In collaboration with the Norwegian festival Insomnia, the experimental music festival Skaņu mežs is continuing to work on LYRA, a project for kids and teens that is supported by the EEA Grants and Norway Grants funded by Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway. From 30 May to 1 June in Riga and Daugavpils, free audio masterclasses will be held for 12 to 17 year old kids. These will be conducted by Norwegian sound artist and composer Alexander Rishaug.
These masterclasses intended for kids will help them to acquire skills working with recording equipment and sound processing computer programmes, including Ableton Live, as well as introducing them to basics of creating simple compositions.
Sounds created by masterclass participants will be recorded, and in October their fragments will be used for a new work that will be played during a Skaņu mežs festival concert.
Born in 1974, Alexander Rishaug works in the field between experimental music and contemporary art. Rishaug creates site-specific sound projects that investigate time, memory, space/place and acoustics through the use of extended field recording techniques and advanced speaker technology, analogue synthesizers, computers and generative sound manipulations. He has also worked in the fields of film, theatre and contemporary dance.
Masterclass times and venues:
30.05., 15:00 and 31.05., 15:00 – two day masterclass
NOASS Art Centre (AB dambis 2, Riga)
01.06, 14:00
Daugavpils Mark Rothko Art Centre (Mihaila Street 3, Daugavpils)
Age of participants: 13 – 17 years.
No. of participants: up to 10 participants per seminar.
Items to bring with you: headphones and laptop.
Participation is free of charge!
The masterclasses will take place in English with translation. Previous musical experience is not required.
Applications can be made in free form, by writing to the following e-mail address: simonakaupuza@gmail.com or calling: +371 27485473.
LYRA receives grants in the amount of EUR 206,256.00 within the framework of the EEA Grants and Norway Grants funded by Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway. The project aims to introduce kids and teenagers to experimental music and to get them involved in its creation. As it is democratic and non-hierarchical in essence, experimental music gives trained and untrained kids the chance to take part in making music. Since the project crosses social and ethnic divides, it is also socially inclusive.
Total LYRA eligible costs: EUR 202,510.00, European Economic Area financial instrument programme Local Development, Poverty Reduction and Culture Cooperation support sum: 85% or EUR 85,000.00, of which:
European Economic Area financial instrument co-financing: 85% or EUR 175,317.60;
State Budget co-financing: 15% or EUR 30,938.40.
