Audium Listens

Makana Muanga explores his artistic evolution and his time at Audium, driven by his quest for societal connection and community-building. Through his piece, "Kukusanyika Pamoja," he pushes his audience to “see each others’ spirits”, emphasizing the importance of communal bonds in today's fragmented society.  Find out more about Makana here. Audium Listens III is here! Meet Audium’s 2023/24 artists-in-residence, learn about their work and discover their process designing a fully-immersive work at Audium. Hosted by Ollie Mills.

Roco Córdova explores the intersection between the Puerto Rican and Palestinian struggles for liberation. Through their art, Roco aims to evoke emotional responses and provoke action, drawing parallels between shared colonial histories and divergent lived experiences. Find more of Roco here. More info on the Free Palestine movement: AROC, Palestinian Youth Movement & PCRF. Audium Listens III is here! Meet Audium’s 2023/24 artists-in-residence, learn about their work and discover their process designing a fully-immersive work at Audium. Hosted by Ollie Mills.

In this episode, Ronald Peabody (AKA Angelnumber 8) goes deep into learning and life as an Audium resident. Hear about his approach to play and storytelling at Audium, how he nourishes his own creative fire, and how much he’s learned from the other residents during his time at the theater of sound. Find out more about Ronald’s work here. Audium Listens II is here! Meet Audium's three 2022-23 artists-in-residence, learn about their work and discover their process designing a fully immersive work at Audium. Hosted by Carlino Cuono.

Alex Abalos is a San Francisco OG. Find out more about his history in the Bay Area experimental music scene and how he’s designed a new immersive composition around the “punk rock” spirit of Audium. Alex will also drop some knowledge about the inspiration for his work, The Fall of the I Hotel, a documentary that chronicles an activist movement around the demise of a Filipino housing project in the 1980’s.  Find more of Alex here. Audium Listens II is here! Meet Audium's three 2022-23 artists-in-residence, learn about their work and discover their process designing a fully immersive work at Audium. Hosted by Carlino Cuono.

Sound artist Sharmi Basu (they/them) explains their path from political organizing to queer brown punk noise. Learn about their practice of decolonizing sound and the complexity of care work in their communities. Sharmi’s sound composition, Care is a Sinkhole, tells the story of a society reliant on caseworkers for its most marginalized people in crisis. Discover more of Sharmi’s music here. Audium Listens II is here! Meet Audium's three 2022-23 artists-in-residence, learn about their work and discover their process designing a fully immersive work at Audium. Hosted by Carlino Cuono.

Danishta Rivero is a “creature with many tendrils.” In this episode, she discusses her multidimensional artistic practice, while diving into her composition "Heretical Voicings." Danishta reflects on her deep awareness of humanity's connection to the earth, a recurring theme in her embodied practice and improvisational explorations with modular synth technology.  Learn more about Danishta here. Featuring Dantishta's music, including two collaborations: Voicehandler (w/ Jacob Felix Heule) and Las Susicas (w/ Alexandra Buschman-Román). Audium Listens III is here! Meet Audium’s 2023/24 artists-in-residence, learn about their work and discover their process designing a fully-immersive work at Audium. Hosted by Ollie Mills.

For some people, life seemed to come to a standstill during COVID. Not multimedia artist Pamela Z, she's "wading knee-deep in punishing deadlines." Hear about Pamela’s impressive history with music and art, her adaptation to online performances, and her thoughts on the intensity of the past year. Find more of her work at pamelaz.com and hear her new album here.

Many orchestras are being reborn post-COVID. David Möschler’s Awesome Orchestra was already breaking apart classical traditions before the pandemic- no auditions, free beer, & outdoor rehearsals to name a few. But now, with new revelations around equity and inclusion, even the most non-traditional of orchestras must contemplate change. View the full transcript here. 

As we appear to be coming out of the worst days of the pandemic, it’s time to start asking the big questions. Mark Sabb helps us throw up a mirror to look at who we are and how the Bay has changed for artists and arts institutions. Learn about Mark’s work as a digital artist, founder of Felt Zine, and digital content strategist for the Museum of the African Diaspora. Find more of Mark here, and check out this episode’s featured musicians Dev Moore & Jawn Diego. View the full transcript here.

We reflect on the tumult of 2020 with sculptor and CCA professor Mia Feuer. Mia takes us deep into her work researching and creating art around climate change. Now with COVID rocking everyone’s reality, she reflects on motherhood, careerism in the art world, and how to change with a changing planet. You can find out more about Mia’s work at miafeuer.com. This episode’s background guitar music is by our very own Nate Tedesco. View the full transcript here.

How do you master the art of the zoom gig? Musician and educator Cairo McCockran drops some insight; topics range from being a black musician in the age of BLM, an ambitious plan for a government-sponsored “Musician Corps,” and how to stay inspired during these dark times. Connect and discover his new weekly mix show “A Message from the Jazz Den” on his instagram. View the full transcript here.

Making a film is a massive endeavor for anyone, and it's certainly no easier for women and people of color. San Francisco-based filmmaker Jacintha Charles shares her experiences in the Singaporean and American film industries. Learn how she supports other women in film and how COVID and BLM are shaping her craft. Find out more about her work at jacinthacharles.com. Also featuring the cinematic music of Holly Mead. See the full transcript here. 

Jean Jeanie faces out for the inward motion of expression. Musicians are out of gigs, money and motivation during COVID.  Jean, leader of the band Future Twin, gives us insight on these issues from her experience as an artist and housing activist during the crisis. Find Future Twin’s new album, Suffer No Fools, on her patreon site. See the full transcript here. 

Can you hear me? Sound artist and academic Blanca Bercial shows us how listening to the sounds in-between sounds can help us reimagine our cities and our relationships to each other. Learn more about her work at blancabercial.com. View the full transcript here. 

In this first episode, host Dave Shaff talks to Audium co-founder and spatial sound pioneer Stan Shaff. The two use some lessons from Stan's past to contemplate a better future for the arts, amid the troubling times of the pandemic. Find out more about Stan's work at audium.org. See the full transcript here. 

We’ve all heard that there are two Americas now: Us & Them. Storyteller creative Scott Shigeoka is trying to change that. Hear their story of coming out as queer, writing for the Washington Post and organizing music festivals. All this informs their current work creating opportunities for dialogue with “the other side” of the political and social divide. Check out Scott’s work at scottshigeoka.com. View the full transcript here.