Author: Mark

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Otoconia

Granny Records / Granny 44 CD/DL

An elliptical and enigmatic new release by Mark Vernon. Named after the microscopic crystals of calcium carbonate within our inner ear that can cause vertigo when dislodged, the album has an equally disorientating effect as all sense of time is dissolved in its delicate folds. Otoconia is an abstract and deeply immersive sonic experience crafted through the intricate interplay of field recordings and the EMS Synthi 100 synthesizer.

Known for his evocative soundscapes and narrative-driven compositions, Vernon has ventured into uncharted territory with this album. Unlike anything else in his oeuvre this fifty-plus minute work is an immersive, hypnotic sound bath of frequencies and tones. The deft use of ambient textures and abstract sonic gestures draws listeners into a liminal state, offering a meditative, introspective listening experience.

Composed using the legendary EMS Synthi 100, the basis of the piece is formed from processed field recordings run through a chain of the Synthi’s filters and effects. For the most part the piece was mixed live with some tinkering and adjustments after the fact. A significant departure from the work with found tapes and audio archaeology that Vernon has become known for, we hope you enjoy losing yourself in this sublimely mysterious musical mirage.

Released on Greek experimental label Granny in a limited edition of 100 CDs.

Composed and recorded by Mark Vernon · Mastered by Yannis Tsirikoglou · Artwork by Yorgos Vourlidas

Edition of 100 copies.

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Unforced Errors

New tape release on French label Vice de Forme. ‘Unforced Errors’ is released on cassette in a limited edition of 70 copies plus download. It includes a collaboration with Ilaria Boffa and features Manja Ristić on violin on two tracks.

Limited edition silkscreened box with Frosty sea green cassette – C-42 – only 70 copies. Artwork by Pole Ka.

“The sounds that Mark Vernon captures on Unforced Errors are not in themselves dystopian: a train trip, a slight breeze, a TV in the next room, bird calls, church bells. However, some deft editing and careful instrumentation turn them into the ingredients for a nightmare. In fact, the album’s haunting quality derives exactly from the everyday quality of much of its material. As in an episode of The Twilight Zone, the listener can detect a twist around the corner, turning the mundane into the frightful. But by the time you realize the trick, it’s too late—you’ve already stepped into the realm of the uncanny.”

Matthew Blackwell, The Best Field Recordings on Bandcamp, February 2025

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Unforced Errors tape – out now

I’m very pleased to announce the release of my new tape on French label Vice de Forme.

‘Unforced Errors’ is released on cassette in a limited edition of 70 copies plus download. It includes a collaboration with Ilaria Boffa and features Manja Ristić on violin on two tracks.

“Un véritable coup de cœur que l’écoute de ce moment hors du temps, mais pas des temporalités, dans une ambiance de profondeurs abyssales et de ruines inconnues.”

Limited edition handmade silkscreened box with Frosty sea green cassette – C-42 – only 70 copies. Artwork by Pole Ka.

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The Drowned Villages of the Derwent Valley

CEREMONIAL COUNTY SERIES VOL.XIII – OXFORDSHIRE | DERBYSHIRE

Volume 13 in the 24x volume set of ceremonial county cassettes from Folklore Tapes.

Split tape –
Oxfordshire: The Black Horse Tails by The Grey Funz
Derbyshire: The Drowned Villages of the Derwent Valley by Mark Vernon

The tape series can be bought and collected individually each month, as well as the full subscription service.

– C-30 printed cassette housed in library case
– 6x panel reseach note sleeve
– Unique OS map cut-out piece
– D/L code

To accommodate the increasing need for fresh water supplies for East Midlands residents in the early 1940’s the decision was made to build a new reservoir by flooding the two villages of Derwent and Ashopton. Residents were relocated to other areas and the new Ladybower reservoir was officially opened in 1945. Bodies from the graveyard of Derwent church were exhumed and reburied in the village of Bamford. Although most of the buildings were demolished the church spire remained as a memorial and was the last remnant of the village to endure before it too was finally submerged beneath the rising waters. To the consternation of many, on one particularly dry summer when water levels dropped the church spire emerged from the depths once more.

“At these times, locals would return to gaze at the eerie spectacle in morbid fascination, as if to remind themselves the village had once been a reality. Some swore they could hear the church bell ringing out across the waters…” *

Amidst concerns for safety the spire was dynamited in 1947 and the bell from the church was removed and later installed in the new church of St. Philips in Chaddesden, Derby in 1955 where it remains to this day. A recording I made of the Derwent bell in its new location provides the main source material for this composition along with field recordings taken around the present-day site of Ladybower reservoir.

Silt has covered the remains of the buildings of Ashopton village meaning that they will never re-emerge even in the event of low water levels. At the centre of the village was a Methodist chapel which was finally demolished in 1943. The final hymn to be sung before its doors closed forever was “The Day is Dying in the West”. Recordings of this hymn and readings of the lyrics have also been incorporated into the piece.

* Quote from ‘The lost villages of the Derwent Valley’ by Helen Moat.

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Meandri – Radio Belgrade Broadcast

We are thrilled to present the premiere of “Meandri” — a collaborative radiophonic composition by Manja Ristić and myself, on Radio Belgrade 3. This piece is the outcome of our residency at the Electronic Studio, where we worked on the legendary EMS Synthi 100.

Saturday, 21.12.2024, tune in at 22:20 CET on Channel 3

Many thanks to the wonderful editor Ksenija Stevanović for this opportunity!

About the work:

“As the artists say, “Meandri” is a collaborative radiophonic composition that emerged from live mixing during a four-day residency at the Electronic Studio, using various materials collected in Belgrade. It represents a diverse approach to the complex analogue system of the EMS Synthi 100. The material they collected is varied — from experiments and explorations of drone and ambient sequences to processed field recordings and intuitive patch-making in the here and now, akin to playing ‘four hands’ on the EMS Synthi 100. The complex, meditative landscapes resulting from these sessions reflect their relationship with analogue sound, as well as the application of different listening techniques.

Before us is a composition that unfolds spontaneously and fluidly, revealing all the magic of captured and released moments. This is a kind of lucid dreaming about Belgrade, a small étude on the art of ‘memory in sound,’ where each recorded material is both an archival entry and an urgent need to capture and transform something that would otherwise escape. Above all, the composition “Meandri” by Mark Vernon and Manja Ristić is a poetic image of the highest order, in sound, which we can surrender to through listening and our own internal metamorphosis. What remains and what disappears are captured in the magic of the sound play.”

Editor Ksenija Stevanović

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Otoconia – new CD out now

I’m proud to return to Greek experimental label Granny Records for my second release on the label. Otoconia is released in a limited edition run of 100 CDs plus download with artwork designed by Yorgos Vourlidas and mastering by Yannis Tsirikoglou.

An elliptical and enigmatic new release by Mark Vernon. Named after the microscopic crystals of calcium carbonate within our inner ear that can cause vertigo when dislodged, the album has an equally disorientating effect as all sense of time is dissolved in its delicate folds. Otoconia is an abstract and deeply immersive sonic experience crafted through the intricate interplay of field recordings and the EMS Synthi 100 synthesizer.

Available from Granny Records now.

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Hydrological Consequences

Streaming now as part of Semi Silent’s online archive and podcast series. Semi Silent is a podcast platform for sound art, radio art and field recording based in Bucharest, Romania.

Hydrological Consequences is a sound work exploring multiple perspectives on water and rivers, the passage of time and the power of water as a primordial element. We hear from the river police who enforce the law on the waterways, a local archaeologist who explores the liminal intertidal zones picking through the centuries of rubbish and debris to make sense of the past and present, divers talking us through the experience and sensations of being submerged beneath the depths and a chorus of voices sharing their fears of water and dreams of drowning.

The piece features interviews with diving instructors at the Plymouth Diving Centre, Archaeologist and Local Historian, John Brown, Inspector Gordon Peters of the Ministry of Defence River Police and dream recollections of staff and patients at Forth Valley Royal Hospital, Larbert.

First performed live as part of Sonic Narratives in Timișoara, June 2024, this studio version of the piece is composed for SEMI SILENT in the frame of SONIC FUTURE RESIDENCIES and it was presented in the festival Orizont Sonor in Constanța, September 2024.

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reiheM Cologne

I’m excited to be playing a quadrophonic concert at the invitation of reiheM in Cologne with the fantastic Kate Carr of Flaming Pines on the same bill.

8pm, 15th October at the Konzertraum, Cologne.

reiheM präsentiert:
Kate Carr / Mark Vernon

Dienstag 15.10.2024 / 20 Uhr
Eintritt: 14 €, 7 € ermäßigt
kein Vorverkauf (Reservierung auf Anfrage)
674FM Konzertraum
Ubierring 13, 50678 Köln

More details here.

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Calypso’s Dream

 

I’m proud to announce another collaborative album release with Manja Ristić. This time we explore the magical island of Mljet in the Southern Adriatic.

Calypso’s Dream is a soundscape collection sculpted from the subtle sonic morphologies of the micro-environments on the island of Mljet in the Southern Adriatic. The collection serves as a conceptual counterpoint to Homer’s Odyssey and a critical reflection on commercial island attractions such as Odysseus’s Cave, where he was supposedly held captive for seven long years by the nymph Calypso.

You can purchase and download the self released album through my Bandcamp here.

The album is accompanied by a PDF booklet containing a curatorial text and images of Mljet’s many aquatic micro-environments, flora, and fauna.

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Orizont Sonor – Hydrological Consequences

 
A special event for the radio and sound art festival Orizont Sonor in Constanta – the debut of the studio version of ‘Hydrological Consequences’ will be presented as a ‘silent disco’ event on Constanta beach at sunset looking out into the Black Sea.

Hydrological Consequences explores multiple perspectives on water and rivers, the passage of time and the power of water as a primordial element. We hear from the river police who enforce the law on the waterways, a local archaeologist who explores the liminal intertidal zones picking through the centuries of rubbish and debris to make sense of the past and present, divers talking us through the experience and sensations of being submerged beneath the depths and a chorus of voices sharing their fears of water and dreams of drowning.

Also included in the audio programme will be the sound work ‘Dobra Voda’ by Manja Ristić.

7pm, 20th September, 2024, free to attend.

The event will start at 7pm. Meet in front of the library to collect your headphones at exactly 6:45 pm!

Festival schedule at: https://bit.ly/ProgramOrizontSonor

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