NewMusicUSA Grant
Stephan Moore’s collaborative group with choreographer Yanira Castro, A Canari Torsi, was awarded a grant from NewMusicUSA for their triple-commission piece CAST/STAGE/AUTHOR. The project featured fifteen audio and video recordings engaging fifteen NYC performers responding to conversations about the act of performing and casting. More information can be found on New Music USA
Nina Kraus MindShift Interview
On November 28, 2016 Nina Kraus was featured in an article by KQED’s MindShift that focused on her practical suggestions for creating the best sound environments and activities for promoting learning in children. Her suggestions come from her years of researching how sound affects the brain at the Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory.
Workshop: Sonic Branding
Steve Milton, founding partner of Listen (wearelisten.com), led a collaborative experiential workshop on sonic branding on October 27, 2016 for students of the MA in Sound Arts and Industries and the course Designing Product Interactions. The students explored a creative brief before breaking into groups to produce their own sonic brands for Northwestern University, which they then presented at the end of the exciting day. The workshop was co-presented with the MS in Engineering Design Innovation program.
U.S. Department of Education Presentation
Nina Kraus presented at the U.S. Department of Education at the end of September 2016 to share her research on the effect of studying music on the brain. Her findings show that students learning for two years how to make music were associated with improved brain responses to speech and stronger reading skills. Kraus is the director of the Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory and teaches the core course Introduction to Sound Science for the MA in Sound Arts and Industries.
Great Lakes Association for Sound Studies (GLASS)
The Great Lakes Association for Sound Studies (GLASS) held its inaugural meeting on October 21, 2016 in the Northwestern Soundstage. The meeting featured an address by James Lastra of the University of Chicago followed by thoughtful discussion. GLASS is designed to foster relationships and discussions between sound scholars in the Great Lakes region of North America.
Speaker Series: Storytelling with Sound in Movies
Seven-time Academy Award winning sound designer Gary Rydstrom returned to Northwestern on October 13, 2016 as part of the MA in Sound Arts and Industries Speaker Series to explore how movies have used sound to create emotion and tell stories throughout movie history. Rydstrom was previously featured in our podcast episode released on January 29, 2016 and was the keynote speaker of the 2014 Sonic Boom Conference.
Speaker Series: The Future of Podcasts and Digital Media
Adam Sachs, the former CEO of Midroll Media, visited Northwestern on October 6, 2016 as part of the MA in Sound Arts and Industries Speaker Series, co-presented with the MS in Leadership for Creative Enterprises. He discussed the business and future of podcasting, as well as how his experience in sound entrepreneurship helped him to lead the podcast industry’s first premium subscription service.
Second Annual Cookout
The MA in Sound Arts and Industries held its second annual “Noise-Water-Meat” Cookout at the patio outside the Northwestern SoundTank on September 29, 2016. Though the weather kept most attendees indoors, it was a fun gathering as the first social event of the year bringing together sound-interested students and faculty across Northwestern and introducing the first cohort of the MA in Sound Arts and Industries.
