/
Richard Martel at Ultimatum Festival 1985-05-05
The following is a transcription of Richard Martel’s performance at Ultimatum Festival I, Sunday, May 5th, 1985 at the Foufounes Électriques bar and performance space in Montréal, Quebec, Canada. The Ultimatum festival pamphlet notes Martel’s role as the editor of Intervention Magazine, a Quebec-based journal of international repute also known as Inter. Since 1979, Inter has published articles on all forms of contemporary art, questioning the role of art in society, politics, and culture. Martel is the author and editor of a number of articles and books on performance art. As a curator and multimedia artist, he has organized and participated in various art events and festivals. His own practice centers on art and the social. At the beginning of his Ultimatum set, Martel introduces the three pieces he will perform, "Subordination," "Insubordination," and "L'experience de l'art comme disponibilite du temps" which consist of sound and poetry.
Annotations
00:00 - 00:04
Audio Description
Room noise [chatter].
Foufounes Electriques
00:00 - 00:00
Alan Lord Commentary
Richard Martel is a multidisciplinary artist from Quebec City. He is a founding member of the renowned contemporary art journal Inter, and in 1982 he co-founded Le Lieu, an artist-run centre located in Quebec City.
Biographical Context
00:04 - 00:05
Audio Description
Un, un.
Richard Martel
00:05 - 00:06
Audio Description
Room noise [chatter].
Foufounes Electriques
00:06 - 00:17
Audio Description
Tapping sounds.
Unknown
00:17 - 00:39
Audio Description
Euh je vais faire trois pieces. Le premiere s’appelle le "Subordination." Le deuxieme va s’appeler "Insubordination." Et la troisieme, euh, s’appelle "L'expérience de l'art comme disponibilité du temps." Et il y aura peut-etre des petits trucs entre les trois.
Richard Martel
00:39 - 00:51
Audio Description
Rhythmic, metallic sound.
Music
00:51 - 03:18
Audio Description
Performs "Subordination" [French].
Richard Martel
00:53 - 00:53
Alan Lord Commentary
For this performance he was accompanied by sound tapes, and for his performance “Subordination”, he repeatedly flipped a metal printing press implement loudly on a table that was closely mic’d.
Event Description
03:18 - 03:22
Audio Description
Applause.
Audience
03:22 - 03:28
Audio Description
Volume of recording dips [applause continues].
Recording
Audience
03:28 - 03:37
Audio Description
Silence.
Recording
03:37 - 03:50
Audio Description
Heavy breathing.
Recorded Sound
03:50 - 08:18
Audio Description
Performs "Insubordination" [heavy breathing, crackling, canned chatter, and laughter].
Richard Martel
Recorded Sound
08:18 - 08:43
Audio Description
Blown out sound [crackle hum, fades out].
Recorded Sound
08:43 - 08:58
Audio Description
Applause.
Audience
08:58 - 09:01
Audio Description
Drinks water.
Richard Martel
09:01 - 09:12
Audio Description
Room noise.
Foufounes Electriques
09:12 - 09:13
Audio Description
On peut y aller.
Richard Martel
09:13 - 09:25
Audio Description
Room noise.
Foufounes Electriques
09:25 - 09:35
Audio Description
Wave sounds.
Recorded Sound
09:35 - 09:57
Audio Description
Wave sounds continue [static, chatter].
Recorded Sound
09:57 - 11:47
Audio Description
Performs "L'expérience de l'art comme disponibilité du temps" [French, multi-lingual].
Richard Martel
11:47 - 11:50
Audio Description
Wave sounds continue [sound of a washing machine drum spinning, static, chatter].
Recorded Sound
11:50 - 12:58
Audio Description
Continues "L'expérience de l'art comme disponibilité du temps".
Richard Martel
12:58 - 13:01
Audio Description
Sounds of waves [continues].
Recorded Sound
13:01 - 13:31
Audio Description
Blown out sound [possibly violent wind, waves].
Recorded Sound
13:31 - 14:00
Audio Description
Continues "L'expérience de l'art comme disponibilité du temps."
Richard Martel
14:00 - 14:04
Audio Description
Blown out sound continues [ticking].
Recorded Sound
14:04 - 14:40
Audio Description
Continues "L'expérience de l'art comme disponibilité du temps".
Richard Martel
14:40 - 14:44
Audio Description
Distorted organ sounds.
Recorded Sound
14:44 - 15:38
Audio Description
Continues "L'expérience de l'art comme disponibilité du temps".
Richard Martel
15:38 - 15:39
Audio Description
Distorted organ sounds continues [man vocalizing].
Recorded Sound
15:39 - 15:52
Audio Description
Continues "L'expérience de l'art comme disponibilité du temps".
Richard Martel
15:52 - 15:54
Audio Description
Silence [cuts out].
Recording
15:54 - 15:56
Audio Description
Silence.
Recording
15:56 - 15:56
Audio Description
[End of recording].
END