DKO at FRANK Part 2: Everyday Music (2012)

Posted on December 28, 2012 by John C.S. Keston

This is an excerpt from a performance by DKO from the MCAD MFA open studio night on December 7, 2012 as discussed in the post Live Binaural Recording of DKO with Oliver Grudem. The document features Oliver Grudem (not shown) who produced the audiovisual score in real-time. The video and sound coming from the LED display and loud speaker below it was broadcast into the performance space as Oliver walked around the Minneapolis Uptown area during a snow storm. The visuals and sound from his walk provided a “score” for us to respond to as we improvised. Oliver was also able to hear our musical reactions to the audiovisual score as he was broadcasting and respond accordingly.

The piece was recorded with my custom built binaural head microphone to capture the sound localization of the performance space. NOTE: It is necessary to wear high quality headphones to experience the binaural effect. The spatial properties of studio monitors are also acceptable but will not produce the same localization of the sound sources. Thanks goes out to Eric Dowell for shooting video of the one hour long performance. I am working on editing a shorter version to briefly summarize the essence of the piece. This 13 minute video is a more in depth snapshot of what the performance entailed.

Dueling DSI Tempests + Drum Machines Class

Posted on December 22, 2012 by John C.S. Keston

This video features me and electronic musician, Lucas Melchior, on two synched up Dave Smith Instrument Tempests. Everything was played live into the machines. No parts were pre-recorded. It’s all live. The two of us are teaching a class, titled “Drum Machines,” starting January 17, 2013 at the Ableton certified training center Slam Academy in Minneapolis. Learn how to make music synchronizing your musical devices, old and new. Featuring Ableton Live, DSI Tempest, Expert Sleepers, Korg Monotribe, SCI Pro-One, and more.

Binaural Video of David Byrne’s Installation Playing the Building

Posted on November 30, 2012 by John C.S. Keston

On November 27, 2012 I made a binaural recording of David Byrne’s installation, Playing the Building (2012), at Aria in Minneapolis. During my session in the space I recorded a solo performance of myself, a duet with me and Jon Davis on bass clarinet, and a trio (DKO) with me, Graham O’Brien on drums and Jon Davis. I used a binaural head to record each performance. I have been interested in building a binaural head for some time, and finally got the parts together including a mannequin head, silicone ears, and overhead microphones capsules. I’ll share more about “Vincent” (the head’s name), and the rest of the recordings soon. For now here’s a video of my solo performance. Remember to listen using headphones in order to hear the binaural spatial effects. You’ll hear the installation surrounding you, a visitor bouncing a tennis ball off to the right, and occasional interjections of people in conversation.

Call for Artists: Videographer / Sound Design

Posted on November 7, 2012 by John C.S. Keston

I am currently working on an MFA in interactive media at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design in Minneapolis. My thesis project involves musical improvisation and various environmental and sensory influences that impact soloists and ensembles. To explore these ideas I am performing at the Compound Gallery, Minneapolis on December 7, 2012. The performance integrates an hour-long audiovisual score composed from crowd-sourced video content. The idea is to collect recognizable segments of non-dialogic, everyday video/sound from society (things like traffic, factory machinery, water dripping into bathtubs, the list goes on). We are looking for on site sound in the video that would be interesting as a layer within an experimental music context. To submit, please send an email with the following details to audiovisualscore@audiocookbook.org:

Link(s) for one to three HD videos on vimeo.com or youtube.com, each with a length between 30 seconds and 3 minutes.
A Drop Box (or comparable service) link to download the video file(s) at full quality.
List the camera, resolution, length, and microphone used to capture the audiovisual content.
Include your full name, email, and link to a site of your choice for attribution (artist portfolio, etc.).
State that you are allowing us to use the video in the performance on December 7, 2012 and the documentation produced afterward about the performance (video will be attributed to the artist).
A statement that the video is the sole property of the artist and does not violate any copyright laws or restrictions.

Please submit these materials by no later than November 21, 2012. Submissions from around the world are acceptable. Sound and video quality are important, but if you have something interesting that was shot with a mobile phone submit it anyway. It might just be what we’re looking for. The upcoming exhibition titled Frank also features the work of first and second year MCAD MFA graduate students. The performance is open to the public. On December 7, 2012 the doors will open at 6pm and our performance goes from 8pm to 9pm. Compound is located at the Whittier Studios, 2840 Grand Avenue South, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55404.