kawabate/edoardo sansonne

009 → industrial soundscape

contemporary dance musician/performer

“At the beginning of the 1900s, the city's skyline was marked by many chimneys, and throughout the area, numerous production activities were present, with their facilities covering a vast area of the city center and reaching the shores of the lake. Walking around the city, one was completely immersed in a constant and incessant flow of noises and sounds coming from the factories and their bustling industries.”

Andrea Ruschetti

Starting from the memory of this acoustic experience, which for decades characterized the daily life of every inhabitant and visitor of his hometown (Omegna), in 2017 Andrea Ruschetti conceived the idea of INDUSTRIAL SOUNDSCAPE: a site-specific performative project aimed at constructing a post-industrial sound and visual landscape that evokes the highly industrialized past common to many Italian regions.

On June 26, 2021, during the CROSS Festival 2021, the final act of INDUSTRIAL SOUNDSCAPE vol. 5 took place in the spaces of the former Nuova F.A.R.O. in Omegna, evoking both the history and the working memory of the site.

"...The performance of INDUSTRIAL SOUNDSCAPE debuts within the industrial premises of the former NUOVA F.A.R.O., where in 1960 the foundry was relocated, and the production of plastic toys began. The show will reopen its doors, immersing the audience in its intense working history and celebrating its identity."

The outcome of this stage took place at the end of a five-week residency period within the former F.A.R.O. foundry, now home to the Mastronauta Cultural Center in Omegna (VB).

The weeks of residency allowed the creative machine to restart, bringing together the working group (composed of Sissj Bassani, Fabio Brusadin, Alberto Ricca, and Elisa Sbaragli) and the laptop orchestra (Elia Anelli, Davide Broggini, Edoardo Sansonne, and Matteo Santini) to progress in research and production, thus defining the new choreographic device.

During the production phases, the site/archive of INDUSTRIAL SOUNDSCAPE and the mini-movie QUEL FARO DEL FARO DI FARO were created, a progression of impossible combinations between the artistic (present) and industrial (past) daily life, generating a surreal dimension in which two differently productive realities try to coexist in the same space/time.

During this period, the artists had the opportunity to meet Sandro Ruschetti, known as the "Omino con la Barba," the creator of the former Nuova F.A.R.O., to gather material and learn about the history of the industry from its origins to the present day.

Additionally, the process was followed step by step by a group of under-35 Digital Storytellers who accompanied the artists throughout the making of and stimulated new reflections.

field recording workshop