Alessandra Eramo

This composition by Alessandra Eramo shows for the first time a vocal interpretation of eight onomatopoetic words from the Manifesto of Futurist Music “The Art of Noises” by Luigi Russolo (1913). Alessandra Eramo creates harmonious miniatures of rough beauty and embodies urban soundscapes using her voice. Her very original approach to onomatopoeia as well as the humorous, yet profound interpretation of the original material reflects her intense exploration of sounds of industrialized and de-industrialized places of present time. The combination of extended vocal technique, sound poetry and brittle fragments of electronics such as Theremin, tape machines and contact microphone puts a contemporary spotlight on futuristic sound art, it condenses more than a century of bustle and noise and captivates the listener until the last “noise”.

The record is part of Alessandra Eramo’s sound performance project "ROARS BANGS BOOMS – 7 variations for voice and onomatopoeia". The first variation was performed in may 2013 at the Gallery Haus am Lützowplatz in Berlin. Other variations of the performance were shown at specific locations in Germany, Italy and Austria in 2013-2014.

“Thunder, Whistles, Booms, Grumbles, Snorts… These onomatopoeic words recall the different sounds of the modern industrial landscape. As part of the Manifesto of Futurist Music The Art of Noises by Luigi Russolo, they are the starting point of this performance work. 101 years after Russolo’s Manifesto, I have written seven sound performance variations for human voice in which noise not only becomes a Leitmotiv, but also turns into musical material itself. I embody these noises. I hear them, I perceive them as urban soundscapes of the present. I transcribe these sounds in drawing and interpret them with my voice and with my body in order to reveal their beauty, while playing with the expectation and imagination of the audience.”
Alessandra Eramo