Fall 2020

Starting Fall of 2019 I started a graduate program at California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) in the Herb Alpert School of Music. The specialization is Experimental Sound Practices with an added focus on Integrated Media. At the end of each semester I will post a brief summery of the work that I focused on.
The beginning of the second year – and its entirety – was online thanks to the pandemic. For myself and other students, we took this challenge in stride and managed to create interesting pieces that often were a distillation of our own microcosms.
Video Work
3 Sounds, Static Image
Aethetics of Image & Sound
Worldbuilding, A Hillside Portal
Aethetics of Image & Sound
A Meditation on Orange
Aethetics of Image & Sound
空虚的心情【Empty Mood】
Aethetics of Image & Sound
Audio Projects
Periodically prompted permutations of sound.
Our prompt was to observe our everyday sounds and record two contrasting soundscapes. This recording was from the same place but at different times: Solano Canyon (Los Angeles) when nothing was happening vs. when a Dodgers game was happening (during & after).
We broke into assigned groups and went on a field recording trip around campus. Our task was to interact with an area and each make a recording. Then, we are free to manipulate the recording how we see fit. My group found a spot in the library where we hit shelves and its flotsam. I then took the recording and manipulated it with a modular synth.

Our prompt was to be apart of the recording by activating a space and actively particupate in the soundscape. The constraints were much looser, so I recorded a bedroom electro-acoustic track. Using the Field Kit (KOMA Elektronik), I mixed radio, cassette loop, and a contact mic to a small speaker while a voltage–controled DC motor excited a string of hooves.
The final project was to simply have fun and explore, while using field recordings as the main feature. I used vinyl samples, cassette loops, dictaphone recordings, voice memos, and Zoom recordings meshed together.
Live Performances
Throughout the semester, opportunities are given to perform. I was able to play twice, once for the program’s ESP Night series and again for a memorial show.
ESP Fall 2020 Showcase - Collaboration with Shuwen Zhao