The primary audiences for “Provoke!” is most notably found in musical artists and different types of scholars in the academic world. Both of these groups can have a deep appreciation for the experimentation and research aspects of this collection of mini-audio based projects. As stated in the about section of the project base itself, this project seeks to “rethink the forms through which scholars and artists communicate.” This aspect of the project really states that the audience of this project is the separate groups of scholars and artists, but together in order to inspire a collaborative movement amongst them.
While it is important to note the collaborative efforts of this project, it is also important to note how these projects are tailored to the different audiences individually.
Historical Scholars
Those interested in both casually and professionally in history will take particular interest in two pieces of this project: “Organs of the Soul” and “The Grand Rue.” “Organs of the Soul” delves into the complexity of sounds found in 18th century Paris. Most of this project explores Paris in the years up to and including the French Revolution. It is easy to see why any historical scholar would take interest in this. Sure, someone could read all about this time period in books, but that doesn’t let one hear the sounds of the time. The piece explores the bells of Notre Dame, the voices of street performers, the harmonic melody of Parisian instruments, as well as a plethora of other sounds, Literal music to a scholar’s ears. History in a rare form.
We often think of history as way, way in the past, but contemporary history is prevalent and just as important. “The Grand Rue” is a seemingly simple piece which it’s original purpose being the capture and exploration of a bustling Carribean capital. That capital just happened to be Port-Au-Prince, Haiti… just days before their infamous 2010 earthquake. This is where the historical aspect of this piece rears its heard. This gives insight into daily life in Port-Au-Prince before all of their lives were drastically changed forever. While slightly morbid, it captures moments before of the biggest events in Haiti’s history.
Musical Artists
Musical artists can find a home in “Provoke!” most notably in “Finding Ibrida.” This piece takes a pawn shop guitar and transforms it into a mashup of vacuum tubes and complex electronics to produce an entirely new sound. One part guitar, one part electrifying Tesla coil of sound, this brand new hybrid created a new sound that musical artists would take interest in tinkering with. Music is ever changing and with that so are the instruments we use to produce such sound. With that musical artists must be able to adapt and this is the perfect opportunity for this to happen.
Another place where musical artists take an interest is in “We Are Your Neighbors” which has individuals incarcerated within Richmond City Jail collaborate and make music with other non-incarcerated individuals. This is both beneficial for the inmates and the artists as it gives the inmates and artists an unusual creative outlet. This work lets the walk break down between incarcerated and not and musical artists can benefit immensely from this knowledge.
Academic Scholars
Both “Paperphone” and “Susurrous Scholarship” both strive to achieve the same goals but have slightly different about how to go about it. Both ways strive to transform academic journals and articles into audiological media designed to make them more poignant in their meaning and more accessible to a wider audience. “Paperphone seeks to transform the way the one sounds when speaking, adding reverb, distorting the voice, and adding echo. This serves as a tool for scholars and orators of their work to use to make their article more concise in their meaning. “Susurrous Scholarship” on the other has a similar purpose, but rather than adding to the voice, it adds music as a backdrop for the articles. Not only is music added on, but also other sounds and tunes as well. This has the same purpose as “Paperphone” in it makes the message of the writer or the speaker more clearly defined. Many individual ( as stated within the project) have come forward to state how beneficial this was to help in encapsulating the meaning of the work at hand.
Psychologists
In “A Tale of Two Soundscapes” the creator brings us into her world of moving from a small rural, mountainous region into the bustling city of Pittsburgh. It explores how the altercations in everyday background noise changed how she looked and the world around her. It changed how she looked at her relationship with herself and the sounds of the world around her. This is where psychologists can take particular interest. Learning how the sounds of the world surrounding someone can affect someone and the way they think can be largely beneficial to someone who seeks to help people.
