Newsletter for September 2025 (Vol.20; Iss. 9)
Produced by New Adventures in Sound Art
www.naisa.ca

1) SOUNDplay Festival opens September 20
2) SOUNDplay Performance and Artist Talk
3) SOUNDplay Festival Exhibitions
4) 48-Hour Sound Art Challenge
5) Sound Travels Festival Exhibition

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1) SOUNDplay Festival

September 20, 2025 – January 5, 2026
All events at the NAISA North Media Arts Centre, 313 Highway 124, South River, unless otherwise stated
naisa.ca/festivals/soundplayseries

New Adventures in Sound Art’s (NAISA) is proud to present the 24th edition of its SOUNDplay Festival, NAISA’s annual fall festival that encourages new avenues of exploration between sound and new media. Special highlights for this year include a performance by Rani Jambak from Indonesia and the Ice Voices installation by Joan Sullivan and Robin Servant.

“This year’s edition of SOUNDplay expands on the theme There is Art in Our Nature by responding to the impact of climate change on water. The artists in SOUNDplay creatively probe and respond to this issue in very different ways by drawing attention to hidden layers of their local reality, allowing audiences to experience it through visual and sonic expression.” – Darren Copeland, Artistic Director, New Adventures in Sound Art

Rani Jambak performing with the Kincia Aia

2) SOUNDplay Festival Performance & Artist Talk

SOUNDplay Performance by Rani Jambak and the Kincia Aia
September 20, 7pm
Admission $15 / Doors open at 6pm if you wish to have a vegan/gluten free meal in advance of talk
Get tickets & passes

This performance by Rani Jambak features an instrument that she developed called the Kincia Aia. It is inspired by the traditional water wheel from Minangkabau, West Sumatra, Indonesia. Kincia Aia has 10 pestles that can be activated manually and it plays many layers of live sound and pre-recorded samples. It is almost rare to see the traditional waterwheel now in Minangkabau, because of new technology and from the lack of current in the springs and rivers resulting from climate change in the area. The purpose of the instrument is to recall ancestral wisdom and creativity and to raise awareness about the current climate conditions.

Probing the Sounds of Climate Change by Joan Sullivan and Robin Servant
September 26, 7pm
Doors open at 6pm if you wish to have a vegan/gluten free meal in advance of the talk
Admission by Donation

Artists Joan Sullivan and Robin Servant from Rimouski, Québec, talk about their interactive installation Ice Voices. The artist talk will explore how this tactile and sonic artwork de-centers the human by giving voice to the non-human, an invitation to “see” the disappearing ice on the Saint Lawrence River differently: with our bodies and not just our eyes.

Ice Voices by Joan Sullivan and Robin Servant. Photo: Joan Sullivan

3) SOUNDplay Festival Exhibitions

Ice Voices by Joan Sullivan and Robin Servant
September 26, 2025 – January 5, 2026
Open Thursday to Monday, 10am – 4pm
Admission by Donation

Ice Voices is an interactive sound-photo installation by climate artivist Joan Sullivan and composer Robin Servant that invites visitors to listen to what the disappearing ice is trying to tell us and to use their sense of touch and vision to explore further. Underwater recordings of ice “voices” play in the artwork which can be both fascinating and destabilizing. They pull listeners into their evocative vortex, coaxing them to listen more intently to the non-human world.

Voice of the Water by Eric Powell
*New* Permanent Installation ongoing
Pay By Donation

Voice of the Water is an interactive rotary telephone-based listening station. Using sounds collected from inside the lakes and rivers around South River, Voice of the Water encourages listeners to connect with the local waterways as they explore the boundaries and overlaps between planes of existence. The Artist’s goal is to create a venue for contemplation, catharsis, and a deeper engagement with the surrounding environment. Visit here for more information, including media stories and explore the project sound map.

4) 48-Hour Sound Art Challenge

October 18 – 20, 2025
Warbler’s Roost, 3785D Eagle Lake Road, South River, Ontario
$339 registration which includes 2 nights Accommodation / $215 without accommodation
Registration and Booking

The 48-hour now annual Sound Art Challenge will take place at Warbler’s Roost, in the Almaguin Highlands as part of NAISA’s SOUNDplay Festival. The weekend intensive invites artists to create a sound art miniature in a 48-hour period on the theme There is Art in Our Nature. Fall is undeniably a remarkable time for the changes in the tree canopy. However, there are also many changes and movements in the soundscape worth considering, as both people and animals prepare for the arrival of winter.

Participating artists should bring their own portable recording devices and computers and other tools necessary for their creation with NAISA augmenting with its own equipment as necessary. Peer learning and sharing is encouraged and NAISA Artistic Director Darren Copeland will facilitate and assist participants. Results will be broadcast on NAISA Radio and NAISA’s social media channels after completion.

5) Sound Travels Exhibition continues to September 15

Haptic Voices by David Bobier and Jim Ruxton
June 12 – September 15, 2025
Pay By Donation
View more information

Haptic Voices is a large scale ten channel vibro-tactile wall with the potential for 10 independent streams of sound signals. Visitors are invited to stand against the wall to experience vibrations that are controlled using an iPad. Using vibration as the final output, Haptic Voices is equally accessible to the Deaf, hard of hearing and able-bodied communities to experience the wall. Watch this video to learn more about Haptic Voices.

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New Adventures in Sound Art is a non-profit organization that presents performances and installations spanning the entire spectrum of sound art. NAISA is partially funded by the Department of Canadian Heritage, Ontario Arts Council, and the Canada Council for the Arts. NAISA would also like to thank Reuten Construction, Charles Street Video, and Warbler’s Roost for their sponsorship of its SOUNDplay 2025.

NAISA North Media Arts Centre is Accessible

Inquiries & general information:
Nadene Thériault-Copeland, Executive Director
New Adventures in Sound Art
313 Highway 124, South River, ON P0A 1X0
705-386-0880