Manas Acharya, a musician, interdisciplinary visual artist and curator, completed his diploma in fine arts from Indian Collage of Art (1996), and post diploma from Kala Bhavana, Santiniketan in fine arts (1999). His art often centers around dialogical interaction, interdisciplinary collaborations and performative actions. He was a featured vocalist in two award winning Bengali films 'Bakita Byaktigoto (Rest is Personal) and 'Arekti Premer Golpo (Another Love Story). Acharya was also a student of Visva-Bharati University, in Santiniketan, West Bengal India. Rabindranath Tagore, the first non-European to win the Nobel Prize in Literature and founder of Visva-Bharati University, was heavily influenced by the Bauls (mystic musicians known for devotional songs that honor the divine within. In 2008 the sung poetry of Bauls was inscribed in UNESCO’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity). Acharya will perform a song from the Baul tradition at Sound Scene: Mapping Memory on Sunday July 8th.
[Global Folksongs 1pm Sunday July 8 on the Plaza: "Adhar Ghorey Jolche Bati" by Lalan Fakir]
Chris Combs is an artist and product manager based in Washington, D.C who creates provocative technology. He was a photo editor for National Geographic for five years and has photographed autism, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and traffic cones.
[The Heart Says...Third Level]
Layne Garrett is an improvising musician and instrument builder based in Takoma Park, MD. He works with prepared guitars, found objects, and self-built instruments. He plays in the improvising duo Weed Tree with drummer Amanda Huron, as well as in regular and irregular collaborations with a spectrum of players from across the DC and Baltimore sound universe. He is an active promoter of the musical culture, hosting house shows for the past decade and recently as a founding member and curator for Rhizome DC. He leads instrument building and sound exploration workshops and camps for kids at various educational institutions around town. He has traveled to play at events like High Zero in Baltimore, XFest in Massachusetts, Voice of the Valley Noise Rally in West Virginia, H-O-T Series of Improvised Music and Dance in Philadelphia, and Frantasia Festival of Out Music and Arts in Maine. http://www.questionthetruth.com/noise.
[Instrument of the Future, on the Plaza]
Kate Gorman is an artist and writer working in immersive media. Her located audio experiences can be found in Washington, DC, Minneapolis, MN, and Columbia, MO. She was awarded an individual Arts and Humanities Fellowship for 2018 by the DC Commission for the Arts and Humanities.
[Calendar Year, Third Level, Lerner Room]
Phil Jones has over 10 years experience facilitating the co-creation of programs, services, and digital solutions. He brings an inquisitive and analytical mindset alongside design and digital acumen to his work, which seek to establish space for critical inquiry and insight.
[Two-Way Mirror, Lower Level+ Second Level]
Rachel Kaufman is a writer and editor whose writing on many topics—science, technology, business, food, health—has been published in Smithsonian, the Washington Post, Express, in National Geographic News, Newsday, and elsewhere. She was the editor of Elevation DC, a Washington, D.C. news site.
[The Heart Says...Third Level]
Sonia Maria is a violinist and music producer in DC.
[Workshop: Sampling Workshop, Lower Level, meet at the Sound Scene welcome table]
Nikki Martin is an audio engineer, storyteller, and production enthusiast living in Portland, OR. She's a DCLL member-at-large.
[Sound Map, Second Level]
Will Atwood Mitchell is a computer programmer and electronics enthusiast.
[Interactive Sound Canvas, Second Level]
Julie Moon is a first-year MFA student in nonfiction at the University of Iowa. Originally from Busan, South Korea, I grew up in New Hampshire and New York City.
[Date Painting (Performance), on the Plaza]
Errant Movement was founded in August 2015 by Rachel Turner. Since then, they have performed frequently around the DMV area, as well as in Philadelphia, Detroit, and Chicago. Errant means "straying from the proper course or standards" and "traveling in search of adventure." Both of these definitions fit the mission of Errant Movement to explore the world we live in through dance using unexpected movement patterns and ideas. Artistic director Rachel Turner’s choreographic style incorporates technical dance with pedestrian gestures to create dance that is visually pleasing and easy to connect with.
[(Dis)connected, on the Plaza]
Mery Musinyan, 12 yrs old, is one of the Qanon players of the ensemble "Nur," performing as part of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall. Ms. Musinyan will grace the Sound Scene stage at the Hirshhorn to perform the famous Armenian folk song Krunk (կռունկ) (Eng. Crane)
[Global Folksongs 1pm Sunday July 8 on the Plaza]
Alan Nakagawa is a sound artist who has presented work that celebrates the tactility of sound waves and the colorful nature of collective memory. He has developed works recently based on three-point recordings of historic landmarks such as the Hiroshima Atomic Dome in Japan and the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. This project received Federal support from the Asian Pacific American Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center.
[Dream Tent, on the Plaza, Peace Resonance: Hiroshima/Wendover, 3pm Sunday Ring Auditorium]
Bardia Saeedi has been working on interactive art installations as a communication tool in social, environmental, and political settings since 2011. His recent work includes “I Have A Home Here,” an interactive art bus with a mission of raising awareness about homelessness. In 2017, he exhibited “A Migration Tale” at a one-day event at the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum, in Washington DC. The installation was later exhibited at Burning Man 2017’s Artery/Everywhere gallery. Many thanks to co-producers: Doug Taphouse, Bill Pugh and many more dedicated volunteers.
[iSheep, on the Plaza]
Alidé Sans (Vielha, 1993) At 15 years old, Sans started composing songs. Her musical career took off in 2012, when she was discovered through her video for “Esperança,” a project that denounced violence against women. She has participated in festivals and performed across venues for music in Catalan and Occitan languages. With more than 200 concerts under her belt and two published albums (“Eth Paradís ei en tu” and “Henerècla”) she has taken her music and her language across the world.
[Global Folksongs 1pm Sunday July 8 on the Plaza: "Pirata De Montanha"]
David Schulman is a violinist, composer, and producer. His music has been called “mysterious and beautiful” by the Washington Post. His radio work includes a piece shortlisted for the 2017 Prix Italia. More at quietlifemotel.com [A Cappella Elevator + Date Paintings, live performances Saturday+ Sunday on the Plaza]
Gwen Shockey received her MFA from Pratt Institute in 2017. Her work has been exhibited nationally and in New York City venues such as A.I.R. Gallery, Equity Gallery, and The Leslie Lohman Museum, which recently acquired three of her pieces into their permanent collection. She is an adjunct professor in the Fine Arts Department at Connecticut College where she teaches printmaking and drawing.
[Oral History, Lower Level, Ring Audatorium]
Heather Spence has been working with scientists, politicians and artists in Mexico and the US, to promote a vision of International Sustainability Centers headquartered in Cancun, MX, to foster research and cooperation, bringing together diverse stakeholders to find mutually beneficial solutions for protecting the environment while promoting responsible development.
[Ocean Memory, on the Plaza]
A.C. Valdez is a Peabody Award winning radio producer and editor, who has worked at shows such as Tell Me More, The Kojo Nnamdi Show, America Abroad, and Latino USA. His leadership at Latino USA won the show its first Peabody Award in its 20+ year history and tripled its audience in two years.
[The Heart Says...Third Level]
[Global Folksongs 1pm Sunday July 8 on the Plaza: "Adhar Ghorey Jolche Bati" by Lalan Fakir]
Chris Combs is an artist and product manager based in Washington, D.C who creates provocative technology. He was a photo editor for National Geographic for five years and has photographed autism, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and traffic cones.
[The Heart Says...Third Level]
Layne Garrett is an improvising musician and instrument builder based in Takoma Park, MD. He works with prepared guitars, found objects, and self-built instruments. He plays in the improvising duo Weed Tree with drummer Amanda Huron, as well as in regular and irregular collaborations with a spectrum of players from across the DC and Baltimore sound universe. He is an active promoter of the musical culture, hosting house shows for the past decade and recently as a founding member and curator for Rhizome DC. He leads instrument building and sound exploration workshops and camps for kids at various educational institutions around town. He has traveled to play at events like High Zero in Baltimore, XFest in Massachusetts, Voice of the Valley Noise Rally in West Virginia, H-O-T Series of Improvised Music and Dance in Philadelphia, and Frantasia Festival of Out Music and Arts in Maine. http://www.questionthetruth.com/noise.
[Instrument of the Future, on the Plaza]
Kate Gorman is an artist and writer working in immersive media. Her located audio experiences can be found in Washington, DC, Minneapolis, MN, and Columbia, MO. She was awarded an individual Arts and Humanities Fellowship for 2018 by the DC Commission for the Arts and Humanities.
[Calendar Year, Third Level, Lerner Room]
Phil Jones has over 10 years experience facilitating the co-creation of programs, services, and digital solutions. He brings an inquisitive and analytical mindset alongside design and digital acumen to his work, which seek to establish space for critical inquiry and insight.
[Two-Way Mirror, Lower Level+ Second Level]
Rachel Kaufman is a writer and editor whose writing on many topics—science, technology, business, food, health—has been published in Smithsonian, the Washington Post, Express, in National Geographic News, Newsday, and elsewhere. She was the editor of Elevation DC, a Washington, D.C. news site.
[The Heart Says...Third Level]
Sonia Maria is a violinist and music producer in DC.
[Workshop: Sampling Workshop, Lower Level, meet at the Sound Scene welcome table]
Nikki Martin is an audio engineer, storyteller, and production enthusiast living in Portland, OR. She's a DCLL member-at-large.
[Sound Map, Second Level]
Will Atwood Mitchell is a computer programmer and electronics enthusiast.
[Interactive Sound Canvas, Second Level]
Julie Moon is a first-year MFA student in nonfiction at the University of Iowa. Originally from Busan, South Korea, I grew up in New Hampshire and New York City.
[Date Painting (Performance), on the Plaza]
Errant Movement was founded in August 2015 by Rachel Turner. Since then, they have performed frequently around the DMV area, as well as in Philadelphia, Detroit, and Chicago. Errant means "straying from the proper course or standards" and "traveling in search of adventure." Both of these definitions fit the mission of Errant Movement to explore the world we live in through dance using unexpected movement patterns and ideas. Artistic director Rachel Turner’s choreographic style incorporates technical dance with pedestrian gestures to create dance that is visually pleasing and easy to connect with.
[(Dis)connected, on the Plaza]
Mery Musinyan, 12 yrs old, is one of the Qanon players of the ensemble "Nur," performing as part of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall. Ms. Musinyan will grace the Sound Scene stage at the Hirshhorn to perform the famous Armenian folk song Krunk (կռունկ) (Eng. Crane)
[Global Folksongs 1pm Sunday July 8 on the Plaza]
Alan Nakagawa is a sound artist who has presented work that celebrates the tactility of sound waves and the colorful nature of collective memory. He has developed works recently based on three-point recordings of historic landmarks such as the Hiroshima Atomic Dome in Japan and the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. This project received Federal support from the Asian Pacific American Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center.
[Dream Tent, on the Plaza, Peace Resonance: Hiroshima/Wendover, 3pm Sunday Ring Auditorium]
Bardia Saeedi has been working on interactive art installations as a communication tool in social, environmental, and political settings since 2011. His recent work includes “I Have A Home Here,” an interactive art bus with a mission of raising awareness about homelessness. In 2017, he exhibited “A Migration Tale” at a one-day event at the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum, in Washington DC. The installation was later exhibited at Burning Man 2017’s Artery/Everywhere gallery. Many thanks to co-producers: Doug Taphouse, Bill Pugh and many more dedicated volunteers.
[iSheep, on the Plaza]
Alidé Sans (Vielha, 1993) At 15 years old, Sans started composing songs. Her musical career took off in 2012, when she was discovered through her video for “Esperança,” a project that denounced violence against women. She has participated in festivals and performed across venues for music in Catalan and Occitan languages. With more than 200 concerts under her belt and two published albums (“Eth Paradís ei en tu” and “Henerècla”) she has taken her music and her language across the world.
[Global Folksongs 1pm Sunday July 8 on the Plaza: "Pirata De Montanha"]
David Schulman is a violinist, composer, and producer. His music has been called “mysterious and beautiful” by the Washington Post. His radio work includes a piece shortlisted for the 2017 Prix Italia. More at quietlifemotel.com [A Cappella Elevator + Date Paintings, live performances Saturday+ Sunday on the Plaza]
Gwen Shockey received her MFA from Pratt Institute in 2017. Her work has been exhibited nationally and in New York City venues such as A.I.R. Gallery, Equity Gallery, and The Leslie Lohman Museum, which recently acquired three of her pieces into their permanent collection. She is an adjunct professor in the Fine Arts Department at Connecticut College where she teaches printmaking and drawing.
[Oral History, Lower Level, Ring Audatorium]
Heather Spence has been working with scientists, politicians and artists in Mexico and the US, to promote a vision of International Sustainability Centers headquartered in Cancun, MX, to foster research and cooperation, bringing together diverse stakeholders to find mutually beneficial solutions for protecting the environment while promoting responsible development.
[Ocean Memory, on the Plaza]
A.C. Valdez is a Peabody Award winning radio producer and editor, who has worked at shows such as Tell Me More, The Kojo Nnamdi Show, America Abroad, and Latino USA. His leadership at Latino USA won the show its first Peabody Award in its 20+ year history and tripled its audience in two years.
[The Heart Says...Third Level]
