CARBONDALE, Ill. – The Southern Illinois University Carbondale Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) will host an immersive and interactive sound event on Nov. 10 with a special presentation of the Flaming Lips’ critically acclaimed “Zaireeka” studio album.
The free, public presentation is at 7 p.m. in Lawson Hall, Room 171, which is equipped with spatial audio systems and high-definition cameras. CTE is inviting the Southern Illinois community to experience the recording in Dolby Atmos surround sound. A brief introduction and technical demonstration of the Dolby Atmos audio system, installed in Lawson Hall in 2018, will precede the listening experience. Seating is limited.
Released in 1997, the experimental rock album consists of four CDs designed to be played simultaneously. System designer Kelly Caringer, CTE’s chief instructional media systems engineer, dusted off his rare copy of “Zaireeka” for the event.
“It was obviously intended for shared listening experiences – social listening that brings people together,” Caringer said. “I mean, who can hit the play button on four CD players at once? And who even has four CD players?”
With some imagination and reverse engineering, Caringer has adapted this avant-garde recording for an even larger audience. Music and sound effects are heard from loudspeakers in every direction, even above the audience. For the event, audience will also participate as Caringer will send some of the music to their cellphones rather than loudspeakers to “create a smartphone symphony.”
This is the second listening event featuring the 13-channel surround-sound system capable of Dolby Atmos playback that CTE has hosted this year. In March, CTE featured the 50th anniversary release of Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon.” The selection was an excellent choice for the audio system’s debut, Caringer said.
“We really didn’t know how many people might attend an event like this. We expected a dozen but welcomed more than 200 enthusiastic listeners from campus and beyond,” he said.
For more information, contact Caringer at khcaringer@siu.edu