Minimal sounds in a maximal space
- PublishedFri, May 26, 2006, 18:30
- WordsResident Advisor
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- The cavernous Turbine Hall at the Tate Modern is an unlikely venue for minimalism but Ryoji Ikeda, Alva Noto and Robert Henke take it on May 29th.
- The enormous Tate Modern is an unlikely venue for minimalism but three of the genres most celebrated practitioners will take on its cavernous Turbine Hall on May 29th. ULTRA: Extreme Economy in Electronic Music and Visualisation will feature performances from Japanese data cruncher Ryoji Ikeda, sound artist Alva Noto aka Carsten Nicolai from Raster-Noton and cheerful techno/software merchant Robert Henke from Monolake. But leave your scarf at home for this one for Ultra is not minimalism as we clubbers know it. Ultra is the real deal. While the 'minimalism' tag in techno requires perpetual inverted commas these days, (see Philip Sherburne's May Pitchfork column for a thorough critique) what's on offer at Ultra has far clearer roots: late twentieth-century modernism. Like visual minimalists such as Donald Judd and Dan Flavin, sound minimalists emphasise repetition, the spare use of materials and an air of austerity. These are hardly values that get fists pumping at clubs, nor values that can even be applied to what's labeled 'minimal' in techno these days - the swirling intricacies of Luciano or the celebratory groove of Guido Schneider are miles away from these ideas - but they do describe the work of Ryoji Ikeda, Alva Noto and Thomas Henke. The program at the Tate Modern: Ryoji Ikeda will perform datamatics [prototype], setting paired down black and white imagery to an explosive soundtrack in a piece that explores data nodes and information overload. This new work from Ikeda premiered last March in Newcastle. Alva-Noto will perform the UK premiere of a new work entitled xerrox before jetting off to Sonar in Barcelona where he plays with Ryuichi Sakamoto. Robert Henke will present the latest development in an ongoing series of works entitled Atlantic Waves, an improvisational audiovisual piece played in collaboration with Torsten "T++" Pröfrock who will perform remotely in Germany. All three musicians are audiovisual artists and as the event title suggests, ULTRA: Extreme Economy in Electronic Music and Visualisation will be a feast, albeit a small one, for both the eyes and the ears.
- Mon, May 29, 2006
Minimalist Monday
Robert Henke, Monolake, Carsten Nicolai, Ryoji Ikeda