The International Festival and Conference on Sound in the Arts, Science and Technology (ISSTA 2017) is currently calling for works and papers to be presented at the Dundalk Institute of Technology, Ireland this September. Acceptable works include performances, installations, and workshops from makers, creators, performers, thinkers and researchers. The range of perspectives are broad and fascinating including: new creative approaches using self-designed or hacked controllers, communities and maker spaces/hackspaces, open culture and creative technologies to name a few.
ISSTA aims to bring together practitioners integrating fields of music, art, sound, science and technology. Our events serve musicians, researchers, scientists, engineers and artists by promoting sound within the arts, science and technology, within Irish and international communities. Since 2010 ISSTA has hosted an annual conference, gathering researchers from around the globe to present papers, installations, concerts and workshops. This year we are running our annual conference and festival at Dundalk Institute of Technology with Peter Kirn and Dr. Theresa Dillon as keynote speakers.
The call can be found here: issta.ie/call-for-submission-2017/ or read on for all the details below.
The following video provides an overview of the 2016 ISSTA Festival/Conference and gives a sense of what ISSTA is about:
ISSTA 2016 from Pillarpix Media on Vimeo.
ISSTA INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL AND CONFERENCE ON SOUND IN THE ARTS, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (ISSTA 2017)
Sept 7th-8th 2017
Dundalk Institute of Technology, Ireland
KEYNOTES
Peter Kirn (Editor–in–Chief, CDM: Create Digital Music) cdm.link
Dr Theresa Dillon (Artist–Researcher, Professor of City Futures at Watershed and University of the West of England, Bristol) www.polarproduce.org
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS
Submissions are due Monday 3rd April. Notifications will be sent by Friday 9th June.
ISSTA 2017: Sound–Makers: technologies, practices and cultures
Creative audio and visual practices are increasingly moving from the digital sphere into the ‘real’ world––moving from bits to atoms (Ishii and Ullmer, 1997)––as physical computing technologies continue to become more widely affordable and accessible. Custom–made and repurposed controllers, gestural interfaces and intentionally hackable or reconfigurable instruments now support the creation and control of music and audio-visual media outside the mouse and keyboard paradigm and beyond normative models based on previously–established practices.
These technologies are increasingly being championed by grassroots movements which are driven by the designers, makers and creators who build and use them. Maker groups, festivals and social spaces––frequently more diverse and inclusive than established communities within academia and industrial R&D––have emerged to engage new creators and audiences through music, visual and sound art performances. Spanning disciplines such as controllerism, modular synthesis, interface design, circuit bending and live sound art, many practitioners and researchers are increasingly looking beyond code, bringing, integrating sensors and soldering within their classroom, stage and studio practices.
The Irish Sound, Science and Technology Association (ISSTA) invites makers, creators, performers, thinkers and researchers to come together to share their insights on this emerging field.
Perspectives on our call may include (but are not limited to) the following:
- New creative approaches using self-designed or hacked controllers
- Maker movements and the democratisation of technology
- The gendering of maker spaces/hackspaces and/or other questions of inclusivity or exclusion
- Communities and maker spaces/hackspaces: chronicling experiences of establishing maker spaces and scenes
- Open culture and creative technologies: sharing code, technologies and practices
- Making/hacking and sustainability: installations and electronic music practices using recycled equipment
- The Global West (or North) and the rest? Differences in global experiences of maker culture and spaces
- Maker/hacker approaches and developments in education
We welcome the submission of papers, artworks, compositions/performances and workshops on these ideas and related topics for presentation at the 7th ISSTA Festival and Conference on Sound, 7th-8th September 2017, at Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT).
Equidistant between Belfast and Dublin, with excellent flight, public transport and motorway connections with both cities, DkIT is an education hub for creative technologies in Ireland’s Eastern Corridor region.
CALL CATEGORIES
Papers/Posters, Music, Installations/Artworks, Workshops
CALL CONDITIONS
The call is open to all practitioners regardless of nationality.
Participants are responsible for their own travel and accommodation and, where relevant, transport of materials; as a small, subscriber–funded organization, we are unable to provide artists’ fees but we do aim to keep registration fees as low as possible.
Registration for ISSTA 2017 is required for participation.
REGISTRATION COSTS
Registration fees are as follows:
Professional: €70 (€40 registration + €30 ISSTA membership)
Postgraduate student: €50 (€30 registration + €20 ISSTA membership)
Undergraduate student or unwaged: €25 (€15 registration + €10 ISSTA membership)
Non-members €80
The registration page will open July 4th.
CHAIRS AND ORGANISING COMMITTEE
Chair of ISSTA 2017: Dr Niall Coghlan
Chair of Papers/Posters: Dr Caroline O’Sullivan
Chair of Workshops: Rory Walsh, Kelly McErleane
Chair of Sound Art/Installations: David Stalling, Kieran Nolan
Chair of Music: Dr Neil O’Connor, Claire Fitch
President of ISSTA: Dr Linda O Keeffe (Lancaster University)
Vice–President of ISSTA: Dr Brian Bridges (Ulster University)
Treasurer of ISSTA: Dr Jacqueline Walker (University of Limerick)
Secretary of ISSTA: Dr Alan Dormer (University of Limerick)
Web/PR Editor, ISSTA: Dr Stephen Roddy (Trinity College Dublin)
CALL FOR MUSIC
This category is reserved for compositions or performances intended for live performance in a concert setting. The musical work must include science or technology in some way.
Examples of acceptable submissions include but are not limited to:
- Circuit Bending
- Computer Music
- DJ/Scratch Music
- Electroacoustic Composition – fixed-medium or real-time
- Laptop Performance
- Mixed Composition for electronics and performers
- Noise Music
The selected works will be performed in a series of concerts during the festival. If a work requires performers, the submitters must provide them. As a small, subscriber-funded organisation, we unfortunately cannot provide performer/artist fees or coverage of transport costs at this time. The composer/artist must register and attend for the piece to be performed. The conference will also host workshops, paper and poster sessions and curate sound art/installations, which we hope will be of benefit to all attendees. Works straddling domains may be submitted to multiple calls but will be scheduled with the successful submission category.
Pieces should be no longer than 12 minutes.
To submit:
1-page Programme Notes along with any technical requirements.
A link to downloadable stereo mix of work via Soundcloud or Vimeo. Multi-channel works are acceptable, but submission must be a stereo mix.
Submit on EasyChair
CALL FOR SOUND ART AND INSTALLATIONS
This category is reserved for works within the gallery/site-specific art paradigm. The work must include science or technology in some way. Examples of acceptable submissions include but are not limited to:
- Interactive Sound Art
- Site-specific Sound Art
- Sound Art Installation
The selected works will be installed in locations around the conference. If a work requires performers or special technology, the submitters must provide them and arrange for transport of materials. As a small, subscriber-funded organisation, we unfortunately cannot provide performer/artist fees or coverage of transport costs at this time.
Artists must register and attend for works to be included. The conference will also host workshops, paper and poster sessions and musical concerts, which we hope will be of benefit to attendees. Pieces straddling domains may be submitted to multiple calls but will be scheduled within the successful submission category.
To submit:
1- to 3-page document with a description of the work. Description must include space and technical requirements. IMPORTANT: Please be clear what technical requirements you can provide. Not all equipment may be available, so the more you can provide, the better.
Link to downloadable video and/or sound recording of work (if available).
CALL FOR POSTERS/PAPERS
This category is reserved for papers (oral presentation, 20 mins) or posters exhibiting current research in any domain involving sound with science or technology.
Examples of acceptable submission areas include but are not limited to:
- Acoustic Ecology
- Acoustics
- Circuit Bending
- Computational Musicology
- Computer Music
- Digital Audio and Digital Signal Processing
- DJ Practice
- Electroacoustic Music
- History of Sound, Science and Technology
- Interfaces for Music or Sound
- Laptop Music
- Live Electronics
- Live Sound Reinforcement
- Music Perception
- Music Recording and Production
- Music/Audio software
- Noise Music
- Psychoacoustics
- Recording Engineering
- Sound Art
- Soundscape Art/Studies
- Sound Diffusion and Spatialization
- Sound Engineering
- Sound Synthesis and Design
- Sound, Science and Technology Education/Pedagogy
The selected papers will be presented in a series of 20-minute oral presentations during the conference. Posters will be on display. At least one author must register and attend for papers/posters to be presented. The conference will also host workshops, musical concerts and curate sound art/installations. Pieces straddling domains may be submitted to multiple calls but will be scheduled with the successful submission category.
To submit:
1-page abstract (approx.. 500 words) including whether paper or poster submission.
Selection of papers will be made double-blind. Therefore, it is essential that no identifying information be included in the paper abstract.
CALL FOR WORKSHOPS
This category is reserved for workshops pertaining to current activity in any domain involving sound with science or technology. Examples of acceptable submissions include but are not limited to:
- Circuit Bending
- Design
- DIY
- Hacking
- Open Source
- Performance
- Post-graduate/Student work
Workshop leaders must register and attend to be included. Workshop fees cannot be provided. The conference will also host poster & paper sessions, musical concerts and curate sound art/installations, which we hope will be of benefit to all attendees.
To submit:
1-page description including space or technical requirements.
document listing experience.