New Adventures in Sound Art (NAISA) is a non-profit organization, formerly based in Toronto but now in South River ON, that presents performances and installations spanning the entire spectrum of electroacoustic and experimental sound art. NAISA operates the NAISA North Media Arts Centre, located in the centre of the village of South River at 106 Ottawa Ave., a short distance from Algonquin Park, at the building formerly known as Renée’s Café and Bean There Café.
The NAISA North Media Arts Centre includes a large exhibition/performance space, a small café, and an artist residency space suitable for media art production/creation. The café offers fresh baked goodies by local baker Lois McLaren, homemade soup by Nadene Thériault-Copeland and serves Muskoka coffee by Muskoka Roastery Coffee Company.
NAISA’s annual events include: the Deep Wireless festival of Radio & Transmission Art, the Sound Travels Festival of Sound Art, the SOUNDplay festival and Springscapes.
The objectives of NAISA are to foster awareness and understanding locally, as well as nationally and internationally, in the cultural vitality of experimental sound art in its myriad forms of expression. This objective is achieved through the exploration of new sound technologies in conjunction with the creation of cultural events and artifacts.
Upcoming Events
By Julia White
September 26 to December 13, 2021, Thursday to Monday, 10am – 4pm
NAISA North Media Arts Centre, 106 Ottawa Ave, South River
Pay by Donation
WATER Shadows is an installation of sound sculptures by Julia White that celebrates water, featuring field recordings of watery soundscapes. As one moves through the ‘water temple’ complex of steel sculptures wrapped in discarded bicycle inner tubes, the unique sound ecology of each water-recording site is experienced as one continuous flow.
Visitors to the exhibition are invited to participate in WATER Shadows by recording a personal celebration of water that will be shared online as audio in the Web Water Portal: http://www.juliawhite.ca/water-shadows-south-river
September 26, 2021 to December 20, 2021
NAISA’s 20th anniversary edition of its SOUNDplay festival continues to serve artists and audiences alike with an experimental platform for encouraging new avenues of exploration between sound and new media.
"NAISA’s programming theme "Digital in Nature" is explored and expanded upon by the artists in this year’s SOUNDplay Festival with works that explore relations between human and non-human worlds, perceived and invented reality, as well as human-made and organic phenomena. Like last year, all of the works presented in this year’s SOUNDplay Festival include an online element in one form or another, allowing for audiences to attend from wherever they happen to be." – Darren Copeland, Artistic Director, New Adventures in Sound Art