ICS student 'summer hotdesker' at Information and Cultural Exchange

Institute for Culture and Society PhD student Alejandro Miranda is one of seven UWS students who are ‘summer hotdeskers’ at Information and Cultural Exchange (ICE).

Information and Cultural Exchange is the largest non-government community arts organisation at the forefront of cultural engagement and creative practice in Western Sydney. The organisation works at the intersection of arts, culture, technology and community and its projects engage diverse communities, build capacity in digital media and arts practice, and tell the stories of the diverse region of Western Sydney.

The Summer Hotdesker is an initiative of ICE and the University of Western Sydney, who are supporting each project with a $500 scholarship.

During his six weeks at ICE, Alejandro is creating five musical soundscapes from audio captured in Bankstown, Liverpool, Auburn, Fairfield and Parramatta. These soundscapes are aimed at stimulating auditory experiences related to Western Sydney.

‘I have captured sounds from public spaces using a handheld audio recorder; at the moment I'm editing and mixing them with short musical compositions that I've produced using acoustic and electronic instruments. The result is a palette of sounds that evoke five councils of Western Sydney’, Alejandro describes. ‘Succinctly put, my project aims to capture everyday sounds from public spaces and intermingle them with original musical compositions. The result is a sonic environment that communicates sensations, emotions and ways of experiencing this part of the city. The mix of acoustic ambiences and music is proposed as a way to communicate sincere forms of engagement with the location.’

Alejandro’s soundscapes can be heard on Soundcloud (opens in a new window).

Of the relationship between this project and Alejandro's work as a PhD student he says: 'My work as a doctoral researcher is related to my compositions as I'm studying how music can be used to create different forms of engagement. I'm shortly conducting fieldwork in Mexico and the United States to analyse how different ways of making music are mobilised across locations, specifically looking at how people use music as a resource for action. These questions are connected to my personal case: composing music that evokes Western Sydney is a way to make sense of my experiences and involvement in this city.'

Alejandro’s opening piece is Auburn, below.

Western Sydney Suite - Auburn by alexomir

15 February 2013