AGORA

2015
Acoustic Geographies or Reflection on AssemblyLeverhulme Artist-In-Residence Project at GEDS @ Birkbeck, University of London

23rd October - 5th November 2015

British Museum
+
The Rio
+
St. George’s, Bloomsbury
23/10 - 5/11 2015
Peltz Gallery, Birkbeck, University of London, 43 Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PD.

AGORA is an installation presenting compositions resulting from the Leverhulme Artist-In-Residency project. Compositions are derived from recorded material gathered at a number of sites, including the Hawksmoor designed church - St. Georges, Bloomsbury, the British Museum and The Rio cinema.

The installation is the result of Ain Bailey’s Leverhulme Trust artist-in-residence project ‘AGORA’ which investigates the idea of the forming of a public/congregation within architectural spaces through compositions. The project is concerned with the acoustics of sites of assembly that bring together diverse populations and organize them into a public. This relationship between acoustics, architecture and assembly culminates in a series of compositions created at The Rio Cinema, Dalston; The British Museum, Bloomsbury; and St. George’s, Bloomsbury.

NB: 23rd October is the event’s private view.
The Beginning
So The Leverhulme Artist-In-Residence has started. I’ll be based in the Department of Geography, Environment and Development Studies at Birkbeck. Looking forward to seeing what the A.G.O.R.A. project yields. Stay tuned.

St. Georges BloomsburyToday, I had my first meeting at one of the architectural spaces that I hope to make recordings in, subsequent compositions from and then, finally to perform the compositions back in the spaces. St. Georges is the last Hawskmoor church to have been built by Nicholas Hawksmoor in 1731. Two other Hawskmoor churches in the vicinity are St. Lukes, Old Street and Christ Church, Spitalfield, both of which have hosted experimental concerts too.

Acoustically, the church isn’t great, and work needs to be carried out to improve it’s sonic environment. As an environment in which to create a composition, it’s going to be most intriguing.

Recording KitMy recording set up is nearly complete. Just waiting to collect my package from Naiant Studios, which is being held at the local sorting office. My recording expertise has hitherto been somewhat ropey, but research has been conducted, a variety of websites perused, so now it’s just a matter of getting my hands on the complete kit and cracking on:

Tascam DR-100 Mk II

Sounds Devices Mix-Pre-D (on loan).

A matched pair of Naiant Studio X-X omnidirectional lapel condenser microphones, with clips and windscreens.

Sennheiser HD-25 Sp headphones.

Microphone stand.

Bulldog clips.

A variety of cables.

Memory cards.

Batteries - both internal and external.

Fishing bag.

Supreme levels of concentrated listening.

A quiet room!

St. Georges, Bloomsbury 28/5/15The AGORA recordings continued at St. George’s, Bloomsbury. One of only 12 Hawksmoor churches, St George’s was built in 1731, and renovated relatively recently in 2006. Listening without the aid of amplification, the sonic quality of the church is quite serene. There is the rumble of traffic on three sides of the building, with a constant stream of vehicles along Bloomsbury Way being the most noticeable, as well as the rumble of the Central Line underground beneath. Upon recording it quite quickly became apparent that the church’s apparent tranquility is an illusion, once Naiant omnidirectional microphones and a Sonic Devices Mix-Pre D capture every single movement, creak, rumble and siren. Lots of sirens. Despite the apparent lack of extreme quiet for the recordings, it was interesting to navigate St. George’s, Bloomsbury acoustic space and how the surrounding acoustic environment was mediated by it. This also gave rise to a haunting and spectral quality to the recordings.

St. Georges, Bloomsbury. 28/5/15

St. Georges’s, Bloomsbury @ Open House London19th & 20th September
As part of the Leverhulme Artist-in-Residence project entitled AGORA (Acoustic Geographies or Reflections on Assembly), the first compositions from the residency will be performed throughout the two days at St. George’s, Bloomsbury.

Approximate times are as follows:

Saturday 19th (open 10-5): 11:00, 12:30, 2:00 and 3:30.

Sunday 20th (open 12-5): 12:30, 2:00 and 3:30.

AGORA @ St. George’s, Bloomsbury 19th & 20th September 2015

Saturday 19/9 Part 1

First performance of AGORA at 11:00am, Saturday 19th September 2015.

“Loved the ways listeners made the experience their own - a still woman was rapt throughout, another read throughout. The sounds were fabulous - water, engines, echoes.”

“Really beautiful and interesting work. I felt transported the space, through the sound, and this kind of transcendent experience seems very appropriate to have in a church - but I’ve rarely had it in a church before! So for me the work was amazing!”

“Loved the work. It made me think about visualisation journeys and the power of music to take the person kinesthetically aurally and even visually and transport them into some piece of consciousness that they may want to explore..Loved the sounds the and space.”

“Acoustically adventurous in a space I would not normally inhabit. To know such sounds are indeed organic to the space encapsulates the experience. Beautiful work.”

“For me…listening to an extra layer of sounds was difficult. I’m so distracted by thoughts, even in such a beautiful church. How much I hear is what I ‘think’ with my mind?! Perhaps, I need to listen to the piece again…later today.”

Saturday 19/9 Part 2

“Evocative of the city and its soundtrack. Worked really well in the space too. Listening intently was a different experience to moving around and allowing the sound to wash over me.”

“Blurs boundaries between outside and the inside of the church, and brings to life the histories of the church as a space - quite ghostly and haunting. Found it very moving.”

“Beautiful. Under water journey and beyond. ”

“Lovely, made the space even bigger and ignited my curiosity. I wanted to explore all the nooks and crannys, the corners and the shadows. Thank you.”

“Incense, a beautiful space. Stillness and wonderful sounds. A sensory treat + welcome opportunity to just be still. I needed it. Well done, and congratulations.”

“Sublme. I was really moved. Congratulations. This is a stunning work & resonates in the space so wonderfully.”

“The triangles sounded a little bit strange, but I liked it all the same.”

“Layers upon layers, building up + crashing down. Meditative. St George’s swords clinking and clanking. Sharpening swords. Swish of the wind in a moving train. Rain tinkling + sprinkling sound. Movement of sound, reverb, echo. Lovely space to hear sound. Would love to hear it on the the “Loft” system. Warm + central, beautiful. Thank you. ”

Second performance. Returned listeners from the previous session.

End of Day 1.

First performance of A.G.O.R.A. at 12:30pm, Sunday 20th September 2015.
Sunday 20/9 Part 1“Intriguing, surreal soundscape. Liked it a lot. Subtly atmospheric.”

“AGORA - 20 Sept 2015. Beautiful work - transported me beyond the bricks & mortar of this incredible space. Very moving. Congratulations, Ain.”

“Very pleased to hear AGORA again. Subtle and lively. Breathing, groaning, crackling…so much in the sounds. Thank you for the chance to listen. Expansive pleasure.”

“A wonderful composition. Congratulations, Ain. It was fantastic!”

“Congratulations on a wonderful subtly powerful piece. Haunting, harmonious, with disturbance and repose.”

“Beautiful sounds. Beautiful, knitted into the space. Congratulations.”

“Love the conversation between the different sounds which created a very emotive atmosphere, sometimes foreboding, at other times creating a fleeting feeling curiosity….Really enjoyed it. More! ”

Sunday 20/9 Part 2

“Very emotive, Ain. Found tears swelling up inside of me. Some of the sounds made my eyes water. Very well done.”

“An individual journey, such movement: spiritually beautiful. Well done (Miss Bailey) Ain.”

“Wonderful, Ain. Perfect atmosphere for this beautiful temple.”

“Lovely piece. Really enjoyed it. Very subtle and playful. Great atmosphere.”

“Sadly missed the event, but I hope to experience this event at Natural Library (?). Great respect to Ain.”

“Mindblowing - many things, refreshing, stimulating, soothing, alarming! Thanks for sharing your beautiful sounds, Ain.”

“Mindblowin’, exciting, thought provoking. Thank you.”

Very interesting sounds there & did an ambulance go by or was it in the recording? Thank you.

“Intergalactic refreshment. Merci mille.”

“EXTRAORDINARILY EVOCATIVE OF THE SPACE + ITS ARCHITECTURE - A HUGE PLEASURE! BRAVA!”

“Extremely well done! Took me away into sonic space, floating around the rafters and re-grounded with feedback & bass.”

Saturday 19/9 Part 3

“A very mesmerising + meditative piece. And I particularly loved the fact that the stream of smoke of the incense seemed at times to move according to the music! Well done.”

“Wow - that was like the audio version of Modern Times - such a rich and varied soundscape! Who’d have imagined all of those sounds were recorded right here in this single location!? My mind was travelling all over with these sounds, and just relaxing into a deep haze that made me wonder: do you smoke anything special when composing? Thanks for sharing.”

“Really great atmosphere. Wonderful to walk around the space and take in the sound.”

“AGORA! Beautiful piece for the space in which, from which it breathes? Where were those drops recorded? As usual the work inspires the mind to imagine where it all came from. The noises outside were also harmonised. Enjoy your further acoustic work with space and assembly.”

“Wonderful Ain! I loved listening to electroacoustic music in a place that is so sensorially rich, every sound brought me to a detail at the roof or the altar, the windows, outside. Beautiful! Anti-acousmatic music, better to listen with your eyes open.”

“Ain, your continued mastery of sound astounds me. What a beautiful space for a beautiful piece.”

“Great! Loved the sounds, sent me into a trance. Very creative.”

“The sound was excellent very futuristic. I could see it in a blockbuster movie and winning awards! Must respect!”

Extra and final performance by popular demand!

Last performance of the day!

The Rio
15th November
On Sunday 15th November between 11:00am and 1:00pm the composition which took as its source material The Rio Cinema in Dalston, London will have an in situ performance. Timings: 11:15am, 11:45m and 12:15pm.

British Museum20th November 2015
Concluding the Leverhulme Trust artist-in-residency AGORA project, the final performances will take place throughout the day in the Oriental Antiquities gallery (Room 33), the British Museum.

The AGORA project recording sessions finally got under way at the British Museum - at 5.a.m.! It was the most magical and surreal of experiences. My wonderful assistant Elia has vowed never to return to the Museum unless it is absent of people. I know what he means. This speaks to the project in so many ways. It was an interesting thing to be almost alone, and not in the middle of heaving throngs of folk, To be able to survey parts of the collection uninterrupted. And the sound. The sound of the museum almost breathing. In reality it was the sound of fridges, the overly bright lights of the bookshop, a strange intermittent beeping, the scratchings of the feet of birds hanging out on the glass roof - and that was just The Great Court.

The Oriental Antiquities gallery in stark contrast was almost silent. Not anechoic silent, for we’d hear our own nervous systems, but the sound of stillness, and as the morning wore on, the occasional vehicle. Recording began with the lights on, but these were subsequently turned off, creating a hushed environment.

Can’t wait to immerse myself in the recordings.

Many thanks to Mark Durham for loan Sound Devices Mix-PreD loan, Elia Rulli for his wonderful assistantship and David Sheldon for facilitating access to the museum so very early in the morning.

Auditory Church: a response to AGORA by Ego Ahaiwe SowinskiQueers eight of them in church, in the pews.
performance includes a sacrifice unsuspecting
an offering that has no ceremony
a gathering of network and flock
the sound of people, money being counted for candles open and close purse.
the door —– letting in the light
Mother goes with ginger haired boy to light candle
incense no longer - by the time the track kicks in
can we take a selfie, Nicki you press the button
the artist retreats back up the stairs
Jesus, Jesus on a gold cross, three candles each side.
feel more from the left side as it begins to feel epic
she descends before the end
sound feels like its growing to big for the space
another six candles, no ceremony
no stands on the altar
the sound begins to retreat, as if contained for now, will it come back energised?
feels like the sound is present going somewhere else
a ceremonial offering more incence - to appease the sound, feed the sound, respect the sound
sounds like the chains on a thurible
retreating and appeased the sound takes on new knowledge, landscape and meaning
stronger, confident, moving forward unapologetically. A hesitation, not by sound, by Me
LISTEN
now you can dance

Gratitude List Without the following organisations and wonderful people, this project would not have been remotely possible. AGORA isn’t over yet, but I wanted to begin the thank yous. So here goes:

The Leverhulme Trust

Karen Wells

Mark Durham

Jockel Liess

Luca Nasciuti

Laura Varzgalyte

Jed Riley French

Ego Ahaiwe Sowinski

Gemma Romain

Hamida Yusufzai

Maria Ray

Elia Rulli

Lee Ingleton

Dionne Edwards /The Rio Cinema

Mark Summerbell /St. Georges, Bloomsbury

David Sheldon/The British Museum

Birkbeck GEDS

The Peltz Gallery

Harriet Smith

Charlotte Cooper

SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE ENGAGED WITH AND LISTENED TO THE VARIOUS INCARNATIONS OF THE AGORA PROJECT.