Cameron Bobro with guests: Bethel, California

Presentation of the work on Thursday, 29 December 2016, at 20.00, in MMC KIBLA, Maribor

Cameron Bobro with guests: Bethel, California

Bethel, California is a little shithole one-horse town located in the Mojave desert about halfway between Willow Springs and Sunnydale. Some might protest that Willow Springs is a ghost town and Sunnydale is a fictional town full of vampires and demons, but that is to miss the point that California has always been a fictional place- it even gets its name from the fictional amazon queen Califia, a character in a popular fantasy book at the time the Spanish conquistadores “discovered” what is now called California. So, Bethel is as “real” as any other town in California and I hope you enjoy your brief stay here! Do come back again sometime, and tell your friends about our fine tourist offers, excellent Southwestern cuisine, and clean restrooms!
– Cameron Bobro
Maribor, Slovenia, 2016

“Bethel, California” was performed using acoustic instruments (voice, cura saz, slide phin, clarinet, flutes and percussion by Cameron Bobro; oud and cümbüş, Peter Tomaž Dobrila; additional vocals on The Sunlight's Arms by Živan Bobro, aged 10) and the Csound direct digital synthesis programming language (programming by Cameron Bobro). Album mastered by Marko Gutman.

The music is tuned to the tunings of the great Islamic musician, philosopher, healer Abū ʿAlī al-Husayn ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Al-Hasan ibn Ali ibn Sīnā (980–1037). The album was recorded in the Kibela Space for art of KIBLA multimedia art institution, Maribor, Slovenia. Lots of multitracking and even more trips to Kibla's KiBar bar!

Kindly invited. Free entrance.

Publisher:
Association for Contemporary Art X-OP, 2016
Co-producers:
Association for Culture and Education KIBLA
Association for Art and Audio-Visual Production KODA MODRO
Supported by: Municipality of Maribor

Info: Peter-Tomaz.Dobrila@x-op.eu

Cameron Bobro is musician and cultural producer. Born 4 May, 1967, Santa Barbara, California, USA. Lives in Maribor, Slovenia. Studied classical voice (basso profondo) with Mag. Lura Dolas, 1991–1995, (Santa Barbara), Prof. Bard Suverkrop 1994–1996, Wolfgang Mueller-Lorenz 1998–1999 (Graz, Austria). Pilsbury prize scholarship for classical voice, 1995. Studied composition with Dr. John Clark, (Santa Barbara), ethnomusicology with Lou Harrison, classical guitar with Guy Cantwell. Studied audio technology with Dave Gibson (Capitola, California). US Army Civil Affairs Specialist (1990, JFK Special Warfare Center, NC), national finalist in the Slovenian short fiction competition (Postojna, 2007).
Sang traditional Chinese and Slovene songs and composed harpsichord music for the Hallerstein project in Braga, Portugal (November 2008). Composed and performed music, vocal and electronic, for the Hallerstein project, performed in Peking, China (2008), Slovenia (2009), live vocal performances for project Hallerstein in Nantong, China, and Maribor, Slovenia (2009).
Currently performing an ongoing and evolving solo work of original compositions, incorporating live singing and Theremin with microtonal electronic music (Byzantine Cadillac), solo or working with other musicians and visual artists, Ana Pečar (video), Luka Dekleva (video) and Peter Tomaž Dobrila (Theremin). “Byzantine Cadillac” perfomances have been held in Slovenia, Austria, Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia, Estonia, Turkey.
Performing the intermedia installation/performance project “Prašum” with Luka Dekleva from 2003 to present (KiBela gallery in Maribor and Lapidarium Museum in Novigrad, Croatia, and Istanbul, Turkey, 2009).
While studying classical music, sang in various avant-garde garage bands in Southern California. Has performed Mozart (Don Alfonso) at the Rome Festival and Telemann (Ergasto) with the Musique Sans-Souci ensemble in Austria, as well as various arias and lieder, and the bass solos in Mozart’s Mass in C at Slomšek Cathedral, at the occasion of the beatification of Anton Martin Slomšek, 1999.
Worked as a speaker on RTV Slovenia, Maribor (1998–2000) and has recorded and mixed Slovenian musicians (Patetico, Eternia, Supersonik, Daniela Candallari, etc.) as well as teaching sound design and tuning. Working on sound installations and performances for visual art (collaboration with visual artist Saša Bezjak, “Water” at the Tehnična Fakulteta Gallery in Maribor, Slovenia). Has done interactive sound and musical accompaniment for Berlin multimedia artists “BBM” (Maribor, Wolfsburg, Berlin), “Digitalna Komuna” performances (Maribor, Ljubljana, Belgrade).
Performed for the e-Agora performance in Czech Republic, Prague at the Monument Vitkov, at the occasion of the International festival of electronic arts ENTERmultimediale2, in a framework of an Informans (informative performance) by Dragan Živadinov, Dunja Zupančič, Miha Turšič, Miha Horvat, Metka Golec, Miha Ciglar, 2005. Sang in the “Informans” of Slovenian theatre director Dragan Živadinov’s Noordung project in Croatia, Zagreb at the World Theater Festival, 2005.
Sang bass with the acappella group “Harmonica Abnormen” in cafes and public places in Maribor, Slovenia, 2005–2006. Various solo acappella vocal performances (Celica, Ljubljana, 2008, Židovski Trg, Maribor, 2007, 2009 for MKC group exhibitions, etc.).
Organizer of an annual new music Festival (Da)(Ne)s, (2007 through 2014, ongoing), Slovenia.