Jon Tjhia rummages through the diary of Liquid Architecture 6 – National Sound Art Festival.

Eric La Casa

In his autobiographical statement, pioneering composer John Cage once said, “silence is not acoustic. It is a change of mind, a turning around.” He made this suggestion after visiting the anechoic chamber at Harvard University – a room which has such intense acoustic isolation that, were silence possible, it would surely be found there. What Cage instead noticed was the sound of his body’s internal functions. It sparked what was to become a significant shift in his approach to composition.

It is this thoughtful approach to sound, and to listening, that Liquid Architecture 6 hopes to foster through over three weeks of events, talks and screenings at the beginning of July. Based at Melbourne’s RMIT University (and its sound collective, tRansMIT), the festival presents the work and ideas of both local and international artists. It is a rare opportunity for Australian sound practitioners to present work in the company of well-known internationals, and a key feature of the festival, according to Co-Founding Artistic Director, Nat Bates. “Right from the beginning there was a drive to provide opportunities for student and emerging artists alongside world class work. To this day the festival continues to adhere to this manifesto with a rich combination of international guests and local artists involved in both performances and artist talks.”

Along with Bruce Mowson, Bates founded the festival in 2000, and has seen it grow enormously in its six-year lifespan. Bates’ involvement with Liquid Architecture began, as in most cases, during his time as a student at RMIT. “Liquid Architecture was born when Simon Sellars, in the role he had at the time as an arts events officer at RMIT Union, invited me to program two evenings of sound arts in Melbourne,” he explains.

Another key aim of the festival is to foster a critical culture through artist talks, and this year, Liquid Architecture will host its first works-in-progress forums called the Feedback Sessions. Co-curator of the Feedback Sessions, Nigel Brown, explains: “The feedback sessions are an opportunity for un-established sound artists to air their work in the public domain. There are a lot of people shut away in their bedrooms working on sound in isolation. Aside from those making work as part of uni courses, it can often be difficult to receive informed feedback and support for your work. It’s easy to get a pat on the back from your slightly confused friend, as they back away slowly, but this doesn’t give you any idea where your work stands amongst contemporary practice. The Feedback Session artists will have the opportunity to open an ongoing dialogue with the festival audience.”

Brown also emphasises that the talks should be more of an informal discussion than a traditional artist talk or lecture.

Many would argue that self-criticism is somewhat lacking in a culture which is at times dominated by elitism and technical one-upmanship, so it is refreshing to note Liquid Architecture’s assertion that – unlike Cage in his anechoic chamber – thought on sound art need not exist in a vacuum. Bates feels that sound art should, by nature, be inclusive – because it is so ubiquitous.

“It is problematic that ALL art seems to be viewed as something only other artists really understand. It is a snobbery that is deeply entrenched in the art institutions as a way of protecting themselves from becoming ordinary. When viewed as a niche area of interest, sound arts are then marginalised, which may make a few artists feel special, but generally speaking trivialises and disempowers the art. A better way of looking at it is to emphasise the interdisciplinary nature of sound arts practices, which touch moving image, contemporary/experimental music, contemporary art and new media cultures. What this means is that sound arts, or an artistic approach to the use of sound, occurs in many places – at the theatre, at the movies, on television, on radio, in the concert hall, in the gallery, on record. Therefore, we are all coming into contact with sound arts much more often than we realise, and we are all finding it easier to engage with and appreciate than we may at first think.”

Jean Luc Guionnet

In keeping with the spirit of inclusion, Liquid Architecture 6 will host events in five cities along Australia’s East coast, including its first ever appearances in Canberra and Cairns. In the popular imagination, some of the acts could be considered somewhat oddball – in 2004, audiences were treated to Frenchman Pierre Bastien and his army of small mechanical machines (odd contraptions constructed out of Meccano which struck, plucked and plinked their way through his compositions).

This year, the festival boasts international guests including Germans Thomas Brinkmann and Natalie Beridze, Eric La Casa and Jean-Luc Guionnet of France, experimental US turntablist DJ Olive, and the fascinating Wet Gate – a ‘band’ comprised of multiple 16mm film projectors – of San Francisco. Much to the delight of listeners in Canberra and Cairns, the international visitors will not limit their visits to the major cities, as is often the case. These visitors will play alongside established Australians such as Severed Heads, Steve Law (Zen Paradox), the newly-reformed Essendon Airport, and Alan Lamb (famous for recording vibrations in enormous lengths of telephone wire across Western Australian deserts).

In addition to exposing Australians to some amazing sounds (both home grown and far-flung), Liquid Architecture finds its value in its dedication to dissolving boundaries – between ‘popular’ and ‘academic’ sound cultures, ‘high’ and ‘low’ art. Its organisers are keen to emphasise that sound art plays a far greater role in our daily lives than most of us realise – from public works to the distinctive sound of a gunshot in a Bollywood film. This year’s programme also features a number of avant-garde film screenings.

When quizzed on the future of the event, it is immediately obvious that Bates is both proud of its past and excited about its progression. “It has evolved into something that is more inclusive than ever. There are many different areas of practice and many people doing amazing things with little or no external support. Each year we work with different people in different areas, both as a way of expanding the festival, and as a way of saying hey, we think what you do is great, how can we help you reach more people? This year, we are putting on a dance party in Melbourne – not because we think that Melbourne doesn't already put on great dance events, but because we wanted to hook up with some different artists and audiences and share with them some of the more experimental artists that they may not know about.”

With more events and locations than ever, Liquid Architecture 6 is shaping up to be something of a feast, full of opportunities to listen, to learn, to share and to perform. But beyond the sheer breadth of it all – the wealth of ideas and new sounds – Liquid Architecture hasn’t forgotten the meaning of a festival. It’s a celebration!