m e t a p h o n i c a

PhoneBook : didactic text

CALL THESE NUMBER TO  CONTRIBUTE TO THE INSTALLATION
The call is free:

+4915118900484
+4915111127081

This installation consists of a 4 part composition than is interrupted and added to by people ‘calling in’ to it with their own telephones, using the numbers above. Mobile phones are fitted into certain books, and play readings of excerpts of the text that has been removed to make room for them. Here the mobile phones use their voice recording and playback facility without connecting to any ‘network’, other than the one they create by playing back collectively.
The ‘phoned in’ contributions feature interviews with William Burroughs, master of the cut up technique in literature, and John Cage talking to Morton Feldman; masters of things aleatoric when applied to music and sound works. These interviews are available from internet archives on a creative commons license.
The work contemplates the state of spoken word delivery through audio books, podcasts and telephones. Will they replace written formats? Are we a new generation of listeners?
Most of the books are ‘found, and many come from travellers who have left them behind before moving to their next destination, and represent languages that have made part of the artists’ experience when she lived in Berlin from 1990 to 1992.

http://www.metaphonica.com

more information

Readings from the books are from:
Fallaci, Oriana (1974) Intervista con la storia, 4th ed., Rizzoli, Milano
Schillmann, Heinz Ed. (1981) Unvergessene Balladen, F.Englisch Verlag, Weisbaden
Beard, Charles a. Ed (1928) Whither Mankind – a panorama of modern civilzation, 1st ed, Longmans, Green and co. London
Uhlmann, Irene and Hartmann, Ortrun Ed.(1982) Kleine Enzyklopadie Die Frau VEB Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig

And the phones that ‘interupt” are in these books:
 Lindemannn, Dr Hermann (1911) A Pocket Dictionary of the English and German Languages , 13th ed., Langenscheidtsche Verlagsbuchhandlug, Berlin-Schoenberg
Clark, Mary Higgins (1980) The Cradle Will Fall, Fontana, London

The idea that started the project PhoneBook was the search for my own books, lost in Berlin over 15 years ago.
The area where the studio is located is full of 2nd hand book shops. Many of them have books that travellers have left or traded, in many different languages. Perfect for Transit Lounge. They often leave books out front ‘kostenlos’.
So now i have decided to chose a mixture of books in languages that reflect the nationalities of people with whom i shared my time in Berlin. Italian, German, English and American.

The idea that started the project PhoneBook was the search for my own books, lost in Berlin over 15 years ago.
The area where the studio is located is full of 2nd hand book shops. Many of them have books that travellers have left or traded, in many different languages. Perfect for Transit Lounge. They often leave books out front ‘kostenlos’.
So now i have decided to chose a mixture of books in languages that reflect the nationalities of people with whom i shared my time in Berlin. Italian, German, English and American.

                                                                                                                                                               cut out’s from the books so far 

Here is how the bookshelf looks. I like the fact it is 2 way and you can hear it as well as access it ‘front and back’ so to speak.
There will be 6 books with mobile phones fitted. 2 will play through over 80 minutes, 2 will loop, and 2 will be available to be called and ‘interupt/add’ to the composition.
There is quite a drastic spacialisation of the sound which is great.
But there are still some unanswered questions; do i want people tobrowse the books? Search for the phones? Set up a reading chair (and if i do that, i should set it up with headphones too)?
I could even add a live podcast feed into one of the books, from my computer, by putting a small speaker inside. Or even headphones.
I have put up a sign looking for books to loan for the exhbition time, and fill the space in the shelf. It needs some oranaments too. Its made the residency space strangely homely.
So far the phones are included in a Womens Encyclopedia, a German – English dictionary, a trashy english language novel and a  book of Hymns. I found an arabic book and if i can find someone to read the contents i will put a phone in there too.
Thanks katie hepworth for building the shelf.

the opening event for phonebook is on the 18th February, from 8 – 10pm GMT+1 (between 3am – 5am  19th Febraury Perth time)
To be part of the installation by interuppting and adding to it,  you can call either of theses number, its free:
+4915111127081 - Burroughs
+4915118900484 - Cage/Feldman

Your call will interupt the book readings with either William Burroughs, king of cut up culture; or an interview between John Cage and Morton Feldman – masters of things aleatoric.

Both these excepts have been accessed from audio databases and podcasts holding creative commons licenses.

cut up text here is some text made from what i cut out of one of the books that houses the phone. It is in German, like the book – but to give a bit of background…. its from a German WOMENS ENCYLOPEDIA published in 1978, and loosley (or rather, chopped-ly) refers to choosing colours for room decoration.
CLick on the link above to hear part of it.

cut up text here is some text made from what i cut out of one of the books that houses the phone. It is in German, like the book – but to give a bit of background…. its from a German WOMENS ENCYLOPEDIA published in 1978, and loosley (or rather, chopped-ly) refers to choosing colours for room decoration.
CLick on the link above to hear it.

 Here you can hear a  Phone Book sample
that makes part of the PhoneBook project

Today i go to find wood to create the bookshelf. Phonebook is an installation of sounds from within books within a collection of books on a bookshelf. I have kept all the pages i have cut out to insert the phones, not sure if i will use them to create the sounds or not.
PhoneBook uses the same techniques as Phone Box to create the soundscape; ringoetones form a composition that is interuppted by the public. But there are technical difficulties with this here in germany, our phones international roaming does not cover Germany and they are locked to the network so cant use german SIM cards. But i have some some phones i can use, and the Australian phones will operate as MP3 players that do not go interupted.
Most recent idea is to use text from creative commons licensed audio books for the ‘ringtones’. I am fasinated with the new popularity of audio books rejuvinated by podcasting.  But so far i have been decidedly dissapointed with the range of audio books available. i wanted to find books and poems but writers who have pioneered the cut up method, such as Burroughs, Gysion and even some Genesis P Orrige.  But i have found interviews with these artists, as well as with other important pioneers such as Morton Feldman and John Cage. I may have to create my own audio books!
The next cruical step is to find the right books for the right audio content, and the right books to surround them. So far i have 2 german books ; one of peoms and the other an old encylopedia for women. Finding podcasts and audio books by women has been  particularly difficult. I made a recording of Janet Cardiff’s talk at transmediale so may use that ; with her permission of course.

Work has finally started on Phonebook. here is  a short video of the phone inside a book, without sound at this stage. Lots of issues to do with cutting up books, being a foreigner and cutting up german books in a country where book destruction has had rather potent historic references…More in the next blog.