Sound Symposium XXII Workshops!

by C.Musick / 2026 Sound Symposium XXII
June 29, 2026

 

SOUND SYMPOSIUM XXII WORKSHOPS!

SHAWN MATIVETSKY: AN INTRODUCTION TO EFFECTS PEDALS FOR ACOUSTIC INSTRUMENTS OR VOICE

—

Are you an instrumentalist or singer looking to get involved with electronics, but don’t know where to start? Interested in guitar pedals? This is the workshop for you! Effects pedals allow us to play with timbre, pitch, time, and space, can open new creative and improvisational paths, and inspiration for endless new musical avenues to explore. Effects pedals are relatively accessible, very hands-on, and easy to use, providing musicians with a wonderful path into the world of electronic music. Why should guitarists have all the fun?

The when & where: 

GABRIEL PILLER: SOUND SYNTHESIS BASICS – DIY SYNTH BREADBOARDING

—

Let’s explore electronics together! In this workshop, we’ll learn the basics of working with analog circuits on a breadboard and explore some fundamental sound synthesis concepts through hands-on building and creation. We’ll also explore ways to improvise with our breadboarded mini-synth.

–
*All materials are provided, but registration is limited to 15 people. We recommend this workshop for adults and youths above the age of 13. If you register and can no longer attend, please email office@soundsymposium.com and let us know!
—
The when, where and sign-up: 

 

NAISHI WANG: SHI MOVEMENT PRACTICE

—

SHI is a somatic and conceptual movement practice inspired by the Chinese aesthetic and martial arts concept of 势 (Shi)—often translated as momentum, potential, or flow—which describes the energetic condition that precedes action and allows movement to emerge naturally. Drawing from traditions of Chinese martial arts, calligraphy, painting, and philosophy, Shi refers not to force or effort, but to an invisible rhythm that organizes form, space, and perception. In this practice, participants work with a fast metronome at 180 BPM in 4/4 time, beginning with soft, repetitive knee bouncing and gentle breathing, entering a continuous 10-minute movement cycle that is repeated several times with short rests. Over time, the micro-bouncing gradually travels through the body—from knees to hips, spine, shoulders, and arms—while maintaining rhythmic continuity, allowing movement to shift organically through weight transfer, subtle balance changes, and internal sensation. Rather than learning steps or choreography, participants are invited to witness how repetition reshapes attention, perception, and embodiment, how momentum arises without conscious decision, and how the body reorganizes itself through listening rather than control. Accessible to both dancers and non-dancers, 180 functions as a form of tested improvisation and embodied meditation, offering a trance-like, physically simple yet perceptually deep experience in which rhythm becomes the driving intelligence, and movement emerges from inner states rather than external form.

This workshop is co-produced by Louise Moyes Docudance!

The when & where: 

–

ALEJANDRO FRANCO BRIONES AND SARAH IMRISEK: INTRODUCTION TO LIVE CODING

—

Live coding is the practice of writing code as a performative act: often the output of this coding act takes the form of music, audio explorations, sound art, visuals, choreography, or story telling.  In this workshop we will explore coding as a musical performance using Estuary (https://estuary.mcmaster.ca/), a networked software that makes it possible for new practitioners to start making music in a zero-installation environment that favours collaboration. 

–
*Registration is limited to 20 people. Please bring a computer with suitable internet connectivity and headphones. All ages are welcome.*

–
The when, where and sign-up: 

–

–

ANJU SINGH: INDUCED RESONANCE – RESPONSIVE COMPOSTION SESSION 

—

This session invites players to be part of an ensemble to create and record a sound art composition as part of Anju Singh’s Induced Resonance recording series. Using found objects, self-made instruments, and/or extended techniques on traditional instruments, the ensemble will be guided through spontaneous compositions with a focus on sonic response and listening for resonance.

–
*Registration is limited to 20 people. Please bring found objects, self-made instruments, or an instrument you play. If you do not have an object or instrument, we can supply one. All ages are welcome!*
–
The when, where, and sign-up: 

–

–

ENSEMBLE MEDUSE: ALL THE LITTLE SHIPS

—

In this 60-minute workshop, audience members will both create, and help choose, images and sounds that will be used to augment key moments in “All the Little Ships,” a story about Operation Dynamo (from WWII), told from the point of view of a seagull named Winston. Together, the ensemble and audience will explore how text, visuals and sound can work together to bring a story to life from the page to the stage.

–

The when & where: 

WEATHER VANE: WORKING WITH IMPROVISING MUSICAL AGENTS

—

In this hands-on workshop, Weather Vane will demonstrate and facilitate working with musical improvising agents: software trained on small datasets that perform in real-time alongside human improvisers. Rather than being designed for power and adaptability across many genres or artistic outputs, these musical agents, and the communities that design and perform with them, are focused on specific types of improvised music rooted in those communities themselves.

In manipulating the small datasets and interacting with the agents, we have been compelled to reflect on our own improvised practice and ask: what exactly are we looking for in an improvising partner? Working with these agents reveals both the promise and the limitations of digital interlocutors as improvisation partners. Even so, we aim to show how machine learning technologies can open a concrete dialogue involving human agency and instrumental technique.

Weather Vane’s performers will use a range of instruments (saxophone, eTubes, and clarinet) to demonstrate how the improvising agents respond to different timbres and harmonic spectra.

–

The when & where: 

ANDREW GOSSE: AN INTRODUCTION TO TOUCHDESIGNER AS A TOLD FOR INTERMEDIA PERFORMANCE 

—

All ages are welcome to this workshop with Andrew Gosse at the MUN School of Music. Learn how you can use 3D graphics to create audio-reactive visuals with extensive real-time hardware control options. In this beginner-friendly workshop you’ll learn what the TouchDesigner software is, see a complete patch constructed in real-time, and leave with all the info you need to dive in deeper! https://derivative.ca/

–

The when, where, and sign-up:

–

junctQín: FROM GRAPHIC TO SOUND

—

Join junctQín in exploring graphic scores and creating one:  bring your own instrument or a found object (e.g. bubble wrap, bowl and stick, plastic bottle, foil paper) to discover new blends of sounds and participate in creating music with what you have!

–

The when & where: 

AN LAURENCE 安媛: WRITING DREAMS & SOUNDS

—

An Laurence 安媛, a Montreal-based musician and performer, will host “Writing dreams & sounds” where she will give a short overview of her practice relating to narratives and sounds, then invite the participants to create and improvise music and/or words drawing inspiration from dreams.

The when & where: 

 

Email office@soundsymposium.com for questions and concerns!