Multiphonics

During their time in Auckland, Jim Murphy and Dugal McKinnon will be accompanied by New Zealand’s only IKO Speaker. Developed by Sonible in partnership with IEM, this icosahedral speaker reflects sound from the walls enclosing a given space, sending focused sound beams in any direction desired. This is made possible through its unique form and the use of complex algorithms. Using wall and ceiling reflections to establish a unique and distinct sound space, the IKO surrounds listeners in the media and artistic event. For this special concert, the IKO Speaker will be used by both Dugal and Ben Leonard, who will present his piece, Breathwork, composed while Sound Artist in Residence at Wellington’s Toi Pōenke Arts Centre. Complimenting these pieces, Jim Murphy and Bridget Johnson will present a performance as part of their ongoing Prepared Spaces series, and Nathan Carter will perform using his cutting-edge granular synthesizers.



Friday 14 November @ Audio Foundation
Doors 7pm, Tickets available from undertheradar.co.nz



Dugal McKinnon is a composer and sound artist whose practice encompasses electronic, acoustic, visual and textual media, often intersecting these. His recent output includes To Think of Atoms, for icosahedral loudspeaker and 40-channel sound system, for Sonorities Festival (Belfast), and Path 99, a collaborative audiovisual project (for surround sound and full-dome planetarium projection), commissioned by the NZ International Film Festival. Dugal established the Sonic Arts programme (now Digital Music and Audio Production) at Te Kōki—New Zealand School of Music, where he teaches electronic music and sound studies, and co-directs the Lilburn Studios for Electronic Music. Follow Dugal on Instagram at @dugalmck.
https://www.graysoncooke.com/path99
https://www.instagram.com/dugalmck/

Jim Murphy is a sculptor of kinetic sound artworks. A lecturer in Sonic Arts and Music Technology at Te Kōki—New Zealand School of Music, Jim’s recent works focus on mechanical expressions of gesture and sonority. Originally from New Mexico, Jim studied at California Institute of the Arts, moving to Wellington to complete a PhD in Sonic Arts and Engineering with a thesis exploring expressivity in mechatronic musical instruments. In 2020, Jim founded Ensemble Mechatronic, a collective of sound artists who explore mechanical sonic artmaking. He has recently exhibited works at Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery. Follow Jim on Instagram at @ensemble_mechatronic.
https://www.instagram.com/ensemble_mechatronic/

Bridget Johnson creates immersive sound installations and performances that heighten the audience’s experience with spatial audio. Her work focuses on exploring the way sound can move through space and developing new interfaces and experiences to allow composers and performers to further explore expressivity through real-time spatialisation in their work. Her installations explore these themes in combination with site-specificity and abstraction of time.
https://www.bridgetdjohnson.com/about

Ben Leonard (BJ Leo) is a Taamaki–based composer and sonic artist working with spatial audio and spectral decomposition. His practice explores deconstruction and reconstruction of sonic spectra in multichannel environments, considering how spectral and spatial processes shape perception. Through techniques of spectral fission and fusion, sound is decomposed into its partials and redistributed through ambisonic and multi-array loudspeaker systems. This year he is undertaking a residency at SpaesLab, Berlin and 4DSOUND, Amsterdam.
https://soundcloud.com/bjleo

Nathan Carter (aka Alter Natural), is musician, composer/producer of electronic music, and multi-media sonic artist. As a music composer/producer, his work takes inspiration from visual art and real-world subject matter, driven by a deep passion to express beauty and philosophical sublimity through sound. This passion extends to visual/multi-media expressions, consisting of both audio-visual art and coding (small games/installations, audio visualisation, and digital synthesiser design) and audio/scoring for screen media (films/games/art media).
https://www.alternatural.nz/



Exhibition info: https://www.audiofoundation.org.nz/programmes/exhibitions/jim-murphy-and-dugal-mckinnon-temporal-fictions