South River is host to a unique art festival. New Adventures in Sound Arts (NAISA) is presenting the 22nd edition of its SOUNDplay Festival. SOUNDplay is an annual fall festival that encourages new avenues of exploration between sound and new media. This year’s edition features work by Don Ritter, Jessica Thompson, and Kelly Ruth that uses both old and new technologies to explore the theme of “Remote Connections”. A new addition to the festival will be the 48-Hour Sound Art Challenge – a weekend intensive that invites sound and media artists to create a sound art miniature in the rural environs of Warbler’s Roost.
“The telephone made it possible to connect people in real-time across long distances,” says Darren Copeland, Artistic Director of New Adventures in Sound Art. “As telecommunications and entertainment media continue to expand and diversify in the 21st Century, technological elements find a place in many aspects of the human experience. SOUNDplay’s focus this year will be on media artworks that mix old tools and technologies with virtual digital applications that deepen our sense of place and being in the world.”
From September 14th to December 4th, a large-scale sound map of the Almaguin Highlands will be on exhibit at NAISA that will be continually updated with contributions from residents and guests to the region who will be invited to borrow a toolkit to map sounds in areas of their choice, or by using the Borderline iOS app.
Also on exhibit for the same period will be O Telephone by Don Ritter. Ritter worked as a telecom engineer before establishing an internationally celebrated career in interactive video in the 1990s. O telephone recalls those early years. When visitors to the installation answer a ringing 1960’s analog telephone, contemplative vocal sounds begin circling around them.
48-Hour Sound Art Challenge Weekend Intensive
From October 13th to 15th, NAISA invites artists to a weekend intensive where they will be tasked with the challenge of creating a sound art miniature in a 48-hour time period. The 48-Hour Sound Art Challenge will take place at Warbler’s Roost, a 14-acre rural, forested and lake-side property in the Almaguin Highlands. Peer learning and sharing will be encouraged through the process and NAISA Artistic Director Darren Copeland will be on hand to assist. The results of the challenge will be shared afterward on NAISA Radio and NAISA social media channels.
Second Life Performance Installation Dec 7th to 9th with Kelly Ruth
From December 7th to 9th, NAISA will host a performance installation by Edmonton Artist Kelly Ruth that will include performances at the NAISA Space and in the digital world of Second Life using the sounds of a weaving loom manipulated by electronic effects pedals. Ruth’s performance will be Screened on December 12th at 2 pm during your Water Earth Fire Air of life and death on YouTube. Second Life allows her to collaborate, build community, and share skills. “Engaging in art in immersive environments through an avatar representation of oneself allows the audience member to engage with the work on their own terms in a playful and creative way that often blurs the relationship between audience and artist,” says Kelly Ruth.
New Adventures in Sound Art is a non-profit sound art organization in South River Ontario that is funded in part by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and the Department of Canadian Heritage.
