Dormant - Clutter live at Lanternhouse

Clutter live at Open Circuit - Lanternhouse, Ulverston, Cumbria on March 17th 2012.

Film is a slowed down version of Lanternhouse I by Shaun Blezard.

All sounds used are recordings of Lanternhouse and form part of an improvised set.

Original material made during my artist residency at Lanternhouse in 2011 - cumbriaremixed.blogspot.co.uk

The end of an era.......

Thanks to all the staff at Lanternhouse over the years who have made me welcome, it's been a long strange trip as they say, with many highs and lows. I've sometimes loved the place, sometimes hated the place but will definitely miss the place.

'Everything will pass, and the world will perish but the Ninth Symphony will remain.' Mikhail Bakunin

You can also just listen/download the audio from Bandcamp

Remixes on The Internet Archive

I have just ported the remixes from Cumbria Remix to The Internet Archive as the Soundcloud page is now been down scaled to a normal account.

Many thanks to all the people work did work for the project - it really was a lovely project to put together.



It's very sad news that Lanternhouse is closing at the end of March - it was an amazing building to work in and the staff were simply the best to work with, making me feel really welcome while I was working there.

Live broadcast of improvised performance

Yesterday as part of the Meet The Artist day at Lanternhouse I did a performance, streamed live on the internet.

I was joined in this by Geoff Benson who at 78 VJed for the very first time and John Hall who did some soundmaking alongside me. Here's the stream, available for the next 7 days.



I will be doing more research and work with streaming technologies I think as it's an exciting developement alongside other newer technologies like phones and tablets for music making. It's been brilliant to be given the space by Lanternhouse to work and try new things out in such an amazing creative and supportive atmosphere, always very much appreciated.

Live internet TV and it's potential

I have just done another test broadcast using http://www.justin.tv/cluttermusic after a morning of research and chatting online about the possibilities of such technology. Being able to do live streaming of gigs and such is a very exciting prospect and something I've been researching during my residency at Lanternhouse.

I have been discussing the possibilities of live collaborations using things like justin.tv and video conferencing software and the main issue is time lagging of signals - I could perform here in the UK, my friend could play along in the US, but if we try and play, interacting together, then it gets a little more difficult.

Today I did a test performance on justin.tv where using chat I could interact verbally with the 'audience' and what they typed - if you play the streamyou will hear me responding to their messages. It was exciting to do this with Phill in Ulverston, Mr Duke in Wales and Hal in Florida.

So as a pure tool for performing to new audiences this stuff really works, especially with them being able to type messages to you in real time. I will be working with the likes of Phill and Hal and doing somemore experiments with the technology and how we can use it as an artistic tool.

I will be trying to do another little performance over the weekend, this time from my garden if the weather holds, to try out a wifi dongle and to see if that works well enough to do live streaming 'off grid' for future performances.

My first official live performance will be on Wednesday 30th March from Lanternhouse in Ulverston 2pm - 3pm GMT streamed live from http://www.justin.tv/cluttermusic - If you prefer the old fashioned way and live locally why not drop in for a brew and be part of the studio audience.


Watch live video from cluttermusic on Justin.tv

Mica Burn - a remix by Dead Kousin

Another fantastic remix this time from London's Dead Kousin. He said of the remix:

'here is my attempt at 'remixing' Cumbria. I don't have any real connection with the county (except having worked there on occasion and passed through numerous times!) but thought your project sounded really interesting. I used exclusively sounds from your sample pack, so it's all your own material - I hope you like the result!'

Dead Kousin on Soundcloud 

This is our 20th remix submitted from around the globe. Go to the Sample Packs page to download the sounds and contribute your own remix. There is also VJ packs if you would like to do something filmic for the project.




All the remixes can be downloaded here

BBC 21CC/West Lakes Academy workshop

Had fun making a collection of tracks with pupils and staff from West Lakes Academy in Egremont during a workshop I ran for BBC 21CC at Lanternhouse. All the tracks were created with sounds collected and made in the lanternhouse building - field recordings, instruments played and voices used.

21CC is the BBC's 21st Century Classroom. They run fun, interactive digital media workshops for schools and community groups that offer young people the opportunity to develop creative production skills in animation, film, radio, art and design and music.

BBC 21CC
West Lakes Academy 

Cumbria Remixed in London and Barcelona

I have just returned from a short trip taking Cumbria Remixed to London as part of the Black/Light Festival.



A short edit from the Kalendar and Clutter live A/V collaboration for inCounter at The Bussey Building, Peckham in London on 4th March 2011.

I was invited to work with Kalendar as part of inCounter in March 2011, part of Black/Light festival curated by Robots>>>>. The show also formed part of Cumbria Remixed, my artist residency at Lanternhouse, Ulverston.

Kalendar is a duo, Paul Ibram and Stephen Shiell, working between electro-acoustic and analogue improvisation using guitar and moog to create continuous landscapes of noise impressions, working backwards and forwards over time, effecting chronological dislocations in the receivers’ imaginations.

I added live processing of Kalendar, iPhone and samples from Cumbria to the live soundscapes. I also created projections for the performance that were a combination of Cumbria, filmed from the train on the way to London, and the Robots>>>> exhibition at The Bussey Building.

inCounter
Robots>>>>
Kalendar on Soundcloud

Midnight In The House Of Lanterns is a track I produced for inclusion in Kim Cascone's 'Dark Atmospheres' diffusion mix for Storung Festival coming up in Barcelona.

Kim Cascone (USA) became internationally famous in the 80's working as a musical editor assistant in David Lynch's series Twin Peaks and Wild Heart. Nevertheless, his background in music is wider than that. He started his studies in electronic music in the 70's and founded in 1986 one of the pioneer labels of electronic music in the States, Silent Records. Since mid 90's his work is centered in audio design and has worked for Headspace and Staccato Systems where he got specialized in sound algorithmic synthesis for video games.



Storung Festival
Kim Cascone

Radio Cumbria interview and new film

I am being interviewed on Radio Cumbria tomorrow morning - it's going out live at 11:30am - http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/cumbria/hi/ to listen live on or you can listen again - not sure if this works outside the UK? Will try and get a copy of the interview for the blog if it doesn't.

I have just completed a filmed entitled Lanternhouse I using images I filmed of Lanternhouse on a flip camera on the start of my residency. It is strongly influenced by such surrealist artist/film makers of the 1920's as Fernand Léger and Man Ray.





Lanternhouse I will be shown as part of The Films We Like - a night of emerging film makers being shown at Lanternhouse tomorrow - 2nd March (7:30pm - 9:30pm)


The Studio at Lanternhouse will be transformed into a cinema for one night only! The films have been hand-picked and cover a diverse range of styles from experimental video, animation, and documentary. They’re occasionally weird, always wonderful and united by the fact that we like them and we think you’ll like them too.

Entry £3 on the door!

For more info contact tom@lanternhouse.org

Lanternhouse remixes update and VJ loop pack

I have uploaded all the VJ loops I made for the first Meet The Artist day. They are available from The Internet Archive under creative commons licence for you to download and play with. They are all films I recorded on a flip camera around and about the Lanternhouse building.

If you do something with them please email a link to info@shaunblezard.com and I will feature it on the blog.

We have also had a further 4 remixes in, this time from Carlos Lemosh (US), Closed Eyes Are Dancing (UK) and All N4Tural (Germany). Check the Remixes page for more details.



All the remixes can be downloaded here


Lastly Clutter has an exclusive track on the current Classwar Karaoke compilation called Lanternhouse II which is available for free download here. It is one of his remixes of the Lanternhouse building.

House Of Bowls, Singing

A film collage of footage shot during the first Cumbria Remixed Meet The Artist day with resident artist Shaun Blezard at Lanternhouse on 25th February 2011.

For more details of further meet the artist days visit lanternhouse.org

Meet the artist and more

I had a fantastic day at Lanternhouse on Friday for my first Meet The Artist day. We had a steady stream of people coming to play and try their hand at remixing Lanternhouse with some stunning results.

Among my personal highlights were a mellow collaborative, improvised session with Ian McNichol's singing bowls and recordings of the building where a little ensemble created a beautiful audio visual treat for passers by.

There was also some great new VJ loops and sound recordings made and it was great to see people trying things out for the first time and really engaging with the technology. It was good to get to talk to people about the project and to make some plans to do some visiting and recording with people, also always great to get feedback and ideas for the project. Some really fun ideas coming to try out in the next few weeks.

Here's a collage of some of the music created during the day:



I'm starting to get a feel for what is achieveable and I'm excited about getting an interactive, improvised installation together by the end of the project. We got some amazing results from the test material of Lanternhouse and I will now start adding more sounds and film to the mix.

The next Meet The Artist day is on 9th March at Lanternhouse - visit http://www.lanternhouse.org/ for more details.

Remixing Lanternhouse - more remixes and other news

Another remix of Lanternhouse from the United States, this time from the talented Clint Newton aka Beed and Fascia who have sent the track Goodbye Faerie, Goodbye.

Clint said: 'Although I did do some processing and repurposing, it's more of a straightforward composition with some of the fragments. I kind of like the way it turned out... hope you do too! Thanks for the opportunity and thanks for listening!'

Beed and Fascia on Bandcamp
Beed and Fascia on Soundcloud

The wonderfully talented Phil Powell has sent us this beautiful track, Pause For Allan.

Phil says: 'This is a very melancholy mix. My uncle recently left this mortal coil far too quickly, after being diagnosed with leukaemia. His passing was so sudden, it took us all by surprise, and nobody really had a chance to say goodbye to him. I have known him all my life, and now he is gone. So this track is inspired by the moments I've been taking these past few days to pause, reflect, and to think about the many loving friends and family who are grieving at his passing.'

Phil is a resident in Ulverston and runs the amazing company We Make Media, who designed the Lanternhouse website.

Phil Powell on Soundcloud

We Make Media

All the remixes can be downloaded here

Also just a quick reminder I'll be in the foyer of Lanternhouse from 11am - 3pm tomorrow (25th February) if you want to drop by and find out more about the project or have a go at remixing Lanternhouse yourself. You can try your hand at soundscapes or VJing, or come and let me record your memories of Cumbria to add to the sound bank.

Test live visual broadcast on Justin.tv

This was a little test live visual broadcast I did on Justin.tv to try out the idea of live streaming a gig in the future - It is a live VJ set I performed along to audio recordings of me jamming - all using recordings of Lanternhouse. I just filmed the laptop screen, so all a bit lo-fi but keep a look out for more live streaming - Once I've sorted out the tech I'll let you all know when I do a live set - need to get the stuff working and find an interesting venue or two.


Watch live video from cluttermusic on Justin.tv

This will be around for a week or so then disappear, bit like iPlayer :-)

Many thanks to Steve Wade from Folly for telling me about justin, gonna have some fun with it I think.

I have also been working with Neil Wade on some Wii remote fun, still in developement but we're hoping to have a wii quartet happening in the near future.

Even more remixes of Lanternhouse

'I couldn't help but try to get something done for this the second I heard about it--the concept of the project is gorgeous' message from Tim of WaterGunWaterGunSkyAttack - Dallas, Texas

The remixing of the Lanternhouse building has really been catching the imagination of sound artists the world over in the first week. We have received 3 more submissions giving us a total now of 10. Just amazing to get such a response from everyone.

Visit the contribute or remixes pages to find out how you can get involved in Cumbria Remixed.

So on to the new remixes.....

The first new track is by WaterGunWaterGunSkyAttack and is called Urban Wren. Tim of the band said 'I couldn't help but try to get something done for this the second I heard about it--the concept of the project is gorgeous, and I've recently found that I love working with field recordings. Most of the samples in this track are heavily edited, resampled, and modulated; It's also not exactly as much of a soundscape as the seven tracks currently on your site, but I hope it doesn't stick out too much. I'm a resident of Dallas, Texas, without much of a musical CV to speak of. I probably haven't been doing this as long as the other people who've submitted remixes have, but hopefully you get some interest out of it.'

WaterGunWaterGunSkyAttack on Soundcloud



All the remixes can be downloaded here
Electricplum is Ulverston's very own Kirsten Taylor, known to many for her amazing singing voice, but showing she is also a very talented sound artist with the track Overworked Door Shot To Pieces By Frog.

Another remix from Bubble in Canada - this one is called Briad - John of Bubble said...along with the cumbria samples, there are sounds of crickets from india (lived outside bangalore for 5 years) , a tibetan singing bowl, my friend - an opera singer - singing into a piano resonating the strings (her idea!  :)) and a sine wave tone...

Bubble on Soundcloud

Remixing Lanternhouse - Meet The Artist Shaun Blezard

Friday 25th February - 11am - 3pm (Free Drop In Session)

Lanternhouse

The Ellers,

Ulverston,

Cumbria,

LA12 0AA

Drop into Lanternhouse to find out about Cumbria Remixed and meet sound artist Shaun Blezard. Record your memories and thoughts on Cumbria and help remix Lanternhouse itself!! No need to book, just drop in to see and hear what Cumbria Remixed is all about.

Cumbria Remixed is an exciting new digital sound project using digital technologies to investigate and remix the soundscape of Cumbria. It will create a lively dialogue between old and new, young and old through field recordings of Cumbrian environments, and local people’s tales, tunes, stories and songs. It will use digital technology to remix and remould our environment and our stories to create new soundscapes and songs.

Cumbria Remixed is a project by sound artist Shaun Blezard for Lanternhouse.

Shaun will be creating a series of works throughout the project both on-line, at Lanternhouse and around Cumbria. He would love to hear from you and work with your recordings of the county.

Other Meet The Artist days @ Lanternhouse with Shaun Blezard
Wednesdays 9th, 16th, 23rd & 30th March 2011 - 11am - 3pm (Free Drop in Events)

Resident sound artist Shaun Blezard will be running open house days to talk to the local community about his work and the Cumbria Remixed project. If you are interested in the project and want to try creating soundscapes, field recording, VJing or just want Shaun to record your memories and thoughts about Cumbria why not come along and join in. No experience necessary.

www.lanternhouse.org for more details on this project and others

More remixes of Lanternhouse

We have been sent another four remixes of the Lanternhouse buiding, making a total of seven in the five days since the Lanternhouse sample pack has been available for download.


The new remixes come from Canada, Swansea, Warrington and the first Cumbrian remix from Ambleside.

Bubble is John Sobocan from Toronto, Canada who has sent us Cumbria Shake Mix.

Bubble on Soundcloud :: Bubble biography

InternalExternal is Ambleside resident David Brown. Our very first Cumbrian based remix has sent us Cloudy Raintime, a very Cumbrian title.

InternalExternal on Soundcloud

Swansea sound artist Ian Holloway sent us the track Balefire. As well as being a great artist Ian also runs the experimental label Quiet World and the long running review fanzine Wonderful Wooden Reasons.

Quiet World :: Wonderful Wooden Reasons

Noise Research is Warrington based musician Ian Simpson, who has sent us The Lanternhouse Remix. Ian is a brilliant electro-acoustic improviser and can be seen in many incarnations around the North of England. He also finds time to run the amazing net label Electronic Musik and the Electronic Organica experimental music nights in Manchester.Electronic Musik



All the remixes can be downloaded here

Remixes from Italy & Yorkshire

We have received two more remixes of Lanternhouse, this time from Italy & Yorkshire, UK.

Keith Jafrate is a poet and saxophone player who also makes amazing sound art based in Todmorden in Yorkshire, UK. He is the driving force of jazz/electronics outfit orfeo 5. He has contributed the track Many Hearts.

orfeo 5 Website

orfeo 5 Myspace

Guido Lusetti aka Loalue comes from Italy and has given us Loalue - Lanternhouse (all the Cumbria lakes' remix)

Guido Lusetti on Soundcloud

Loalue on Myspace
Monbijoux on Soundcloud



All the remixes can be downloaded here

First Remix in from New England

Our first remix from the Lanternhouse Sample Pack has arrived - from New England in the United States.

Derek Piotr is a sound composer, currently writing an opera and constantly consumed by numerous other aural projects. He also interns for Meredith Monk & is the U.S. office of Antye Greie, but when he has free time he likes to write.

Derek Piotr on the internet:
Soundcloud
Wordpress



All the remixes can be downloaded here

Want to remix a building??

I have uploaded a sample pack of sounds recorded at Lanternhouse in Cumbria ready for download at:

Soundcloud & The Internet Archive
Please use the samples, have fun do a remix and please let us know if you do a remix as we would love to feature it on the blog and we are thinking of releasing a best of compilation as a net release.
If you do a remix please send us a copy - either to our soundcloud drop box or send to info@shaunblezard.com.

We will be featuring them on the blog and are hoping to do a net release with them in the future so get in touch. All will be under Creative Commons licence. Please include artist name, track title and website details so we can add you to this page.

Stairwell Phase Composition II

Another test installation for the stairwell at Lanternhouse.

This one is a La Monte Young style drone work, again using 4 soundboxes.

For this piece I looped a small sample of an harmonium drone and created a bigger loop with a 1 tone change in it. I then created another 3 loops of different keys and length to create a drone composition that evolves over time.

The audience member can then change the mix by moving around the installation creating new tones depending on where they are standing.