Vergangene Projekte

2025

2025 wurde das EARS-Programm nicht durchgeführt. Es gibt daher keine Projekte aus diesem Jahr.

2024

  • Pablo Mariña: «Digital-Acoustic Synergy»

    This research proposal establishes an explorative study into the interplay between computers, notation methods, and their collective impact on the creation and interpretation of instrumental and live electronic music. At the heart of this investigation lies a dual objective: first, to delineate the unique affordances of digital media in musical practices—affordances unattainable in purely acoustic settings; and second, to conduct a comprehensive analysis of notational strategies by observing the influence of computational tools and notational techniques across the spectrum of artistic production. This exploration mainly focuses on the conception and interpretation phases of music production. It aims to discern whether the notational framework provides ample and significant information for predicting musical outcomes and the complexity of integrating digital mediums. During the interpretation phase, it also examines the extent to which the score provides sufficient information for the performance of all its parts, independent of specific hardware or software requirements.

  • Emily Sarsam: «I drink the disorder of the world»

    A research project on notions of sound pollution and sonic densities in urban environments through dhrupad practice, electroacoustic composition, and performance

    Through deep listening, field recording, vocal practice, and composition with audio software (mainly Ableton), I explore what happens when one decides to stay with the noise for a while. Through this project, I observe my own as well as the audience’s physical and emotional responses to sounds often regarded as “noise” or “sonic pollution” as well as white noise and, through performative vocal practice and composition, suggest alternative readings of noise which evoke new associations and corporeal sensations. Using field recordings of sounds commonly considered nuisances or threats to health - such as engines, alarms, sound systems, industrial sounds, and hums of air-conditioners and generators, I wish to compose pieces that transcend ideas of pollution and nuisance and stimulate the sensory, and emotional and visual imaginary, in the hopes of inspiring conscious ways of listening in our urban environments. By integrating elements from the sonically “polluted” urban environment and using them as compositional material I want to open up reflection and discussion about sociability and mental health in the city. Which sonic hierarchies can be heard in cities? What do they tell us about economic and social injustices? Which tools and strategies do people apply to cope with sensorial and specifically sonic overload in urban and industrial environments?

  • Francisco Uberto: «Bridging Sensorial Realms in Multimedia Composition»

    This project delves into cross-modal methodologies linking video and live mixed music, with a specific emphasis on sensory substitution algorithms. Building upon recent multimedia compositions, where video soundscapes are substituted with original mixed music, the objective is to investigate techniques for conveying sensory information across modalities. Key inquiries revolve around the identification of parameters for navigating sound databases and the reimagining of classical sound paradigms towards a post-instrumental framework.  

    The research unfolds methodologically through literature review, dataset collection, algorithmic development, experimentation, and practical application in multimedia composition. Collaboration with mentors and experts at ICST is anticipated to refine methods and elevate artistic outcomes, fostering an environment conducive to interdisciplinary exploration and creative evolution.

2023

  • Severin Dornier: [Titel und Projektskizze fehlen]

    [Abstract fehlt]

  • Roberto Fausti: «Digital Cadences: Integrating AI and Data Science in Music Composition»

    In recent years I've dedicated myself to exploring the complex fields of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science. This research was driven by my curiosity to apply new techniques in music and develop my composition technique, while treating digital audio recordings not just as musical documents, but as data worthy of AI analysis.  

    A core aspect of this ongoing research is cluster analysis, a statistical method used for processing and organizing data. This methodology is intriguing when applied to music. By analyzing digital audio files, split into individual frames, and grouping these frames based on criteria like frequency, timbre, or intensity, we can glean insights into the audio material from a fresh perspective. This approach often results in an unusual blend of the seemingly absurd with a newfound coherence, as the algorithm uncovers hidden relationships within the data.  

    The primary aim of this process is to illuminate the various facets of audio material in novel ways. The outcomes of these algorithms provide a unique idiomatic character to the sounds, making the often abstract concepts of the digital world audibly tangible. This intersection of technology and art creates a distinctive aesthetic experience, one that is still being shaped and understood in its virtual context.  

    As this research unfolds, it leads to contemplative reflections on the interplay between automation and artistic creation. The increasing role of AI in artistic tasks is not just a technical advancement but also a philosophical and societal query. It compels us to question the essence and future of machine-generated art. Is machine-generated art still truly 'art'? What is the societal role of such art? Do we seek to retain a significant human element in the creative process, or should we venture towards new paradigms that challenge the traditional anthropocentric perspectives of art?

  • Mélia Roger: «Listening gestures – sound installations and ecological questions»

    The ecological crisis pushes our human sensitivity to question our intimate connection to «nature». Today, environmental field recording and sound ecology seek to capture this «field» in transformation, to preserve disappearing atmospheres but also to explore new soundscapes that were not heard before. We wish to question the gestures of environmental field recording through the prism of the ecological crisis by analyzing the different currents of this practice : the question of individualized species, cleaning of anthropogenic noise or on the contrary, seeking a semblance of truth in noise pollution, different sound recording techniques with a DIY scene or very industrialized (like sound libraries in multichannel formats) etc. On a second hand, we will analyze how a more-than-human connection can be experienced in space. Within the frame of new materialist theories and post-nature studies, we will analyze a corpus of sound installations (defined by the artist) to understand which elements from the space, in situ qualities, recordings elements are creating a unique connection between the non-humans and the listeners. Can we create a sensitive connection with living things through listening? What are the listening gestures that allow inter-specific empathy? To what extent our recording devices allow us to preserve a subjective trace of «nature» in transformation? How to imagine listening gestures that question the links between technology and soundscape? This research will also be accompanied by the practical work of the artist herself at Le Fresnoy - Studio des Arts Contemporains (Tourcoing, France).