PROPOSAL: ADAPTATION OF AN EXISTING WORK FOR THE MISE-EN FESTIVAL 2026

Background of the piece

My work, An Unsound Mind, is a fixed-media piece written for the immersive audio installation Sound Mandala in Kansas City, Missouri. In 2024, this piece received its premiere in the 80-channel installation alongside other fixed media pieces.

Program Notes from 2024:

You are invited to enter the mind of a unique individual whose only sensation of the external world is sound. Together, we will explore Theory of Mind, philosophical paradoxes, sonic multiverses, and an explosion of overactive neurons. What is the key to understanding each other? Step into this experiment and find out. Voiced by Manon Halliburton. Text written and composed by Jon Robertson with additional sound design by Nihan Yesil.

Proposal to adapt An Unsound Mind for MISE-EN Festival 2026

This work is, at its core, a piece of sound theater. This adaptation will expand its performing forces by adding a solo piano. The piano part is alluded to in the text. At the heart of the work lies a recurring sonic image: the recorded voice hears a chord in her head. This chord, constantly transforming, represents the firing of her neurons and the resonances of the harmonic series. It is the through thread, appearing in different figurations, shaping the work’s structure and philosophical arc. The live solo piano, with microphones running through a network of filters, is the missing link in the existing work.

 I would be honored to present this interdisciplinary work at the upcoming festival.

 Technical Notes

This piece is technically scalable: it may be presented in any multichannel setup, depending on the venue's capabilities. While it was originally written for an 80-channel immersive installation, the channel count is not the most important element of the composition.

Please find an excerpt from the original work, recorded with a Neumann KU 100 Dummy Head binaural microphone. Listen with headphones to replicate the immersive installation.