Beardbox

(2009)

is a deft, witty and involving videomusical self portrait by Gabriel Shalom.

I had the privilege of speaking with Gabriel Salom today about some really awesome work he's involved with. He's based in Berlin and one of his main projects is Analog Motion Graphics. He also has a design studio with his girlfriend called KS12. He's a really down to earth guy with an insane amount of wisdom.

I came across this Beardbox video he created and thought it would be good if we could share a few words with us as to what went into the making of it.

Gabriel Shalom: I had wanted to compose a videomusical piece using beatboxing footage for quite some time. After several failed attempts at remixing some beatboxing solos I had recorded from live performances with my old band, I decided I would record fresh material specifically for the new piece. This was back in 2006. It was also around that time that Lasse Gjertsen's Hyperactive was blowing up on YouTube. I admired Lasse's video and made contact with him, linking him to my first videomusical piece Small Room Tango. I remember him writing back saying something to the effect that he was about to release a piece like that. In my dialoging with Lasse I realized that if I completed and released my work at that time it might seem like a video-response to his piece. Feeling discouraged I let the video footage sit dormant.

Fast-forward to January 2009. Feeling inspired by the urging of some friends to continue making personal videomusical works after having had success with commercial videomusic in Italy, I found myself reconsidering the potential of the Beardbox video material. In the span of about a week I composed Beardbox and posted it to Vimeo. It quickly enjoyed a substantial positive response, becoming featured in Vimeo staff picks and landing on the front page of Motionographer. Comparisons to Lasse's admirable work were present in the mix of comments, yet the overwhelming reaction indicated that most people were able to enjoy the piece in its own right.

I've been composing videomusic since 2004. I consider it a novel form of audiovisual expression with its own conventions and limitations. In the attempt to understand the fundamental properties of videomusic I have developed my own theory of moving images which I call hypercubism (addressed now and then on my blog about the future of cinema: Quantum Cinema, and I have also created a channel on Vimeo to collect examples of videomusic. With the widespread popularity of videos from artists such as Kutiman and Neurosonics Audiomedical Labs, it’s clear that the videomusical movement is growing.

Source: Mograph TV

Beardbox, punk, people, Video Art

Reading

Paul Sharits (2008) edited by Yann Beauvais. Known primarily for his experimental cinema and pictorial works, Paul Sharits developed an oeuvre that evolved around two central themes: one, closely related to music and the world of abstraction, the other, within the psychological and emotional arena of the figurative. This complete monograph, drawn from a recent exhibition, explores the connections between these two practices, and in addition provides a general introduction to a remarkable body of work. Illustrated throughout, the monograph also includes several essays, texts by Paul Sharits and interviews. (les presses du réel)

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Gabriel Shalom (*1982) is a hypercubist videomusician living and working in Berlin, Germany. Since 2004 his video art praxis takes the form of rhythmically edited audiovisual compositions which he calls videomusic. His compositional style is inspired by his own talents as a human beatbox as well as his background in jazz and electronic music. His formal process plays within the limits of human audiovisual perception and often aspires towards the humorous. (Gabriel Shalom)

ALL MUSIC: Cosmopolitan Cyborg (2007) is a series of Station IDs by Gabriel Shalom and commissioned by the ALL MUSIC Italian music television channel. (Gabriel Shalom on Vimeo)

Small Room Tango (2003-2007) is an experiment in videomusical technique by Gabriel Shalom using nothing but the synchronous sounds and images captured in a piano practice room. (Gabriel Shalom on Vimeo)

Antonin De Bemels (*1975) discovered video art and experimental cinema at Ecole de Recherche Graphique, from 1993 to 1997. His main areas of interest are movement and the human body, and the dynamic relationship between sounds and images. Since 1997, he has made more than 15 short videos that were screened all around the world. He also creates video backgrounds and soundtracks for contemporary dance pieces, and occasionally performs as a VJ. (Videomedeja)

We Have Band: Divisive (2010) by French directors Jul & Mat for We Have Band. The three members of We Have Band create letters with their bodies to spell out words, that make up a key lyric in the song.

Mouthface (2007) by Antonin De Bemels is a music video freely inspired by the track On the floor by Michael Fakesch, from his solo album Dos. (Videomedeja)

Volkan Ergen is a Turkish drummer, producer and visual artist. He graduated from the Istanbul Technical University's Concervatory Instrument Production Department. As a drummer he accompanied many musicians on numerous albums and worked as a producer. (The Only Constant)

Arthur Lipsett (1936-1986) was a Canadian avant-garde director of short collage films. Arthur Lipsett's meticulous editing and combination of audio and visual montage was both groundbreaking and influential. (Wikipedia)

Visual Music Archive

Beardbox

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