Proposal for Professional Practice

“Bjorn Alpha”

Bjorn Alexandridis CMP2013

Student Number : 20839910

1. Introduction

During the past academic year I started exploring some new different production techniques, different material and instrumentation for my compositions. Sometimes I only used either found sounds or synthesizers, at other times I came up with the combination of the two. I am trying to get a better understanding of music composition and production to continue to build my artistic identity. I have become more interested in how the spectacle of live performance could be enhanced with various midi-interfaces and live instruments, using Ableton Live software. 

Before I was trying to create music through found sounds and real instruments. Now I started introducing analog synthesized sounds in my projects. I just recently began experimenting and became more familiar with Ableton 9 software that has Max for Live. It allows the composer to build his own devices like custom synthesizers, samplers, sequencers, audio effects, and more. Max for Live also allows to build devices that modify Live itself, including the properties of tracks, clips, and native Live devices. Live's Session View is also unique, for improvising, playing and performing with musical ideas, without the constraints of the timeline. Any number of audio or MIDI loops can be started and stopped freely and independently - and everything stays in sync. Almost everything in works in real-time - devices can be added, reordered or removed without interrupting the creative flow. I would like to create visuals that interact with my music. Each track would be connected to imagery and each would be interacting with visuals in their own way.

My aim for Bjorn Alpha project is to have a clear identity, so my goal is to complete an album by January 2014 and then focus on the visual and performance aspects from there on. I also plan to create a professional website. 

2. Conceptual Background

My style used to be more or less associated with psychedelic culture and psy-chill (also known as psybient) music. Psy-chill is influenced by psytrance or Goa trance and emphasizes atmosphere and timbre in a similar manner as ambient music. The artists in psytrance and goa trance scenes compose slower and calmer chillout tracks that are often put at the end of a release. The 1998 Shpongle album Are You Shpongled? is considered to be the most notable in the genre. Psy-chill used to be played on the chill-out stages at festivals, by now it has moved to alternative stages, where they play dub step, dub, glitch, atmospheric drum and bass, ambient, and psy-ambient. However, instead of being focused on or having a specific style in mind, I have started to improvise more by just experimenting and making new music without trying to fit it into a particular genre. 

There are few artists that have had an impact on me and inspired my work. These inspirations include Amon Tobin, EdiT, Flying Lotus, and Bonobo. They have influenced the way I think when I am composing and have motivated me to find new production techniques. Brazilian-born, London based Amon Tobin is worth mentioning because he is among one of the most visionary and innovative electronic artists of his generation. I admire the way he introduces his elements and the way he creates all the melodic and rhythmic sounds. Edit is an electronic music producer based in LA, California and is part of the group The Glitch Mob. I like the way he makes his glitch sounds and how he treats his beats using Effectrix from Sugarbytes. Flying Lotus is an experimental multi-genre music producer and rapper from LA, California. The closest I can relate his music to is avant garde jazz with some futuristic grooves. It is something that could very well be a considered a new genre. He detunes his elements to create a “trippy vibe” and at times his rhythmic parts are not in the right place. His music includes synth sounds, 8-bit sounds, drum beats, occasional vocals, live bass guitar, harp, strings, unidentifiable sounds - all scattered throughout. Bonobo is a British musician, producer and a DJ. Bonobo uses a wide variety of samples in his music combined with heavy, often complex bass lines. His music generally develops linearly - with new elements such as bass lines or percussion coming in one after the other.  It goes without saying, some of my inspiration also comes from the time I was studying music in Greece - from traditional South European music and Eastern sounds. In the Eastern-Mediterranean culture we have a music genre based on the expression of the artist's feelings and thoughts about love, nature, political situations, etc., and everything is acoustic (lutes, guitar, lyra, percussions, etc.) And my more recent inspirations come mostly from the U.K. music world of experimentation and innovative ideas. In UK culture the scene is based on music technology, which engages every possible way of experimentation of composing and producing.

The Body Without Organs and Rhizome theories from Deleuze and Guattari are highly connected to composing experimental music, To create your experimental music, one has to, so to speak, forget how things work in a conventional way. For example, there are several techniques and ways for notes and instruments to be played. Maybe the strings of a guitar can be played with drumsticks? You need to “deterritorialize the instrument, as you know it and you reterritorialize into something else”. In their book A Thousand Plateaus they write:

“This is how it should be done. Lodge yourself on a stratum, experiment with the opportunities it offers find an advantageous place on it, find potential movements of deterritorialization, possible lines of flight, experience them, produce flow conjunctions here and there, try out continua of intensities segment by segment, have a small plot of new land at all times. It is through a meticulous relation with the strata that one succeeds in freeing lines of flight, causing conjugated flows to pass and escape and bringing forth continuous intensities for a Body without Organs” (Deleuze and Guattari 2005: 161).

When explaining their conception of the Rhizome they come against the branching structure of the way of thought - everything starts from something and then it proceeds into separate subgroups. In a rhizome

there is no beginning or end. It is always in the middle. To explain better this theory, there are six principles to make a rhizome. Principles of connection and heterogeneity are the first two. Every point of a rhizome is connected to any other point of it and the points can differ greatly from each-other. It is anti-hierarchical. The next principal is that of multiplicity – there is no subject nor object. Moreover, the principle of a signifying rupture is the fourth principle that says that a rhizome may be broken at some point but it will start again on new or on the same lines. The last two principles of the rhizome are those of cartography and decalcomania. A rhizome works as creating a new map, not tracing an already existing structure. (Deleuze and Guattari 2005: 32-33).The rhizome is an effort by Deleuze and Guattari to create a new form of structure. This structure is non-hierarchical, it has points that all are connected with each other, it reveals the vanity of power since the master is in a sense a slave of his own limitations, even if it breaks it starts again since it is non-hierarchical and the input can be given from any point of the system. Furthermore, the structure of a rhizome allows multiple entry and exit points and therefore allows space for experimentation. Let us imagine a situation where musicians come together to improvise following the principles of a rhizome. This would mean that there is no leading instrument, all are together connected to each other. All together, through experimentation, they make a map and do not follow tracings made by others to reproduce something that has already been made in the past. Finally, the group of musicians creates a multiplicity, one completes the others and the others complete the one.In a rhizomorphic way of system also is the system that comes to life during festivals. This summer 2013 I will be presenting my music at three festivals. Tangra Festival in Bulgaria, the Future Nature Festival in Croatia, and The Dance Experience Festival in Greece.

Tangra Festival will open the festival summer season and it will run from 20 - 24 June. It will take place in Sandanski region, Bulgaria, between the mountains with spectacular views. Tangra music program is unique and provides a platform for both new and already established stars, fizzling the borders between styles and genres while demonstrating at the same time, the global power of Psychedelic Trance. Created on the outskirts of the dominant society, it has continued to challenge consumer culture with a journey that ventures inwards, rather than outwards to superficial realms. [www.tangrafest.com],

The Future Nature Festival will be held during 15 - 18 of August, at the old Austrian fortress called Fort Punta Christo, only few kilometers from the center of Pula, Croatia, and is dedicated to the natural elements; water, wood, fire, earth and metal. Thought out to magnify the nature, life and friendship, to give people the chance to "escape" from everyday life, and to feel comfortable. [www.future-nature.info

The Dance Experience Festival will be in Halkidiki, Greece, close to the beautiful beach of Kavourotrypes. It will run from the 19th until the 23nd of July. The idea of the festival is to promote and implement meaningful ways of interacting with the environment without denying future

generations their right to do the same, to promote a new, global consciousness which sees our entire planet as a living organism and work together to employ alternative solutions that will produce a more sustainable society. [dancexperience-festival.eu] 

My style, as I mentioned before, has become more experimental, but accordingly to the festival themes, is still a bit mellow and full of melodies and “easy going” harmonic development. I will perform for one hour at each festival showing the work completed during 2012-2013 academic year. 

I believe in the festival themes, specifically that everything is connected and we need to take care of our surroundings and each other. I look at the festivals as an opportunity to create a starting point for a greater change, to come together, and connect with one another via common goal. I would like to contribute to bringing positive change or at least bring attention to some of the areas that some of us seem to have forgotten. I also believe that music has the power to bring joy in the most desperate situations. After a few minutes of playing music, everything changes: people are dancing and smiling, demonstrating the positive power of music. These music events provide an opportunity for the community to come together, an opportunity to stand united. Together, we represent peace, love, and understanding - the true meaning of community. Eventually, I want the visuals that accompany my music to communicate the message to the audience,

3. Practice Led Research

Dialogue

During the first year as MA we were organizing an event called Dialogue. In these events we had the chance to show the development of our projects in a safe environment. People attending Dialogue, knew that they were going to see works in progress. The event was repeated in monthly basis to get feedback and spot the weaknesses and work on them. This procedure also made me thinking also for the live performance aspects of my project.

First dialogue event in the University : http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=di-M71ObBd4&feature=endscreen

4. Strategy 

Bjorn Alpha is already becoming a professional project. My longer term goal is to reach a larger international audience and at the moment I am focusing on gaining exposure. The following makes up my strategy for the Professional Practice module.

My main goal is to complete an album by January 2014 and after that focus on improving live performance. I have about an hour of material and I am working on more. In order to experiment as much as possible, I would like to keep collecting recordings from the nature (birds, water, insects, etc.).

My other goal is to supplement my audio performance by creating alternative content, specifically the idea is to develop visuals to go along with the sound to deliver a unique experience for the audience. I plan to achieve that by using Max for Live software. As mentioned, each track would be connected to imagery. For example, the volume and frequencies would be connected to the colors and shapes, and changes in frequency would also change colors/shapes.

I will be engaging in both passive and direct promotion. I am planning to create a website in order to develop a sense of identity. The website will present carefully selected digital content. I will be using web streaming platforms such as Vimeo, Youtube and Soundcloud to host content for the project, and I have a developing community on each.

I want to build a bigger network of contacts, both professional and a following fanbase. Professional contacts will include promoters of events, owners and managers of different venues, other artists and musicians who may be interested in collaborating on events or projects, and other professionals such as graphic or web designers or illustrators who can help with the design aspect, since I have no particular design skills.

I have already confirmed the following gigs for the 2013 summer: in June - Tangra Festival in Bulgaria; in July - Dance Experience Festival, Halkidiki, North Greece; and in August, Future Nature Festival, Pula, Croatia. Also, I will plan to carry out some street performances and search for other possible gigs. 

I have collaborated with Irina Mikhailova (she is from Russia/Ukraine, and is an established performer in the psychedelic scene from psy-trance to psy-ambient). We made a track together and I had some nice reviews/feedback from her about my music: "Wonderful music dear Bjorn… Deep and mesmerizing, thank you for sharing… amazing project!"

The track is not fully completed yet, but the exciting thing is the process of collaboration with an already established artist. I have also released a track in compilation "Shanti Broadcast Volume 3", compiled by Ambient Terrorist aka Fishimself.

I have no monetary income, so I need to explore ways to generate income. Live performances so far have been better for gaining exposure, but not

much money is offered to cover my expenses. Releasing music on CD probably will not be profitable, so I would want to learn more about ways to sell music online. Another idea is to reach out to annual funding programs for both artists and organisations. I am interested in applying for a grant that will help me to develop my artistic practice.

5. Summary

In conclusion, my basis and focus of the Professional Practice module will be on the following:

Developing a stronger artistic identity and improving the quality and delivery of live performances.

Improving a festival/event strategy – I am already prepared for the summer of 2013 with confirmed gigs.

Going to release an EP with works carried out in the course on Namaha Records and exploring more collaboration opportunities.

Creating my website, and expanding my professional network through social media.

Exploring the possibility of receiving income or funding.

REFERENCES:

- http://ninjatune.net/artist/amon-t obin - Flying-lotus.com/- http://ninjatune.net/artist/bonobo

- Deleuze, Gilles and Felix Guattari (1987) [2005]. A Thousand Plateaus: Capitalism and Schizophrenia. University of Minnesota Press: Minneapolis and London.