artist statement
The idea of the multiverse, postulated in the 1950ies, has always fascinated me and became a metaphor of my artistic activities: the same things can appear differently when you look at them from another perspective, and the juxtaposition of diverse elements and times creates new dimensions, new meanings. In my improvisations and soundworks, I am exploring this process with whatever medium I have at hand: my body, my instrument(s) – be it the bass, voice, electronics or any other objects, drawing from my own multiverse of artistic languages. I consider improvisation as an embodied process that connects listening, playing, movement, voice. When I perform, I am re-inventing myself and my instrument every time, creating new worlds to share with everyone present in that very space and time.
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short Bio
Germany-born bassplayer Margarethe Maierhofer-Lischka is active in a lot of creative fields, both as a sought-after interpeter of contemporary music as well as an improviser, interdisciplinary artist, theorist and dramaturg. She studied double bass and contemporary music with Silvio dalla Torre and Klangforum Wien, and completed a CAS in interdisciplinary creation with Charlotte Hug and Andreas Bosshard. As improviser she draws on a somatic approach, combining the rich soundpalette of contemporary playing techniques with a strong embodied presence, challenging the image of her instrument as well as that of the musician. She has been performing Europe-wide in festivals for contemporary and experimental music.
She is a member and founder of several ensembles and initiatives for experimental music and interdisciplinary art, and has worked with renowned composers and artists from different fields. Besides performing gives lectures and workshops and writes about contemporary music and art. In 2019, she will complete her PhD at the University of Music in Graz.
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Long Bio
Margarethe Maierhofer-Lischka is a musician, researcher, performer and sound artist based in Graz, Austria. She studied double bass, musicology, music pedagogy and contemporary music in Dresden, Rostock and Graz. Currently she is PhD candidate at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz.
Her work explores sound in space, creating playful and performative situations to investigate auditory perceptions of our environment. She does solo projects and teamwork involving music, improvisation, installations and theatre, while also being an active writer, teacher and academic researcher.
Besides her classical training on the double bass she worked with specialists in contemporary music and improvisation.
As a freelance double bass player, she is playing frequently with chamber music ensembles and orchestras in Austria and Germany and has been on stage of contemporary music festivals all across Europe, including Lucerne Festival, Warsaw Autumn, musikprotokoll, impuls festival, Music Biennale Zagreb and others. She also has developed an extensive solo repertoire, focusing on works involving live electronics, elements of music theatre, voice and improvisation.
Since 2013, she works as curator and dramaturg for festivals, conferences, concerts and interdisciplinary formats.
Her sound installations have been shown at esc media art lab (Graz), Kunsthaus Graz, Diskurs-Festival Gießen (DE). She received awards and grants from the Stockhausen-Foundation Kürten (DE), the University of Music Graz, DOMS-Foundation Basle (CH) and the Austrian Federal Government and was Artist-in-residence at uncool Poschiavo (CH), Darmstädter Ferienkurse (DE) and Q-O2 (Belgium). Being an active part of the cultural scene in Austria, she is member of several initiatives and collectives for contemporary art, such as vnm Graz (improvised music), Spielraum Ensemble (experimental theatre), mur.at (net art/ art research), IMA (media archaeology), Forum Stadtpark (interdisciplinary art). She is founding member and dramaturg of the contemporary music ensemble Schallfeld in Graz.
Besides her artistical activities, she enjoys teaching and is giving classes and workshops both on university level as well as for children.
As a musicologist, she seeks connections between musical research and artistic practice. Her research topics include contemporary music theatre, sound studies and installation art, electronic music and media studies, as well as the analysis and performance practice of contemporary music and physical aspects of music making. Her Masters´ Thesis in musicology is dealing with enharmonic keyboards in the 17th and 18th century and got an award as Best Thesis of the Faculty of Philosophy of the Technical University Dresden in 2013.
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