Symbiosis 90 - Marcos Fernandes (Word Listening Day 2012)

The 2012 World Listening Day happens on Wednesday, July 18th. The purposes of World Listening Day are:

to celebrate different ways we can focus on our soundscape (sonic environment);

to raise awareness about the acoustic ecology movement, including ideas regarding how noise pollution can be reduced; and

to introduce new educational initiatives and community events related to listening and acoustic ecology.

July 18th is the birthdate of R. Murray Schafer, a Canadian composer who established the World Soundscape Project. Its research laid the foundations for what became known as Soundscape Studies and Acoustic Ecology.

To celebrate this year’s World Listening Day we invited Marcos Fernandes to create a mix for Symbiosis. A native of Yokohama, Japan, Marcos Fernandes spent over three decades in California as performer, producer and curator. He has performed in the US, Canada, Mexico, Hong Kong and Japan as a solo improviser, phonographer and as percussionist/sound artist with various ensembles, dancers and visual artists.

Fernandes’ work can be heard on over 50 recordings on Accretions, Bake/Staalplaat, Circumvention, Pax, Public Eyesore and others. His current projects include Wormhole, The Metaphors, Salmagundi, Hybrid, ZUI, The Tokyo Phonographers Union and Kokusai Obake Rengo. Fernandes co-runs the artist-based independent label Accretions,home to some of today’s more innovative experimentalists.

The phonography mix was created using field recordings made in and around Yokohama, Japan where I live. The mix is a reflection on the seasons and their respective soundscapes and rhythms. You can hear birds including the ubiquitous crows, insects such as cicadas and crickets, thunderstorms and fireworks as well as an anti-nuclear march, a traditional New Year’s “mochitsuki” or pounding of rice to make rice cakes and a cameo by our cat.

I returned to my native island nearly four years ago and have since been rediscovering and relishing its rich soundscapes. I have been exploring the performative aspects of field recording wioth the Topkyo Phonographers Union and recently started teaching a “sound workshop” for kindergarteners.