Fill the application form here. See also the Facebook page for updates.

11^th July – 13^th July 2011

Introduction

Joensuu Soundscape Composition Contest 2011 invites composers and sound artists from all over the world to submit soundscape compositions up to maximum of 15 minutes to be performed in the city centre of Joensuu, Finland from 11^th July to 13^th July 2011. The contest, organized this year for the first time, seeks new soundscapes to be temporarily installed within the city soundscape of Joensuu. These soundscape compositions may utilize natural and/or synthetic sounds to bring new aural experiences to the city which, during the festival week, will already be full of life.

Works will be played through the outdoor PA system in the pedestrian zone. Audio output is split in four discrete areas, allowing composers to create multichannel soundscapes. Entries are open to professional or amateur composers/sound artists. The total sum of prizes to be awarded is 3500 euros.

The contest is organized as a part of annual Popkatu Culture Festival. (See Appendix 1 for more information on Popkatu, Ilosaarirock and Joensuu city.) Cooperating partners include the Finnish Society for Acoustic Ecology and the University of Eastern Finland, Cultural Research.

Annual theme

The theme of this year’s contest is “Transforming Localities”. By this notion, the competitors are encouraged to reflect the possibilities of sound, art and digital communication to challenge, overcome and reshape geographical configurations (such as the hierarchical center/periphery model). Among the expected hearpoints are, how does the global intervene in the local and how do these interact with each other, how does a soundscape transmit a soundplace, shifting a sense of locality over the borders.

Schedule

Works received at the latest by 3^rd June 2011 will be accepted in the competition.

The finalists (9 in total) will be announced by 27^th June.

Final works will be streamed online from 1^st July onwards.

Final works will be played back on location from 11^th July till 13^th July.

Winning works will be announced on 14^th July.

Audio system

Finalist works are played back in the pedestrian zone of Joensuu city center. This zone consists of:

a 320-meter long pedestrian street, which will be split into three discrete audio output areas (referred to as LEFT, CENTER and RIGHT)
a 100 x 24 meter pedestrian zone perpendicular to the pedestrian street (referred to as REAR)

This spatial configuration can be seen here.

Audio output will be realized through the permanently installed public address system, which is a 70 volt central radio type audio system with TOA horn loudspeakers. The speakers (over 100 of them in total) are installed upon equally distributed lighting/audio poles. (See Appendix 2 for a detailed view.)

Audio format

Participants are allowed to submit a mono work, a stereo work or a multichannel work. In mono works, the same audio signal will be played back in all speaker areas. In stereo works, CENTER and REAR areas will play back a 50/50 mix of left and right channels of the composition. In multichannel works, four discrete audio signals are played back in the respective areas.

Works shall be submitted as digital audio file(s) according to following specifications:

Format: WAV or AIFF (uncompressed)
Sampling frequency: 44100 Hz
Bit depth: 16 bit or 24 bit
Length: maximum of 15 minutes

Files to be submitted for each type of work are as following:

Mono composition: submit an audio file named “mono” (i.e. mono.wav or mono.aiff).
Stereo composition: submit an audio file named “stereo”.
Multichannel composition: submit four audio files, named as “left”, “right”, “center” and “rear”. In addition, please submit a stereo mixdown for judging purposes with a filename “mixdown”.

Application Procedure

Only one entry per individual is allowed in the contest. A valid application to the contest requires the delivery of:

1. On-line application form; and
2. Audio file(s) of the work

Audio files can be delivered in two different ways:

Via mail: send a data CD or DVD sent to Joensuu Soundscape Composition Contest, c/o Juhana Venäläinen, Laatokankatu 17, 80200 Joensuu, FINLAND
On-line: archive all audio files in a single zip package (e.g. JSCC-FirstnameLastname.zip), upload it to a fast and reliable server, and provide a download link with the registration form

Please note that all required materials have to be delivered to the organizers within the given schedule (5^th June at the latest). The organizers cannot make exceptions on account of mail delivery delays. If in doubt regarding to mail delivery schedules, please consider using on-line submission for audio files.

Selection Process

The works will be assessed in two stages. In the Preliminary Round, all entries will be screened by the Preliminary Jury, which will make a proposal of the finalists for the Final Jury. Works are evaluated anonymously in this stage. The Final Jury confirms the selection of nine finalists, and these will be publicized (with composer biographies and descriptions of the compositions).

In the Final Round, the Final Jury alone will assess the works. Evaluation will be based both on the recordings and the performance on their playback in situ. As the contest is a decidedly a site-specific art event, greater emphasis will be given to the listening experience on location.

Audience voting will be available both on-line and on location. For on-line voting purposes, the finalist works will be streamed on the internet during the contest time.

Preliminary Jury

Preliminary Jury:

Sanna Kurki-Suonio (Head of the Preliminary Jury), Principal Lecturer of the Music Department, North Karelia University of Applied Sciences; Chair of Popkatu Organization
Juhana Venäläinen, Contest Coordinator; Researcher in Sociology of Art, University of Eastern Finland
Noora Vikman, Soundscape Researcher, University of Eastern Finland

Final Jury

John Wynne (Head of the Final Jury), Sound Artist; Senior Lecturer and Researcher in Sound Art, London College of Communication (www)
Juha Linna, Sound Designer, Lecturer in Sound Design, North Karelia University of Applied Sciences (www)
Helmi Järviluoma-Mäkelä, Professor of Cultural Research, University of Eastern Finland; Leader of the Research Project “Soundscapes and Cultural Sustainability” (www)
Petri Kuljuntausta, Composer, Performer and Sound Artist (www)
Juhana Venäläinen (Non-Voting Secretary of the Final Jury), Contest Coordinator

Prizes

1^st Prize: 1500 euros

2^nd Prize: 1000 euros

3^rd Prize: 500 euros

Audience Prize: 500 euros

Prizes are made possible by the grant from Finnish Cultural Foundation, North Karelia Regional Fund.

More information

For any questions concerning Joensuu Soundscape Composition Contest 2011, please contact the coordinator:

Juhana Venäläinen, Sähköpostiosoite on suojattu roskapostiohjelmia vastaan, Javascript-tuen tulee olla päällä nähdäksesi osoitteen

tel. +358503594450.

Disclaimer

Details of the guidelines and instructions presented here are subject to change.

The final jury retains the right to re-organise the prize money within the
total sum of 3500 euros.

Appendix 1: About Popkatu, Ilosaarirock, and Joensuu City

Popkatu is an urban culture festival held for the 11^th time in the city centre of Joensuu. The festival, originally initiated as an offshoot of the renowned Ilosaarirock festival (see www.ilosaarirock.fi) has grown into a notable cultural event, the core of which is the based on a diverse, artistically ambitious and free program targeted for various audience groups. The extent of the festival has grown into a scale of major festivals, compassing six days of music, theatre, dance and circus art, more than 90 performances in total and attendance of over 10 000. Popkatu is now an event of significant regional and national importance with a proficient group of volunteering organizers and wide network of partners in cooperation.

Joensuu Soundscape Composition Contest 2011 will be held just before the beginning of Ilosaarirock festival. Ilosaarirock, held for the 41^st time, is unquestionably one of the main events of the Finnish rock festival calendar. The 21 000 tickets on sale have been sold out in advance every year during the past decade. There is a total of five stages at the festival, in addition to the club events, held on Friday at the actual festival site. During its entire history, the festival has presented bands and artists from both Finland and abroad and represented a multitude of popular music genres. Ilosaarirock is highly regarded by the national live music industry with many of the Finnish major promoters, manager agents, and concert venue owners dropping in at some point over the weekend.

Joensuu is the the lively capital of the North Karelia Region in Finland. It is located next to the Russian border and about 400 km North-East from the capital of the country, Helsinki. Joensuu is a vital city with a growing and relatively young population. Of the total population of 73,000 almost 20,000 are pupils and students. See their website for more information.

Joensuu is a city of growing potential also in terms of soundscape art and research. University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu, hosts several activities related to soundscape research (e.g. the research project Soundscapes and Cultural Sustainibility, led by professor Helmi Järviluoma-Mäkelä). In June 2010, an international conference for soundscape research, World Forum for Acoustic Ecology 2010, was held in by in Koli, in the neighbouring area of Joensuu. A plenitude of international and interdisciplinary cultural events combining scientific and artistic aspects is held annually in Joensuu, e.g. festival for visual anthropology Viscult and the rock documentary festival Rokumentti.

Appendix 2: View of the audio/lighting poles

Photograph courtesy of Joensuu City Center Development Association. More photographs available here.