Max Eastley (born 1 December 1944,

Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignton ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

, England) is a British

visual The visual system comprises the sensory organ (the eye) and parts of the central nervous system (the retina containing photoreceptor cells, the optic nerve, the optic tract and the visual cortex) which gives organisms the sense of sight (the ...

and

sound art Sound art is an artistic activity in which sound is utilized as a primary medium or material. Like many genres of contemporary art, sound art may be interdisciplinary in nature, or be used in hybrid forms. According to Brandon LaBelle, sound art ...

ist. He is part of the Cape Farewell Climate Change project. He studied painting and graphic art at Newton Abbot Art School and then went on to gain a BA in Fine Art (1969–1972) at Middlesex University (formerly

Hornsey School of Art Hornsey College of Art (a.k.a. Hornsey School of Art) was a college in Crouch End in the London Borough of Haringey, England. The HCA was "an iconic British art institution, renowned for its experimental and progressive approach to art and design ...

). He is a sculptor (

kinetic Kinetic (Ancient Greek: κίνησις “kinesis”, movement or to move) may refer to: * Kinetic theory of gases, Kinetic theory, describing a gas as particles in random motion * Kinetic energy, the energy of an object that it possesses due to i ...

), musician and composer. His primary instrument is a unique electro-acoustic monochord, developed from an aeolian sculpture. 'The Arc' consists of a single string stretched lengthwise across a long piece of wood (around ten feet) which can be played with a bow, fingers or short glass rods. The end of the instrument has a microphone attached so the basic sound can be amplified, recorded and run through sound effect programs. Eastley has collaborated with many different artists and musicians on performances, installations and recordings including:

David Toop David Toop (born 5 May 1949) is an English musician, author, curator, and Emeritus Professor. From 2013 to 2021 he was professor of audio culture and improvisation at the London College of Communication. He was a regular contributor to British m ...

Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...

Paul Burwell Paul Dean Burwell (24 April 1949 – 4 February 2007) was a British thaumaturge and percussionist, influential in the fields of free improvisation and experimental art. Born in Ruislip, he studied at Ealing Art College and in the workshops organi ...

, Victor Gama, Hugh Davies,

Steve Beresford Steve Beresford (born 6 March 1950) is a British musician who graduated from the University of York He has played a variety of instruments, including piano, electronics, trumpet, euphonium, bass guitar and a wide variety of toy instruments, such ...

Peter Greenaway Peter Greenaway, (born 5 April 1942) is a Welsh film director, screenwriter and artist. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular. Common traits in his films are the ...

, Dave Hunt, David Buckland,

Evan Parker Evan Shaw Parker (born 5 April 1944) is a British tenor and soprano saxophone player who plays free improvisation. Recording and performing prolifically with many collaborators, Parker was a pivotal figure in the development of European free ja ...

, Peter Cusack, Spaceheads. From 2001–2002, Eastley was a

visiting fellow In academia, a visiting scholar, visiting researcher, visiting fellow, visiting lecturer, or visiting professor is a scholar from an institution who visits a host university to teach, lecture, or perform research on a topic for which the visitor ...

at John Moores University Liverpool and is currently (2010 onwards) an AHRC research fellow at

Oxford Brookes University Oxford Brookes University (formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic (United Kingdom), Polytechnic) is a public university, public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and High ...

researching Aeolian phenomena. On 17 May 1989, Eastley was awarded a prize in the 'Learning Spaces Category' of the working in the City European Communities Architectural Ideas Competition (University College Dublin).

Selected discography

Eastley has worked across a variety of genres including: improvised and experimental music; folk music; popular song; jazz; compositions using environmental recordings as well as musical resources. He has also composed music for film and dance. Eastley was part of the group 'The 49 Americans', who played together for a period during the 1980s and produced several albums together. *'New and Rediscovered Musical Instruments' with

, produced by

(

Obscure Obscure may refer to: *Heraclitus of Ephesus was called " The Obscure" * ''Obscure'' (video game), a 2004 survival horror game *Obscure (band), a Bangladeshi pop rock band *Obscure Records, a 1975–1978 UK label founded by Brian Eno *"Obscure ...

) – 1975 *'Circadian Rhythm' with

, Hugh Davies,

Paul Lovens Paul Lovens (born 6 June 1949) is a German musician. He plays drums, percussion, singing saw, and cymbals. He has performed with the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra and Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra. He was born in Aachen, Germany. In the early ...

Paul Lytton Paul Lytton (born 8 March 1947, London) is an English free jazz and free improvising percussionist. Lytton began on drums at age 16. He played jazz in London in the late 1960s while taking lessons on the tabla from P.R. Desai. In 1969 he began ...

Annabel Nicolson Annabel or Annabelle may refer to: Arts and media * ''Annabel'' (Baum novel), a 1906 novel by L. Frank Baum * ''Annabel'' (Winter novel), a 2010 novel by Kathleen Winter * "Annabel", a song by Maria Dimitriadi from the film ''Girls in the Sun' ...

and

(

Incus Records Incus Records is a British record company and label founded by Derek Bailey, Tony Oxley, Evan Parker and Michael Walters that specializes in free jazz and improvised music. The first release on the label was Incus Number 0 (zero), a 7 “ re ...

) – 1978 *'Whirled Music' with

and

(Quartz) – 1980 *'My Heart's in Motion' (Nato) – 1985 *'At Close Quarters' Various artists (These Records) – 1993 *'Buried Dreams' with

(Beyond) – 1994 *'

Isolationism Isolationism is a political philosophy advocating a national foreign policy that opposes involvement in the political affairs, and especially the wars, of other countries. Thus, isolationism fundamentally advocates neutrality and opposes entang ...

' Various artists (Virgin) – 1994 *'Day for Night' with Peter Cusack – 2001 *'The Time of the Ancient Astronaut' with the Spaceheads (Bip Hop) – 2001 *'Doll Creature' with

(Bip Hop) – 2004 *'Hydrophony for Dagon' with

Michael Prime Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

(Absurd) – 2006 *'Songs of Transformation' with

Martyn Bates Martyn Bates (born 1960) is an English singer, musician and songwriter. Bates grew up listening to English folk music before as a teenager becoming excited by punk, getting involved in the more diverse and experimental post-punk scene. After rele ...

(Musica Maxima Magnetica) – 2007 *'ARCTIC' produced by David Buckland/ Cape Farewell – 2007 *'A Very Long Way from Anywhere Else' with the Spaceheads (Bip Hop) – 2007 *'A Life Saved by a Spider and Two Doves' with Graham Halliwell,

and

Mark Wastell Mark Wastell (born Orsett, 1968) is an English free improvisation musician who plays cello, double bass, electronics, tam tam and percussion. He performs solo and in various group and collaborative situations, notably IST (with Simon H. Fell and ...

(Another Timbre) – 2008 *'Dark Architecture' (Another Timbre) – 2009 *'Max Eastley Installation Recordings 1973–2008'

Selected performances

Eastley has performed as a solo musician and in many combinations with other artists. He has worked on stage with his installations and with film and has created and performed in musical/theatrical performances such as: 'Whirled Music'. *Ars Electronica, 1990 – Performance of Whirled Music *Xebec Hall, 1993 – Duo played with

using invented experimental instruments *

Purcell Room The Purcell Room is a concert and performance venue which forms part of the Southbank Centre, one of central London's leading cultural complexes. It is named after the 17th century England, English composer Henry Purcell and has 370 seats. The Pu ...

, South Bank, 1995 – Duo with

*Museum of Modern Art, Berne, Switzerland, 1996 – Duo with

Impakt Festival The Impakt Festival is a yearly manifestation on media art, founded in 1988 in the city of Utrecht, Netherlands. It showcases films, video art, performances, music, conferences and other special events with works from international artists. Deal ...

, Utrecht, Holland, 1996 – Solo performance * ICA London, 1997 – Quartet with

Thomas Koner Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

, Peter Cusack and Alquima *Lanzarote Music and Visual Art Festival, 1998 – Trio with

and

Pete Lockett Pete Lockett is an English percussionist and recording artist. Lockett is known as a versatile and prolific percussionist, collaborating with many artists. He is well-versed in percussion traditions from music cultures around the world, from tradit ...

* Volksbühne Theatre, Berlin, 1999 – Duo with

*Mimi Festival, Marseille, 2002 – Performance with The Spaceheads *Xtract Sculpture Musicale, Podewil, Berlin, 2003 – Duo with

Paradiso Amsterdam Paradiso is a Dutch music venue and cultural centre located in Amsterdam. History It is housed in a converted former church building that dates from the nineteenth century and that was used until 1965 as the meeting hall for a liberal Dutch ...

, 2003 – Solo performance * ICA London, 2003 – Duo with

Victor Gama The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * Victor (1951 film), ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * Victor (1993 film), ...

*Atlantic Waves, 2006 – Quartet with

Asmus Tietchens Asmus Tietchens (born 3 February 1947, in Hamburg), who also records under the monikers Hematic Sunsets and Club of Rome, is a German composer of avant-garde music. Tietchens became interested in experimental music and musique concrète as a chi ...

and

at The BarbicanAtlantic waves 2006 on Gulbenkian.org.uk
*ARCTIC at the

Hamburg Planetarium Hamburg Planetarium is one of the world's oldest, and one of Europe's most visited planetariums. It is located in the district of Winterhude, Hamburg, Germany, and housed in a former water tower at the center of Hamburg Stadtpark. History Pl ...

, 2007 – Film installation by David Buckland, music by Max Eastley *'Sprawl', Various locations, 2007 – Tour with

playing Amsterdam, London, Bristol and Berlin *Signal Festival, Sardinia, 2007 – Solo performance * Millennium Park Chicago, 2007 – Solo performance by Max (for Cape Farewell) with film by David Buckland *Fete Quaqua Festival of Improvised Music,

The Vortex ''The Vortex'' is a play in three acts by the English writer and actor Noël Coward. The play depicts the sexual vanity of a rich, ageing beauty, her troubled relationship with her adult son, and drug abuse in British society circles after the ...

, London, 2008 – Improvised performance with various artists *Le Weekend Sterlings No Limit Music Festival, 2008 – Quartet with

Marc Wastell Marc or MARC may refer to: People * Marc (given name), people with the first name * Marc (surname), people with the family name Acronyms * MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging, * MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system o ...

, Graham Halliwell,

*Rays Jazz, London, 2008 – Trio with

Nancy Ruffer Nancy may refer to: Places France * Nancy, France, a city in the northeastern French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle and formerly the capital of the duchy of Lorraine ** Arrondissement of Nancy, surrounding and including the city of Nancy ...

and

Lol Coxhill George Lowen Coxhill (19 September 1932 – 10 July 2012) known professionally as Lol Coxhill, was an English free improvising saxophonist. He played soprano and sopranino saxophone. Biography Coxhill was born to George Compton Coxhill ...

*Late at the Tate,

Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...

, London, 2009 – Performance for Cape Farewell with

Robyn Hitchcock Robyn Rowan Hitchcock (born 3 March 1953) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. While primarily a vocalist and guitarist, he also plays harmonica, piano, and bass guitar. After leading the Soft Boys in the late 1970s and releasing the ...

, K.T. Tunstall and

Shlomo Shlomo (, Polish: Szlomo, Szlama, Szlamek, Szloma), meaning "peaceable", is a common Hebrew male given name. The following individuals are often referred to only by the name Shlomo: * Solomon, king of ancient Israel, according to various religio ...

*Nuemusic Und Kunste Festival, Darmstadt, Germany, 2009 – Trio with

Volker Staub Volker may refer to: * Volker (name), including a list of people with the given name or surname * Volker, Kansas City, a historic neighborhood in Kansas City * Volker Boulevard, Kansas City * ''Alien Nations'' (German: ''Die Völker''), a real-t ...

and Michael Weilacher *Nobel Laureate Symposium,

Science Museum A science museum is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, industry and industrial machinery, etc. Modern trends in mu ...

, London, 2009 – Solo performance * Pestival Festival,

Queen Elizabeth Hall The Queen Elizabeth Hall (QEH) is a music venue on the South Bank in London, England, that hosts classical, jazz, and avant-garde music, talks and dance performances. It was opened in 1967, with a concert conducted by Benjamin Britten. The ...

, South Bank, London, 2009 – With

and various artists *Cape Farewell at

Rome Film Festival International Rome Film Fest is a film festival that takes place in Rome during the month of October. The name in Italian is Festa del Cinema di Roma. Sections The Rome Film Festival official program is divided into several sections: Cinema d'Og ...

, 2009 – Duo with

Jarvis Cocker Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963) is an English musician and radio presenter. As the founder, frontman, lyricist and only consistent member of the band Pulp, he became a figurehead of the Britpop genre of the mid-1990s. Following P ...

The Spinning Top ''The Spinning Top'' is the seventh studio album by Blur guitarist Graham Coxon on new record label Transgressive Records. The album is produced by Stephen Street and was released on 11 May 2009. It was Coxon's first album since '' Crow Sit o ...

at The Barbican, London, 2009 – Performance with

Graham Coxon Graham Leslie Coxon (born 12 March 1969) is an English musician, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and painter who came to prominence as a founding member of the rock band Blur. As the group's lead guitarist and secondary vocalist, Cox ...

Martin Carthy Martin Carthy MBE (born 21 May 1941) is an English folk singer and guitarist who has remained one of the most influential figures in British traditional music, inspiring contemporaries such as Bob Dylan and Paul Simon, and later artists such as ...

and Natasha Marsh

Selected installations and exhibitions

Eastley has done a wide variety of installations worldwide, many of which use moving parts (motors, pulleys etc.) to create ambient soundscapes while engaging the observer visually. Many recordings of the below installations appear on the CD: 'Max Eastley Installation Recordings 1973–2008' *

Serpentine Gallery The Serpentine Galleries are two contemporary art galleries in Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, Central London. Recently rebranded to just Serpentine, the organisation is split across Serpentine South, previously known as the Serpentine Gallery, ...

, 1976 *

Ikon Gallery The Ikon Gallery () is an English gallery of contemporary art, located in Brindleyplace, Birmingham. It is housed in the Grade II listed, neo-gothic former Oozells Street Board School, designed by John Henry Chamberlain in 1877. Ikon was set u ...

, Birmingham 1979 *

Arnolfini gallery Arnolfini is an international arts centre and gallery in Bristol, England. It has a programme of contemporary art exhibitions, artist's performance, music and dance events, poetry and book readings, talks, lectures and cinema. There is also a ...

, Bristol 1980 *Apollo House, Eindhoven, Holland 1980 *A Noise in Your Eye (touring exhibition),

, the Barbican 1986 *Artec Biennale, Ngoya, Japan 1993 *Ireland and Europe Sculpture Event, Iveagh Gardens, Dublin 1997 *Sculpture in Woodland, County Wicklow, Ireland 1999 * The Big Chill Festival, 2000 * ICC Centre, Japan 2000 *Festival de Arte Sonoro, Mexico 2002 *Interior Landscape,Eastley's installation at a Hindu Temple in Reading 2003
Reading Hindu Temple and Community Association 2003 *European Capital of Culture, Cork, Ireland
*Kinetic Drawings, Metropole Gallery, Folkestone UK, 2008

Installations for Cape Farewell

Eastley collaborated with sound engineer Dave Hunt to develop an innovative computer-controlled amplification system for these installations. Eastley has been part of the Cape Farewell project since 2005 and has been on three trips to Spitsbergen with the organisation. Sound clip of bearded seals *Ice Garden ( Cape Farewell Climate Change), Oxford 2005 *Eden Project, 2009 The following installations were part of a touring exhibition: * Natural History Museum, London, Natural History Museum, London, 2006 *

Liverpool Biennial Liverpool Biennial is the largest international contemporary art festival in the United Kingdom. Every two years, the city of Liverpool hosts an extensive range of artworks, projects, and a programme of events. The biennial commissions leading ...

, 2006 *Kampnagel Cultural Centre, Hamburg, 2007 *Madrid, 2008

Publications featured in

Eastley has appeared in several publications since the 1970s, including: *'Sonourgy',
published b
Exeter College of Art
1974 *'New and Rediscovered Musical Instruments', published by Quartz 1975 *'Echo: The Images of Sound', published b

1987 *' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Grove's Dictionary of Music', *'Experimental Musical Instruments Vol. V #2' 1989
Bijutsu Techo
No.678 Vol.45, 1994

, published by Errant Bodies 1999 *'ICC Catalogue Magazine', Tokyo, 28 January 2000 Issue *'Leonardo Music Journal' 2001

(Cape Farewell catalogue) 2006 *'The Fundamentals of Sonic Art and Sound Design', published by AVA Academia 2007 *'Klangräume der Kunst', 2010
'The Wire Magazine'
Issue No. 265 March 2006, Issue No. 291 May 2008

Film, radio and dance

Film

*'Water Wrackets', film by

, music by Max Eastley – 1978 *'Clocks of the Midnight Hours', the work of Max Eastley directed by Simon Reynell, Channel 4 TV/Arts Council Great Britain – 1989 *'Art from a Changing Arctic', Produced by Cape Farewell, directed by

David Hinton David Hinton is an American poet, and translator who specializes in Chinese literature and poetry. Life He studied Chinese at Cornell University, and in Taiwan. He lives in East Calais, Vermont. Awards * 1997 Academy of American Poets Harold Mo ...

– 2005 *'Kinetic Drawings', Film by

Helen Petts Helen may refer to: People * Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world * Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress * Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Places * Helen, G ...

of the exhibition at the Metropole Gallery,

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a port town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour and shipping port for most of the 19th and 20t ...

– 2008 *'Piper of Invisible Fires', Film by

and Max Eastley at Dilston Grove, London – 2010

Radio

Jarvis Cocker's Sunday Service
Interview on Radio 6 – 2010
Late Junction on BBC Radio 3

Fiona Talkington Fiona Talkington is a broadcaster, writer, presenter, and curator best known in the UK for her work on BBC Radio 3 where she has been a presenter since 1989. She is best known today as a founding presenter (1999) of the Sony Gold Award-winning pro ...

featuring Max Eastley's installations, ''

Late Junction ''Late Junction'' is a music programme broadcast weekly on Friday nights by BBC Radio 3. Billed as "Experimental music for adventurous listeners.", the programme has a wide musical scope. It is not uncommon to hear medieval ballads juxtaposed wit ...

'' on Radio 3 – 2010 *Various programs o
Resonance FM

Dance

Eastley composed music for the Siobhan Davies Production: 'Plants and Ghosts' in 2002.

References

Reviews

Review on the BBC of 'Doll Creature'Review on Intuitive Music website of 'Doll Creature'Review on Boomkat of 'A Very Long Way From Anywhere Else'Description and reviews on Discogs of 'Time of the Ancient Astronaut'
with Graham Halliwell, Evan Parker and Mark Wastell on Another Timbre website

with Rhodri Davies on Another Timbre website

on the Paradigm Discs website

External links

Max Eastley
Max Eastley's Discogs profile
The Wire: Adventures in Modern Music: Article
Gallery of Max Eastley's work on The Wire magazine website {{DEFAULTSORT:Eastley, Max 1944 births Musicians from Torquay Living people British experimental musicians Incus Records artists Artists from Torquay