federico reuben - freuben

for piano, live electronics, computer display and sensors

"This composition attempts to explore the aesthetics of violence and reflect on different manifestations of violence. It is also inspired by slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek's ideas about violence. ZizekÊ categorizes violence into two main types: subjective and objective violence. Subjective violence is clearly identifiable by an agent, for example acts of terror or crime, and it is perceived as a clear interruption of the normal state of things. On the other hand, objective violence isÊ violence that is inherent in the social fabric and it is hard to see and experience for the advantaged classes or countries. What Zizek argues is that objective violence is inherent within the social "balance" and it is objective violence which triggers acts of subjective violence. Furthermore, Zizek identifies two types of objective violence: symbolic and systematic violence. Systematic violence is manifested through our economic and political systems that in order to give the idea of a normal smooth running of things, exert systematic violence on large groups of people. Symbolic violence is related to and included within systematic violence but it is specific to violence expressed through language and other symbolic systems (like music). Zizek goes further to argue that the forms of symbolic violence are actually based on and manifested by the symbolic systems as such.Ê"