New Composition up on Soundcloud

Hello everyone!

For those of you who haven't had a chance to check it out, here is the link to a piece I created for my friend Funmilayo Symonds-Hill in South Korea.

“Codify Infinity”
Summer 2011 – Seoul, South Korea
-Composer for Modern Dance choreography by Funmilayo Symonds-Hill
-Electronic interpretation of the music originally used by the choreographer
produced on Apple’s Garage Band and MaxMSP.
-Performed as part of Sungkyunkwan University’s Ginkgo Dance Project September 22, 2011.

Codify Infinity by John Osburn

Pedestrial Acts: Multimedia, Multi-Site Performance Arts Series

Pedestrial Acts is a multimedia, multi-site collaborative arts series which took place in locations around Belfast, Northern Ireland on the 30th of July, 2011. The performances acted as the culminating conclusion to a six-month collaboration between the producer, John Osburn, and four American modern dance artists. This series consisted of five site-specific performance art pieces which either provided the community with access to unique demonstrations of modern art at no financial cost to them, or investigated ways in which performance art can be used to encourage interaction between the performers and the spectators. Prior to the performances, the dancers joined Osburn in Belfast to undergo twelve days of intense rehearsals from the 18th-30th of July. During this time, the overall concepts, choreography, and sound design of each work were created, rehearsed, and developed at both the Sonic Arts Research Centre, as well as the sites themselves, when available.




Part 1 - let go by Megan Yankee
"let go" is a collaborative, integrated sound-media and dance work created for St. Anne's Cathedral in Belfast, Ireland. All of the movements and sounds of the performance were inspired by or directly sampled from the architecture, stone and marble work, artifacts and the breath-taking awe they inspire. While the performers, choreographer, and arranger welcome multiple interpretations of the work, its aim is to illustrate the toils we all go through with regards to faith and hope.
--M. Yankee









Part 2 - Pass the Plate by Nicole Touzien
"Pass the Plate" is an improvisational movement and sound score utilizing ensemble-thinking. Dancers and musicians compose the work in real-time, based upon unplanned group choices in response to the activities and energies present within the performance space. Using pedestrian movements and gestures as inspiration for movement, performers strive to challenge the boundary between performativity and the ordinary.
--N. Touzien









Part 3 - Two Pence by Lauren Guyer
"Two Pence" is a multimedia performance intended to create a kinship between Northern Ireland and American students. Four Americans hope to build an open dialog with the Belfast student population by investigating topics such as education fees, job market anxiety, and the validity in higher education using video installation and movement to reveal a humanistic side of each performer. By establishing common ground, "Two Pence" hopes to encourage the idea of communication as a catalyst for progression.
--L. Guyer









Part 4 - a poet or a fool by Bethany Nelson
"a poet or a fool" is a blend of improvisation and set choreography performed in the Paragon Studio / Project Space. Sourcing movement and sound from an international pop star that the artist wishes to keep anonymous, the work is presented as a performative movement and sound ritual that the audience must witness through the large windows of the gallery.
--B. Nelson









Part 5 - Finale (A Day in the Life) arranged by John Osburn
"A Day in the Life" portrays main ideas from the performances which took place earlier in the day. This piece was performed in the Sonic Arts Research Centre's Sonic Lab which offers a neutral environment to reconceptualise the four pieces and perform/view them under a new light.
--J. Osburn











Stills
Photos by Amy Marquez

Creative Works by John Osburn (Summer 2011)

The Immobile Phone

• Spring 2011 – Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK

· Designer / Programmer

· 7’8” mobile phone made out of steel, aluminium, dome touch lights (as buttons), rubber, Arduino Duemilanove microcontroller, an iMac G4 computer, and a Skype account.

· Software used: Arduino (arduino.cc), Processing (processing.org), Skype (skype.com), Applescript

· Completed May 23, 2011 in fulfillment of project requirement for the Sonic Arts Research Centre.

· Future developments include Classic Cream edition, adapting the application with the Skype Developer program, and altering the design for easier transport.

Hand-Triggered Hemisphere

• Spring 2011 – Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK

· Designer / Programmer

· Multi-touch dome surface which acts as a performance system triggering processed gamelan sounds.

· PlayStation Eye USB camera used for motion detection, which sent hand position data to TUIO Client.

· Software used: Community Core Vision (http://ccv.nuigroup.com), Max/MSP (cycling74.com), TUIO Client for Max/MSP (tuio.org)

· Completed March 31, 2011 in fulfillment of project requirement for the Sonic Arts Research Centre.

Enough Room - An Arts Showcase

• Summer 2010 – Denton, Texas

· Producer / Music Composer / Performer

· Collaborative art exhibit featuring artists from Dallas, Fort Worth, Denton, and Austin, Texas as well as guest African dance choreographer, Stafford Berry, from Durham, North Carolina.

· Funded by a grant from the Dallas Museum of Art Awards to Artists Program.

· Housed by the Greater Denton Arts Council.

· Performed August 28-29, 2010 at the Greater Denton Arts Council Center for the Visual Arts.

half empty

“The clarity and simplicity of [Osburn’s] vision made his film the night’s standout.”

-Will Arbery; FrontRow (arts criticism blog for D Magazine) from “Dallas

Hub Theater’s Short Fest Showcases Raw, Local Talent” - July 12, 2010

• Summer 2010 – Benbrook, Texas

· Director / Sound Designer

· Time-lapsed short film of a married couple. The wife drinks wine on a loveseat and the husband frantically tries to cheer her up.

· Soundscore adapted from Simple Beginnings, also by Osburn.

· Debuted at the Hub Shorts Film Festival in Dallas, Texas on July 9, 2010.

Jeremy

• Autumn 2010 – Belfast, Northern Ireland, UKer / Composer

· Interactive Max Patch of an interview between a man (Hank) and Jeremy.

· Recorded backward speech to get Jeremy’s voice

· The user activates the patch by pressing the space bar and proceeds to choose from questions which are displayed automatically by the patch. Hank asks the question, Jeremy provides the answer.

· Completed November 1, 2010 in fulfillment of project requirement for the Sonic Arts Research Centre.

Simple Beginnings

· Summer 2010 – Durham, North Carolina

· Composer

· Improvisation for iPhone and electronics

· Minimalist electronic piece using iPhone Apps, Roland HandSonic, and Boss LoopStation.

· Premiered at the 2010 American Dance Festival Musicians Concert on Friday, June 25, 2010 in Durham, North Carolina.

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Samples of work composed/performed for other artists

“Cigar Box”

• Summer 2010 – Dallas, Texas

· Composer for Modern Dance choreography by Lauren Guyer

· Minimalist sound score produced on music software, Reason, for piano, synthesizer, percussion and dialogue about memories. Sounds peak, they bleed in and out of each other, and the dialogue fights sound processing from noise removal processes which reflect the haziness and blurriness of our memories.

· Premiered at Muscle Memory Dance Theater’s “Stranger Than Fiction: A Series of Rocks and Feathers” concert April 30-May 1, 2010.

Complex Environments: this is not a bar

· Fall 2009 – Denton, Texas

· Music Composer / Sound Score Designer / Performer for a work by Bethany Nelson and Lily Sloan

· Modern dance site-specific, multimedia project taking place in a coffee shop/bar, Banter.

· Based on the natural behaviors and actions of customers and workers behind the bar.

· Features loose scores for improvisation by dancers and musician providing both electronic and acoustic sounds.

· Performed December 4-5, 2009.