2-18. juni lægger Struer gader, pladser, parker m.m. til landets hidtil eneste festival for stedsspecifik lydkunst. Festivalleder Jacob Kreutzfeldt fortæller om Struer Tracks, som festivalen er døbt.

“Struer Tracks er en festival for lydkunst. Kernen er udstilling af lydkunstværker, og værkerne er stedspecifikke i den forstand at de er tænkt eller tilpasset til Struer og til de konkrete steder. Uden om udstillingen har vi en række arrangementer, koncerter, workshops og præsentationer, hvor vi inviterer borgere og besøgende til at lytte og give lyd”, indleder Jacob Kreutzfeldt.

Han uddyber, hvordan de urbane og offentlige rammer spiller med på lydkunstens præmisser på en helt anden måde end eksempelvis de traditionelle, hvide gallerirum.

“Vi ville gerne skabe situationer, hvor publikum møder kunst i hverdagen – frem for på museer eller i koncertsale. Her er der mulighed for at kommunikere på andre planer, end når det foregår på institutioner. Ved at arbejde i det offentlige rum er der en anden mulighed for at værkerne kan overraske folk i hverdagen. Det gælder for al kunst i det offentlige rum, men måske i særlig grad for lydkunst, hvor kan komme komme snigende og blande sig med omgivelsernes lyd”, forklarer han.

Valget af lige netop Struers offentlige rum som ramme for festivalen er langt fra tilfældig. Det lokale byråd har med en strategisk satsning brandet den midtjyske købstad under navnet Lydens By. Knap en femtedel af de ca. 10.000 indbyggere er da også beskæftiget hos byens største virksomhed, B&O, der er verdenskendt for især lyd-elektronik af høj kvalitet.

“Man har gennem de seneste 5 år arbejdet med at opbygge en identitet og kultur omkring lyd i Struer – ikke mindst baseret på at Bang & Olufsen har ligget i Struer i mere end 90 år. Det betyder at vi kan trække på initiativer og kompetencer, som vi ikke ville kunne finde i andre byer – og slet ikke i byer af Struers størrelse. F.eks. har Ursula Nistrup haft mulighed for at samarbejde med folk med stor teknisk kompetence på B&O, og vi kan spille Jacob Kirkegaards og Peter Albrechtsens Dolby Atmos-værk Den Usynlige By i en af de mest veludstyrede provinsbiografer, jeg nogensinde har set”, konstaterer han.

Udover at bidrage med gode tekniske faciliteter og samarbejdsmuligheder, kan Struer også noget andet, som kunst-hovedsæderne Aarhus eller København ikke kan.

“Struer Tracks er også et forsøg på at aktivere en anden lokalitet end de metropole omgivelser, som samtids- og lydkunsten tit præsenteres i. Struer er en provinsby, og med festivalen vil vi gerne undersøge mødet mellem samtidskunst og provinsby. Det er håbet at værkerne kan være med til at sætte fokus på steder, identiteter og kulturer, der kendetegner provinsdanmark – der jo trods alt er den største del af landet”, afslutter Jacob Kreutzfeldt.

Det er ambitionen, at Struer Tracks skal udvikle sig til at blive en international biennale for lydkunst, der således indtager Struer næste gang i 2019 og hvert andet år derefter.

Hvad? Struer Tracks
Hvor? Forskellige lokationer i Struer
Hvornår? 2-18. juni 2017

Læs mere om festivalen og se det komplette program af udstilling og arrangementer på festivalens hjemmeside.

in briefrelease
04.07.2025

When Machines Dream: The Electronic Poetry of Oh No Noh

Oh No Noh: »As Late As Possible«
© Nikolas Fabian Kammerer
© Nikolas Fabian Kammerer

There’s something distinctly mechanical about Oh No Noh’s album As Late As Possible. Like a warped, crumpled tape, melodies bubble to the surface, and the offbeat rhythms repeat with the halting tempo of a scratched LP. It’s easy to place Oh No Noh within the esteemed German tradition of blurring the lines between human and machine, but on As Late As Possible, the machine sounds more like a distant relative than a deliberate artistic objective.

Behind Oh No Noh is Leipzig-based guitarist Markus Rom. In addition to a wealth of synthesizers and tape loops, the album’s 11 tracks are performed using guitar, drums, banjo, clarinet, and organ. The absence of vocals sets the album in a subdued, cinematic mood, and the music feels like a nostalgic inner monologue, told with a warm affection for the melancholy of outdated technologies.

Although mechanical sensibilities are prominent throughout the album, several tracks are driven by more melodic band arrangements. But to me, As Late As Possible is clearly most compelling on the less melodic pieces. The crooked and noisy »Fawn« or the hesitant closing track »Ore« are moments where the dialogue with the machine elevates the music in ways that the more melodic, band-oriented pieces don’t quite reach. These are places where the machines sigh nostalgically and form small, imperfect thought bubbles that cut off and restart again.

English translation: Andreo Michaelo Mielczarek

© Hreinn Gudlaugsson

»Music for me is like a sourdough. If you don't feed it right it is going to die. If you feed it correctly a lot of people can benefit from it.« 

Halym Kim is a drummer, composer and project coordinator based in Copenhagen. His music is mainly based in free improvisation and experimental music but performs also as a traditional Korean percussionist. He has a Master and an Advanced Postgraduate Diploma in Music Performance from RMC in Copenhagen. Together with Nana Pi he organizes Impro Camp which is a music camp for free and structured improvised music that is happening every year in Fredericia, Denmark.

© DMF

»Music for me is a tool of infinite expression. It’s where I’ve had the most complex conversations and open-minded experiences. It is the highest form of energy I know.«

Nana Pi is a saxophonist, composer and conductor working within the experimental music scene. She has developed a unique musical vocabulary on the saxophone by incorporating objects and extended techniques, pushing the boundaries of sonic expression. Beyond her work as a saxophonist, she is known for conducting improvisation using her music sign language, Extemporize, for which she received the P8 Jazz Award Årets Ildsjæl in 2020. She is a member of the well established record label Barefoot Records. In addition to her musical career, Nana Pi is organizing events such as Impro Camp and FredagsJAM that focuses on creating networks and inspiring music environments between musicians.

© PR

»For me, music is an emotional refuge. When I sit at the piano I feel safe, it's where I can release everything I carry inside. It's not about performing, it's about being honest, vulnerable and free.«

Samanta Yubero, known artistically as Samyula, is a composer, pianist, and neuroscientist based in Barcelona. Trained as a classical pianist and holding a PhD in her scientific field, Samyula bridges the worlds of art and science in her work. Her music – often within neoclassicism – blends both serene and intense piano melodies with vivid, dynamic string arrangements, creating emotionally resonant and immersive soundscapes. With a deep passion for both composition and performance, Samyula offers audiences a uniquely powerful and moving experience.

© PR

»Music is the ultimate gateway to presence, a true expression of the moment.«

Praised by DownBeat Magazine as one of Europe’s most versatile and inquisitive musicians, Polish-born, Scandinavian-based trumpeter and composer Tomasz Dąbrowski creates music that whispers before it screams – blending open, lyrical melodies with raw, unconventional trumpet sounds. Dąbrowski has revealed an unceasing curiosity, stretching and expanding his jazz roots in an ever-widening circle of exploration. From the beginning he’s rejected hierarchies, preferring to see creative music as a boundless practice that can accommodate ideas drawn from every spot on the stylistic map. While plenty of musicians pivot toward new directions, sometimes transforming their aesthetic wholesale, Dąbrowski has long revealed a more ruminative and holistic mindset that has allowed him to retain a clear artistic identity through countless projects, whether driven by improvisation or composition.