PRESS
Randolf Arriola
One Voice/One Guitar/Live Looping
Composer, Singer Songwriter, Acoustic, Electric & Synthesizer Guitarist,
Producer/Engineer
Randolf Arriola is a singer-songwriter and guitarist born and raised in Singapore. He specializes in a unique creative method and form of performance called Live-Looping where no prerecorded audio materials are used and all sounds are created in real time generated with voice or guitar which are captured live to create audio loops that are then layered and processed to create ensemble sounding like musical compositions and improvisations.
Randolf
Arriola was born and raised in Singapore. He is a self taught full time
musician of over 20 years professional experience. Over the years he developed
his musical craft and gained a reputation as being one of the most versatile
and creative guitarist possessing a rare and sophisticated combination
of instrumental prowess and versatility, harmonic knowledge, electronics,
sound engineering and fearless creativity always with the motivation and
a keen ear for hearing and creating music that moves any listener musician
or otherwise, young or old.
He
is active and widely regarded in entertainment, production, education
and art circles by listeners and his musical peers both locally and abroad
and gained a new distinction most recently in October 2010 where he is
now considered among the finest solo live looping artists in the world
when he performed as one of four headliners among a total of 75 artists
from around the world who gathered in North California USA to play Y2K10
International Live Looping Festival held over a week with shows throughout
Santa Cruz, San Francisco and San Jose.
The
USA Y2K Loopfests are the biggest and the mother of all other Loopfest
around the world. Randolf was one of only 3 Asians at this loopfest, the
other 2 artists being from Japan. This was Randolf's second time performing
in USA and his performance was greeted with a standing ovation after which
he was officially awarded the Key to the City and the City's Proclamation
from the Mayor of Santa Cruz.
In
early October 2010 Randolf performed 2 shows at Esplanade Concourse debuting
the first ever public performance of his invention of attaching an iPhone
onto his Klein Electric guitar with his own custom made electronics circuitry
which allows the musician never before creative choices to play either
or both the Guitar and the iPhone as an extended other instrument or onboard
sound processor in a musical and ergonomic way. The instrument was also
met with unanimous approval and curiosity at the Y2KX Loop Fest in USA.
Randolf's music is the sound of moods formed like a fabric of the familiar and obscure, simple to complex, minimal to dense all interweaved with his own creative intentions and interactions with the ambience of the moment to and from the listener. A veteran live performer of over 20 years he has been a regular artist holding residence with Singapore's reknown Harry's for the past 6 years. He currently performs his solo live looping shows every Thrs, Fri and Sat nights at the lush location of Harry's at Dempsey Hill.
Y2KX International Live Looping Festival 2010 (Santa Cruz, San Francisco, San Jose USA) http://www.y2kloopfest.com/
Local Press Coverage
Today
Paper May 2010
Straits
Times Life Section Nov 2010
Bangkok Post (Tech) Technology in harmony (coverage of Dell Access event in Singapore)
http://www.bangkokpost.com/tech/gadget/247703/technology-in-harmony
Always at the IT forefront, Dell is now moving forward with a combination of technology and design on its mobile gadgets. The company's gadgets have received a warm welcome not only from businesses and consumers, but from professional artists and freelancers who have found ways to extend their function using various applications.
The company recently launched its "Dell Access" programme at a small gallery, Art Trove, in Singapore. The showcase event was attended by a street artist and a guitarist, who demonstrated how their jobs can be served by technology.
Randolf Arriola, a singer and innovative guitarist, has long been fascinating audiences with his solo "live looping" performances.
Live looping is a unique creative method and form of performance where no prerecorded audio materials are used and all sounds are created in real time.
"Live looping is creating sound and creating compositional layers on the spot," he said. "Absolutely no sound material is used. It allows you to record layers upon layers upon layers, where eventually it's a sound."
Constantly exploring new sounds, Arriola has developed a contraption that involves a modified speaker stand and basically allows the guitar to connect to the gadget.
With his own custom-made Dell Streak mini tablet mount/holder interface for his Klein electric guitar, the guitarist can transmit wirelessly. The gadget functions as an extended instrument using various music apps as well as onboard switchable effects and an amp simulator.
Arriola has been tweaking the interface to overcome problems of trying to accommodate the vastly different output levels and impedances between active and passive electric guitar pickups.
Sonic meditation set to take off
http://www.bangkokpost.com/lifestyle/family/252336/sonic-meditation-set-to-take-off
Imagine sitting in meditation at sunset, with
original and improvised music leading towards calmness of the mind and
body. Well, this is part of the "Sota-Sati: Mindfulness with Sound"
series.
Noted loop music artist Randolf Arriola will perform with fellow-looper and equipment designer Gary Hall in Bangkok during two separate appearances at the Buddhadasa Indapanno Archives (BIA) near Chatuchak weekend market on Aug 22 from 6 to 7pm, and at the Jazz Happens Bar on Phra Arthit Road in the Khao San area on Aug 23 from 9 to 11pm.
Randolf is Southeast Asia's leading exponent of live looping and has performed in Europe and North America apart from his native Singapore.
Hall is composer/performer and one of the original developers of the live-looping technique, working with Lexicon, Inc in the early 1980s to create some of the first stand-alone devices for live looping.
He now lives in Hua Hin and leads the "Sata-Sati: Mindfulness with Sound" series of performances and workshops at the Buddhadasa Indapanno Archive.
Hall creates music for contemplation and meditation using voice, keyboards, laptop and iPad running various applications.
His focus is live performance. He collaborates with other artists around the world through SoundCloud, NinJam and other music and video networks.
Currently, Hall conducts a public "sonic meditation" session at sundown on the first and third Monday of each month at the BIA (Suan Mokh Bangkok), a sprawling new Buddhist centre in the capital.
The BIA was originally conceived as a repository of the copious writings and audio/video recordings of Buddhadasa Indapanno, aka Buddhadasa Bhikku, one of the foremost thinkers and teachers in 20th-century Thailand. These priceless paper and magnetic documents were previously stored in Buddhadasa Bhikku's original monastery at Suan Mokh in south Thailand.
As it became evident that the materials could not survive the wet tropical climate, it was decided to create a modern climate-controlled archive with up-to-date storage and retrieval systems for the benefit of researchers.
As plans and fund-raising for the archive proceeded, the project took on a more ambitious form, the aim now to create a world-class facility for public use, as a space for instruction, arts, meetings, and settling of the mind. The finished project includes, in addition to the archive and research rooms, a bookstore, several open and protected public plazas, and multiple rooms for meetings and formal meditation sessions. Already the BIA has played host to many dhamma sessions and public events.
Hua Hin Artists Wow Bangkok - 31 Aug 2011
http://huahinartsguide.com/2011/08/31/hua-hin-artists-wow-bangkok/
Hua Hin’s Gary Hall has finished a whirlwind tour with Randolf Arriola. The pair’s innovative ‘live looping’ music was very warmly received.
“We accomplished two important goals.” says Hall. “We introduced audiences and musicians to Live Looping, an amazing way to perform and compose, and we promoted the idea of Mindfulness with Sound, or ‘Sota-sati’ for mental self-training.”
The tour started at the Buddhadasa Indapanno Archives (BiA) , where each of three performances was configured to highlight a different instrumentation and musical approach.
“The BiA is a startlingly beautiful place in one of Bangkok’s hidden garden spots.” says Singaporean Arriola. “Its mission is the promotion of human well-being. To be catalyst for each listener’s emotional, physical, and spiritual experience is my aim. Playing for dedicated meditators focusing on our sound moment-to-moment was a remarkable experience.”
Arriola and Hall finished their tour with a packed-room performance at Jazz Happens Bar in the Phra Arthit arts district. “Jazz Happens is currently the city’s top venue for creative and original music in all genres.” says Hall. ” We got an overwhelmingly enthusiastic response.”
Future projects include performance tours in the ASEAN (Southeast Asian) region. Says Hall “The practice of focused listening that we call Mindfulness with Sound or Sota-Sati (Pali) is a method of mental training that anyone can apply to enhance daily life. In this case, we worked with a Buddhist institution, but the technique can benefit every person.”
Warm thanks are extended to the Buddhadasa Indapanno Archive, Jazz Happens Bar, and Dell Computer Southeast Asia for support that made this lightning tour possible.
Randolf Arriola is a composer, performer, and SE Asia’s
leading exponent of live looping as a musical technique. His first CD/DVD
will be released in October 2011, with a gala concert at Singapore’s state-of-the-art
Esplanade performing arts center.
Audio: http://soundcloud.com/randolf-arriola.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/user/randolfarriola.
Facebook: Randolf Arriola
Gary Hall is a musician and inventor from USA. At Lexicon, Inc in the
early ’80s, he created some of the very first digital audio ‘looping’
hardware. His current focus is the use of sound and music in mental training,
performing original music weekly in Bangkok and Hua Hin.
Audio: http://soundcloud.com/hua-hin-sound-cloud.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LD0hGLHqbbw.
Facebook: Gary Hall