{"id":94,"date":"2016-09-21T01:11:34","date_gmt":"2016-09-20T22:11:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kuljuntausta.com\/?page_id=94"},"modified":"2016-10-05T20:46:19","modified_gmt":"2016-10-05T17:46:19","slug":"magma-interview","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/kuljuntausta.com\/index.php\/magma-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"Magma Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Petri Kuljuntausta<\/h1>\n

Composer<\/strong><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n
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Ever wondered what the northern lights sound like? Well, so did legendary Finnish composer, musician and sound artist Petri Kuljuntausta<\/b>.<\/h3>\n

The strange clapping sound emanating from the aurora\u2019s mysterious light spectacle has been part of folk tales throughout the ages, and was the source of inspiration for one of Kuljuntausta\u2019s most exquisite and ambitious composition projects Northern Lights Live<\/em> \u2013 inspired by this, the wondrous soundscapes of the Aurora Borealis and manipulated audio feedback.<\/p>\n

A forerunner of the generation of Finnish electronica artists that emerged in the 1990s, Petri Kuljuntausta manoeuvres smoothly around the relatively peripheral sphere that makes up Finland\u2019s experimental electronic music scene, always maintaining\u00a0a broad international outlook be that as an artist, or as a keen observer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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His work output spans practically everything from digital music for experimental films, video art, visual art and dance projects, to man made media and sound installations in museums, galleries and concert halls
\n\u2013 all this testimony to a\u00a0highly inquisitive mind and perpetual curiosity for all aspects of the sounding world.<\/p>\n

No surprise then that Kuljuntausta is also the author of some massive authoritative volumes on the history Finnish electronic music (\u2018On\/Off \u2013 From Ether Sounds to Electronic Music\u2019 and First Wave: A Microhistory of Early Finnish Electronic Music).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Petri Kuljuntausta approach is based composing music made out of sounds material of both the natural and extraordinary. In addition to his Northern Lights project he has in close knit collaboration with natural scientists created underwater installations from underwater sound materials and even made music out of whale calls. Kuljuntausta\u2019s art is founded upon the interplay of scientific research, eccentric playfulness and, close collaboration with other media artist and a profound respect and knowledge of the pioneering work done by previous generations in the field of experimental electronic music.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Arnbj\u00f6rg Mar\u00eda Danielsen<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more here<\/a>\u2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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MAGMA QUESTIONNAIRE<\/p>\n

What inspired you to become a composer? <\/strong><\/p>\n

As a young boy, I heard from the radio Jimi Hendrix\u2019s guitar playing, I wanted to create that distorted guitar sound too. So I got an acoustic guitar for a Christmas present, and I built my own microphone for it, but no way \u2013 this was far away from the sounds that interested me! Later, I got an\u00a0electric guitar and connected this to a transistor radio; finally I managed to get out the never-ending fuzz sound. Yes! That was the sound that I was looking for!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I started as a guitar player, but soon I purchased a tape recorder and started to compose music with multi-track technology. I played all kinds of instruments that were available to me; guitar, synthesizers, Indian percussion instruments, sequencers, piano\u2026 I was hungry for music, I wanted to know all about all music, classical & contemporary Western music, jazz improvisation, Indian classical music, and other traditions. I started to create my own strategies for music making.<\/p>\n

What would you say are the principal characteristics of your music?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I am searching for new sounds, always and everywhere. The sound itself could be the whole universe, just one frequency could offer so much. At some point I realised that I don\u2019t have to compose so much, or express myself, more important is to let the sound speak for itself. This is typical, especially for my sound installations. If you look back to the history of music, you\u2019ll realise that music styles come and goes, but what is the quintessential element behind the styles and fashions, is the sound frequency. It is the sound frequencies that I am studying. I compose the colours of sound.<\/p>\n

Can you describe your approach to composition\/music making?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Quite often I get ideas from scientists. I read a lot and I follow what is going on in the different research fields.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The world is full of interesting phenomenons and the information is easily available nowadays, but it takes time to figure out what do with this information and how to create something artistically creative.<\/p>\n

The working process continues unconsciously. Sometimes I get an idea in a bus, sometimes when I am sleeping. I write it down, before I forget it, and start the work as soon as possible. I have hundreds of unfinished work ideas on my worklist, but I have time to realise only a few of them, unfortunately.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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