Ernie Althoff is an Australian musician, composer, instrument builder, and visual artist. He was born in
Mildura
Mildura is a regional city in north-west Victoria, Australia. Located on the Victorian side of the Murray River, Mildura had a population of 34,565 in 2021. When nearby Wentworth, Irymple, Nichols Point and Merbein are included, the area had ...
,
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
in 1950.
Career
He was involved in the Clifton Hill Community Music Centre during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Althoff began exhibiting his ''music machines'' instruments in 1981, though his larger installation exhibits began in 1988.
Althoff has made graphic scores for other musicians to play his instruments, which often sound different each time they are 'played'.
Besides numerous tracks on compilations since the late 1970s, Althoff has released three full-length solo albums. Althoff's ''For two on blue'' piece was recorded live on 23 September 1987 at the
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
's Broadcast Music Department and on 24 November 1987 was aired on ABC-FM's ''Audio Spectrum'' program.
Althoff's 1999 ''Heliosonics'' album is a collection of sounds from solar powered machines.
The making of this album was supported by The Australia Council's New Media Arts Fund.
Warren Burt
Warren Burt (born 10 October 1949) is an Australia-based composer of American birth. He is known for composing in a wide variety of new music styles, ranging from acoustic music, electroacoustic music, sound art installations, and text-based m ...
wrote in his Chroma review of the album, ''Ernie is out there with the real thing, the unpredictability of physical systems and the real world, making a music that is both intricate and complex, and yet open and calming as well.''
Larry Wendt, in his article in Continuum Journal in 1994, described Althoff as a 'sonic nomad' for being a modern composer who works with both electrical based instruments and acoustic instruments and wrote that 'he has had an active career as a sonic "explorer" and performer since 1978'.
Gail Priest, in her 2006 ''
RealTime
''RealTime'', also known as ''RealTime Arts'', was a free Australian arts magazine, published by Open City in print from 1994 until 2015 and online from 1996 to December 2017.
History
The free national arts magazine ''RealTime'', also known as ...
'' review of his performance at the Mistral installation at
Artspace Artspace may refer to:
* Artspace (website), an online marketplace based in New York City
* Artspace, New Haven, an art gallery in downtown New Haven, Connecticut
* Artspace Mackay, Mackay, Queensland, Australia
* Artspace NZ, a visual arts cent ...
, described Ernie Althoff's process as, 'Althoff's materials are basic: wood, metal, glass, plastic. He creates relations between the materials setting them in motion either through his own actions or in the use of small motors in order to create a shifting sonic percussive landscape underpinned by a humming drone.
Discography
* ''Kerosene Replaced by Gas'' ''Freeform Vocal Trio for Handheld Instruments'' (I.D.A), New Music 1978/79, Innocent Records
NON 007 (1980)
* ''Metal Motor Music'' Art Network Music Supplement, issue 6, Flexi Disc
AN 001 (1982)
* ''Music Machines'' NMATAPES 2, NMA Publications, Melbourne (1983)
* ''Divide by 4? No, Divide by 3'' (I.D.A), Composing for Radio, Public Broadcasting Association of Australia, (cassette) (1983)
* ''The Way I See It / You've Got the Option'' C60 Cassette, NMA Publications (1985)
* ''Any Questions?'' NMATAPES 5, NMA Publications (1987)
* ''Music Machines'' From the Pages of Experimental Musical Instruments vol 2, Experimental Musical Instruments, Nicasio, California (1987)
* ''Tea party'', ''Currawong bush park installation'' and ''In the corner'', Sound in space (CD),
Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney
The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA), located on George Street in Sydney's The Rocks neighbourhood, is solely dedicated to exhibiting, interpreting, and collecting contemporary art, from across Australia and around the world. It is ...
(1995)
* ''Best intentions'' (E.Althoff and G. Davis), Frog Peak collaborative project (CDx2)
Frog Peak Music Frog Peak Music is a composer's collective that produces and distributes experimental works, and functions as a home for its artists. It was co-founded in 1984 by Jody Diamond and Larry Polansky.
"Frog Peak Music is dedicated to exploring innovati ...
, U.S.A. (1998)
* ''Heliosonics'' NMA Publications
NMACD 9904 (1999)
* ''Music For Seven Metal Machines'' Pedestrian Tapes
PX 037 (March 1990)
* ''For Two on Blue'' NMA, cassette (1990)
* ''David and Frederick'' (Track 6), ''Soundcapsule 1'' Realtime Arts (2009)
References
Further reading
Ernie Althoff biofrom John Jenkins, 22 Contemporary Australian Composers
Audio-interview with Ernie AlthoffOn the Clifton Hill Community Music Centre Tapes website
*
Barkl, Michael. 1997. Ernie Althoff. ''The Oxford Companion to Australian Music'' (ed.
Warren Bebbington
Warren Arthur Bebbington (born 25 April 1952) was the 20th Vice Chancellor of the University of Adelaide. He was previously the Deputy Vice Chancellor (University Affairs) at the University of Melbourne. He commenced his position at the University ...
). Melbourne: OUP.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Althoff, Ernie
Australian male composers
Australian composers
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
Australian artists
Australian musical instrument makers
Australian musicians