When: 19th-21st March
Where: Kachette, London
Tickets: £25 (£20 for students)
Not only are Convergence putting on an impeccable series of live music events all throughout March, but they are also offering three unmissable day events. Starting tomorrow and ending on Saturday, the Convergence team have billed an impressive array of speakers within the creative art worlds to take part in discussion panels and workshops which cover a variety of topics.
The conferences have been allocated themes which include ‘Exploring the Future of the Music Industry and Audio Production‘, ‘Innovation in Multimedia, Digital Art and Live Music Videos‘ and ‘Creative Labs‘. The talks that span the three sessions focus on different subjects: the uprising of noise music in popular music, the future of music business, experimentation and innovation across instruments, platforms, production and dissemination – just to name a few.
Convergence speakers come from all walks of life, and span many fields of the arts, from notable authors, musicologists and Oxford University researchers, to representatives from The Quietus, Bandcamp and Ableton. A talk we’re most looking forward to is ‘Mixcloud Curates: 50 Years of DJ Culture: Past, Present & Future’ taking place tomorrow. The shifting paradigms of DJ culture that have spanned half a century will be explored and discussed by an impressive panel including djhistory.com founder and Last Night a DJ Saved My Life author Bill Brewster, Hessle Audio’s Ben UFO, and representatives from Resident Advisor, Native Instruments and New Slang Media.
Throughout Convergence Sessions, one of the arches situated in the Old Street venue will be home to an interactive multi-sensory installation from Marshmallow Laser Feast, Laser Face. It’s really as weird and wonderful as it sounds. Using video-based facial capture technology provided by Dynamixyz, a person’s expression and sounds as they chew are tracked by the technology to create a personalised reactive laser show like no other. MLF host their own ‘360º Storytelling’ talk on Day 2 (Friday) where they will show a behind-the-scenes look at previous projects – from robotics and virtual reality t0 real time mapping – as well as explaining Laser Face in full.
If you are more technologically inclined, Saturday’s session may be right up your street. Thanks to Convergence’s partnership with Barbican Guildhall’s Young Arts Academy, Ableton, Point Blank and Powster, the day will be filled with practical workshops and masterclasses. Electronic music pioneer Pantha Du Prince will also participate in a discussion led by Barbican’s Contemporary Music Programmer, Chris Sharp. A mixture of musicians and visual artists will be able to come together and explore the fusion of their art forms in a hands-on environment. BYO laptop and headphones!
