Shawn Pinchbeck

- Biography -

Since 1984, Shawn Pinchbeck has been active as an electroacoustic composer, sound artist, performer, installation artist, teacher, curator, sound engineer, and consultant. His works often incorporate many multimedia elements integrating video, live performers, dance, computer interactivity, and multi-channel sound systems; often in collaboration with other artists. Since the mid-1990's, many of his works have explored various aspects of user/performer interactivity and sound; recently this has centred on works that use software for translating motion to sound.

At first a self-taught composer, later Shawn studied electroacoustics in 1991 at the University of Alberta with Garth Hobden. He received private instruction in rudiments from organist Kirk Kryvenchuk in 1992 and 1993. In 1993 and 1994, he studied computer interactive art with George Lewis, Daniel Schiedt, and Thecla Shiphorst at the "Computed Art Intensive" at Simon Fraser University. In 2004, Shawn acquired a Master of Music degree in electroacoustic composition from the University of Birmingham, UK where he studied with Jonty Harrison and Eric Oña. He has attended two residencies at the Banff Centre: the "Radio Art Residency" spring 1994 and a "Long Term Residency" fall 1995. In 1998 and again in 2000, he attended the Polar Circuit residency/workshop programme at the University of Lapland, Rovaniemi and then Tornio, Finland. In 2000, he was in residence at STEIM (Studio for Electro-Instrumental Music), Amsterdam, Netherlands. In 2001, he was Artist in Residence at the Film and Video Arts Society of Alberta (FAVA), Edmonton, Canada and the Estonian Artist's Association, Tallinn, Estonia. Since 2001, he is a lecturer of sound art courses and faculty advisor on topics to do with sound, sensors and interactivity for Masters of Multimedia students at the Estonian Academy of Arts. He also regularly conducts workshops and lectures in electroacoustics and interactivity at the Estonian Academy of Music.

Shawn has released four independent recordings of electronic music "Wildcats!!" (1987), "Tonepleromas" (1989), "Penetration" (1991) and "Resonance" (1995). He also has appeared on several compilation CD's including "DisContact II" (Canadian Electroacoustic Community, 1995), "Soundland Alberta" (ECCS, 1996), The Final Solstice (Piskidisk, 1999), and Unsound (BEAMS, 2001). He was winner of the 1997 Telus Arts of the Future Award, Alberta Foundation for the Arts grants (1996, 2001, 2004), Canada Council Travel Grants (1998, 2000, 2001, 2004), Edmonton Arts Council Travel Grants (1998, 2000, 2004), and the Edmonton Artists' Trust Fund (2004). His music has been broadcast around the World on various national and community radio stations. He performs regularly and has participated in many events and festivals including: "Perspectives" (Canadian Electroacoustic Community, Montreal, 1991), the Edmonton New Music Festival (1992, 1993, 1994), the International Computer Music Conference (Banff, 1995), the Edmonton Intermedia Arts Festival (1996, 1998), Thin Limits Multimedia Exhibit (Edmonton, 1998), the Send & Receive Festival of Sound (Winnipeg, 1998), the Independent Film and Video Alliance Conference (Edmonton, 2000), Edmonton Symphony Resound Festival of Music (2000), The Edmonton Works Festival (2001, 2003, 2004), Interstanding (Art Museum of Estonia, Tallinn, 2001), BEAST 20/20 Festival (Birmingham, UK, 2003) ), the International Symposium of Electronic Art (Tallinn, Estonia, 2004), the Anorg Electronic Music Festival (Zurich, Switzerland, 2004). His music has appeared in several films most recently in the internationally acclaimed documentary "The Corporation". Shawn is a founding member of the Boreal Electroacoustic Music Society (BEAMS) and has sat as its President for 12 years. Under the BEAMS name, he curates and produces a regular concert season of electroacoustic music, sound art and computer interactive works in Edmonton, Canada.