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Unsound Festival

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Unsound Festival, also known as Unsound, is an annual music festival that takes place in Kraków, Poland, dealing with evolving and mutating forms of music, as well as related visual arts. Apart from the main festival, Unsound regularly takes place in cities around the world such as New York,[1] London,[2] Adelaide,[3][4] Toronto,[5] Minsk,[6] and Tbilisi.[7]

The Kraków festival is run by the non-profit organisation Fundacja Tone Muzyka i Nowe Formy Sztuki (Tone Foundation for Music and New Forms of Art).[8]

History

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The first Unsound festival in Kraków, Poland took place in 2003, starting out as a local, underground event in the city's cellar bars.[9] It currently falls in the first part of October and lasts around one week. Starting out as an event focused on Polish audiences, in recent years it has rapidly developed to become one of the most prominent events of its kind in Europe.[10]

In 2010, the festival developed its program and visual identity around the theme "Horror, the pleasure of fear and unease",[11] which explored the history and emerging trend of darkness in music. "Horror" was followed up in 2011 with the theme "Future Shock," inspired by the 1970 book by futurist Alvin Toffler.[12] Subsequent themes have included "The End" (2012),[13] "Interference" (2013)[14] and "The Dream" (2014).[15] The theme for 2015 was "Surprise", described in a press release that was heavily redacted and intentionally revealed little.[16] Following were the themes "Dislocation","Flower Power", "Presence" and "Solidarity".

Description

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Unsound is also known for opening up architectural spaces, adapting them for music events. In Kraków, this includes Hotel Forum, a communist-era hotel building that had lain empty for a decade until Unsound 2012, then subsequently became an important cultural hub in the city.[17] In Toronto in June 2015, Unsound adapted the abandoned Hearn Power Station to produce the first ever public event in the space in collaboration with Luminato Festival.[18]

Unsound is a founding and active member of ICAS (International Cities of Advanced Sound).[when?][clarification needed][19]

Unsound directors

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The co-founder and artistic director of Unsound is Mat Schulz. The executive director is Małgorzata Płysa.[when?][citation needed]

Other countries

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In February 2010, Unsound cooperated with local partners in New York such as the Wordless Music series, Bunker and Electronic Music Foundation to create a 10-day satellite event involving music, film, workshops and panel discussions.[20]

There have been events in London, partnering with The Barbican[3] and BFI among others; and Unsound Toronto as part of Luminato.[citation needed]

Unsound has also worked in the region of Eastern Europe, Central Asia and The Caucasus, to create mini-festivals with local partners and curators. This includes the Unsound Dislocation project, which took place in 11 cities across the post-Soviet region in 2016–17.[21]

Unsound Adelaide

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Several events have been staged in Adelaide, South Australia, within the framework of the Adelaide Festival of Arts in 2013[3] and 2016.[21] It again held the event over two nights in Adelaide in July 2022 as part of Illuminate Adelaide,[4] in the Dom Polski Centre (aka the Polish Club) in Angas Street.[22] In 2023, the event expanded to three nights, with the final one being held in the new Hindley Street Music Hall, featuring Oneohtrix Point Never supported by CORIN (Corin Ileto, Filipina-Australian electronic producer, composer, and performer[23]). This event celebrated Unsound Adelaide's 10th anniversary.[24]

Projects

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Unsound has produced many collaborative and commissioned projects. The history of these projects begins with 2008's Warhol Series, where live electronic and experimental music is played as a "soundtrack" to classic silent Andy Warhol films. Artists involved in this project include: Carl Craig, nsi., Groupshow, Stefan Németh and the video artist Lillevan. According to the Unsound website, the "series refers to Warhol’s own extensive use of pre-existing material to create something new, as well as the 60s multimedia event The Exploding Plastic Inevitable, which used Warhol’s film work as moving wallpaper projected onto a wall and musicians from The Velvet Underground."[25]

Another key commissioned work is "Solaris," by Ben Frost and Daniel Bjarnasson in cooperation with Kraków's Sinfonietta Cracovia. Accompanied with visuals by Brian Eno and Nick Robertson, this piece premiered at Unsound Kraków in 2010, and was performed at Unsound Festival New York 2011 at Alice Tully Hall in the Lincoln Center.[26] In 2014, Unsound partnered with Adelaide Festival to bring to life "Double Vision", created by Atom™ and Robin Fox. Like "Solaris", this project has gone on to tour the world.[27]

Apart from commissioning works, Unsound has also become known as a platform for artists to premiere new pieces or shows - for example, Robert Henke's laser and sound work "Lumiere", which was launched in Kraków in 2013.[28]

Ephemera

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In 2014, Unsound launched its Ephemera project, connecting sound and scent. According to the Ephemera website, the project "presents olfactory compositions based on musical resonances and reverberations".[29] The nose behind the project is Berlin-based Geza Schoen.

In the first phase of the project, three musicians - Ben Frost, Tim Hecker, and Steve Goodman (aka Kode9) - created raw sonic material which Schoen then reinterpreted to create three different scents: Noise, Drone and Bass. These scents and sounds were then used in an installation environment that premiered at Unsound Festival New York, and gained wide media attention.[30][31][32] The installation was subsequently set up at the National Museum of Kraków,[33] the Tromsø Kunstforening in Norway and the Malmo Inter-Arts Centre.[34][35]

In October 2014, the Ephemera scents were released as perfumes with the music available as downloadable tracks, and have received positive reviews from "niche" perfume and music writers.[36][37]

For the first time, Ephemera took the form of a live experience at Unsound Toronto on June 19, 2015, involving music by Tim Hecker, an olfactory component by Geza Schoen and lighting design by Marcel Weber.[38] The critical reception for this work was highly positive, with the Canadian music website Exclaim writing "Ephemera is truly, unequivocally original – a sensory performance on a whole new level."[39]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Pareles, Jon (5 February 2010). "The Beauty of Pulses, the Glory of Drones". The New York Times.
  2. ^ "Unsound London! Line-Up Announced". The Quietus. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  3. ^ a b c "Unsound festival expands to London and Adelaide". Wire. 13 February 2013. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  4. ^ a b Maunder, Patricia (21 April 2022). "Illuminate Adelaide announces 2022 program". Limelight. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  5. ^ "Unsound Toronto - June 20 - Luminato Festival 2015". Archived from the original on 25 May 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  6. ^ "Mińsk w Krakowie specjalnie dla Unsound Festival". 80bpm. 3 October 2009. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  7. ^ "Unsound host free event in Tbilisi". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  8. ^ "KBF: kultura | biznes | festiwale". Kbf.krakow.pl. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  9. ^ "Unsound Festival - Krakow Events - Krakow Informer Travel Guide | Apartments Tours Restaurants Nightlife Accommodation Poland". Archived from the original on 5 October 2009. Retrieved 4 October 2009.
  10. ^ "Top 10 October 2014 Festivals · Feature". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  11. ^ "Unsound 2010 · Event Review". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  12. ^ "FACT's guide to Unsound 2011". Fact Magazine. 22 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  13. ^ "The Quietus | Features | Three Songs No Flash | The Shock Of The End: Krakow's Unsound Festival Deconstructed". The Quietus. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  14. ^ "Reading the interference: What we learned at Unsound Krakow / In Depth // Drowned in Sound". Archived from the original on 14 April 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  15. ^ "Tinnitus Entertain You: Unsound Festival 2014 reviewed". Telekom Electronic Beats. 24 October 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  16. ^ "Unsound reveals no details of 2015 festival · News". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  17. ^ "Eastern European dance revolution conquers west". The Guardian. 24 January 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  18. ^ "Music fest coming to abandoned Toronto power station". Blogto.com. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  19. ^ "Home". Icasnetwrok.org. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  20. ^ Smith, Steve (29 January 2010). "Hello, New York: Avant-Garde Eastern Europe". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  21. ^ a b "Unsound announces theme for 2016 and 2017". Resident Advisor. 4 April 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  22. ^ Skujins, Angela (5 May 2022). "Pioneering producers are taking over Dom Polski for Unsound Adelaide". CityMag. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  23. ^ "CORIN · Biography". Resident Advisor. 15 July 2023. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  24. ^ "Unsound". Illuminate Adelaide. 15 July 2023. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  25. ^ Caramanica, Jon (8 February 2010). "Imaginary Soundtracks for Two Silent Warhol Films". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  26. ^ "Daniel Bjarnason and Ben Frost: A soundtrack to Solaris · Feature". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  27. ^ "Blurred minds: Pop hijackers Atom™ and Robin Fox introduce their Unsound audiovisual show Double Vision". Factmag.com. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  28. ^ "Unsound 2013 · Event Review". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  29. ^ "Ephemera". Ephemera.pl. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  30. ^ "Tim Hecker, Kode9, Ben Frost Creating Music for Drone, Bass, and Noise Perfumes". Pitchfork.com. 18 March 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  31. ^ "This is What Electronic Music Smells Like". Vice.com. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  32. ^ "Unsound music festival commissions club-inspired fragrances". The Guardian. 20 March 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  33. ^ "New Perfume Review: Ephemera Bass, Drone and Noise by Unsound + Geza Schoen's Post Apocalyptic Art Draw". Cafleurebon.com. 24 April 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  34. ^ "Installation". Ephemera.pl. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  35. ^ [1] [dead link‍]
  36. ^ Behnke, Mark (8 January 2015). "New Perfume Review Ephemera by Unsound Noise- Does It Smell and Sound and Look Good?". Colognoisseur.com. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  37. ^ "Which Genre Smells the Best: Bass, Noise or Drone?". Telekom Electronic Beats. 18 May 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  38. ^ "Unsound Festival lands In Toronto with Tim Hecker, Stars of the Lid, Morton Subotnick, and an Olfactory Experience". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  39. ^ "Tim Hecker presents 'Ephemera', The Hearn Generating Station". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
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