IONOS
Commissioned work from Borealis – a festival for experimental music especially made for the factory hall at Bergen Kjött, Norway. World premie during Borealis 2023. IONOS explores the intriguing sound world of amateur radio through a 40-minute concert performance: Three amateur radio operators are stationed in the center of the venue, with the audience around them. They communicate live based on given instructions. The work is played from multiple loudspeakers that encircle the audience. Pre-recorded, multi-channel sound is mixed directly during the concert performance. The sound is mixed with real-time signals from the radios which are affected by the state of the atmosphere at the moment of reception.

Elements: 15 speakers, 15-channel sound composition based on radio amateur recordings, radio stations, 3 radio amateurs, live communication on frequency 14250-14260, dummy load, Morse key,microphones, mixers, multi-channel audio player, 10-metre antenna mounted on a ridge outside Bergen Kjøtt's building.

With its approximately hundred-year history, and an enduring low-fi form of connecting that spans the globe, enthusiasts seek contact with each other via long-range radio signals. Amateur radio is also used worldwide both as an emergency contact and an important tool for reaching listeners in conflict areas and in the event of major accidents and disasters.

 IONOS Radio amateurs:
Øystein Ask, LA7CFA
Erik Chancy, LB1KJ
Unni Borge, LA9BGA

Sound technician: Lars-Andreas Forthun
Light technician: Maja Bergebakken Sundt
Cable & antenna: Irmantas Butkevicius, LB1AH
Thanks to: Sverresborg, Bergen, for admission to put up a temporary antenna on the fortress area. 

Presented in collaboration with Bergen Kjøtt.
Commission supported by Arts Council Norway.
Project supported by BEK – Bergen Centre for Electronic Arts 

All photos by Thor Brödreskift,
Video by Ben Speck, edited by Lars Ove Toft.