Marla Hlady | A Case for Sound: Following Piece, Drift, Old Chelsea Road (for the project Nite Ride)

A Case for Sound: Following Piece, Drift, Old Chelsea Road was made in response to the curatorial prompt: sound for a nighttime driving experience, conceived by Artengine’s sound event Night Ride.

Combining contemporary soundscapes with our most ubiquitous form of transportation, Artengine brings you Nite Ride – a permanent sound installation for car stereos. Commissioned by Artengine, with the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, Tim Hecker and Marla Hlady have each created new rich sound pieces for a nighttime driving experience. More than just new sound art pieces however, these works are designed to play over the course of a specific driving route which the artists have mapped out for the audience.

Nite Ride has three unique parts. This website is part two, and is designed to give you the tools to experience the artists work in the comfort of your own car. You will find project descriptions, mp3 downloads and driving directions so you can organize your own mobile sonic experience. The first part of this project, launched on October 23rd, involved a unique luxury bus tour of the artists routes. The final part of Nite Ride is a DVD publication to deliver 5.1 surround sound documentation of the original compositions. (niteride.ca)

Publications: Falvey, Emily and Ryan Stec. Nite Ride. Artengine, 2010.
Margolian, Sandra. Four Views. Sackville: Owens Art Gallery, 1998.
Migone, Christof. “Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhe: Silence and Sound in Performance.” More Caught in the Act: An Anthology of Performance Art by Canadian Women, edited by Tanya Mars and Johanna Householder, YYZBooks, 2016, pp. 56-73.

Press: Upstate Soundscape. “Free Music Friday: Marla Hlady.” Buffalo’s 91.3 FM WBNY. Online.

Exhibition history: 2009 Artengine (Ottawa, Canada)

A Case for Sound: Following Piece, Drift, Old Chelsea Road (for the project Nite Ride), 2009
custom fabricated wood box, hardware, MP3 player, amplified speakers, sound, AAA batteries, motion switch, performance
12.5 x 12.5 x 2.75 inches and 12.5 x 12.5 x 5.75 inches

project website: https://niteride.ca
Nite Ride driving route: view map here

Route Instructions:

A Case for Sound (Following Piece)

Press play.
Follow the vehicle directly in front of you until the soundtrack is complete.
If the vehicle you are following reaches its destination before the soundtrack is complete, choose the next available vehicle.
Follow until soundtrack is complete.

A Case for Sound (Drift)

With no destination in mind, choose a starting point and press play.
Your route is determined by the easiest, most immediate flow possible, resisting stopping as much as possible.
Drift until soundtrack is complete.

A Case for Sound (Old Chelsea Road)

Route taken at the launch.

Video documentation, “Nite Ride” at Artengine, Ottawa (2009)

Videography and Editing: Annie Onyi Cheung and Rick Saulnier

The Nite Ride publication includes a DVD, book and two small posters. Like a drivers manual for this creative project it has everything you need for a personal version of the Nite Ride experience.

The Nite Ride DVD includes 5.1 surround sound and stereo versions of Tim Hecker and Marla Hlady’s projects. While Hecker’s piece is a unique document of his first 5.1 surround sound composition, Hlady’s work documents a performance with her sound objects transporting the listener into the intimate collaborative space. A video document of the performance is also included on the DVD. The publication includes French and English versions of critical texts by co-curators Emily Falvey and Ryan Stec, as well as artist biographies and pull out maps.

Photo credit: Paul Galipeau

Image: Nite Bus