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Published by Onomatopee (2013) On a weekday in 1999, from a fixed point inside Chartres cathedral, artist Toine Horvers made an hour long sound recording. The recording formed part of the sound installation Silence Gothique for the exhibition Gotische Reflecties in the Stadsgalerij Heerlen. At the time of recording, no organised religious activity was taking place. The building was being visited by tourists and groups of believers who were talking, praying and singing. In 2013, he began to translate this universe of sounds into words and sentences, without stating the source of the sound or referring to the physical space of the cathedral. In order to be able to approach sound as autonomous energy, Horvers stripped his language of the styles and tools which are often used in describing sound: sound imitating words, words derived from seeing, words conveying human feelings, poetic / expressive phrases, technical sound and musical terms, similes and metaphors. Wherever possible, he replaced words of Latin or French origins with words that he felt were more descriptive in nature. All these restrictions and interventions were important in the attempt to come closer to the fundamental nature of both language and sound through listening and writing. The resulting publication is Horvers’ semantic exercise in defining actual sound beyond poetic temptations. £15.00
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