Soundologia, 4 W Burton Pl, Chicago, IL (2026)

07/23/2026

Joshua Marquez (Joshua Marquez ) brought together traditional Philippine instruments, electronics, and processed voice in a single unfolding improvisation.

Ninuno (2025) opened on kulintang—a slow pulse at first, followed by rhythmic patterns that grew faster, louder, and more insistent. Marquez then moved to the kutyapi, improvising against a processed speaking voice and a soft electronic drone. In the final section, a folk melody surfaced underneath while he played repeating figures on gangsa, drawing the acoustic and electronic layers into the same space.

Ninuno means “ancestor.” The piece grows out of Marquez’s ongoing work around Filipino-American identity, diaspora, and the relationship between traditional instruments and contemporary sound processing.

Marquez's work has also been presented by Fulcrum Point New Music Project.

Joshua Marquez—kulintang, gangsa, kutyapi, and electronics
New Music Chicago (New Music Chicago ) presented The Big Tent of New Music as part of 2026 Summer Composition Intensive at North Park University.�
Joshua Marquez, Texu Kim (Texu Kim ), and Zae Munn (Zae Munn ) served as faculty composers for the 2026 Summer Composition Intensive.�

Soundologia

07/21/2026

Yesterday, composer Texu Kim gave a presentation at the 2026 Summer Composition Intensive at North Park University, tracing several aspects of his compositional language through selected works.

In Bounce (2014), written for a large chamber ensemble of winds, brass, percussion, piano, and strings, Kim transforms the sounds and movements of basketball into music. Repeated chords, clusters, rhythmic motives, sudden shifts of speed, special bowing techniques, mallets on strings, and sharply articulated gestures evoke bouncing balls, squeaking shoes, footsteps, passes, and the unpredictable momentum of live play. Kim also uses orchestral crescendo structurally, layering instruments one by one so that even a repeated bar gradually expands in weight and motion.

Sudoku Divertimento (2013), a four-movement work for chamber orchestra, draws on the logic of sudoku by organizing each movement around a different musical parameter, including tempo, style, and texture. The first movement introduces a jazz-inflected rhythmic pattern in 5/4 that returns throughout the work, while techniques such as Klangfarbenmelodie, hocket, and phase shifting shape its changing instrumental relationships.

Tonight, Tuesday, July 21, at 7:30 PM, New Music Chicago (New Music Chicago ) presents The Big Tent of New Music at Experimental Sound Studio, featuring music by Texu Kim, Joshua Martinez, and Zae Munn.

NewMusic Orchestration Soundologia
Summer Composition Intensive at North Park University
New Music Chicago
Pedja KovacevicPedja Kovacevic

07/14/2026

The OPTION series at Experimental Sound Studio welcomed Toronto-based improviser, saxophonist, and multi-instrumentalist Karen Ng (Karen Ng ) for an afternoon of solo saxophone and live electronics.

Her set moved fluidly between acoustic and electronic sound. At times, the saxophone became a rhythmic instrument through multiphonics, air sounds, slap tongue, and key clicks; at others, it carried melodic lines against drone textures drawn from her debut album Backwards Blue, released on Halocline Trance (Halocline Trance ). Foot pedals served as MIDI controllers, letting her slice, stutter, and pump both the processed saxophone sound and the electronic layers in real time.

Ng built the set on pre-recorded material but left plenty of room to improvise. Rather than functioning as accompaniment, the electronics became an extension of the saxophone, responding naturally to its gestures and continuously reshaping the sound.

Following the performance, Karen spoke with Andrew Clinkman (Andrew Clinkman e) about her setup, the evolution of her electronic practice, and the tonal references that occasionally surface in her improvisations.

Experimental Sound Studio, Chicago
Experimental Sound Studio
Halocline Trance
Karen Ng

06/27/2026

FETA Foundation /FETA Foundation / presents Meet the Curator: Pedja Kovačević & Soundologia   Monday, July 1 · 7–8 PM ET · Zoom Free and open to all.
Registration link in bio.

Pedja Kovačević /Pedja Kovacevic /, founder of Soundologia, discusses Soundologia Anthology Volume 3 — a double-CD release documenting South Florida’s contemporary and experimental music community, spanning acoustic composition, electroacoustic music, live electronics, modular synthesis, field recording, experimental jazz, and immersive sound. In conversation, Kovačević traces the series from initial concept to Volume 3: the curatorial decisions, artist collaborations, and the mission behind the project.

Featuring: Charles Norman Mason - Composer Federico Bonacossa Orlando Jacinto Garcia Jacob Sudol Russ Spiegel Daniel Medina Richard Garet Subtropics Organization José | Spectacle Maker Juraj Kojs Jose Veliz Richard Vergez Eden Grey Rafa Vargas Bernard David Brieske
Plus Dorothy Hindman, and performers including Mari Kimura, Joy Adams, Ksenija Komljenović, Amorsima Trio, and many more.

Design: Dimitry Saïd Chamy

06/27/2026

Soundologia Anthology Volume 3.

Two CDs documenting the full spectrum of South Florida’s contemporary and experimental music community — from acoustic ensembles and sound poetry to modular synthesis, field recording, and algorithmic composition.  
Featuring composers: Charles Norman Mason (Charles Norman Mason - Composer ), Federico Bonacossa (Federico Bonacossa ), Orlando Jacinto Garcia (Orlando Jacinto Garcia ), Daniel Estrada ( ), Dorothy Hindman, Jacob David Sudol (Jacob Sudol ), Russ Spiegel (Russ Spiegel  ), Atomic Theatre (Daniel Medina ), Richard Garet (Richard Garet ), Gustavo Matamoros (Subtropics Organization ), José Hernández Sánchez (José | Spectacle Maker ), Juraj Kojš (Juraj Kojs ), Jose Veliz (Jose Veliz ), Night Foundation (Richard Vergez ), Eden Grey (Eden Grey ), Rafa (Rafa Vargas Bernard ), Fsik Huvnx (David Brieske ).

Performers on Volume 3: Joy Adams, cello, Amorsima Trio, Matt Buckner, drums, Gabriel Beavers, bassoon, Federico Bonacossa, guitar and electronics, Mario Cesar Del Risco, flute, piano, bass, Elliot Courtois, keyboard, Kim Everett Ganong, oboe, Ariele Grace Macadangdang, violin, Tom Kelley, flute, Mari Kimura, violin, Ksenija Komljenović, percussion, Stephen Marotto, cello, Daniel Medina, vocals, drums, Leslie Miller, clarinet, Juan Monroy, acoustic bass, Szilard Molnar, Horn, Joey Rosin, bass clarinet, Kathryn Severing Fox, viola, Steffen Zeichner, violin.

Designed by Dimitry Saïd Chamy – Dimitry Saïd Chamy

🔗 Link in bio.
SoundArt

06/21/2026

New Music Chicago (New Music Chicago ) presented Station 4, an electroacoustic ensemble and a distinctive voice within Chicago’s experimental music scene, blending spoken word, free improvisation, jazz influences, and electronic sound.

In a fluid exchange of genres and musical languages, the performers listen and respond to one another, creating evolving sonic textures shaped by saxophone, guitar, bass, modular synthesizer, and voice. The subtle use of electronics expands the ensemble’s palette, while poetry, spoken word, and occasional rap inflections add another expressive layer to the performance.
At times, several musical ideas unfold simultaneously, creating a dense and dynamic sonic environment that reflects the group’s energy, spontaneity, and commitment to collective expression.
Kao Ra Zen—poet, narrator, vocalist, and performer—brought spoken word to the forefront, weaving literary narratives into the ensemble’s improvisational sound world.

Station 4 features Kao Ra Zen –spoken word (KᗩO ᖇᗩ ᘔEᑎ ✶✶✶✶ 🧿 ), Mark Nagy – tenor and soprano saxophone (Mark Nagy ), Steve Doyle –guitar (Steve Doyle ), Andrew Scott Young – bass (Andrew Scott Young ), and Neil Jendon – modular synthesizer.

KᗩO ᖇᗩ ᘔEᑎ ✶✶✶✶ 🧿
Mark Nagy
Steve Doyle
Andrew Scott Young
New Music Chicago
Experimental Sound Studio

06/14/2026

The male a ca****la choir Constellation Ensemble (Constellation Ensemble ) presented a concert blending different musical traditions and styles through twelve newly commissioned choral works inspired by the zodiac signs. Written primarily in motet-inspired and polyphonic textures using English-language texts, the program reshaped elements of early music while recalling the spirit of composers from Machaut and Ockeghem to Josquin and Janequin, revealing how Renaissance polyphony still sounds remarkably modern and expressive today.

Through antiphonal exchanges between soloists and ensemble passages, as well as dramatic dynamic contrasts ranging from ppp to fff, the concert revealed a rich palette of vocal colors and musical aesthetics across all twelve premieres.

NOVA IX: Zodiac featured twelve world premieres by Adore Alexander (Adore Alexander ), Tabes Bridges (Tabes ), Shane Cook (Shane Scott Cook ), Elliott Encarnación (Elliott James-Ginn Encarnación ), Nyandeng Juag (Nyandeng Juag 🇸🇸 ), Benjamin Martin, Robert McConnell, Zae Munn, Elisa Schmelkes (Elisa Schmelkes ), Ryan Townsend Strand (ℝ𝕪𝕒𝕟 𝕋𝕠𝕨𝕟𝕤𝕖𝕟𝕕 𝕊𝕥𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕕 ), Alissa Voth (Alissa Voth ), and Benjamin Zucker (Ben Zucker ).

Video 1 — Shane Cook: If I Were Lion Video 2 — Nyandeng Juag: All Seems Beautiful

06/14/2026

The male a ca****la choir Constellation Ensemble (Constellation Ensemble) presented a concert blending different musical traditions and styles through twelve newly commissioned choral works inspired by the zodiac signs. Written primarily in motet-inspired and polyphonic textures, the program reshaped elements of early music while recalling the spirit of composers from Machaut and Ockeghem to Josquin and Janequin, revealing how Renaissance polyphony still sounds remarkably modern and expressive today.

Through antiphonal exchanges between soloists and ensemble passages, as well as dramatic dynamic contrasts ranging from ppp to fff, the concert revealed a rich palette of vocal colors and musical aesthetics across all twelve premieres.

NOVA IX: Zodiac featured twelve world premieres by Adore Alexander (Adore Alexander ), Tabes Bridges (Tabes ), Shane Cook (Shane Scott Cook ), Elliott Encarnación (Elliott James-Ginn Encarnación ), Nyandeng Juag (Nyandeng Juag 🇸🇸 ), Benjamin Martin, Robert McConnell, Zae Munn, Elisa Schmelkes (Elisa Schmelkes ), Ryan Townsend Strand (ℝ𝕪𝕒𝕟 𝕋𝕠𝕨𝕟𝕤𝕖𝕟𝕕 𝕊𝕥𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕕 ), Alissa Voth (Alissa Voth ), and Benjamin Zucker (Ben Zucker ).

Video 1 — Shane Cook: If I Were Lion Video 2 — Nyandeng Juag: All Seems Beautiful

06/04/2026

A few years before founding Soundologia, Predrag “Pedja” Kovačević published “Deep Sound Hunting – When Sounds Build Music” in Sound Ambiguity 4 (Karol Lipiński Academy of Music, Wrocław, Poland).

The study explored Pauline Oliveros’s concept of Deep Listening and proposed its application as a framework for musicological analysis and aesthetic interpretation. Through this approach, Kovačević examined how attentive listening transforms sound into music.

The study applied Deep Listening to five diverse musical examples:
• John Cage – Water Walk • Philip Glass – 1+1 • Deep Listening Band – Deep Listening • Jasna Veličković – works for velicon • Volker Bertelmann (Hauschka) – Mount Hood

The publication’s cover featured Jasna Veličković’s innovative instrument, the velicon, which also served as one of the study’s central case studies.

Looking back, many of the ideas explored in this study—experimental music, sound art, listening practices, and interdisciplinary approaches to sound—would later become central to Soundologia’s mission.

The full article is available through the link in our bio.

  

ContemporaryMusic JohnCage PhilipGlass DeepListeningBand VolkerBertelmann Hauschka JasnaVelickovic Musicology SoundStudies

05/28/2026

A few moments from the New Music Chicago concert featuring OLEA Ensemble ( ) at Experimental Sound Studio ( ).

OLEA Ensemble�Kate Kilgus, clarinet�Alayne Honaker, violin�Marissa Kerbel, piano

Program:�Owen Hopper – Wind Blows Lotus Leaves�Christopher Jessup – Voltage�Libby Larsen – Slang�Theresa Martin – Visionary�Jennifer Higdon – DASH

ChicagoMusic
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