Originally published by

Dilated Magazine

May 2000

Before arriving at the first annual San Francisco Electronic Music Festival, I wasn't sure what to expect. Although initially I thought of DJs and dance music, a quick bit of research on the event revealed it to be a showcase of electronic sound art. Being somewhat of a newcomer to the idea of sound as art, I was rather excited to attend the event.

The SF Electronic Music Festival was organized by new media collectives CELL (Collectively Explorative Learning Labs), The Lab, and New Genre Works. The annual event is intended to raise the profile of the Bay Area as a center for experimental electronic music and sound art. The three-day event at CELL's cooperative workspace, the CELLSPACE, situated in San Francisco's Mission District, featured exhibits, performances, and panel discussions.

As I entered the lobby of the CELLSPACE on opening night, I felt as if I was attending an art gallery. On the wall hung two guitars placed at opposite ends of the room. The same strings ran from one guitar to the other. A bowl of oranges sat on a pedestal in the center, with the fruit providing the means by which to play the guitars. In the middle of the room was a circling of magnetic devices, each dangling on a fish poll over a small speaker. A low hum flowed from the speakers, increasing in volume as the devices dangled closer. The sounds fluctuated in such a way that it seemed to take on the same patterns as someone breathing in their sleep.

The night's performance began with Miya Masaoka's "Bee Project #6." The sound of a beehive provided the soundtrack as a film showed a naked woman coated in sugar water with bees dancing across her skin. Captions ran across the screen discussing the existential life of a bee within the environment of a hive. The sound of the bees was run through a 3D microphone and mixed through computer software to create the effect of a symphony of buzzing. In the second half of the piece, the bees accompanied Masaoka as she played conventional and laser simulated versions of a harp-like instrument known as a koto. The classic koto belted out beautiful melodies while the laser koto provided scratchy, synthetic tones. The bees provided a buzz in the background but seemed to go rather unnoticed. Sample artist Dan Joseph followed with his expose "Got Guns." This piece provided one of the higher points of the night's performance, as samples were blended, distorted, and faded together to create a fascinating pallet of sound. A keyboard sampler and effects pedal were used to bring together statements on American gun culture with the sound of bullets firing from a variety of different machine guns, shotguns, and pistols. Joseph seemed to have a mastery of the sound collage that reminded me of the works of Bay Area locals Negativland, the undisputed masters of sound art.

Following a short break, Carl Stone presented "Sripraphal," a piece which seemed as indiscernible as its title. Stone was overcome by the European dance hit "Barbie Girl" by Aqua and used his Macintosh Powerbook to put the song through a sonic blender. The sound was barely recognizable from the original, at times resembling a tape constantly being shifted from rewind to fast-forward.

The night was brought back to life with an engaging piece by Alvin Curran called "Endangered Species." The piece was an imaginary soundtrack to the funeral of minimalist composer John Cage. The piece began with an intro of warm, melodic piano. This was gradually interspersed with samples that reflected the works of the funeral's supposed attendees, from honorable avant-garde jazzmen to the Oakland Exhaust and Muffler Co. The samples were triggered along with the notes Curran played on his piano. As Curran began to play more wildly, samples began to crash together to dramatically intensify every note of his playing. Following a chaotic climax, he returned to the somber notes of his piano to close the song.

As I left the opening night of the San Francisco Electronic Music Festival, I felt uncertain as to how I should interpret what I had just witnessed. I had to brush all of my previous conceptions of music aside andpretend that I was in effect viewing a series of musical paintings and sculptures. These were sonic explorations that showcased the creative genius of each of the musicians. The musical ideas expressed may not have immediate appeal, but the musicians I observed showed an innovative approach in the music they created.

Electronic music has come a long way since the days of pioneers such as Leon Theremin and Robert Moog. With its voice now spread through countless recordings and played continuously in clubs and raves throughout the world, it's easy to forget where it all began. Perhaps the Laser Koto and the amplified sounds of a beehive may not replace the Roland 303 and 808, but they are innovations, nonetheless. They are only a hint at the technology and ideas that might form the music of the not-so-distant future.