CTM 2014: Sound, Gender, Technology – "Where to" with Cyberfeminism? by CTM Festival published on 2014-07-30T12:15:24Z Saturday 01.02.2014, CTM 2014 – Dis Continuity, Berlin Lectures & panel discussion with Sadie Plant (UK/CH), Susanne Kirchmayr (AT), Fender Schrade (DE), Marie Thompson (UK. Moderation: Annie Goh (UK/DE) Recent discourse on the subject of women and electronic music falls tendentially into two categories; either writing forgotten histories of pioneering work of women such as Daphne Oram, Elaine Radigue, Delia Derbyshire, Pauline Oliveros, Maryanne Amacher amongst many others, or with reference to the recent statistics via female:pressure, highlight the huge quantitative discrepancies between male and female musicians, DJs and producers represented at labels and music festivals worldwide. Whilst both can be considered worthwhile approaches in their own right, the former approach risks creating fetishized figures of "patchbay nuns" (Abi Bliss) and the latter finds hostile responses and risks ostracization in its own field. In both, one fundamentally important aspect remains overlooked - Judith Butler formulated this as the necessity not only to inquire how the category of “women” might become more fully represented - for example here in music -, but also crucially to understand and critique the very categories and structures of power in which these discourses operate. Taking root from an abstract ontological level, in which binary categories of sex and gender have long been refuted (biologically as well as culturally), the panel aims to assess the interactions between sound, gender and technology from various philosophical and artistic positions. The widely discussed "cyberfeminism" borne in the early 1990s questioned the perpetuation of technology as a male-dominated domain, whilst also inciting digital culture as an ideal flourishing ground for subversive strategies. Though the relationship of this purported digital utopia never largely or explicitly addressed sound, it shares dimensions in its affective power as well as non-linear, decentralized and unhierarchical characteristics. After approximately two decades since cyberfeminism boomed - how can we assess the cyberfeminist dream of the subversive potentialities within technology in the current status quo? How does an inquiry into the nature of sound tally to the broader aims of cyberfeminism? Does a gendered understanding of technology and sound technologies help the dismantling of the structures which form sound, gender and technology today, or does it perpetuate these? Referring to both levels of feminist activism and feminist theory outlined above, as well as the dual tendencies within cybernetics towards order and chaos at the core of cyberfeminism – what can be identified as continuity and discontinuity in the structures of sound, gender and technology? Genre cyberfeminism Comment by Vegan Vocalist I admire your courage to give such a wonderful and much needed speech in front of an audience ❤️ VEGAN VOCALIST 2017-02-27T20:33:29Z Comment by Vegan Vocalist Sorry forgot to put name ❤️ VEGAN VOCALIST 2017-02-27T20:30:32Z Comment by Vegan Vocalist Did not understand all the language and terminology in this essay but feel the over all positive message you are portraying on our behalf. Thank you ❤️ 2017-02-27T20:29:10Z Comment by laserbov yes! 2015-04-15T18:40:51Z Comment by LCC really thanks for this! 2014-10-14T18:29:56Z Comment by lazzarello miley cyrus and the wrecking ball is amaze. hate b gone. 2014-10-14T08:17:19Z Comment by lazzarello Which is your project? 2014-10-14T06:59:43Z Comment by s⊎r⊎ ° 2014-10-01T13:27:07Z Comment by s⊎r⊎ ° 2014-10-01T13:20:42Z Comment by CTM Festival Discussion, Q&A 2014-07-30T13:00:45Z Comment by CTM Festival Marie Thompson “Feminizing noise” 2014-07-30T12:58:24Z Comment by CTM Festival Fender Schrade "Performing Between Their Bodies And Your Ears. Stories of a Trans*gendered Live Sound Engineer." 2014-07-30T12:57:23Z Comment by CTM Festival Susanne Kirchmayr "Generative transformations - Deviate from the grid" 2014-07-30T12:55:23Z Comment by CTM Festival Sadie Plant “Mixing music, cybernetics, and feminism.” 2014-07-30T12:53:40Z Comment by CTM Festival Introduction 2014-07-30T12:51:02Z