noise floor, etc. Consequently, musical meaning in “Embodied/Encoded” moves away from the symbolic dimension of electronic sounds toward meaning as an outcome of embodied interaction with the environment. The concept of presence can also apply to ‘mixed’ music, or combinations of acoustic and electronic sources, in which virtual presence is complicated by real bodies and spaces.
Digital technology renders sound a flexible, malleable entity—a ‘flickering’ signifier to borrow from Hayles—capable of reconfiguring presence in creative ways. The dance between encoded and embodied dimensions inspires and informs this artistic research. Through a body of immersive music and multimedia documentation, I unpack connections between presence and its digital abstractions.
Robert Seaback is a composer and sound artist from the US currently based in Oslo, NO. His music expresses corporeality, the hyperreal, digital stasis, and continuums between—integrating voices, instruments, soundscapes, and synthetic sources through digital techniques. He has worked in different mediums including spatial audio, mixed music for ensemble, electroacoustic improvisation, and sound installation.
Robert has a PhD in composition from the University of Florida and degrees in music from Mills College (MA) and Northeastern University (BS). He is currently an Artistic Research Fellow at the Norwegian Academy of Music, working with Natasha Barrett. His music has been presented at international events such as ICMC, NYCEMF, Sonorities, MA/IN, and the ISCM World New Music Days, and has been recognized with awards from Música Viva Competition, IEM & VDT 3D Audio Production Competition, Xenakis International Electronic Music Competition, ASCAP/SEAMUS, University of Florida, and Mills College.