no[w]here

Now here is no where: The soundscape of mobile computing age is detached from the events of now here. Now here is connecting everywhere, at the same time, now here is no where. The change of sonic environment gives the new ways of artistic expression.
For my thesis, I will research about the soundscape of mobile computing era and make the projects for it.

I am a sound artist who is dealing with field recording and sound signal processing and have interest about the fusion of digital and organic. I have a strong feeling that I am one part of the environment, and, in my composition, listening and capturing the environment is as important as composing and making sound by myself. Wikipedia says: A soundscape is an acoustic environment or an environment created by sound. We are living in the sound of ocean, and in our everyday situation, the background sound is the huge pool of information even though we don't realize the existence. Murray Schafer wrote "The tuning of the world" in 1977 and established the basic concept of soundscape. The book is still strong and eye opening. However, it is true that many technological and environmental changes have happened in these 30 years. What I try to achieve is to indicate one view point about the current soundscape and to live the story there.

The environment of a big city is filled with many artificial things - the modern skyscrapers, the big LCD screens, the hum noise of air conditioner, and the invisible radio frequencies. For me who grew up in the city, all of the environments are the new ecology. All of them are something like trees or volcano or mountain or solar light. They might give some bad effect for my body, but we have to coexist with them. Additionally, the birth of the portable sound devices -the laptop, the mobile phone, the walkman, and ipod - changed the soundscape. As the result, the soundscape is more closed and fragmented than before.

I am planning to make 2 projects for my thesis:
- "empty space" sound walk art piece with the geo-coding and the bone-conduction headset
- "2.4GHz scape" 2.4GHz spectrum composition/installation/street performance

I believe that the changes of sound environment can cultivate the possibility of the new way of making or enjoying music. For example, in the traditional stage performance setting, the border between the artist and the audience is clear. In many cases, audiences watch the show in the fixed time and space. My interest is how to deconstruct the performance setting as the more interactive way and the place where the border between the performer and the audiences becomes more blur.

Now here is no where: no[w]here is a sound art work for the soundscape of mobile computer era. For my thesis, I will research and make projects about the soundscape of the mobile computer age.