CCi Artists

Neil Rolnick

On March 31, 2008 between 9:30 and 11am I lost all hearing in my left ear. It appears that the loss is permanent. It is accompanied by a loud white noise tinnitus where the left ear should be.
As you might imagine, this change in my ability to perceive the world around me has had an impact on my professional life as a composer. The most obvious change is that, with only one ear, I now hear the world monophonically. There is no stereo or surround sound in my world.
I’m planning to realize a number of pieces spanning a variety of media which will explore this idea of loss of perceptual ability and the alteration of perception. The works will form an evening length performance called MONO. The performance will include segments for solo computer, which I will perform, as well as for instrumental and vocal ensembles and video. Spoken text will tie the performance together, but I don’t see the performance as a linear theatrical narrative. Instead, I imagine it as a series of meditations on perception, its appreciation and its loss, and our ability to adjust to changes in our relationship with the world around us.

artist's webpage

Neil Rolnick at archive.org

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Last Update 10/9/2009