We are looking forward to your artistic, scholarly or scientific proposals for our event:

The Global Composition
Conference on Sound, Media and the Environment
Darmstadt/Media Campus Dieburg (Hochschule Darmstadt), July 25-28, 2012

Info: http://www.the-global-composition-2012.org/index.html
Call: http://www.the-global-composition-2012.org/call.html

Contact: fabienne.rudolph@stud.h-da.de

Deadline for submission: March 1, 2012
Notification: April 20, 2012

Proposals are invited for roundtable discussions, workshops, papers/posters, applied and artistic contributions, relating, but not limited to the conference’s main focus. The conference’s official language will be English.

Providing a specially positioned “Next Generation”-thread, the conference is very interested, to create a forum for young scholars, scientists, artists as well as for students, and encourages them to send in their proposals. Please send abstracts for roundtable discussions, papers/posters, workshops & proposals for compositions or other artistic contributions by March 1, 2012.

As keynote presenters we expect Bill Fontana, R. Murray Schafer, Hildegard Westerkamp et al.

The conference venue is located near the Frankfurt airport in beautiful historic surroundings, with attractive landscapes, very good wine, culinary highlights, and good conditions for exchange and conviviality. All this makes, too, a central starting point for your summerbreak, be it locally, nationally or internationally.

We hope to welcome you in summer on our Media Campus Dieburg of Hochschule Darmstadt.

Best,
Sabine Breitsameter

The conference is supported by  the “Understanding Canada”-programme/Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and the Embassy of Canada Berlin,  in collaboration with Darmstädter Ferienkurse/Darmstadt Summercourse, Cork Institute of Technology/School of Music, Ireland and endorsed by the World Forum for Acoustic Ecology.

Project Direction:
Sabine Breitsameter
Professor for Sound and Media Culture
Media Arts and Sciences
and
Claudia Soeller-Eckert
Professor for Basics of Media Design
& Interactive Media Design

Postal address:
Hochschule Darmstadt
Faculty of Media
Haardtring 100
64295 Darmstadt

Visitors’ address:
Mediencampus
Max-Planck-Str. 2
D-64807 Dieburg

The American Society for Acoustic Ecology welcomed two new regional chapters to its national organization in 2011, the Colorado Society for Acoustic Ecology (ColoSAE) and the New England Forum for Acoustic Ecology (NEFAE).

ColoSAE was formed in July 2011 to represent ASAE in the state of Colorado. Michael Komatsu Doherty serves as its Chair and representative to the ASAE Board of Directors.

NEFAE was formed in September 2011 and Jed Speare serves as its Chair and representative to the ASAE Board. NEFAE members have affiliations with the New England Phonographers Union (NEPHONO) among other regional arts organizations, music series’ groups, and universities. The chapter has an interest in bringing acoustic ecology to different New England locations through concerts, events, forums, and discussions. For more information, contact Jed Speare at jed@mobius.org.

Every ASAE chapter offers local and regional representation for acoustic ecology in the United States. If you live in Colorado or the New England and want to join ASAE, we encourage you to visit the websites of these chapters and their chapter representatives know. Links to all eight ASAE chapters are listed here. Annual membership to ASAE begins and ends with the calendar year, and includes many benefits:

• Membership in the World Forum for Acoustic Ecology
• Annual subscription to Soundscape: The Journal of Acoustic Ecology
• Reduced admission to WFAE and ASAE-sponsored conferences and events
• Connection to a community of local, national, and international “ear-minded” people, resources, and activities

Joining ASAE is easy, visit the ASAE membership page to learn how.

Listen to some ColoSAE sounds on SoundCloud: Latest tracks by ColoSAE

Listen to NEPHONO sounds on SoundCloud: Latest tracks by nephono

In addition to updates from WFAE affiliates and members, this newsletter comes with news that Nigel Frayne has been nominated as WFAE President alongside our own ASAE President, Eric Leonardson as WFAE Vice President through July 2012, after which Eric will take up the reigns as President of the WFAE. Congratulations to both!

This year’s conference is titled Crossing Listening Paths and will feature keynote speakers R. Murray Schafer, Hildegard Westerkamp, Katharine Norman, Christopher W. Clark, and Allen S. Weiss.

The deadline for artistic and scientific contributions has been extended to June 15, 2011. The full Call for Contributions can be accessed at the WFAE 2011 Website.

Here are several possible ways to participate:

• Organize a soundwalk.  What is a soundwalk? Start here
• Organize a performance event that explores soundscape and how we can listen to our sonic environment.
• Participate introspectively by simply paying attention to your soundscape.
• You can facilitate an educational event that relates to acoustic ecology, field recordings, or a similar topic.

For more information on WLD and how to participate, please check out the World Listening Project.

In addition to news and events, we are looking to have asaeonline.org act as a home for discussion and future repository of works, publications, and other material from ASAE and its members, so check back regularly and make sure to subscribe to the blog.

More information about the symposium can be found on the MWSAE website in addition to Eric Leonardson’s report in the September/October WFAE newsletter. Also be sure to check out MWSAE on Facebook.

Special thanks to Eric Leonardson and the rest of the MWSAE for hosting a wonderful retreat!

The purposes of World Listening Day are:

• to celebrate the practice of listening as it relates to the world around us, environmental awareness, and acoustic ecology
• to raise awareness about issues related to the World Soundscape Project, World Listening Project, World Forum for Acoustic Ecology, and individual and group efforts to creatively explore phonography
• to design and implement educational initiatives which explore these concepts and practices

Additionally, Radio Aporee hosted several recordings submitted by participants.