Mem1 | Biography

Mem1
Mem1 seamlessly blends the sounds of cello and electronics to create a limitless palette of sonic possibilities. In their improvisation- based performances, Mark and Laura Cetilia’s use of custom hardware and software, in conjunction with a uniquely subtle approach to extended cello technique and realtime modular synthesis patching, results in the creation of a single voice rather than a duet between two individuals. Their music moves beyond melody, lyricism and traditional structural confines, revealing an organic evolution of sound that has been called “a perfect blend of harmony and cacophony” (Forced Exposure).

The Oxford University Press’ New Grove Dictionary of American Music describes Mem1 as “a unified cybernetic force, or complex cybernetic entity, comprised of two human artists plus their instruments and systems” whose “evolving, custom-built systems are as important an aspect of the duo’s achievements as their ever-innovative sound. Confounding the complexities inherent in human-machine and human-instrument relationship, Mem1 understands its music as a feedback loop between the past and present.”

Founded in Los Angeles in 2003, Mem1 has traveled extensively, performing at Issue Project Room (Brooklyn), Roulette (New York), REDCAT / Disney Hall (Los Angeles, Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, Electronic Church (Berlin), the Laptopia Festival (Tel-Aviv), the San Francisco Electronic Music Festival, and the Borealis Festival (Bergen). They have taken part in residencies at Harvestworks in New York, STEIM and Kunstenaarslogies in the Netherlands, O' in Milan, and USF Verftet in Bergen, Norway.

In 2009, they created Visiting Hours, a site-specific installation for the Museums of Bat Yam (Israel); in Winter 2012, they travelled to London to create Visiting Hours II, a site-specific installation for the Sonic Arts gallery SoundFjord. Their piece Aphrosia (with video by Mark Cetilia) was screened at the Institute for Contemporary Art (London) as part of an evening of audiovisual works curated by Helen Frosi; collaborative works with media artists Liora Belford and Kadet Kuhne have been screened and installed at the Hordaland Kunstsenter (Bergen), the Sundance Film Festival, and the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (San Francisco).

Throughout their career, they have collaborated with a variety of musicians and sound artists including the Penderecki String Quartet, Steve Roden, Jan Jelinek, Frank Bretschneider, and Stephen Vitiello. Together, Mem1 curates the experimental music series Ctrl+Alt+Repeat and the record label Estuary Ltd.

Laura Cetilia
Born and raised on the east side of Los Angeles, Laura Cetilia leads the life of a chamber and orchestral musician, concert presenter, electronic musician, and music educator. Classically trained, Laura graduated with distinction from the School of Music at Indiana University and received her Master’s degree in cello performance from Wichita State University where she was awarded a position with the Graduate String Quartet. In Spring 2011, she worked with composer David Behrman during a residency at Atlantic Center for the Arts where she also collaborated with video artist Naho Taruishi on the audiovisual piece Corner Projection No. 6. As a soloist, she is comfortable working with and without electronics, most recently at the PHI Centre in Montreal as part of a series of performances organized in conjunction with the Ryoji Ikeda exhibition. In addition to her solo work, she is a member of the electroacoustic ensemble Mem1 with partner Mark Cetilia, and performs avant-garde chamber music with violist Robin Streb in their duo Suna No Onna. Suna No Onna has premiered works by composers André Cormier, Jürg Frey and Antoine Beuger in performances throughout Canada, the U.S. and Europe. Laura is also a member of the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra and New Bedford Symphony. Laura is a Resident Musician at Community MusicWorks, a non-profit organization that provides free after-school music education programs for children in urban neighborhoods of Providence, RI. More at: laura.cetilia.org

Mark Cetilia
Mark Cetilia is a sound / media artist working at the nexus of analogue and digital technologies. Exploring the possibilities of generative systems in art, design, and sound creation, Cetilia’s work is an exercise in carefully controlled chaos. Over the past decade, he has worked to develop idiomatic performance systems utilizing custom hardware and software, manifesting in a rich tapestry of sound and image. Mark is a member of the electroacoustic ensemble Mem1 and the experimental media art group Redux, recipients of a 2006 Creative Capital grant for their Callspace installation. Cetilia holds a Ph.D in Computer Music and Multimedia from Brown University and an MFA in Digital + Media from the Rhode Island School of Design. He is currently a Critic at the Rhode Island School of Design, Adjunct Assistant Professor in Art / Technology at Hampshire College, and Co-Director of the Media Lab at Community MusicWorks. Cetilia’s work has been screened / installed at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (London, UK), the Ben-Ari Museum of Contemporary Art (Bat Yam, IL), Oboro (Montréal), O’ (Milan), R.K. Projects (Providence, RI), and SoundWalk (Long Beach, CA). He has performed widely at venues including Café OTO (London, UK), the Borealis Festival (Bergen, NO), STEIM (Amsterdam, NL), Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, Roulette (NYC), Goethe-Institut (Boston), Menza Pri Koritu (Ljubljana, SI), Issue Project Room (Brooklyn, NY), Uganda (Jerusalem, IL), the San Francisco Electronic Music Festival, Sound of Mu (Oslo, NO) and Electronic Church (Berlin, DE). His sound works have been published by Interval Recordings, Radical Matters, Dragon’s Eye Recordings, Farmacia 901, Iynges, Anarchymoon, Quiet Design, and the Estuary Ltd. imprint, which he runs with his partner Laura Cetilia. More at: mark.cetilia.org