Soundscore Workshoo 08

This workshop is open to theatre professionals and enthusiasts simply interested in our relationship to and with sound. The soundscore in a theatrical context can be as present as any character in a play or as a sonic support to the trajectory of the story. Sound comes from many different sources and how sound is created, manipulated and used in theatre will be explored through improvisational vocal and instrumental explorations as well as recording and mixing techniques. Sound walks will take place daily with the use of portable recording devices and open discussions about sound design, "sound-scapes" and composition will be be fodder for collaborative creations and a final presentation at the end of the week.

July 14 - 19
FINDING THE THEATRICAL SOUNDSCORE: with voice and non-traditional instruments with Katie Down
This workshop is open to theatre professionals and enthusiasts simply interested in our relationship to and with sound. The soundscore in a theatrical context can be as present as any character in a play or as a sonic support to the trajectory of the story. Sound comes from many different sources and how sound is created, manipulated and used in theatre will be explored through improvisational vocal and instrumental explorations as well as recording and mixing techniques. Sound walks will take place daily with the use of portable recording devices and open discussions about sound design, "sound-scapes" and composition will be be fodder for collaborative creations and a final presentation at the end of the week.
KATIE DOWN is a sound artist, composer, performer and sound designer for theatre, film, video, and dance. She performs regularly with the infamous ukulele group The Ukuladies, and was the director of the Sephardic ensemble Adelantre, which appeared at the Ko Festival's 15th Anniversary Celebration, the Ko Kabaret. She also wrote the music for and performed in The House Not Touched by Death in the 2000 Ko Festivval Katie is also a member of the avant noise-improv group Liquid Ensemble. Katie has traveled extensively throughout Eastern Europe and the Balkans and most recently South Africa with different theatre artists as a performer, sound designer, and teacher in voice, improvisation, and clown. She plays several instruments including flute, ukulele, guitar, didjeridu, and glass harmonica as well as a host of homemade instruments, percussion, and found objects. Katie works regularly as a sound designer in New York City and regionally and has created numerous sound scores and original music for Off, and off-Off Broadway productions for Target Margin, The Hourglass Group, Ripetime, New Georges, Ensemble Studio Theatre, SoHo Rep and others. Internationally, Katie has performed at the Ohrid Summer Festival in Macedonia, Trn Festival in Ljubljana, Slovenia, and the Malta Festival in Poznan, Poland. She has toured twice with chashama’s international program where she co-conducted voice, movement, and clowning workshops with young people from Media Artes in Macedonia, the Up-Beat Hvar Music Festival in Croatia and Trn Fest in Slovenia. Katie has also created sound installations for several gallery shows including Homebase II (Broadway Gallery, 2007), And Suddenly….(Ohio Gallery, 2005), Vision Whisper (chashama Gallery, 2002). She is guest curator at the arts colony Omi this summer, 2008, and has been an artist in residence at The Watermill Arts Center, Music/Omi, Makor Artist Network, chashama AREA Space Grant, The Composer Librettist Studio at New Dramatists. In addition to her musical life, Katie has also worked as both a theatre and music teaching artist in New York City, working with children in the public schools. She has designed curriculum as well as professional development workshops for different organizations including the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Create, Documentary Arts in Dallas, WGBH Education Foundation, Amas Musical Theatre, and the Boston Music Education Collaborative. Katie also occasionally produces music events and performance series. In 1993-95 she helped raise significant funds for two non-governmental organizations during the war in Bosnia through The Boston Musicians Festival for Bosnian Relief. Upon moving to New York she co-produced the second annual Sergey Kuryokhin Festival (SKIF 2) in 1997, which is still going strong in St. Petersburg through the Sergey Kuryokhin Charity Foundation. From 2003 to 2007, she produced Galumphing Festivals at chashama, Big Bang at the Cornelia Street Café in 2005, and Uke Nights at Biscuit BBQ in Brooklyn. Katie is deeply committed to the power of deep listening and sound healing and is currently working towards a Masters degree in music therapy at NYU. For more information go to www.katiedown.com or www.myspace.com/katiedownmusic. WORKSHOP LOGISTICS & REGISTRATION Workshops are geared for participants of all levels of experience, whose ages have run from 18-85. Workshops will meet from 10 am - 4 pm, Monday through Saturday, in Studio II or Studio III of Webster Hall on the Amherst College campus in Amherst, MA. Driving Instructions to Amherst College Amherst College campus map . Workshops cost $350. There is a $25 discount for registration by April 15. Optional room and board are available on the Amherst College campus for an additional fee. Rooms are $190, for a single with a shared bath in an Amherst College dorm. A meal ticket for the Dining Commons (healthy food, much of it local) is $150. Email us, if you are interested in alternative housing. There are a number of hotels, motels and bed & breakfasts in the area. Studios, theatre, dining commons and dorms are all within walking distance. To register, download the registration form and mail it to: The Ko Festival of Performance 498 South Gulf Road Belchertown, MA 01007 Questions? For further information email us or call (413) 427-6147.