Elevator Music 18
Michael Prime: L-Fields

Michael Prime’s compositions blend environmental sounds gathered from around the world with organic sounds generated from the biorhythms of plants and fungi. Inspired by his work with nature in an urban environment — he spent years as an ecologist, conserving wildlife habitats in South London — his compositions use a variety of novel organic and environmental sound sources. Prime gathers field recordings ranging from household appliances to street noise to almost inaudible sounds from the natural world, and combines this overlooked aural material into elegant, mysterious compositions.

In his 2000 release L-Fields, Prime gives voice to the bioactivity of plants and fungi in eerie electroacoustic works.

Prime’s technique allows him to interact with plants, translating variations in their bioelectrical field into sound produced by an oscillator. Actual changes in the plants’ biorhythms become audible as they react to changes in their physical surroundings, such as the weather, periods of light and dark, or the cycles of the moon. Prime combines these sounds with recordings of the plants’ natural environments to create his live performances, installations, and studio works. In Contour of a Forgotten Landscape Prime focuses on Amanita muscaria, blending raw, manipulated, and intermodulated sounds, but always retaining the natural rhythms of the organism.
Exhibition Name
Elevator Music 18
Michael Prime: L-Fields
Exhibition Type
Elevator Music Series
Solo Exhibitions
Place
Elevator
Dates
Apr 12, 2011 - Sep 11, 2011
Curators
Elevator Music 18: Michael Prime — L Fields is organized by Rachel Seligman, Associate Curator.
Artists
Michael Prime
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