Hillside can be characterized as an effort of creating room for an unconstrained and experimental approach towards the format of a music event as well as its content with iterations take place in various forms in different contexts. A recurring theme is the initiation of frameworks which embed projects that consider music, performance, fine art, and architecture as equally important artistic parameters. These are often implemented with an open programmatic agenda.
The first edition of Hillside took place on the 24th of January 2023 at Seminar room B12&14 at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, Austria. It was initiated Chris Attila Izsák and contained works by them as well as co-produced and collaborative site-specific works made together with Juan Francisco Vera and Leonard Fendler-Moser. Invitations were done through postcards and word of mouth only. The aim was to facilitate a vague rehearsal space for a crowd of kin sound enthusiasts. Open-decks and instruments were provided or brought so that participants were able to get involved at any time if they wanted to. The only set programme point ‚THOUGHTS ARE BORN‘ by Mica Levi was performed by Artjom Astrov, Bela D., Daniel Hüttler, Michaela Kisling, Samuel Obernosterer, Pia Wilma Wurzer and Chris Attila Izsák with a guitar, light and CDJs. Specifics on how to perform it with CDJs were discussed in dialogue with Mica Levi since one aim of this event was to highlight them as sample-based instruments which required some subtle changes. Later the video-recording of that performance was released on the imprint Plot Toy.
Stills from snippet-video by Janina Weißengruber
‘THOUGHTS ARE BORN’ video recorded by Michel Strümpf
Photos by Chris Attila Izsák