Les rencontres de STMS welcome Sébastien Gaxie, composer, pianist, and writer. He will present his work titled “Technology in the Service of Discovering an Ecosystem: A Journey to the Heart of Amazonian Biophony.”
A Zoom link to join remotely :
Abstract:
We have two types of data collected at the Nouragues research station in French Guiana:
- Stereo recordings (1 minute every 1/4 hour over 5 years)
- 3D recordings (15 hours)
Various software programs developed at Ircam have been utilized, adapted, and created to navigate this enormous database of recordings across different temporal scales.
These computational environments will be presented during this residency showcase. Development of the Tinamou software with researcher Rémi Mignot: file-by-file navigation through the database
with a sonogram ranging from the micro-soil to the micro-canopy over a 5-year period. Capabilities include filtering, audio extraction, and the generation of a URL that allows users to locate the annotation. Example: tnm://2019-03-10_07~30~43.08_C.
- Integration of the Catart software into the workflow https://ismm.ircam.fr/catart/: Files from a given year are divided into 2-second segments, which are represented in a point cloud organized by audio descriptors, allowing users to browse the entire database and extract specific sounds. Catart is linked to Tinamou; when a point of interest is identified, the corresponding file can be immediately displayed in Tinamou along with a sonogram.
- Development of the eco-surf software by students at Paris-Sorbonne under the guidance of researcher Nicolas Obin, incorporating clustering, similarity-based identification (using the latest SurfPERCH embedding), and a feedback loop for identification via Birdnet.
Biography:
Composer, pianist, and writer born in 1977. His childhood was marked by piano lessons and his time as a choirboy. He discovered jazz as a teenager and later enrolled in the Paris Conservatory to study composition (under Emmanuel Nunes). He subsequently worked for many years at IRCAM.
His artistic world revolves around the pulse and the precise synchronization of music with other time-based arts, such as dance or film (mickey-mousing). For several years now, his work has focused on listening to “the other”—other cultures, other living beings—in search of music that lies at the intersection of biology, anthropology, and ecoacoustics.
Notable Works:
2023: Auctus animalis (Winner of the Swiss Life “4 Hands” Prize: book, sound exhibition, performance / composer + writer)
2022: Cosmic Dance for orchestra, choir, large orchestra, organ, and Indian percussionist (Radio France 2022)
2019: Korvai Sainté, multimedia performance (Saint-Étienne Design Biennial)
2016: I Am a Ridiculous Man, based on Fyodor Dostoevsky, opera (Athénée)
2014: *Céleste ma planète*, an opera for children (Salle Pleyel)
2013: *A Feast for the Ears: A Sonic Approach to Gastronomy* (Winner of the Prix Italia)
2010: *Le bohneur* (2010), music for the film by Alexandre Medvedkine (Louvre Museum)
2005: *Lunfardo*, an album inspired by tango (Chief Inspector label)
