Semana de la Escucha 2017
July 18 – July 22
A week long celebration of listening in Medellín, with workshops, concerts, conversations and explorations that seek to establish links between practical and theoretical processes of sound and listening, inquiring in its dynamics with respect to society, territory and life.
“Sometimes we walk on the ground, sometimes on sidewalks or asphalt, or other surfaces. Can we find ground to walk on and can we listen for the sound or sounds of ground? Are we losing ground? Can we find new ground by listening for it?” Pauline Oliveros (1932-2016)
Ximena Alarcón will be participating in the first panel, Gender, Territory and Body: perspectives from the Sound, of the conference IV Sonology Panel that explores the social, aesthetic, pedagogical and aesthetic implications of sound, on Tuesday 18th July:
In the framework of the activities of World Listening Day, the IV Sonology Panel will be held in Medellín, a decentralized space that brings together theoretical and practical works around sound produced from different areas of knowledge. The event has been regularly gathering academics, researchers and sound artists from our region since 2015 who analyze and critically discuss the social, aesthetic, pedagogical and political implications of sound in the 21st century. In this first version of the meeting in Medellín there will be three panels of discussion where we will present a selection of projects and initiatives around ideas of gender and territory from the sound, pedagogy of listening and sound arts in South America.
Ximena will also be performing Triskele, an improvisatory Telematic Performance in the closing concert with David Agudelo Bernal, Miguel Isaza:
A ritual of sound improvisation co-located and telematics that explores our inner listening, our listening with / towards the ones that are close, and our listening with / towards the ones that are far. In a cycle of breathing, attention and free expression, three sound artists will explore interactions that move in TRISKELE, three spirals united in a process of symmetrical rotation, which serve as a symbolic reference to catalyze individual and collective traces of the Colombian conflict, opening spaces Of healing.
On Wednesday 19th July Ximena will lead the workshop Deep Listening: listening rituals for post-conflict Colombia at MAMM (Museum of Modern Art Medellin):
This workshop invites the general public to experience deep listening, and to develop individual and collective listening rituals that transcend social transformation. The workshop includes listening exercises in closed architectural spaces and outdoor spaces. Sound in its many manifestations: from body cells to voice, from nature to the urban environment, dreams and memories, creates a wonderful territory to explore our sense of existence in the world and our perception of many other possible worlds.
Read more about the full event and register for a place on the Facebook Event.