The 44-Hour Sound Art Residency

CAMPBIENT is an annual sound art residency that brings together 22 people for 44 hours to conceptualize, produce, and record two sound art compositions in a natural setting. Participants are randomly split into two groups, each responsible for one side of the record, with the only caveat being that a contiguous field recording base track is audible throughout the piece.

The residency includes sound-related workshops, creative activities, and a start-to-finish audio production process, the results of which are pressed on vinyl records and distributed digitally. Participating artists camp out, share meals, and collaborate in field recording, sound-making, and creative play. CAMPBIENT is held in a new state park every year, and all audio production and activities are off-grid and battery-powered.

By utilizing state parks rather than private land, the residency underscores an awareness of the commons and an obligation for its stewardship. Public spaces that straddle the natural and built environment are rich with questions of social equity and accessibility, environmental justice and sustainability, as well as those of artistic process, critical analysis, and aesthetics. It is these questions that are explored sonically and dialogically in the making of this recording. Special guest speakers are brought alone to CAMPBIENT to contribute their knowledge, insights, and add to the residency’s conceptual rigor and artistic praxis.

Participation is by application and is open to any interested individuals – not just sound artists, but artists of any discipline, as well as musicians, conceptual thinkers, or anyone who wants to explore the praxis and theory of collaboratively producing sound-based artwork in a natural environment. Participants are invited based on completeness, timeliness, and quality of application process; demonstrated interest in the subject matter; and previous creative or applicable professional work or activities. Diversity is encouraged, and there is no expectation of prior musicianship or sound art experience by selected participants. 

CAMPBIENT Volume One

CAMPBIENT 2020 (Limited group, due to COVID-19)

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Vol. 1 Record Release Show

March 8, 2020 several of the artists of CAMPBIENT played the record release show: