Franziska Baumann is a singer, improviser, composer and sound artist and works mainly with voice, gestural live electronics and sampled sounds. As a vocal artist and vocal performer, she draws on archaic, experimental and stylistically wide-ranging expression of the human voice. In her research for new sounds, vocal techniques and vocal forms of expression, she creates original, touching, singular concert experiences beyond any stylistic concept. In the border area of an unfathomable vocal universe she unites traditions of different styles and transcends them into the present.
As a pioneer of digital live techniques, she processes her voice in real time to create oscillating, complex vocal sound spaces. She uses a custom-built sensor glove together with Ableton Live and JunXion software on a MacBook Pro. This allows her to control voice, sound and space articulations with physical gestures in real time. She deals with the hybrid affect space between acoustic body voices and disembodied voices, created by live gestural electronics.
Her performances range from small concerts in clubs and galleries to large multimedia works in theatres, concert halls and selected indoor and outdoor locations. In addition to her performance work, she has a a growing body of vocal productions in which she develops spatialized multimedia compositions with video and with a scenic practice for voices. Under her direction, numerous projects such as Liquid Souls (Donaueschinger Musiktage 2011), Fictions (2012), Interzones (CapeTown 2014), NOMAD-X (Saarbrücken/Warsaw 2015), Gravity Pleasures (pakt-Festival Bern 2017), Das Raunen der Dinge (Musikfestival Bern 2019) were created.
She has composed for various ensembles such as the NEC (Nouvel Ensemble Contemporain) as well as radio play music for Radio DRS 2.
As an improviser, she has collaborated extensively with musicians such as Christoph Baumann, Matthias Ziegler, Michel Wintsch, Fred Frith, Emanuel Künzi, Jacques Demierre, Hans Koch, Lauren Newton, Marie Schwab, Ninh Le Quan, Anne La Berge, Fritz Hauser, Andres Bosshard, Charlotte Hug, Peter Schärli, Lucas Niggli and others.
As a singer she also enjoys working with other composers such as Leo Dick, the young composers Gianluca Iadema, Antonia Mannhartsberger and the Schallfeld Ensemble Graz.
Franziska Baumann has toured extensively through Europe, USA, Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Egypt, Belarus and South Korea, including festivals such as the Donaueschinger Musiktage, Audio Art Festival Krakau & Seoul, ISCM New World Music Days-CH, Taktlos Basel and Zurich, STEIM Festival Bern, Jazzfestival Schaffhausen, Suonoporilpopulo Montréal, FIMAV Festival Musique Actuelle Victoriaville Canada, Festival Jazz em Agosto, Lisbon, Festival Hurta Curdel Madrid, Matrix Festival Leipzig, OtherJazz Festival Prague, Electric Renaissance Halle, Matrix Festival Leipzig, SoundOut Festival Canberra Australia and many others.
Since 2006 she teaches Improvisation–Composition and Contemporary Vocal Arts Practice at Berne University of Music. In the Master of Composition & Creative Practice she accompanies students to their graduation. She gives national and international guest lectures, workshops and seminars and works as an expert for PhD graduation as for Alex Nowitz, "The Multivocal Voice", Stockholm 2019.
She has published in research projects such as "Interfaces in Live Performances", "Voice as a Musical Performative Phenomenon and Potentials of the Musical in a Linguistic Context". Her work has been reflected in many publications such as by Stefan Drees, Pieter Verstraete, Jenny Schroedl, Dr. Juliane Klein, Dr. Craig Vear. Her work is documented on CD, DVD and online.
She has received various grants and grants and Artist's Residencies, is a prizewinner of Young Composers Bern (1994), received the Recognition Prize (2008) and the Entr'Act Scholarship of the Canton of Bern (2018).
For further information please visit:
www.franziskabaumann.ch and www.baumann-brieske.net
Franziska Baumann Bio (263 words)
Franziska Baumann is a singer, improviser, composer and sound artist and works mainly with voice, gestural live electronics and sampled sounds. As a vocal artist and vocal performer, she draws on archaic, experimental and stylistically wide-ranging pronouncements of the human voice. As a pioneer of digital live sensor techniques, she processes her voice in real time into oscillating, complex vocal sound spaces, where she finds a unique and entranced language.
She composes for (vocal) ensembles with a scenic practice, including live gestural electronics. Under her direction, numerous projects such as Liquid Souls (Donaueschinger Musiktage 2011), Fictions (2012), Interzones (CapeTown 2014), NOMAD-X (Saarbrücken/Warsaw 2015), Gravity Pleasures (pakt-Festival Bern 2017), Das Raunen der Dinge (Musikfestival Bern 2019) have been created.
As an improviser she has worked extensively with musicians and has toured extensively in Europe, the USA, Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Egypt, Belarus and South Korea, including festivals such as the Donaueschinger Musiktage, Audio Art Festival Krakow, ISCM New World Music Days-CH, Taktlos Basel and Zurich, Jazz Festival Schaffhausen, Suonoporilpopulo Montréal, FIMAV Festival Musique Actuelle Victoriaville Canada, Festival Jazz em Agosto, Lisbon, SoundOut Festival Canberra Australia and many others.
At the Hochschule der Künste Bern she teaches Contemporary Vocal Arts Practice and Improvisation/Composition. Collaboration in the BFH research projects “Sound (without) Body” (2007/2017) and “Gesture Performance/Gestik als künstlerische Impuls” (2009).
She has received various work and grant contributions and Artist's Residencies, is a prize winner of Young Composers Bern (1994), received the Recognition Prize (2008) and the Entr'Act Scholarship of the Canton of Bern (2018).
For further information please visit:
www.franziskabaumann.ch and www.baumann-brieske.net
Franziska Baumann short Bio (88 words)
Franziska Baumann is currently probably one of the most exciting and most changeable vocalist in Switzerland. With her four-octave she explores the human voice as a multi-faceted instrument expanding traditional boundaries and creates works that discloses at the intersection of voice and gesture, space and live-electronic in an effort to discover and weave together new modes of perception.
Her cross-border approach of music allows her to work with musicians from very different backgrounds. She toured many parts of Europe, USA, Canada, South Africa, South Corea, Australia and New Zealand ua.
www.franziskabaumann.ch