Listening Fields w/ VP and Niki Johnson

Interviews

www.openlab.fm | 106.4FM in Ibiza & Formentera

Tune in for this March edition of Inscape, where https://soundcloud.com/iamdanielgeorge is joined by multi-disciplinary artist Mara Schwerdtfeger. How she balances her many crafts was something we dug into during our chat as well as her compositions and how soundtracking evolves her style. In 2020, Mara studied at the LungA School in Iceland and curates the ongoing project Temporary Position with Zoe Baumgartner. She has just completed her exhibition ‘Gathering Geographies’ at Darren Knight Gallery, which she curated and her composition Movements was performed in collaboration with the Ensemble Apex. ⚡️

This episode marks the one year anniversary of Daniel George's Inscape radio show here on OpenLab! Huge thanks to https://soundcloud.com/iamdanielgeorge for putting in the effort every month to bring quality music, artists, and valuable conversations to our radio station 🙏🏼 Check out all of the previous episodes on our website!

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InScape 013: Nostalgic Listening w/ Mara Schwerdtfeger - Daniel George

Listening Fields is a bi-monthly radio program on FADE RADIO exploring the art of deep listening. Hosted by musician, producer, and acoustics researcher VP, the show blends immersive sonic sets with thoughtful conversations. Featuring ambient, experimental, field-recorded, and bioacoustic works, Listening Fields uncovers the intersections of ecology, music, and perception through the ears of composers, researchers, and sound artists.

This first episode features Australian percussionist, sound artist and composer, Niki Johnson. 

Episode 001 includes:
1. Sound design from VP’s work ‘Sonorous Roots, Silken Soil' (2023)
2. VP’s production of field recordings from Australia, France and Crete and of Johnson’s purring cat
3. Excerpts from a live performance of ‘Agios Ioannis’ by VP and Niki Johnson (2024) as a result of the Mud House Residency
4.  Excerpts from upcoming album ‘Shock Lines’ (2025) co-composed by Niki Johnson and Natasha Dubler, Mastered by Bob Scott (Dodgy Sound).

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VP is sound painter & fantasy gardener She is an Australian sound installation artist, acoustic researcher and write, based between Paris and Sydney (Gadigal Country). She has produced music and sound design for theatre, radio, podcasts, film, concert halls, contemporary art, sound installations, fashion shows and more...

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Niki Johnson is a boundary-pushing percussionist and sound-artist whose work blends contemporary classical music, improvisation, performance art, and interdisciplinary collaboration. She’s currently a PhD candidate at Monash University, where her research explores collaborations between percussionists and sculptors. Niki is also a regular with groups like Speak Percussion and Ensemble Offspring, Niki’s performed everywhere from the Sydney Opera House to Phoenix Central Park.

Instagram of Resident: victoriaavpham 
Instagram of Guest: niki.johnson.sound 
Soundcloud of Resident: https://soundcloud.com/victoriaavpham

Listening Fields 001 w/ VP and Niki Johnson (08.05.25)

On Listening Fields,(EP002) we’re joined by Dr. Arik Kershenbaum. Erik is a zoologist, lecturer, and fellow at Girton College, University of Cambridge. Arik’s research explores the deep patterns of communication in the animal world, from the howls of wolves to the clicks of dolphins, tracing how social behavior and sound intertwine across species. He is the author of The Zoologist’s Guide to the Galaxy and Why Animals Talk, two works that stretch our imagination, from the forests and oceans of Earth to the speculative soundscapes of alien worlds. Together, we’ll drift through questions of language, listening, and the evolutionary logic of sound signalling systems, tuning in to what it means to hear beyond the human.

Dr. Arik Kershenbaum is a zoologist, lecturer, and fellow at Girton College, University of Cambridge, specializing in animal communication, social behavior, and evolutionary biology. His interdisciplinary research bridges zoology, physics, and philosophy to explore how complex patterns emerge in nature—both on Earth and, potentially, beyond it. Arik is the author of two acclaimed books: The Zoologist’s Guide to the Galaxy (2020), which applies evolutionary theory to speculate on the nature of extraterrestrial life, and Why Animals Talk (2024), which delves into the science behind animal vocalizations and what they reveal about the origins of language and intelligence.


VP (Victoria Pham) is an Australian interdisciplinary artist, evolutionary biologist, sound designer, producer and writer. She is based in Paris, France. Her work explores deep listening, decolonial practice, bio-design, and gardening and cooking as acts of nourishment and resistance. Her installations, performances, and collaborations reflect a commitment to listening as a political, ecological, and embodied practice.

https://www.victoriaavpham.com/

Instagrams: @victoriaavpham @arikkershenbaum; soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/victoriaavpham

Listening Fields 002 w/ VP and Dr Arik Kershenbaum (06.07.25)

Listening Fields w/ VP and Mara Schwerdtfeger (16.09.25)

Fade Radio is an independent platform that experiments with diverse music approaches expressed through DJ sets, live performances, podcasts, and art-related projects. Aiming to build a community-oriented network, it operates as a core that aspires to support independent artists and creatives.