Transmissions
The Human Jukebox
Stella Sims (UK 2024)
Stella Sims (UK 2024)
7 min
A portrait of Trev ‘The Pianoman’ Woodison, one of the last remaining traditional pub piano players in the UK. He's on a mission to keep the art of pub piano alive. Playing piano in pubs is no ordinary gig: Trev never knows what he's going to play until he turns up on the night, it's up to the audience to choose and for Trev to improvise on the spot. This audio piece invites listeners to join Trev down the pub as he explains what it takes to be a pub piano entertainer.
Produced by Stella Sims and Kiff Frankham
In The Dark What’s New: The Sounding Bell
Composed by Garling Wu and Jessie Leov (NZ 2024)
Garling Wu and Jessie Leov (NZ 2024)
6 min
A composition of field recordings, voice, piano and cello, made in response to the climate crisis. "The Sounding Bell" shifts freely between the concrete and abstract, moving from the real to the imagined to the surreal. Many sounds were recorded in Toyama, an urban city in Japan surrounded by mountains, rivers, rice fields and the sea.
Composed by Garling Wu and Jessie Leov
Originally From Another Cross
Ben Gaunt (UK 2024)
Ben Gaunt (UK 2024)
8min
This is a sonic art piece, featuring some spoken word. The Leeds Cross stands in Leeds Minster.
A sign in the minster itself describes the cross: “The pieces making up the cross were found built into the medieval structure during demolition of the church in 1838. The cross would originally have stood outside the church, together with other crosses, and may have served as a grave marker. It dates to the tenth century A.D., and is carved in the Anglian style. The wheel-head originally belonged to another cross, although the shaft would have had a similar top. All the crosses from Leeds appear to have been produced in one workshop, and also have artistic links with other pieces from Wharfedale, such as the Collingham, Otley and Ilkley crosses. The upper tiers show several probably Christian figures, the angel and patron possibly copied from Irish manuscript art. At the bottom of the main faces are figures from Germanic mythology. One panel shows Weland the Smith, who was captured by Nithad, hamstrung, and forced to work as a smith. In revenge Weland murdered Nithad’s two sons and made their skulls into cups which he presented to their father, and then made Nithad’s daughter, Beaduhild, pregnant. Weland escaped by means of a flying machine, which is here shown strapped around him. He is shown surrounded by the tools of his trade and reaching up to seize a female figure, possibly Beaduhild or a Valkyrie, by the hair and skirt. The juxtaposition of Christian and pagan iconography indicates the mixed nature of tenth-century society, although the figure of Weland was sometimes employed to represent Elijah who ascended to heaven in a fiery chariot.
Ben recorded violinist and composer, James Gerrard, playing On Ilkla Moor Baht 'at. This Yorkshire folk song is based upon the hymn Cranbook; just like the Leeds Cross, it is simultaneously Christian and non-Christian. Ben also recorded James reading a sign describing the various sections of the cross, and combined these with recordings of bells, birds, and footsteps, all captured either in the minster itself or directly outside. Ben has attempted to replicate the cross’s beautiful, confusing, fragmentary character, and was inspired by its iconography, both Christian and non-Christian.
Produced by Ben Gaunt
Music by Ben Gaunt
Violin/Speaking by James Gerrard
Citadel: Building Bridges Through Music
Alan Meaney (IRE 2024)
Alan Meaney (IRE 2024)
45 min
Citadel is a group of musicians formed at the Kinsale Road Accommodation centre in Cork city, Ireland in 2018, who refuse to be put down by the system. They are from different countries, such as Burundi, South Africa, DR Congo, Angola and Tanzania.
The musicians perform songs from home, accompanied by rhythms and tunes from around the world. Citadel have played many concerts around Ireland and help to build bridges with the Irish community through their music. Some of the musicians are refugees, others are newly arrived International Protection Applicants. They all speak different languages, but music is their universal language.
‘Citadel: Building Bridges Through Music’ is a documentary that explores the different stories of band members, how they came to be refugees in Ireland and the difficulties they face here. The founders of the band; Roos and Norbert speak about how they started the band and a not for profit organisation, International Community Dynamics. In June 2023, International Community Dynamics hosted ‘The Festival of Belonging’ in the Triskel Arts Centre in Cork. With poetry, spoken word, a conversation cafe, an art exhibition by refugee and Traveller artists and a conference on belonging at University College Cork, it was a busy weekend. The highlight of the weekend was a performance by Citadel.
The documentary follows the band in the buildup to their performance, taking in rehearsals and nerves before they take to the stage on the night. Citadel raises awareness and spreads joy, peace and understanding by sharing their music with each other and with the Irish community and this is reflected in the programme.
Produced and presented by Alan Meaney
The contributors are Roos Demol, Neziswa Mali, Daniel Motaung, Esmeraldo Tavares, Gloria Zulu, Tshoko Music, Phindile Moloi, Jason De Wet, Norbert Nkengurutse, Dr. Debora Kayembe, Elton Sibanda, Joanna Dukipati, Layali Al Fan Band.
The programme was funded by the Coimisiún na Meán with the television licence fee.
Where@bouts - Episode 001 - Resale Records
Mad Genius (2015)
Mad Genius (US 2015)
3min Episode 1 of 13
Where@bouts is the art "popcast" that remixes the world. Found sound addicts Mad Genius build stories linked to a location's ambience. Our guests conduct their world like a song.
Resale Records is a used vinyl store in Madison, Wisconsin. Owner Eric Teisberg opened shop in the late '70s, using a Quonset hut that once housed a car repair business. Nearly 40 years later, Eric looks back on his work and life with a frank assessment toward our changing relationship with music.
Producer: Mad Genius
Follow the series
Random Tape: Finding Chick Boyd
Random Tape (US 2023)
David Weinberg (US 2023)
9 min
A cabinet of auditory wonders for the 21st century from David Weinberg
The life and music of a reclusive balladeer.
Produced by David Weinberg
Music by Charles Boyd
Requiem For A Mother
Miri Berlin (DE 2023)
Miri Berlin (DE 2023)
9 min
This sound composition combines field recordings with electronic elements to document the acoustic and atmospheric character of various stages – from the intensive care unit to the vigil and on to the crematorium.
In the intensive care unit, the rhythmic sounds of the ventilator and the beeps of medical devices are the first things you hear. Afterward, we find ourselves in a Berlin courtyard where the casket, on a metal trolley, is transported from the mortuary to the room where the vigil takes place.
In the middle of the room, the casket is open. The door to the courtyard is ajar, allowing ambient sounds to permeate the space. The final stage is the crematorium, where the sounds of powerful ventilation fans and a relentless drone dominate. The furnace door opens with a loud mechanical sound as the casket glides on the rails. The fire becomes visible, hissing and crackling before the door quickly closes again.
Produced by: Miri Berlin
In The Dark What’s New: The Meaning of Alexa
Owen Duff UK 2023)
The Owen Duff (UK 2022)
6 min
Owen Duff is an independent musician who also works part time for a London council. In the past couple of years he’s been experimenting with sound art, after taking a music masters course at Goldsmiths University.
“The Meaning of Alexa” is one of the pieces that he made on the course - an improvised piano and voice “duet” between Owen and an Amazon Echo smart speaker. It was originally a live performance, with improvised questions and piano playing in response to Alexa’s answer. Owen then edited and augmented this with sound design and also added in recordings that the Amazon Echo took itself, of him. It was inspired by writing on digital capitalism and neoliberalism by authors Han Byung-Chul, Wendy Brown and others.
Produced by: Owen Duff
The Battle of Lewisham
Skevos Loizou (UK 2018)
Skevos Loizou (UK 2018)
18 min
On August 13th 1977 The Battle of Lewisham played a major part in the start of the fall of the National Front in the UK. During the 1970s the NF had made major gains in elections and were building a racist movement. The NF organised a march through Lewisham is South London, they were physically confronted by the local comunity, trade unionists, and anti racisits. Even with Police protection the march capitulated. Set with the backdrop of the music of the time here are Stories from the Battle of Lewisham.
Producer - Skevos Loizou
I Am Better Than I Was
Myriam Pruvot (BE 2018)
Myriam Pruvot (BE 2018)
14 min
Music and spoken word in fragments with texts taken from Mohamed Ali's speech before his fight with George Foreman in 1974 mixed with extracts from the diary of a young woman.
Produced by Myriam Pruvot