BACK
to News
March
20/21, Delivered
a series of Circuit Bending and Computer Music workshops
with ClaireM.Singer as part of the Kincorth
Music Project's In Tune Project.
January
16th,
Performing solo live electronics set at Noisefloor festival
in Stafford, 1pm. Info here.
January
9th, Shifting
Currents:Huddersfield scheduled to be featured on BBC
Radio 3.
October/November
Performance Dates:
October
19-23rd: Fast and Dirty Dance Project, Aberdeen,
hosted at Woodend Barn, public performances tba.
November
5-8th:
Resonant Frequencies, as part of sound festival in Aberdeen,
featuring myself, Burkhard Beins, Will Guthrie, Mark
Wastell, James Wyness, and fORCH.
***Review
here.
 photo
by Ross Whyte
November
15th,
Shifting Currents:Holland as part of November
Music Festival in s-Hertogenbosch, featuring myself,
Rick Reed, and Keith Rowe.
November
19th,
Shifting Currents:Aberdeen as part of sound
festival, featuring myself, Rick Reed, and Keith Rowe.
November
23rd,
Shifting Currents:Huddersfield as part of Huddersfield
Contemporary Music Festival, featuring myself, Rick
Reed, and Keith Rowe.
**11/13
Interview concerning shifting currents on
Huddersfield Website here.
November
27th,
Winter Light Night in Dundee, with Claire M
Singer and Jack Keenan (visuals), at the Dundee Contemporary
Arts. 10pm, free.
November
30th,
Scotland Homecoming, commissioned work for
bagpipe, fiddle, accordion, and percussion featuring
Patrick Keenan, Martin MacDonald, Claire M Singer, and
Naomi Ballentyne. Inverurie Town Hall.
More
details:
Fast
and Dirty in the Shire, October 19-23rd
Participating
with a range of dancers, choreographers, and musicians
in Citymove's
fast+Dirty in the shire workshop/lab. It will host
around 12-14 selected creator participants from fields
within and bordering contemporary dance with the aim
to provide a safe environment where ideas and themes
can be practically explored, shared and discussed over
a period of 5 days….. However in the spirit of fast+Dirty
with more making and showing than talking. Woodend Barn
Centre, Banchory. Possible performance on 23rd, attendance
by invitation (hint).
Resonant
Frequencies, November 5-8, Aberdeen sound festival:
A
weekend of experimental music curated by Bill Thompson.
"The
relationship between live electronics and percussion
has a long history, stretching back to the early work
of John Cage, Karlheinz Stockhausen, David Tudor, and
Max Neuhaus to name just a few. In many of their works
they chose to focus on the timbral qualities as much
as the rhythmic aspects of percussion, extending this
with the use of found objects, prepared instruments,
and live electronics. Each of the artists featured in
Resonant Frequencies - Mark Wastell, Burkhard Beins,
Will Guthrie, and Bill Thompson - explores a similar
territory in their own practice. In a series of solos,
duets and a final quartet, this crossover between percussion
and live electronics is fully explored as the artists
improvise in various combinations during the week."
November
5th, Burkhard
Beins and
Bill Thompson, 2 solo sets and one duet, 8pm, at the
Suttie Centre, Aberdeen. Donations.
November
6th, Will
Guthrie and
Mark
Wastell, 2
solo sets and one duet, 7:30 pm at the Lighthouse
Museum in Fraserburgh (free bus available from Aberdeen),
£5-£7.
November
7th, UK Premier of Bill Thompson's GATES
performed by Burkhard Beins, Will Guthrie, Mark Wastell,
and Bill Thompson, 8pm, Citymoves Dancespace, Aberdeen,
£5-£7. Support by James Wyness.
November
8th, Resonant Frequencies, Connect: Lecture by Ricard
Barrett of
fORCH, workshop
by Burkhard Beins, and Concert at the Lemon Tree by
the improv ensemble fORCH. Aberdeen Uni during the
day, evening at the Lemon Tree. Day session free (rsvp
required for workshop), concert 7pm, £5-£7.
Made
possible due to generous support of the PRS Foundation
for New Music and presented in partnership between Burning
Harpsichord Media, Aberdeen sound Festival, Interesting
Music Promotions, and The Skinny.
Shifting
Currents:
Holland, Aberdeen, Huddersfield (Nov 15, 19, 23rd)
Shifting
Currents with Bill Thompson, Rick
Reed, and
Keith Rowe returns
in a series of concerts in November.
November
15, November Music, s-Hertogenbosch, Holland, 5:30pm.
November
19th, Cowdry Hall, , Aberdeen, Scotland, 8pm,
£5-£7.
November
23rd, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Huddersfield,
England.
Presented
in partnership with Le Weekend, sound, November Music,
and Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, and with
generous support of the PRS Foundation for New Music,
The Scottish Arts Council, and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation.
November
27th, 2009 Dundee Contemporary Arts, evening.
With Claire
M Singer and Jack Keenan. An evening
of live electronics and visuals at the DCA. Stay tuned
for more information.
  
November
30th, Premiere of new work commissioned by the Aberdeenshire
Council for Scotland's Homecoming 2009 celebrations.
Written for bagpipe, drum, fiddle, accordian,
and live electronics. Inverurie Town Hall, evening.
More info soon.
Workshops:
TechFest
Aberdeen: September 14-18
A
workshop for young people involving recording and computer
composition. Delivered with Claire M Singer.
Creative
Identities Workshop: October/November
Delivered
with Claire M Singer, Ross Whyte, and Patrick Keenan.
A range of workshops dealing with experimental composition,
recording, and circuit bending. Hosted and supported
by Peacock Visual Arts, Aberdeen, and Creative Identities.
High
Frequency YMI Project 2009-2010
Over
the course of 2009/2010 I will be working with young
people throughout the Aberdeen area to build instruments
out of old electronic musical toys. Stay tuned for the
eventual live electronics performance group featuring
these young people and their instruments (not even kidding!)
22/07
Moving Forward: College of Arts and Sciences Postgraduate
Conference
Performing
with Claire M Singer and Ross Whyte at the College of
Arts and Sciences PG Conference: Moving Forward. The
conference is £15/advance and £25 at the
door. It actually looks interesting, and we go on at
16:30 on Wednesday, at Elphistone Hall. For more info
go here: http://www.abdn.ac.uk/cass/pgradconf/About.html
26/06
Open Knowledge Network
Speaking
about Circuit Bending at Aberdeen's Open Knowledge Network.
Click here for more info.
30/05
Le Weekend: Shifting Currents
I'll
be premiering my latest work, Shifting Currents
in the first of three concerts at the end of the
month as part of
Le Weekend in Stirling (the other two being at the
sound
festival in Aberdeen, and Huddersfield
Contemporary Music Festival, both in November).
Shifting
Currents was inspired by the story of an individual
who after receiving a cochlear implant was able to hear
various electrical fields as he moved about his daily
life. These electrical fields created delicate hums,
roaring thunder strikes, ticklish electronic trickles,
and other astonishing sounds depending on the specifics
of each situation. I thought it was remarkable that
not only was he able to hear the sounds of the world
we often take for granted, but was also able to hear
an entirely different sound world unavailable to the
rest of us with 'normal' hearing... (read more here).
Burning
Harpsichord Media
Burning
Harpsichord Media is a small independent label that
I created to release various archival as well as upcoming
projects. The first of which is for the upcoming event,
shifting currents at Le Weekend Festival in
Stirling on May 30th, 2009.
The
release shifting currents:installation is
a recording of the full installation running as is,
without the...(read more here).
04/05
'What Happened' at The Arches Glasgow:
One
of my text works, from, will be performed by
a mixed ensemble at 7hings event 'What Happened' at
The Arches, Glasgow, Monday the 4th..
For
more info: http://www.seventhings.co.uk/events.php
Here's
the score:
from
gather
objects from
a
walk, explore
their
sonic properties
be
sensitive, have courage
listen.
bill
thompson
24/04
Performing at Kilau in Aberdeen
I'll
be performing a live electronics event at Kilau's in
Aberdeen at 730pm. Free and fun, come out. Also playing
will be: The Misled Cult of Balvack, and the Matricarians.
More info (and now pix!):
http://kilaucoffee.wordpress.com/
21/02
Fragmented Orchestra Performance with Claire M. Singer
Claire
M Singer and I have been invited to perform as part
of the Fragmented
Orchestra's final event, 24
Fragments. We have created an interactive sound
and visual installation that will merge into a live
electronic and cello performance. The installation begins
at 7pm and the performance begins at 8pm. Location is
the Thainstone Centre just outside of Inverurie. For
more information on how to get to Thainstone click here.
Here
is more info on the event:
The
Fragmented Orchestra is a huge distributed musical instrument,
modeled on the firing of the human brain's neurons.
Made possible by a £50,000 prize awarded to Jane
Grant, John Matthias and Nick Ryan, as the winning project
for the PRS Foundation's New Music Award 2008, it is
installed at the FACT Gallery Liverpool and 23 other
sites across the UK and runs from December 12th 2008
to 22nd February 2009. 24 Fragments will run at all
of these sites for 24 hours, from 10am on Saturday 21
February. This sprawling collaborative work, spanning
music, art and science, has evolved from a fascination
by its creators of the inherent sonic rhythms and adaptive
learning of spiking neurons – ie. the electrical impulses
of the human brain.
24
Fragments is a 24-hour festival funded by The Wellcome
Trust, including all 24 sites of The Fragmented Orchestra,
which are linked up by microphones that pick up sound
at each site. All of the events during the 24-hour festival
are designed to be relayed through the distributed 'neuronal
system' of The Fragmented Orchestra and via its website:
www.thefragmentedorchestra.com
May
and November: Shifting Currents: A PRS Foundation
for New Music Joint Commission for Le Weekend, sound,
and Huddersfield festivals for 2009.
I have been commissioned by the PRS
Foundation for New Music to write a piece for the
Le Weekend Festival in Stirling (May 30th), the
sound Festival
in Aberdeen (November 19th), and at the Huddersfield
Contemporary Music Festival (during the week of
November 20-29th).
The
piece Shifting Currents involves
using special microphones to collect field recordings
of electro-magnetic fields from Stirling, Aberdeen,
and Huddersfield that I created a multiple speaker installation
of delicate, and also harsh, shifting electronic sounds.
This constantly evolving installation forms a shifting
sonic web from within which Keith
Rowe, Rick
Reed, and myself will
improvise using live electronics, found objects, and
field recordings. Not
only will the sounds gathered from each location be
combined in infinite combinations, but they will also
be combined with the improvised reactions and interactions
of the musicians, each themselves using devices that
often behave in unique and unpredictable ways.
For
more information, email here.
25/10
Around the Bend: Circuit Bending Talk
I
will be giving a talk about circuit bending, live electronics
andc composition as part of the sound
festival of Aberdeen. My talk is at 3:45 pm Saturday
the 25th at the McRoberts Building, University of Aberdeen,
but there are also numerous other workshops and talks
that day starting at 10am. The event is free and open
to the public. More info here.
26/10
The Burning Harpsichord Series #6
The
BH Series returns again as part of the sound
festival here in Aberdeen at its new regular time
and place! The last Sunday of each month, starting roughly
at 7pm, we will feature local and traveling experimental
artists. Cost is a donation of £3 to £5
with no one turned away for lack of funds.
The
location is Aberdeen's newest venue,
The Music Club, at 52-54 Langstane Place, Aberdeen,
AB11 6EN
For
this event which is part of the sound festival occurring
throughout October and November we are featuring Manchester
based artist Rodrigo Constanzo, Jedburgh sound artist
James Wyness, and myself for three intimate live electronics
sets, followed by a group improvisation to finish the
night.
About
the Artists:
Rodrigo
Constanzo was born in Madrid, Spain. He began
playing piano at the age of four. Though he is classically
trained, his primary interest lies in contemporary music.
For the past ten years he has occupied himself by creating
a number of instruments made from modifying electronic
devices, in a process called circuit-bending. As a composer
he is heavily influenced by visual art, and tries to
make
each composition self-standing--each idea being a unique
one, and demanding a unique outcome. The one thing that
ties most of his work together is the surrendering of
part of his control as a composer, be it in aleatoric
or arbitrary decisions at the composition level, or
through largely improvised forms at the performance
level. For more info: http://www.rodrigoconstanzo.com/
James
Wyness lives in Jedburgh but is active as an
artist across the UK with works performed overseas in
both directions. His main focus compositionally has
been with with acousmatic listening and the unfolding
of the sound object, with the integration of mimetic
and more obviously musical material and with the emergence
of narrative. As a sound artist he mostly explores the
phonographic forms which deal with documentary and archive,
and which broadly address the disciplines of anthropology
and ethnography through the medium of sound. For more
info: http://www.wyness.org
Come
out and enjoy the show!
28/09
The Burning Harpsichord Series: Ressurection
The
BH Series is back with a new regular time and place!
The last Sunday of each month, starting roughly at 7pm,
we will feature local and traveling experimental artists.
Cost is a donation of £3 to £5 with no one
turned away for lack of funds.
The
location is Aberdeen's newest venue,
The Music Club, at 52-54 Langstane Place, Aberdeen,
AB11 6EN
This
Sunday we featured myself using some new instruments
built at STEIM and the use of live video from the The
Brakanator, as well as artists
SumiSumi vs Noma,
The
Matricarians, and video artist John Reed.
The
Matricarians (plus) is a relatively new supergroup
taking members for the Kitchen Cynics, Mickel Mass,
and a few other local experimentors mixed in for an
avant-garde swirl of experimental psychedelia.
SUMISUMI
V NOMA,
is a project combining the efforts of Andy Da Kipp (solo
artist, member of Mickel Mass, DJ) and NOMA (well known
experimental improviser and drone artist active in Glasgow)
Both artists have performed in Aberdeen, either solo
or in groups as part of The Burning Harpsichord Series
at the Lemon Tree or at various events at Peacock Visual
Arts, The Tunnels, Drakes and elsewhere. The combined
efforts of these two gentlemen made the evening worth
coming out for in and of itself.
Stay
tuned for audio and video from the night and Join
us next month, October 26th for the
next installment featuring a full set from myself, phonographer,
composer, sound artist James
Wyness, and circuit bender and sound artist Rodrigo
Constanzo. Email for more info HERE.
08/2008
Developing New Guerilla Street Performance (accepting
performance invitiations: Email
for more details.
08/08
Wrote article for Cultural Enterprise Office: Swimming
in Different Waters
08/02-03
Giving Circuit Bending Workshop
Giving
a beginning circuit bending workshop at Peacock Visual
Arts, August 2nd and 3rd.
Pix
and vids HERE.
07/17
New Review of "...of memory and dreams" on
GAZ-ETA
I
haven't got a clue what composer/sound-artist Bill Thompson
uses to produce the sound given off on "...Of Memory
and Dreams". Could it be a broken CD that is fed
through a laptop or perhaps prepared guitar that is
amplified and processed through his home-made software?
No matter...[more]
07/04
New Review on Touching Extremes
BILL
THOMPSON - “…of memory and dreams” (7hings)
Scarce
advertising kills excellent music. That's why I don't
excessively love downloadable releases, besides living
in a commodity deprived area (no broadband internet).
If the kind soul that belongs to “the artist also known
as Professor LoFi” hadn't suggested him to send me this
on a CDR, I'd have probably missed a great recording.
Because this is great, no questions about it. Lasting
just over half an hour, “...of memory and dreams” was
commissioned by, and realized for, 7hings in the occasion
of the 2007's Huddersfield's Contemporary Music Festival.
As the author himself writes, this performance “blurs
the boundaries between composition, improvisation and
indeterminacy”. Yet, somehow it appears like a preconceived
score, each element masterfully placed in a chain of
happenings whose common denominator is something that
could only be described as “vital flow”.
[more]
05/26
STEIM IN NEED OF SUPPORT!!!
STEIM's
support is being threatened...read this and write an
email to help keep this great institution open!
From
Steim:
Things are not well at STEIM. We are in the danger of
losing our structural funding from the government, based
on a review from the advisor board which called us "closed
and only appealing to a niche audience". The outlook
isn't exactly bleak, but at the moment our future is
unclear. In the meantime we've submitted our response
to the Council for Culture, accompanied by the more
than 900 support letters and emails.
Many thanks to all of you who responded! If you'd still
like to show your support, you can do so
here.
04/27
The
Fog gets a Blog!
Dedicated
to exploring the hazy realms of experimental music,
this 2 hour weekly program focuses on sound art and
experimental music from the past, present, and near
future. Interviews, live studio sessions, underground
detritus, found recordings, live electronics, field
recordings, and even an occasional blues track will
find themselves blurred together by prof_lofi into a
mixed bag of the bizarre.
Sundays
10pm to Midnight. SHMUFM: http://www.shmu.org.uk/shmufm.m3u
or in Aberdeen on 99.8 FM
05/2008
Wrote Community Report on ElectroAcoustic Music in North
East Scotland for eContact!
05/26
Finished GAVAA Project and created the Brakanator. Click
for more info.
 .
03/13-20
and 04/07-21 STEIM Residency.
Click for more info.
(click
her for the steim project blog)
05/01
New Reviews for of memory
and dreams from Furthernoise
and One
True Dead Angel
05/01
Added Pics to Gallery
of Nexus Project from Aberdeen show (June 2007)...
Nexus
Aberdeen June 2007
Skye
show (October 2007)...
Nexus
Skye October 2007
and
small video of Argyll Show (March 2008)...
Nexus
Argyll March 2008
as
well as pics from the STEIM residency...
STEIM
March/April 2008
GAVAA
2007/2008
11/28
The Burning Harpsichord presents Rhodri Davies
and Mark Wastell, with support from...well, maybe me
and someone else, we'll see. Pay at the door or book
in advance at The Lemon Tree...email for more details
or go here. (part of SOUND)
11/09
Friday, Performing with new percussion group Paella,
Marichall Museum Picture Gallerey. Premiere of new works
by Brent Fariss, Travis Weller, and special guest, David
Revill who will be present at the concert (composer
and biographer of John Cage). Paella will also be performing
Cage's 'Child of Tree, and Branches'. 7:45pm, free,
donations accepted. (part of SOUND)
Revill
will be giving a talk at noon that same day, in room
055, at the University of Aberdeen, McRoberts Building.
10/27-28
Hosting Improvisation workshop with Fred Frith, to be
followed by a performance by the workshop participants
on the Sunday. 5pm, McRoberts Building. Performance
Free. (part of SOUND)
10/23
Hosting Jack
Wright, Saxophonist, with support from Mickel
Mass. Peacock Visual Arts, Aberdeen. 7pm, Donations
of 3-5 accepted at door.
10/21
Hosting new radio program for experimental music on
SHMUFM, The
Fog.
Dedicated
to exploring the hazy realms of experimental music,
this 2 hour weekly program focuses on sound art and
experimental music from the past, present, and near
future. Interviews, live studio sessions, underground
detritus, found recordings, live electronics, field
recordings, and even an occasional blues track will
find themselves
blurred together by prof_lofi into a mixed bag of the
bizarre.
Sundays 10pm to Midnight. SHMUFM: http://www.shmu.org.uk/shmufm.m3u
or in Aberdeen on 99.8 FM
09/28
Installation from Nexus project installed at
the
An Tuireann Art Space in Skye with other participants.
email for details.
09/26The
Burning Harpsichord presents
Lee
Paterson and Owen
Green. The Lemon Tree, September 26th, doors at
7, music at 730 pm, 6 pounds. Patterson will give an
artist talk at 5pm at Peacock Visual Arts (free)! Pay
at the door or book in advance at The Lemon Tree...email
for more details or go here.
09/02
Performing at the State
Sanctioned Showcase in Bristol at
the Cube Cinema. Email, or Go here for details: Cube
06/11
The Burning Harpsichord presents
Keith Rowe, Bennett Hog and Noma. The Lemon Tree, June
11th, 730 pm, 6 pounds. Rowe will give a workshop at
230 same day/space for 5 pounds (bring an instrument),
both for 10. Not to be missed! Pay at the door or book
in advance at The Lemon...email for more details.
photo
by David Reid
06/09
Participating in NEXUS project with Duncan
Hart via Limousine Bull. Opening at Limousine
Bull Gallery Saturday noon. Visual art and sonic
installation.
06/03
Tripartite
Collision reviewed by Caleb Deupree in
Furthernoise.
05/25
Flat Art opening and performance
with Craig Barrowman, Brian Ross, and video and performance
by Bill Thompson. [mp3
of performance for cymbal]
04/01Working
as sound artist with Northern Heritage Project
giving workshops to young people to reflect on their
locality in Stonehaven and represent that in sound.
03/05
Tripartite Collision reviewed in Resonance
Magazine, issue 53.
03/01
Awarded the GAVAA (Grays Aberdeen
Visual Arts Award) to develop an interactive video program
to integrate video and audio for live performance.
02/21
NEW RELEASE: "...of memory and dreams."
from 2006's Huddersfield performance,
to be released on 7things.
PRS
ATOM AWARD Tour 2007
02/24
w/ Patrick Keenan, Edinburgh, at the RSA as part of
the "Body Parts 3"Exhibition, 4pm.
BODY
PARTS IS BACK!
23 –
25 February 2007
Body
Parts, the annual celebration of performance art hosted
by the Royal Scottish Academy and the Society of Scottish
Artists returns for a third year.
With
performances by: Darren Farquhar, Leah Lovett &
Sandy Grierson, Natalie Taylor and Jane Gardner, Michelle
Horacek, Psychohousewife, Anthony Schrag, prof-lofi
& P Keenan, Lisa Keiko Kirton, Alberta
Whittle, Jefford Horrigan, Colette Sadler
03/20
w/ Patrick Keenan, Bennet
Hogg, and others. Artist talk/workshop at Newcastle
University, recital room, Armstron building. performance
at 6:30pm, £2 (free for music students). email
for details.
03/28
w/ Patrick Keenan, Aberdeen, at The Lemon Tree, 7:30pm,
5 pounds (special guests Jack Keenan doing live video,
Mickel Mass, with new video by Steve Morisson, and
Adam H. Taylor as Hypnoerotomachia).
***This
event kicks off a new quarterly experimental music
series at the Lemon Tree in Aberdeen. This evening
will feature myself and Patrick as a duet, performing
with Jack Keenan on live improvised video (using hacked
tv's, webcams, laptop, custom made circuits and more).
Also performing will be Mickel
Mass (who recently performed with Faust in Germany)
playing with a video composed by local video artist
Stephen Morrison who produced this piece especially
for this event. And starting off the whole night is
Adam H. Taylor, who's work is starting to gain more
attention in local circles under the moniker Hypnoerotomachia.
For future events we're looking to bring in a range
of other artists (Keith Rowe and others) for this
series. Doors at 7:30, £5.
04/03
w/ Will Guthrie (live electronics and modified percussion),
Aberdeen, 8pm, St Andrews Cathedral, King St. Doors
7:30, donations accepted, email
for details.
04/13
An evening of Live Electronics and Improvisation,
London, Friday, April 13th, 8:30 pm. at the Flea Pit,
http://www.thefleapit.com
Donations accepted at the door.
Featuring:
"Circuit
Blasting" by Strange Attractor vs Disinformation
and in duet: Prof_lofi and Mark Wastell
http://billthompson.org/
and www.confront.info
with live video improvisation by Jack
Keenan
04/18
w/ Patrick Keenan and Jack Keenan (doing live video),
and Toshi Nakamura and video artist Billy Roisz. Manchester
at Islington Mill, email
for details.
04/21
with/ Mickel Mass opening for Wolf Eyes in Aberdeen,
at The Tunnels. email for more info.
04/25
w/ Mathew Sansom and John
Butcher, at
the University of Surrey in Guildford. email
for details.
***More
being planned. Email for more details or if you would
like to host an event!
SOUNDASART
CONFERENCE: BLURRING OF THE BOUNDARIES
online
content of keynote speakers and performances now available
via 360TV:
Christina
Kubisch
Rajesh
Mehta
Bill
Thompson and Patrick Keenan
and
Keith Rowe, Rajesh Mehta, and Rohan de Saram
11/24-26
SOUNDASART CONFERENCE: BLURRING OF THE BOUNDARIES!!!!
A
conference in Aberdeen focusing on the emerging art
form Sound Art. Keynote speakers include Dr. Jonty
Harrison, Dr. Christina Kubisch, and Rajesh Mehta.
Guest artists and performers include Keith Rowe, Rohan
de Saram, Giancarlo Toniutti, James Wyness, Karen
Hay, Pete Stollery and the scottish invisible arts
group, Patrick Keenan, myself and others. Visit
the urbanNovember website for more details. Register
Now!!! (It's free!) part
of the SOUND FESTIVAL.
11/21
premier of new works for organ and electronics, performed
by Dr. Roger B. Williams III. pieces by myself, claire
m. singer, and others. Kings College, Chapel. 7:45pm,
free.
part of the SOUND FESTIVAL.
11/18
performing a new live electronics work at Huddersfield
Contemporary Music Festival to be recorded for future
release on Seven Things.
11/7
performing live electronics set at st.
andrew's cathedral, aberdeen. 9pm, free. part
of the SOUND FESTIVAL.
11/02
speaking on The Radio Cafe, BBC Radio Scotland 1:10
pm
10/28
speaking at the AROHA Oral History conference in Fraserburgh
about community sound art projects with children.
10/12-15
speaking and performing with urbanNovember at "salon
international" in Emmenbrücke/Luzern, Switzerland.
10/16
Awarded PRS Foundation ATOM Award 2006
09/23
cdr release on bremsstrahlung recordings of untitled
(mcalpine) available now.
09/06-24
TEXAS TOUR!!!
09/11
El Paso: Rubin Center-artist
talk and performance (solo live electronics) [press
release] [Rubin
Center Activities]
09/01-03
performing
with faust and mickel mass at faust's
avantgarde festival in hamburg.
08/23
tripartite collision cd release on State Sanctioned
Records. available now, here!
08/17
performing with simon gall and crew at kef's
on belmont street, midnight.
08/07-11 conducting
a circuit bending workshop with young people at whitespace
gallery. [photos soon]
08/02
performing
with Mickel
Mass, Tunnels, 8pm. also on, welfare mothers and
Auto Da Fe.
07/26
performing
live electronics with diana simpson and josh kopecek,
7.30pm, Streetlevel
Photoworks, glasgow.
photo by davina gray
07/2006
participating
as workshop leader for MPSIX program in aberdeen and
dundee. bbc interview here.
details here.
06/19
performing at the sound
and anthropology conference at st. andrews university.
05/31-06/16
participated
with the sonic arts network as workshop leader for the
sonic
postcards project at southpark and lochpots primary
schools in aberdeen.
05/30
Performing
with Mickel Mass,
Tunnels, 8pm.
photo by davina gray
05/09/2006
as part of avp and the sonic research group
of nottingham trent university, performing with keith
rowe at southwell artspace. also conducting an artist
talk and workshop with rowe and david reid.
photos
by roger parry
04/2006
a new cd featuring last year's performance
of feb'23rd and tripartite collision being
released by state sanctioned records. more info [here].
04/14
playing with prog/punk improv group, mickel mass, at
snafu in aberdeen, 10pm.
03/2006
participated with the sonic arts network as
workshop leader for the sonic
postcards project at westhill primary in aberdeen.
03/2006
video of last year's performance at the avp
festival in derbyshire are now available on misha david's
site [here]
and [here].
03/10
and 11 HARPSICHORD:BURNING
On
March 10th, 8pm, Bill Thompson premiers a new work
for prepared harpsichord and live electronics at
Peacock Visual Arts. He is assisted by Patrick Keenan
and the evening will open with James Wyness performing
on homemade instruments and live electronics. Doors
open at 7pm. Free. http://www.peacockvisualarts.co.uk/
On
March 11th, 9:30pm, on the beach of Footdee, Bill
Thompson presents his outdoor installation, HARPSICHORD:BURNING.
03/09
bbc radio scotland interview concerning HARPSICHORD:BURNING
[mp3]
SoundTransit
is a collaborative, online community dedicated to
field recording and phonography. On this site, you
can plan a sonic journey through various locations
recorded around the world, or you can search the
database for specific sounds by different artists
from certain places. If you are a phonographer,
you can also contribute your recordings for others
to enjoy.
goodbye
2005...
an
amazing year for me in the u.k., both personally
and artistically. thank you everyone that made my
experience such a positive one (including the unending
support of friends and family stateside.) i've met
so many amazing people, attended great shows and
openings, and been able to develop more then ever
before. please check the above link to access some
of last years events...and now on to 2006!
12/12
mark ragsdale sent me his beautiful realization of
my untitled bass piece no. 1 using an electric
bass and ebow. [mark's
mp3] [original
mp3]
he
describes his interpretation:
"The
whole piece was done entirely without me touching
the strings except for one little slip where you
might hear the slightest of touches with the Ebow.
The breath was used to resonate the body of the
Fender Jazz as I held it against my stomach and
chest. From there the piezo bridge pickups were
running into a Sansamp Bass D.I. and from there
into Sony HiMD MZ-RH10. Then I came back to the
laptop and pumped this sound file into speakers,
while the bass set on top. All four strings of the
Fender tuned within a half step of E, with none
of the strings having the same tuning. It was like
stoking a fire and it took three times of pumping
it through the speaker to build up to the right
volume for a consistent sound. At this point there
was nothing touching the guitar except the balancing
of it on top of the speaker. After it became nice
and thick I began to play around with the Ebow on
those same strings and was able to create a separate
track that was finally mixed in."
11/2005
Michael
Rhoades recently released a brilliant cd in which
he transformed samples for untitled (mcalpine)
into his cd length composition Multiverse. he
also worked in colaberation with visual artist
sylvia pengilly.
Young
artists of Inverurie work with Pete Stollery,
Adam Proctor, and Bill Thompson to produce
sonic and visual compositions of their
impressions of Inverurie. Their works
will be projected and performed on multiple
speaker and visual turntables using cutting
edge technology. Also on the bill are
new works by the facilitators themselves
(adam proctor, pete stollery, bill thompson,
and james wyness).
tripartite
collision [mp3]
live electronics, multiple speaker diffusion,
improvised video
by adam proctor, pete stollery, and
bill thompson
using sounds from malfunctioning electronics,
computer drives, and electrical feedback,
combined with amplified live sounds,
mixed over 24 speakers and all within
the presence of images mixed in real
time from the chevrolet propaganda movie
'the american engineer', proctor, stollery,
and thompson explore ideas of the the
indeterminate, the serendipitous, and
the sublime.
web definitions for collision
(physics) an brief event in which two
or more bodies come together; "the
collision of the particles resulted
in an exchange of energy and a change
of direction"
tri·par·tite Pronunciation
(tr-pärtt)
adj.
1. Composed of or divided into three
parts.
2. Relating to or executed by three
parties: a tripartite agreement.
tripart·tition (-tshn) n
11/19
experimental music showcase #4
included as part of aberdeen SOUND festival.
featuring doug ferguson from austin texas,
bill thompson, and andy la kipp, partrick
keenan, and steve morrison. doors at 7pm,
mcrobert building (king/st machar drive),
university of aberdeen. £5 suggested
donation (£3 concessions). more information
here (mp3's and pix).
photo
by steve morrison
11/01-12/01
in/transience included as part
of the aberdeen SOUND
festival, installed within the aberdeen
train station for the month of november.
[mp3]
photo
by dr. jim bednar
this
installation explores the transient nature
of public spaces, specifically the aberdeen
train station. so much of our lives are
spent tuning out the immediate environment
while in transition, that we miss the
beauty of the world around us. much of
my work involves exploring sounds that
often go unnoticed either because they
are too quiet, or too obvious -and thus
ignored - as we bustle about our busy
day. in this work, as in others, i'm interested
in tuning into these sounds and refocusing
attention to hear them, as though for
the first time.
10/21-11/6
toward sublimity included as part of
urbanNovember's exhibition oil and the city
at the maritime museum aberdeen. opening 10/21,
6:30 to 8 pm (food, drink, artist talks, and
more)
[mp3 sample]
"For
those personages, presenting themselves
to us and inflaming our ardour and as it
were illumining our path, will carry our
minds in a mysterious way to the high standards
of sublimity which are imaged within us."
Longinus,
On the Sublime (tr. W. Rhys Roberts)
toward
sublimity,
a multiple speaker audio/visual installation
that explores the sounds and images of an
off shore oil rig. since moving to aberdeen
and living off of the north sea, i have
been fascinated by these structures. the
sounds and images experienced by the men
and women who spend so much of their time
on these rigs are indeed some of the most
beautiful, intense, and unique in the world.
this first piece, in a proposed series of
installations, explores an abstracted reflection
of these sounds drawn from a small video
clip provided (gratefully) by jake molloy.
the title is drawn from a treatise on the
sublime by longinus, in reference to the
sublime beauty of both the sensory experiences
found aboard these structures, as well as
reflecting the spirit of the men and women
who work upon them
other
artists presenting works include duncan
hart (visual art and documentation relating
his experiences exploring life without the
use of petrol-chemicals), as well as the
new social art school premiering a documentary
focusing on the impact of the oil industry
on aberdeen. email
for more information.
09/16-18
performing as part of avp festival held in the
south derbyshire town of melbourne. other artists
include rhodri
davis, mark wastell, and others. currated
by misha david. [mp3]
05/12-(12/01)...
resonare/in absentia installation included
as part of discoveries xxxiiii spring concert,
university of aberdeen, marischal museum
[concert]
[installation]
[concert
review] [curratorial
review] [mp3
sample] (featured
on bbc radio 4-mp3 clip)
In
this piece, I was granted access to the museum's
collection of ancient Greek pottery. I wanted
my work to somehow honor them without misappropriating
their identity, as so often happens with museum
artifacts. I decided to focus on the resonance
that dwells within each vase, building a multiple
cd/speaker installation that combines these delicate
hums and whispers.
My
intention was to metaphorically ‘leave
no fingerprints’ in that I intended to
focus on the untreated and un-manipulated resonances.
By using miniature microphones carefully dipped
within the center of each vase, I was able to
keep my contact to a minimum.
Later
when I edited the source recordings, miniscule
unintentional sounds made by myself became apparent.
Instead of editing these out, I decided to incorporate
them into the installation to remind myself
that even with the best intentions, it is impossible
to not leave some trace when coming into contact
with another culture.
'Resonare'
means to sound and resound, and 'in absentia'
means in the absence of, so this work attempts
to give voice to the resonance that has quietly
reflected the sounds around them since they
came into existence.
09/23
lunch time concert with adam proctor on visuals
at inverurie secondary school as part of workshop
for upcoming see
hear, inverurie concert.
08/26
performing new work as part of phill harding's exhibition
ubiquitous in southsquare center in bradford.
other artists include
phill harding and patrick
mcginley (murmer). [pix]
08/26
untitled (mcalpine) released on josh russell's
net label bremsstrahlung recordings (with a 50 cdr
release pending in 2006).
footdee
is a small scottish fishing village off of
the north sea. having just moved here a year
ago from texas, it’s still a novel experience
for me to walk my dog along the beach each
night. the sonic landscape is vastly different
from that of texas with its cicadas, crickets,
frogs and the like. in footdee, or ‘fitee’
as the locals pronounce it, the most pervasive
sound is that of wind and sea. you either
notice the huge gusts and crashing waves,
or you notice their absence on the occasional
calm night. on this particular evening however,
something remarkable was ringing out across
the village. on the edge of the harbor, a
new control tower is being constructed. as
the wind was blowing through the structure
and the various pipes of the scaffolding,
it was causing them to resonate and literally
ring out across the village. the sound carried
by the wind was absolutely ethereal, and seemed
to hang in the air. returning that night and
dodging the lights of ships coming in and
out of the harbor, i scaled the fence to make
the recording from which this selection is
taken.
08/15
hogmanay on the north sea included on
dale lloyd's final (7th) cdr compilation for phonography.org.
[mp3]
08/10
resonare featured on bbc 4 PM [mp3]
07/09
to 07/15 facilitating young urban explorers workshop
with mark brennan and chris ganley. young people will
be led to explore and reflect on their urban surroundings
visually and sonically. email
for details. [mp3 samples of the young artists'
work: 1
2
3
4
5]
07/10
hogmanay on the north sea broadcast in july on fieldworks
excellent radio/internet program
07/01
premiere of the garioch community center heartstone
video shallow eyes in invererie
06/26
limited cdr release from aberdeen available.
bill
thompson, of aberdeen, audio installation,
8 hours
this
piece is an 8 hour soundwalk recorded binaurally during
one long continuous exploration of aberdeen. it is
converted into an mp3 file and loops continuously.
the idea for the work is very simple: throughout our
day we filter out the sounds around us in order to
focus on going where we're going, doing what we need
to do etc. as a result, we miss the beauty of our
ambient surroundings. i wanted to create a work that
would explore these surroundings but also encourage
listeners to hear these sounds aesthetically as well.
due to the sheer length of the piece, it is hoped
that listeners will get lost within the work and not
be able to predict when or where they are within the
soundwalk. in hearing these sounds out of context,
listeners are encouraged to listen (and thus 'hear'
them) as though for the first time. this soundwalk
also traces my own exploration as i wander around
the city, led only by sounds that interest me, documented
only by sounds i hear.
06/01-06/17
field recordings (hogmanay, country auction, and reflections)
included in SOUNDSCAPEpgh, a street installation presented
in conjunction with the three rivers arts festival in
downtown pittsburgh, pa.
SOUNDSCAPEpgh
is presenting soundworks from all over the world that
relate to, address, contrast, or bring attention to
the city/urban soundscape. the recordings will be played
through several audio devices installed outside along
a city block in downtown Pittsburgh, PA during the first
two weeks of June.
05/24
added new featured download, reflections installation,
to site
05/21
performing feb'23rd as part of 'stop, look, listen'
exhibit at the royal scottish academy in edinburgh. email
for details
01/27/05
experimental music showcase no. 2, present's the first
annual scotland (and uk) phonography concert, 7:30 pm,
student union, hilton campus, building g. email
for details
01/26/05
interview
on ideasfactory.com published
01/24/05
'hogmanay on the north sea' included in aaron ximm's quiet
american: one minute vacation
01/03/05
added 'featured download' to works page
01/02/05
added 'hogmanay on the north
sea' mp3 to works page
12/30/04
added 'my
other life' to the gallery
12/21/04
started work on video project, homage to brakhage. [real
player sample]
12/20/04
submitted recording as part of peter m. wyer's simultaneity
project
12/04-21/04
assemblage
series 1 premiered as part of south
square centre's end of year show
12/04/04
added mp3's summer (exerpt)
and windmill (exerpt) to works
page
11/25/04
added
pictures of reflection installation to gallery
11/24/04
added
guestbook to site
11/23-28/04
participating as an artist within urbannovember
to install a sound installation, as part of the atlas
of urban aberdeen project. several artists will participate
over the course of the week. from urbannnovember's
site:
11/17-19/04
assisting pete stollery with a sonic art project working
with children to record sounds and construct a short piece
to be performed at the discoveries
concert in banchory
11/16/04
added experimental
music in scotland page to the
site
11/11/04
experimental
music showcase no. 1, featuring performances by james
wyness, bill thompson, and pete stollery. live electronics,
sound diffusion, avant-glitch. 7:30 pm, student union,
hilton campus, building g. email
for details
11/04/04
opening for christ
and frog
pocket at dr
drakes, details
10/27/04
hosting
weekly improv workshop, details
10/26/04
hosting
monthly experimental music showcase at aberdeen university
student union, details
10/01/04
moved to scotland to start phd at the university of aberdeen,
details
09/18/04
spoke and performed at sonic arts event number 2 at leeds
metropolitan university
08/01/04
launched www.billthompson.org
07/05/04
relocated to uk, ashton underlyne, outside of manchester,
england
07/03/04
BOOBAPALOOZA
bill thompson's good bye concert will be saturday, july
3rd at rick reed's clubhouse in the windridge apartment
complex. several of austin's finest experimental performers/groups
will be there and I hope all of you can make it out. the
event starts at 5pm, music at 6pm. performances include
an installation by alex keller, a solo performance by
brandon young, a duet with brent fariss and nick hennies,
a duet with doug ferguson and trey smith, and performances
by brekekekekexkoaxkoax (with josh ronsen, bill thompson,
jacob green, and vanessa arn), field (rick reed, bill
thompson, brent fariss), and finally gates (travis weller,
josh ronsen, brent fariss, jacob green, holand hopson,
and bill thompson.)
06/28/04
austin cobra ensemble's 3rd monthly concert at the church
of the friendly ghost. check here
for details.
06/26/04
the gates enemble performs as part of concert series in
houston at the commerce street artist warehouse. also
performing: price
taggery, josh
russell, james
eck rippie, and juan garcia.
http://www.angbase.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=261
06/24/04
josh ronsen presents the first in a series of improv concerts
at the church of the friendly ghost: AINT - austinnitus
improv night. performances by bill thompson (electronics),
sarah norris (percussion), nick hennies (percussion),
keith manlove (bassoon/electronics), and derrick fore
(bass clarinet). church of the friendly ghost, 8 pm.
06/11/04
brent fariss and bill thompson acting as co-directors
of amoda's performance series present richard chartier,
rick reed, jacob green and josh ronsen at ballet austin.
05/30/04
bill thompson performs with the austin cobra ensemble
in its monthly concert of cobra.
05/25/04
video of bill thompson and brent fariss's 'august' premiere
at amoda's first performance series shown at chicago's
lumen eclipse
05/07/04
bill thompson participates in doug fergousons 12 guitar
orchestra and performs with rick reed, brent fariss, and
alex keller in field at the church of the friendly ghost.
05/01/04
bill thompson and josh ronsen play field recordings with
other artists in fort worth. email
for details.
04/25/04
supplement presents john zorn's cobra at the church of
the friendly ghost. email
for details.
04/2-3-4/04
austin's new music coop presents 3 nights of music by
the new york school composers.
03/20/04
bill thompson plays with austin noise quartet at rancho
relaxo's non-sxsw show case.
03/27/04
bill thompson with new music coop and gates play informal
concert of works by the new york school at the church
of the friendly ghost in conjunction with progressive
potluckers.
03/23/04
bill thompson with new music coop and gates plays concert
of works by the new york school at texas state university.
email for
details.
03/13/04
noisefest at the church of the friendly ghost. the show
features brent fariss and alex
keller, rick
reed and bill thompson, and headlining is richard
ramirez (owner of deadline
records) with his band black
leather jesus. 8pm. email
for details.
03/06/04
brent fariss, rick
reed, and bill
thompson perform as part of noise show in houston
at superhappyfunland. 8pm. email
for details.
02/28/04
josh
ronsen and alex
keller (and others) present the fluxus cafe at the
church of the friendly ghost. 8pm. email
for details.
02/06/04
brent fariss, bill
thompson, and alex
keller perform as part of the upcoming supplement
showcase february 6th, 8pm at the church of the friendly
ghost. email
for more details.
02/01/04
EMIT
bill thompson and doug ferguson unveil the experimentalmusicintexas.org
site.
01/29/04
windridge concert series presents: alex
keller solo, nick hennies and aaron russell as a duet,
and rick
reed, vanessa arns, doug
ferguson, and bill
thompson as a quartet. live electronics and more.
8pm. email
for details.
01/06/04
brekekekexkoaxkoax
performs as vanessa arn (electronics), jacob green (organ,
oboe), josh ronsen (prepared guitar) and bill
thompson (electronics) plus maybe a special guest.
also playing: the whale, and sketchy. sketchy
are a trio from houston featuring brian allen (trombone),
brad clymer (trumpet), and brian dunn (drums). the whale
returns with kory cook (drums), adam jones (bass guitar),
and craig johnson (saxophone).
church of the friendly ghost, 209 pedernales, 8pm $5.
12/21/04
pictures of the last gates performance posted by josh
ronsen on austinitus here.
12/21/04
pictures of the rock installation posted by josh ronsen
on austinitus here.
12/06/03
austin's
new music coop and associates present a 'rock' concert
(involving works using rocks by christian
wolff, pauline
oliveros, and jon
gibson, in addition to pieces written by members of
the coop.) *also presented will be several outdoor installations
by brent
fariss,doug fergouson,
alex keller, kirk
laktas, rick
reed, josh ronsen, bill thompson, and others. december
6th, ceremony hall, 5pm to 11pm. email
for more details.gates
plays december 13th at the mac (209 pedernales) as part
of benefit for koop radio. other artists include rick
reed, iron kite (tom carter and guests), and numbers
on the mast. email
for more details.
12/03
phonography show to be aired the first 3 fridays of december
on kvrx
91.7 austin texas during trey smith's show 11pm to
1am. the first two shows will feature straight field recordings,
followed one week later by live improvisations using material
from various field recordings. artists will include
brent fariss, alex
keller, rick
reed, josh
ronsen, trey smith, bill thompson and others. email
for more details.
12/18/03
bill thompson performs with rick reed, ethereal planes
indian, and eric arn with justin bankston at the windridge
clubhouse 1300 spyglass, austin texas. thursday december
18, 8pm from more information contact zonltan@icmb.utexas.edu
11/02/03
austin's
new music coop presents pieces by bill thompson (constellations)
and keith manlove (rothko chapel). november 2nd, 8pm ballet
austin. email
for more details.
10/16/03 gates
performs at ballet
austin october 16th, 10pm. in addition to our regular
set, we will be premiering a piece written for gates
by member travis
weller. email
for details.bill thompson plays in houston at super happy
funland, october 25th. email
for details.
10/03/03
bill thompson performs october 3rd 10pm at primordial
undermind's afterparty (903 E. 43rd St.) for their
upcoming cd release. he will perform as part of a guitar
ensemble consisting of the guitarists contributing to
doug
fergusen's upcoming guitar duets release on distillery
records. guitarists include tom carter from charalambides,
eric arn from p.u., adam bork (earthpig), as well as doug
himself and others. doug will be premiering the piece
that night. email
for details.
09/25/03
[CANCELED DUE TO POWER OUTAGE] windridge salon concert
series september 25th 8pm brent
fariss and bill thompson perform as a duet using live
electronics, guitar, and contrabass. also playing are
rick reed and low
end lars swimming encouraged after the show! email
for more details.rescheduled for oct 2nd, same location
and time. bill thompson performs with rick reed and one
other analog player in trio, followed by a set by low
end lars. email
for more details.
08/23/03
bill thompson and brent fariss perform as part of amoda's
new new music series. email
for details.
08/16/03
loft series 8 featuring works by bill meadows (live electronics),
alex
keller (live electronics), and susan
alcorn (pedal steel). email
for more info.
07/20/03
bill thompson records duet with doug ferguson to be included
on upcoming release by distillery
records this fall. the cds feature doug ferguson in
duets with various guitarists, experimental to mainstream.
email doug ferguson
for details.
07/19/03
loft series 7 featuring installation by bill thompson
(mu),
and loft performances by carl
smith (ecfa) on saxophone (playing pieces by bill
thompson and james
alexander of cinders, ecfa, and imbroglio quartet)
and nathan wood performing live electronics on dual dj
cd players. email
for more info.
07/11/03
bill thompson plays as part of experimental music show
at dallas
center for contemporary art. email
for details.
06/01/03
second performance of four
meditations in houston with the pauline
oliveros foundation at houston
05/29/03
participating with the new
music coop of austin in performing four
meditations by pauline
oliveros, with ms. oliveros in attendance.
05/24/03
bill
thompson plays solo work as part of upcoming intersect
6.
04/17/03
gates
plays as part of tribute series to stan
brakhage.
04/12/03
the imbroglio
string quartet plays a house concert featuring works
by bill thompson, brent
fariss, and clark
crawford.
04/10/03
gates
plays as part of amoa's
continuing film series featuring robert
frank.
04/05/03
loft series #5 scheduled at the regular location, featuring
jacob
green, nick smith, and james alexander. details at
thomfaricraw.org.
03/10/03
gates
returned to play ceremony hall on red river, austin texas,
9:30 to 11pm.video and sounds soon.
02/22/03
loft
series
#4 (displaced)
tfc performs the loft series at a new location in
honor of travis
weller's birthday. featuring the original crew with
an installation by clark
crawford and performances by brent
fariss and bill thompson. details
here.
01/18/03
tfc presents loft series #3 featuring performances by
josh
ronsen and brent
fariss in addition to an encore installation by bill
thompson.
01/15/03
bill thompson plays live electronics at the new ruta
maya.
11/02/02
various works included in london radio program framework.
10/31/02
tfc presents halloween music at thriller
performance.
10/19/02
various members of the gates
ensemble, tfc,
and austin's
new music coop perform terry riley's in
c, as well as premiers of various performer's works.
10/11/02
bill thompson's installation of to el paso and back played
in san francisco by quiet
american as part of field
effects 7.
10/01/02
an excerpt of x'mass
was included in phonography's
latest release compositions using field recordings.'99
10/01/02
an excerpt of x'mass
was included in phonography's
latest release compositions using field recordings.'99
09/21/02
tfc host loft
series #2 featuring performances by bill thompson
and travis
weller, and an installation by brent
fariss.
08/10/02
tfc's first house concert entitled the
loft series premiers.
08/09/02
five improvisations on the destruction of
opera released.
05/20/02
one
minute included in ven voisey's somewhere
else compilation.
10/31/00
pre-loft series cd release party/performance held. track
popsong included on hardcore america release.
03/03/00
produced, wrote collage, and danced in culturework's
playmas at the vortex.
11/14/99
V
recorded and released.
1998-2002
performed and wrote various works within swt's composition
department, as well as collaboration with different media
artists and production of sound design on various film
shorts in austin. |
