Listening around: Sonic extractions of the electromagentic spectrum

Dillon, Teresa

Abstract

This paper opens with sound 0018 HF-pc lookingforwifi, taken from Martin Howse and Shintaro Miyazaki’s online archive Sonic Archaeology. The number (0018) refers to the order in the catalogue and the sound of the high frequencies (HF) that were picked up via their Detektor device as a personal computer (PC) searched for a WiFi signal. Following this are two images; one from Christina Kubish's Electrical Walks (2016) and the other from Mario de Vega's work titled Dolmen (2015). Howse, Kubish and de Vega are Berlin-based artists, who conceptualize the raw, electromagnetic (EM) matter of our contemporary “smart” cities through sound. The EM spectrum refers to the range of frequencies of electromagnetic radiation, which extends from high, short waves (gamma, x-ray, extreme ultraviolet), to visible, medium waves (ultraviolet, infrared) and low, long waves (microwaves and radio waves). Between 2014 and 2015, I carried out a series of conversations with artists and curators working with the EM spectrum, including Howse, de Vega and Kubish. With these practitioners I share a longstanding interest in the EM spectrum, in particular the lower end - the radio waves (3 hertz/Hz – 30 megahertz/Mhz) that occur in urban spaces and emit from human-made devices . This paper focuses on the performances, compositions, sculptures, tools (hardware and software) and educational interventions that Howse, de Vega, Kubish and their associated collaborators have created in this area.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 30, 2018
• Journal: Journal of Sonic Studies
• Publisher: Leiden University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/865562
• Publisher URL: http://sonicstudies.org