[Interview] Acoustic Mirror – Martín Rodríguez
* Pour lire la version française de cette entrevue cliquez ICI!
During this era of solitude and confinement restrictions, artistic initiatives on the web are more than welcome. Through this multitude of live-streaming options – which are not all very successful – there are projects with greater vision. The new Acoustic Mirror series is one of those ideas that think outside the box and offer an original and intriguing formula. After a first edition which offered us some destabilizing sounds, we thought it advisable to speak with the organizer, the artist Martín Rodríguez, in order to make you discover this magnificent initiative!
What is the main motivation behind the creation of Acoustic Mirror? Did you have this idea in mind before the pandemic?
Acoustic Mirror was originally conceived as a series of live concerts aimed at creating a space for sound artists and musicians to explore and exchange artistic ideas. As a curator my intention was/is to pair contrasting artists to create a dialog and inspire new sonic possibilities through these performances. When I imagined the environment for this series in my head, it was always an intimate setting, similar to a “house show” with people gathered around listening together, engaged in the exchange between the artists and themselves.
The debut of the series was originally set for March 27 but obviously like so many other events we had to cancel. It’s interesting because now the series has moved into “radio space” it almost suits my intention better LOL! People are at home listening to the broadcasts, hopefully engaged with the listening experience in a new way.
Photo: Kelly Ruth
While most people are going for live video streaming on social media, you have chosen to go for an audio experience in a more professional and organized setting. Is there a specific reason behind this choice of medium and in your approach?
When I organise events I want the artists and the public to feel that something special is going to happen. By doing so the public comes to the event with an energy that is engaged and the artists step onto the stage with an intention to produce an inspired performance. I respect the time artists take to prepare for the gig and the time people take out of their lives to be active participants in the performance. As a promoter I find it my duty to respect all parties involved and create an exceptional experience that elevates everyone involved. So for this series I had to find a way to create a virtual space that allowed the audience to focus on the performance without the itch to scroll past.
I chose to go with a live audio format because I wanted the focus to remain on the listening experience. Right now we are all glued to our phones and I wanted to offer an option where people could put those devices down. I work a lot with radio in my own artistic explorations and listen to a lot of podcasts. There is a beauty and mystery to the radio as we are often listening to these voices or music in very intimate private places such as our homes and our cars. We are letting these strangers in and welcoming their ideas, melodies, and rhythms.
I did a DJ set on n10.as the other week and my mother was listening in from the states. She told me, “it was great to hear you because I felt like you were here with us eating lunch.” That sentence solidified the power of sound and radio because sound is a physical experience and through broadcasting our voices, our melodies, our ideas we are in some way teleporting ourselves into another space. That is the magic of radio and one of the reasons I choose this format.
On April 24, the first edition of the series took place presenting works by Tim Shaw, Philippe Battikha and Esther Bourdages. How did you find the experience and what is the story behind the choice of these three artists?
Wow! The first show is always exciting because you come into it with preconceived notions of what you want, think, and hope it will be but of course it is never 100% all of those things. I was very pleasantly surprised by the first show. I had some technical hiccups with latency that caused me to talk slower than usual! LOL if you listen back to the recording it’s kinda like I’m on some heavy downers or something ;). Tim told me that there were some issues with his computer that was processing his sound walk through Lausanne. It’s pretty obvious when you hear it but it made for a really unique transmission. It felt like we were walking through the scrambled bits of internet packets. Also if you are trully trying something experimental it should fuck up in some way.
I’ve known Esther for sometime now and she sent me an FB message telling me that Tim was supposed to be in town in March and was looking for gigs. I had this idea for Acoustic Mirror floating around and thought this would be a great opportunity to book him and help the event grow outside of the Montreal scene. Philippe Battikha was an important piece to the line up as I really wanted to establish the theme for the 1st show and I knew I wanted a horn player and I knew because of Philippe’s experience with l’Envers that he would know where this series was coming from. He’s also another ex-pat like me so I feel we speak the same language in some way.
The next live broadcast will take place on May 8 and will feature the work of CHIENVOLER and Kelly Ruth. What can we expect from them? Have you planned other editions afterwards?
Expect a unique listening experience focusing on a rich mix of acoustics from another time period mixed with the modern technologies. CHIENVOLER is Jérémi Roy and he will be playing the Saz, a long neck turkish lute type instrument. Jeremi introduced me to the instrument and I fell in love with it from the moment I heard it. It’s micro-tonal and the strings are doubled so you get these fantastic rubbing of frequencies. Kelly Ruth I met when I played a festival in Saskatoon. She will play a prepared weaving loom. The loom has 5 contact mics on it and she is able to bring out some interesting rhythms and tones that are rooted in the weaving of fabrics. I found that these two organic instruments complemented each other greatly and linked their sounds to history while finding new techniques or approaches.
As for the next editions. Yes there is more to come but I will always announce the next edition at the end of the preceding broadcast. So tune in to find out ;). What I will say is that the series will continue for the foreseeable future every other week and that the artists involved and myself will continue to explore the format and try new experiments with sound.
© Photo: Nicolas Boulay (CHIENVOLER)
Is there a post-pandemic vision to the project? If so, how would you like to stay active even when life will slowly resume and shows will start to become happen again?
I feel that this project has really found it’s true format in the radio space. I love the fact that the format allows for artists to engage and have their artistic message travel outside of their circle. One of the goals for the show is to never have two artists from the same region playing together. I believe this both helps the artists and the show grow. I’m looking forward to hearing where the series will travel.
I have other ideas for post-pandemic events but they will be different and embrace the reality of what that future will hold.
To conclude the interview, do you have a message or advice for everyone who is currently in confinement?
Shhhhiiiiiitttttt, listen to Acoustic Mirror you will have a lot of fun!!!