Aleksander Kolkowski

Aleksander Kolkowski is a composer, violinist, sound artist and researcher born and based in London. In a career spanning more than 30 years as a professional musician, he has appeared at major festivals worldwide and recorded for numerous record labels with various ensembles, bands and as a solo performer.

Over the past 12 years he has explored the potential of historical sound recording and reproduction technology, combining horned violins, gramophones and wax cylinder phonographs, to make contemporary mechanical-acoustic music. This work has been shown across Europe and in the USA, and broadcast by the BBC, WDR, Deutschlandradio and others.

In 2002 while resident in Berlin, Aleks founded Recording Angels, a project that examines our relationship to recorded sound using phonographs and acetate record cutters in performances, installations and workshops. Large-scale works have been commissioned by MaerzMusik – Berlin, Sonic Arts Network and the BFI South Bank.

He is an AHRC award holder and is currently completing a PhD at Brunel University, London, combining practice-based and organological research into early forms of mechanical amplification.

Aleks has recently been appointed as the London Science Museum’s sound artist-in-residence for 2012.

Links

• http://www.phonographies.org/about/aleks-kolkowski/
• http://soundcloud.com/phonographies
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksander_Kolkowski