EFFEA: NAE Collective Premieres 'Nature Amplified' at KotorArt International Festival

The Croatian experimental ensemble NAE Collective, featuring Branimir Norac, Filip Merčep, Vid Veljak, and Tomislav Oliver, premiered their project 'Nature Amplified' at the KotorArt International Festival on Monday, July 29, 2024. This project is supported by the EFFEA (European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists) initiative of the European Association of Festivals, which co-finances selected projects by young and emerging artists. One of the partner festivals in this project is the Music Biennale Zagreb, where 'Nature Amplified' will also be showcased in 2025. 

 

NAE Collective, founded in 2022 and based in Zagreb, comprises composers, performers, and new media artists dedicated to creating experimental art. The ensemble includes composer and live electronics performer Tomislav Oliver, cellist Vid Veljak, percussionist Filip Merčep, and clarinetist Branimir Norac. They are joined by drummer and sound artist Boy van Ooijen, new media artist Tin Dožić, and video artist Goran Nježić.

 

'Nature Amplified' marks the beginning of NAE Collective's artistic journey, addressing the issue of modern man's alienation from nature. The project aims to create an audio-visual experience where natural processes form the foundation of a multimedia performance. Data collected from nature, such as wind speed, ground tremors, and sea wave frequencies, are transformed into various artistic media. These natural elements serve as a 'cantus firmus' for the live ensemble performance, with the technical aspect involving the sonification of numerical data. This data manipulation uses various programming languages to control different parameters of electronic media.

 

Following its premiere at KotorArt, 'Nature Amplified' will be performed at the New Sound Festival in Sinj and the Music Biennale Zagreb in early 2025.

 

The project is co-financed by the European Union through the EFFEA residency program, initiated by the European Festival Association (EFA).