The Compass Series - Part 1: Nord Rute

Event information

The Compass Series Presents: The Valkeapää Narratives
Straying maps the path'

Part 1- Nord Rute

Featuring: Plaid, Ross Adams, Synnøve Persen

Produced by: Chimera Productions, The Compass Series and Pikene på Broen

Nord Rute is the first in a four part series of unconventional ambisonic (surround sound) narratives by The Compass Series, based on one of a cycle of poems by renowned Sámi artist, Nils Aslak Valkaeapää. The poems focus on indigenous peoples around the world, exploring their traditions, and spiritual and practical connections with nature.

Nord Rute is a sonic interpretation of Valkaeapää's poem No. 272 by sound artist and sound recordist Ross Adams, UK electronic music pioneers Plaid, and the Sámi poet Synnøve Persen. Poem 272 is about a reindeer herd on the move and takes the Sámi people as its central theme, examining their vast dialect and sounds of the arctic tundra.

Incorporated into Nord Rute is an account of a modern day reindeer migration made by the Sámi, 350 kilometres across the Arctic Tundra every year to the reindeers' spring grazing pastures in northern Norway. Adams travelled with a group of herders and sonically documented it using location surround recording techniques.

The Sámi are the only ethnic group in the European Union classified as an indigenous people. They are a minority that inhabit four countries, Sweden, Norway, Finland and the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and have their own language and culture, which has thrived due to their ability to adapt to changing social environments over the centuries. Music and art have emerged as influential tools in the process of maintaining community and identity.

The finished production will be an ambisonic evocation of the migration, poem and contemporary interpretation of the spiritual realm of the Sámi people by Ross Adams, Plaid and Synnøve Persen,

The audience will be invited to sit or lie down upon reindeer pelts, as used during the reindeer migrations, given blindfolds and immersed in a three dimensional psycho-acoustic experience.

In the spirit of capturing the essence of the Arctic, there will not be any heating during the sonic journey so be sure to dress up warm and bring blankets/sleeping bags.

About the artists involved:

PLAID: Plaid is the duo Ed Handley and Andy Turner. Rising from the ashes of legendary Black Dog, the electronica stalwarts and Warp Records veterans have become highly regarded for their heart-melting melodies and über-crisp beats. In 2008 they created the soundtrack for the multi-award winning Japanese anime film Tekkon Kinkreet, directed by Michael Arias and they have recently starting exploring collaborations with live instrumentalists, including cellist Zoe Martlew at Faster Than Sound, Javanese musician Ruhayu Supanggah & Southbank Gamelan Players for Ether 09 and pianist Will Dutta.

ROSS ADAMS: Ross Adams is a sound artist, whose interest in nature has always pervaded his work. After graduating from the National Film and Television School with a Master of Arts in Post Production Sound, he set up his own creative company, Tin Roof, specialising in location and post-production sound for the moving image, radio, music, and new media. He has worked as a sound recordist and sound designer for BBC Radio and with some of the finest international contemporary musicians such as John Cale and Matthew Herbert.

SYNNØVE PERSEN: Synnøve Persen is a Norwegian visual artist and author, who graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts, Oslo in 1978. She has published numerous works in Sami and Norwegian, as well as exhibiting as a solo artist throughout Norway. Her 12th solo exhibition took place in the summer of 2009, and this showcased new paintings from the past two years, working with collaborators John Persen and Jenny-Marie Johnsen. Persen lives and works in her homeplace in Porsanger, Finnmark.

EARDRUM: Hailing from London, Eardrum (The Leaf Label), create sounds that reflect their harsh urban surroundings while dreaming of African suns and open skies. Formed in the early 1990's by Richard Olatunde Baker and Lou Ciccotelli, the two percussionists found they shared a love of Sun Ra, West African tribal drumming and dub reggae. Picked up by the pioneering Leaf Label between 1998-2001, the first of their 3 albums was awarded MOJO Magazine's 'Avant Garde Album Of The Month'.
Drawing on a pool of like-minded, seasoned musicians, Eardrum forge an electric experimental sound rooted in Nigerian and Ghanaian trance music, King Tubby's exotic dub tapestries, free jazz and dramatic live soundscapes.

About The Compass Series:

The Compass Series promotes cultural awareness for a global audience through sound and music. Its overarching remit is to facilitate international collaborations between indigenous communities, musicians, artists and professional practitioners, interleaving oral and musical traditions and ecology with contemporary modes of expression through ambisonics. Traditional culture is made relevant to new generations and audiences, while new contextual frameworks are introduced to embedded communities.