Experimental Sound Studio (ESS), in collaboration with artist Olivia Block, presents “Sonambient Pavilion”, a sound installation using the 50-channel sound system of the Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park. The project is an homage and a re-activation of two sonambient sound sculptures by Harry Bertoia, located in Aon Plaza across from Pritzker Pavilion. Bertoia conceived the sonambients as site-specific works integrated into the architecture of the plaza. In “Sonambient Pavilion,” these sculptures are amplified and combined with electronic manipulations composed by Block, then spatialized into the overhead trellis loudspeaker array. The installation will result in a “canopy of sound” derived from the sonambients, and composed as a fluid sonic architecture superimposed onto the Pritzker Pavilion site. Through the use of transmission and computer technology, the delicate experiential nature of sound in architecture as envisioned by Bertoia gains new dimensions, transposed into an enveloping sonic experience – a built environment of sound.
Biography of Speaker/Presenter:
Olivia Block is a composer and sound artist in Chicago who creates original compositions for concerts, site-specific multi-speaker installations, live cinema, and performance, often incorporating field recordings, chamber instruments, and electronics. Her solo performances, presented in festivals and venues worldwide, include partially improvised pieces for electronics and amplified objects, presented in a deliberate, emotive gestural style. Block has created sound installations for public sites and exhibition spaces including the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; the library at Wesleyan University; the "Echoes Through the Mountains" exhibition at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin; and collaborated with Ryan Ingebritsen, Joseph Clayton Mills and Shawn Decker on two outdoor installations for the Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park, "Train Time" and "Laughter and Tears", both commissioned by Experimental Sound Studio.
Additional Partners: Major support provided by:
Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events
Graham Foundation
Millennium Park Foundation
New Music USA