It will be an evening of exciting and unexpected musical interactions. We hope to see you there, participating as audience, performer or helper, and thank you for your support.

Stet Lab featuring Paul Stapleton and Nick Williams

Monday, 8 March 2010

9:00 pm (doors: 8:45 pm)

Upstairs @ The Roundy [map…]
Castle Street
Cork, Ireland

€10 (€5)

Stet Lab, Cork’s monthly improvised music event, returns on Monday, 8th March 2010. Taking place upstairs at The Roundy, Castle Street, Cork, Stet Lab presents Belfast-based sound-sculptor, guitarist and electronic musician Paul Stapleton and Newcastle-based electronic musician and guitarist Nick Williams.

Originally from California, Stapleton is currently based at the Sonic Arts Research Centre at Queen’s University Belfast. He is an active improviser, instrument builder, ensemble director and installation artist who has shown work in a variety of locations across Ireland, Great Britain and North America. Improvisation is a key element in his work, especially in its intersection with environmental and social forces.

Joining Stapleton on the night will be sonic improviser and guitarist Nick Williams. Currently based in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Williams’ work takes the form of cross-disciplinary performances enrolling new instruments and new electro-acoustic resources.

Collaboratively, Stapleton and Williams are, with dancer Mona McCarthy (from Cork, based in Newcastle), the interdisciplinary performance group theybreakinpieces. Through this group they have performed with artists such as Ben Evans, Jon Aveyard and Dan Reynolds.

The event will begin at 9:00 pm (doors open at 8:45 pm) and entry is €10 (€5).

Next month’s Stet Lab will take place on Monday, 12th April 2010, featuring the composer, improviser and guitarist John Godfrey.

the performers

Paul Stapleton is an artist-researcher originally from Southern California, currently based at the Sonic Arts Research Centre (SARC) at Queen’s University Belfast. Prior to joining SARC in 2007, Paul worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Central Lancashire where he taught, researched and curated events on sonic art, mediatised performance, live art and practice as research. Paul is an active improviser, instrument designer, ensemble director and installation artist who has shown work in a variety of locations across Ireland, Great Britain and North America. Paul is also a co-director of the interdisciplinary performance group theybreakinpieces.

Nick Williams is an artist, performer, and researcher based in Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK. He is currently in the final year of his PhD in post-vernacular music at Newcastle University. Nick’s practice is realised through many forms of improvisation and cross-disciplinary performance including sonic improvisation using instruments authored in Max/MSP, and site-specific collaboration with the performance group theybreakinpieces of which Nick has been a co-director since 2004. For his latest performance Nick has collaborated with Mona McCarthy (dancer) to create a site specific work based in an interactive procedural-audio environment.

To be informed of future events, please join the Stet Lab – announce, or subscribe to the web feed (news only or all blog posts). [More info…]

Kevin Terry, Evan Dorrian and Marian Murray (photo: © 2010 Julia Healy)

A warm thanks to Evan Dorrian for playing and his generosity on stage, and to all who performed, Stet Lab (ir)regulars (Paul Dowling, Susan Geaney, Juniper Hill, Marian Murray, Han-earl Park, Owen Sutton, Veronica Tadman and Kevin Terry) and newcomers (Philip Guiton and Claudia Schwab). Kudos again to Kevin for refereeing on the night, Veronica for MCing, and to photographer Julia Healy [see the photographs (new window)…].

As always, special thanks to all who came to support this event!

As with all the recordings since December 2008, this month’s recordings are covered under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. [More info…]

Also performing will be Stet Lab (ir)regulars including Marian Murray (violin), Paul Dowling (bass guitar) and Owen Sutton (drums).

It’ll be an exciting event; one of new on-stage negotiations and alliances. We hope to see y’all there, and thank you for your continued support.

Stet Lab featuring Evan Dorrian

Monday, 8 February 2010

9:00 pm (doors: 8:45 pm)

Upstairs @ The Roundy [map…]
Castle Street
Cork, Ireland

€10 (€5)

This month’s Stet Lab takes place upstairs at The Roundy, Castle Street, Cork, Ireland, on Monday, 8th February. 2010. Following the success of January’s real-time fusion of Turkish, Irish and American improvisative practices, this month Stet Lab is set to travel farther and presents, from Canberra Australia, the exciting percussionist and sound artist: Evan Dorrian.

Evan Dorrian is currently based in London and has two main projects: Spartak and Pollen Trio. They are contrasting in style, Spartak creates an ambience through 60’s fire music and post-punk drift, whilst Polen Trio is an exploratory outfit that is founded on melodic song-form and textural improvisation. According to Dorrian, he likes to pull apart the traditional notions of his acoustic instruments and reconstruct them as “pure sound matter and busted anti-rhythms”. According to Ron Schepper (textura.org):

Dorrian’s an explosive player whose inventive fills and cymbal colourations hold one’s interest whether the setting’s free jazz, electronic exploration, or guitar-heavy raver….

Dorrian’s approach has attracted international interest, and his ever-expanding list of collaborators include the jazz musicians Adam Simmons, Abel Cross, electronic sound sculptors Seaworthy and Adrian Klumpes, and improvisers Dave Brown and Mike Cooper.

Also performing on the night will be Stet Lab’s resident band: The Real-Time Company (for the Ad-Hoc Association) Of…. This month’s lineup is the Cork-based trio of Marian Murray (violin), Paul Dowling (bass guitar) and Owen Sutton (drums).

The event will begin at 9:00 pm (doors open at 8:45 pm) and entry is €10 (€5).

Stet Lab will return on Monday, 8th March with an event featuring the Belfast-based sound sculptor Paul Stapleton and the Newcastle-based electronic musician Nick Williams.

the performers

Evan Dorrian is an Australian improvising musician and sound artist, currently based in London. Using the drum kit, percussion and field recordings as sound sources, he pulls apart the traditional notions of his acoustic instruments and reconstructs them as pure sound matter and busted anti-rhythm.

His main projects are Spartak, an electro-acoustic duo that sees 60’s fire music and post-punk drift in dub ambience while Pollen Trio is an exploratory outfit that is founded on melodic song-form and textural improvisation. Pollen Trio recently released ‘230509’, a loose collection of post-processed jazz works on hellosQuare recordings while Spartak will be releasing their album ‘Verona’ in February 2010 on the English label Low Point. In October 2009, Evan released a self-titled suite of solo improvisations, also on hellosQuare.

Alongside this work, Evan has also collaborated with Australian jazz figures such as Adam Simmons, Cameron Deyell and Abel Cross, tireless improvisers like Dave Brown (Pateras/Baxter/Brown) and Mike Cooper as well as electronic sound sculptors including Seaworthy (12k), Andrew Pekler (Kranky, Staubgold) and Adrian Klumpes (Leaf Label).

To be informed of future events, please join the Stet Lab – announce, or subscribe to the web feed (news only or all blog posts). [More info…]

Korhan Erel, Jesse Ronneau, Han-earl Park and Veronica Tadman (photo: © 2010 Julia Healy)

Thanks to Korhan Erel for performing, and to everyone who played on the night (Ruti Lachs, Tony O’Connor, Han-earl Park, Jesse Ronneau, Veronica Tadman and Kevin Terry) including newcomer to the Stet Lab stage and old-timers. Special thanks to Kevin for refereeing on the night, Veronica for MCing, and to photographer Julia Healy [see the photographs (new window)…].

Last but not least, thanks to all who, despite adverse meteorological conditions, came to support this event. We couldn’t do this without you!

As with all the recordings since December 2008, this month’s recordings are covered under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. [More info…]

The evening will also mark the second appearance by the trio of Han-earl Park (guitar), Jesse Ronneau (double bass) and Veronica Tadman (voice).

Should be a good one. We hope to see y’all there!

Stet Lab featuring Korhan Erel

Monday, 11 January 2010

9:00 pm (doors: 8:45 pm)

Upstairs @ The Roundy [map…]
Castle Street
Cork, Ireland

€10 (€5)

Stet Lab kicks off the new year upstairs at The Roundy, Castle Street, Cork, Ireland on Monday, 11 January 2010. This month’s Stet Lab introduces to Ireland, the Istanbul-based electronic musician, computer artist and improviser Korhan Erel.

Those who have attended Stet Lab events will have seen many electronic performers on stage, but Korhan Erel is one of a kind. Erel’s work is well known within the experimental and electronic music scenes and with the international improvised music community. Approaching his computer-based performances as a musician, performer and instrumentalist, he avoids the easy trap of over-clouding the sound field with layers and overpopulating the frequency spectra, allowing space for other performers. Radically rethinking the laptop, in his hands it becomes, according to Erel, the “sound body and resonator,” whilst the controller is “the exciter.”

Erel is a pioneer of the free improvisation scene in Istanbul, founding the ensemble Islak Köpek, and releasing the first Turkish free improvisation recording in December 2008. His work  has been released on the re:konstruKt label; he has performed at STEIM (Amsterdam), and has performed with Le Quan Ninh, Kirstie Simpson, Karlheinz Essl, Nora Volkova Ensemble, Markus Wenninger, Attila Dora, Artur Vidal, Sebastien Branche, Ecotone Experimental Theater, Mary Margaret Moore, Richard Nunns, Christian Asplund, Oguz Büyükberber, Umut Caglar, Robert Reigle, Sevket Akinci, Kevin William Davis, Dilek Acay, Dirk Stromberg, Volkan Terzioglu, Erdem Helvacioglu, Elektronik Kumpanya and Tolga Tüzün.

This month also sees the return of the trio of Cork-based improvisers, Han-earl Park (guitar), Jesse Ronneau (double bass) and Veronica Tadman (voice), adding an analogue contrast to the digital main act.

The event will begin at 9:00 pm (doors open at 8:45 pm) and entry is €10 (€5).

Stet Lab will return on Monday, 8 February 2010 featuring drummer Evan Dorrian from Canberra, Australia.

the performers

Korhan Erel: computer and electronics musician, performer, improviser, composer.

Turkish composer / improvisor based in Istanbul. He is a founding member of Islak Kopek, Turkey’s pioneer free improvisation group. He performed and had compositions played in radios, festivals in Turkey, Austria, Australia, Holland and Germany.

Korhan approaches computer performances from a conventional instrument approach. He refrains from using many sound layers and frequency ranges in order to leave space for acoustic and electric instruments he plays with. He also plays melodica and Cracklebox in ensemble performances. For his solo performances, he augments the computer with other sound sources, such as analog electronics (modular synths, guitar effects, oscillators, digital effects). He plays his computer instruments similar to a conventional instrument player—the laptop is the “sound body” and the “resonators,” the controllers are the “exciters”. The screen is occasionally used for monitoring software status and is not used as a part of the performance, thus avoiding the typical look of the laptop musician, staring at the screen all throughout a performance. He uses Wiimotes, and a Kaosspad 2 as the “fretboards” for his instrument.

Korhan’s compositions blend industrial sounds, found sounds, abstract sound textures and acoustic instruments into sound collages. He is currently working on new instrument designs on Audiomulch that will enable him to create instant compositions and sound collages for solo and group performances as well as playing with dancers, video artists. One such project is called Ses Duvari, a collaboration with video artist Ilknur Büyükberber.

Korhan has been recording with Islak Köpek and other improvisers since 2006 and plays on the following releases:

Islak Köpek / Islak Köpek – A.K. Müzik (www.akmuzik.com.tr)

Umut Caglar & Korhan Erel – Music for Walkie-Talkies #2 (www.rekonstrukt.com)

Oğuz Büyükberber, Umut Çağlar, Korhan Erel, Florent Merlet – twentyeight-twelve-twothousandandeight (www.rekonstrukt.com)

Korhan has played with the following artists:

Le Quan Ninh, Kirstie Simpson, Karlheinz Essl, Nora Volkova Ensemble, Markus Wenninger, Attila Dora, Artur Vidal, Sebastien Branche, Ecotone Experimental Theater, Mary Margaret Moore, Richard Nunns, Christian Asplund, Oguz Büyükberber, Umut Caglar, Robert Reigle, Sevket Akinci, Kevin William Davis, Dilek Acay, Dirk Stromberg, Volkan Terzioglu, Erdem Helvacioglu, Elektronik Kumpanya, Tolga Tüzün.

Han-earl Park works from/within/around the traditions of idiom-agnostic, experimental improvised musics, sometimes engineering theater, sometimes inventing ritual. He prefers collaborative, multi-authored contexts, and has worked with animators, film makers, poets, theater and mime performers, dancers and installation artists. As a musician (guitar, banjo, bass guitar, piano, electronics and software) he has performed in clubs, theaters, art galleries, concert halls, and (ad-hoc) alternative spaces in Denmark, England, Ireland, The Netherlands, Scotland and the USA.

He is involved in ongoing collaborations with Bruce Coates, and with Franziska Schroeder, fifteen year long associations with Alex Fiennes and Murray Campbell, and has performed with Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith, George E. Lewis, J. D. Parran, Paul Dunmall, Pauline Oliveros, Kato Hideki, Mark Sanders, Chick Lyall, Jan Langedijk, Stu Ritchie, Koen Nutters, Pedro Rebelo, Elspeth Murray, Mark Trayle and Hannes Raffaseder. He is also the constructor of io 0.0.1 beta, an interactive musical artifact, and cofounder of the Church of Sonology.

Park is a recipient of grants from the Arts Council of Ireland, and a recipient of the Ahmanson Foundation Scholarship and the Calarts Scholarship. He has appeared at festivals including Sonic Acts (Amsterdam), the Center for Experiments in Art, Information and Technology Festival (California), dialogues festival (Edinburgh), Sonorities (Belfast) and VAIN Live Art (Oxford). In addition to numerous self-released CDs, his work has been released by Owlhouse Recordings, frimp.co.uk and Frog Peak Music. He has performed live on Resonance FM (London) and on Drift Radio (at mediascot.org), and his recordings have been featured on Kalvos and Damian’s New Music Bazaar (Vermont), and You Are Hear (at www.youarehear.co.uk) which was selected as Critics’ Choice by The Independent (UK).

Additionally, Park founded and curates Stet Lab, a monthly improvised music space in Cork, Ireland, and teaches improvisation at the UCC Department of Music.

Jesse Ronneau is an award winning composer and improviser specializing in experimental acoustic and electro-acoustic music, specifically music using explorative instrumental techniques and live-processing. Jesse received degrees in Composition from the University of Cincinnati, Roosevelt University, and Northwestern University. His works have been performed (and continue to be performed) extensively throughout Continental Europe, the UK, Ireland and the US. He is currently a lecturer of composition at University College Cork.