When no wave emerged in New York City in the late 1970s, noise musician, art critic and artist Joseph Nechvatal was already there. Based on the music of that time, he and Paul Paulun discuss aspects of the movement, which used radical, often multimedia works to oppose the commodification of music and art.
As one of the leading protagonists of 20th century experimental art, Henri Chopin was among the first to exploit the true potential of the tape recorder. Many of his audio works are based on radical approaches, such as swallowing microphones. 43-minute documentary featuring memories and expertise of poet and curator Enzo Minarelli.
As a boy in the 1930s, Soliman Gamil accompanied researchers to the pyramids to learn about the music of the pharaohs. After completing his musical training in Cairo and Paris, he used a tape recorder to record traditional rituals throughout Egypt. Gamil developed his 20th-century compositions together with village musicians who played instruments that had been in use for thousands of years.
Only the development of new technologies will mark the progress of sound poetry, states Enzo Minarelli in his manifesto on polipoesia from 1987. On the basis of 11 sound poems, Minarelli talks about the concept of Polipoesia, and where it all started.
