VIV CORRINGHAM (voice, electronics, field recordings) is a US based British vocalist and sound artist, who has been described as “a vital force in improvised music since the late 1970s” (Corey Mwamba, BBC Radio 3) and “a vocalist of stunning virtuosity” (Louise Gray, The Wire). She makes concerts, soundwalks, workshops and installations. Her practice explores relations between voice, place and walking, responding with sung improvisations to both natural and urban soundscapes. Corringham has received international recognition and awards including two McKnight Composer Fellowships through the American Composers Forum. She is a certified teacher of Deep Listening, having played and studied with composer Pauline Oliveros. In 2024 this practice took her to Mexico, Spain, Germany and the Listening Academy in Hong Kong. Notable live performances have occurred in festivals at Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, Hong Kong Arts Centre, Fonoteca Nacional de Mexico, Issue Project Room New York and Tempo Reale Florence. Her recent album “Soundwalkscapes” (Vol. 1: January to June) on Flaming Pines label (Bandcamp’s Best Field Recordings 2024) has been well received. The Wire wrote that “Corringham voices the depth of place.” Her definitive contribution to sound art practice is the 20 year ongoing “Shadow-walks”, which create layers of time and space, combining recordings from shared and solo walks along the same path with her improvised sung response. They have occurred in 18 countries, are taught in many sound art classes and have been the focus of articles in books and publications.
https://www.thewire.co.uk/audio/tracks/an-audio-introduction-to-viv-corringham
Longer Bio:
Viv Corringham is a New York based British vocalist and sound artist, who has been described as “a vital force in improvised music since the late 1970s” (Corey Mwamba, BBC Radio 3). Her work includes concerts, workshops, installations and soundwalks.
Recent work includes a well-reviewed album on Cafe Oto’s Otoroku label with NY band Time Trout (“a masterpiece of spontaneous strangeness” The Wire), a new solo album “Soundwalkscapes” (“Corringham voices the depth of place” The Wire) and an 11 date “Soundtrips” tour in Germany with UK vocalist Maggie Nicols.
She has presented work in twenty six countries in venues including Hong Kong Arts Centre, Fonoteca Nacional de Mexico, Issue Project Room New York, Onassis Centre Athens, ICA London and Serralves Museum Portugal.
Articles on her work have appeared in publications including Walking from Scores (France), the Wire (UK) Going Out (Belgium), In the Field (UK), Leonardo Music Journal (US), Organised Sound (UK), Playing With Words (UK) and For Those Who Have Ears (Ireland).
She holds an MA Sonic Art from Middlesex University, London, and a Deep Listening teaching certificate from pioneer composer Pauline Oliveros. Awards include two McKnight Composer Fellowships through American Composers Forum and two residencies at Harvestworks media arts lab NYC.
She has performed with many musicians including Pauline Oliveros, Elliott Sharp, Charles Hayward, Pat Thomas, Mike Cooper, and Maggie Nicols,
She facilitates workshops in listening and sounding, most recently in Hong Kong, London, Bangalore, New York, Kolkata and Manila.
She performs solo, in ad hoc improvised groups, with Time Trout in New York and in telematic ensembles such as NowNet Arts Hub, directed by the composer Sarah Weaver, and Doug Van Nort's Electro Acoustic Orchestra.
Invited artist residencies include soundpocket Hong Kong Harvestworks Media Arts NYC Interim Srishti Bangalore India, Emily Harvey Foundation Venice Montalvo Art Center CA Memorial University Newfoundland Cal State University US Sound Meetings Syros Greece Cobh Art Centre Ireland Radio Papesse Florence Italy Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art Porto Portugal NAISA Toronto Soundworks Cork Ireland Deep Listening Institute NY and Binaural Media Nodar Portugal.
Recordings are available on Innova, OTOroku, Flaming Pines, Farpoint, FMR, Linear Obsessional, Slowfoot, Zeromoon, NoMansLand, ARC Music, MASH, Slam, Deep Listening and other labels.
“a vocalist of stunning virtuosity”- Louise Gray, The WIRE
"Viv Corringham's astonishing spoken word performance. A restless stream of consciousness that seems to have the primal urgency of a message delivered in a dream." (Otoroku)
“ethno-cyber-punk diva Viv Corringham's voice is a truly wonderful thing, haunting and out-there, yet rooted in tradition. Unmissable.” (Richard Sanderson, programme notes)
