Experimental Sound Studio

Experimental Sound Studio ESS is a non-profit, artist-run organization focused on sound in all its exploratory cultural manifes November is Membership Month!

Join at https://ess.org/donate. Experimental Sound Studio is a Chicago-based nonprofit organization dedicated to artistic evolution and the creative exploration of sound. As an international hub for sonic experimentation, ESS nurtures artists, heralds new works, and builds a broad, supportive community of makers, enthusiasts, and creative partners through preservation, production, presentation, and education.

This week, 2025 Spain/Chicago Artist Exchange resident Maguette Dieng (.adouna ) has been exploring Chicago and working ...
10/31/2025

This week, 2025 Spain/Chicago Artist Exchange resident Maguette Dieng (.adouna ) has been exploring Chicago and working in the studio at Experimental Sound Studio.

Maguette, a Barcelona-based DJ, producer, and programmer, brought with them a deep interest in mixing footwork, a music style born in Chicago, with Mbalakh, a traditional music from Senegal.

Huge thanks to local legend Jana Rush ( ) for joining us in the studio and supporting Dieng’s work.

The Spain/Chicago Artist Exchange is an annual collaboration between The Cultural Office of the Embassy of Spain ( ) and Experimental Sound Studio.

Here are some highlights from the third season of Patchbent workshops. Thanks to Sarah Belle Reid, Senem Pirler, and Nic...
10/29/2025

Here are some highlights from the third season of Patchbent workshops. Thanks to Sarah Belle Reid, Senem Pirler, and Nicole Alonso for leading such thoughtful and engaging presentations. Huge thanks to the workshop participants, too.

We’re planning some winter opportunities to be together and share work before we come back with more workshops in the spring. Stay tuned, and keep in touch with what you’d like to see next season.

Videos of past Patchbent Sessions will be available on our YouTube channel soon. Keep an eye out for that announcement!



Making Multichannel Music, a series of artist-led introductory workshops to spatial audio, kicks off tonight at Elastic ...
10/28/2025

Making Multichannel Music, a series of artist-led introductory workshops to spatial audio, kicks off tonight at Elastic Arts with musician, filmmaker, and arts worker, Sam Clapp.

We’re excited to partner with Elastic for this innovative educational opportunity for working artists. The workshops are free, so don’t miss out!

October 28: Sam Clapp
November 4: Scott Rubin
November 11: Kate In
November 18: Hugo Flores Garcia

This program is supported by the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation.





Huge thanks to for including ESS in their Music 45 list, a biennial survey of Chicago’s music world. We’re honored to b...
10/28/2025

Huge thanks to for including ESS in their Music 45 list, a biennial survey of Chicago’s music world. We’re honored to be included and to be in such great company.

Since 1986, ESS has been a core supporter, partner, and driver in Chicago’s vibrant experimental music community. We were one of the first non-profit cultural institutions in the U.S. dedicated entirely to the sonic arts and remain the only one in the Midwest.

Co-directors Adam Vida, Olivia Junell, and Alex Inglizian (pictured here) took the reigns of the organization in 2016 after the retirement of co-founder Lou Mallozzi. Formalizing the collective ethos that ESS was built on, the trio have been instrumental in guiding ESS’s forward-thinking trajectory.

2026 marks the 40th year of the organization, and we’ve got some big plans in the works. As we continue to grow and evolve to support the changing needs of contemporary artists, we are thankful for everyone who has worked alongside us over the years.

On Thursday, October 30, 2025, from 4–4:30 PM CDT, we are hosting our final “Plugged-In Virtual Happy Hour” of the year....
10/27/2025

On Thursday, October 30, 2025, from 4–4:30 PM CDT, we are hosting our final “Plugged-In Virtual Happy Hour” of the year.

Joins us for curated round up of ESS events, exclusive content, and more.

This time around, we’ve got insights from our 2025 ALBA Residency with Sarah Lutkenhaus; a deeper look at Sarah Belle Reid’s Florasonic installation, “Semblance of Fern,” and her recent Patchbent workshop; a performance from Jaap Blonk via our friends at Catalytic Sound; a sneak peak at some exciting new additions to the ESS SYNTH[bank]; and a video from artist, Itsï Ramirez.

This is a no cameras, no mics, come-and-go event featuring exclusive content from the ESS world. Kick back with a beverage, connect in the chats, and take a little curated break.

“Plugged-In” is an ESS fundraising initiative that generates financial support for our organization through one-time or recurring donations. Being a “Plugged-In” supporter is easy. Just make a donation of any amount to ESS to receive a windfall of perks.




ESS’s Creative Audio Archive (CAA) is dedicated to the preservation of innovative and experimental sonic arts and music....
10/24/2025

ESS’s Creative Audio Archive (CAA) is dedicated to the preservation of innovative and experimental sonic arts and music.

The CAA is not a gilded vault or mausoleum. Instead, it’s a porous interface. Working with contemporary artists and musicians, we facilitate direct activations and investigations of these materials. The Sun Ra / El Saturn collection is one of our more well known collections. However, the objects, the audio, and what they inspire continue to surprise and delight.

Artists Angel Bat Dawid and Sophiyah E., known collectively as MOTHABOARD, have been exploring the Sun Ra / El Saturn collection through dedicated research and expressive performance. Their recent project “Cosmic Echoes” explored Ra’s profound legacy through his connections to Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood and the historic Forum.

Several pivotal recordings from the collection, cited in their recent research are shown here, as well as a snippet from the performance.


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Florasonic continues through Nov 23!Composer-performer Sarah Belle Reid’s installation “Semblence of Fern” in the Lincol...
10/23/2025

Florasonic continues through Nov 23!

Composer-performer Sarah Belle Reid’s installation “Semblence of Fern” in the Lincoln Park Conservatory’s Fern Room explores the formal connections between mathematical models and natural order.

Experience this unique sound installation during Conservatory open hours (Wednesday-Sunday,10am-4:30pm). The piece plays at the top of every hour.

Sarah began her journey of creating the work by studying Barnsley’s Fern, an algorithm first described by Dr. Michael Barnsley in 1988. The algorithm’s fern-like logic was then compared to the rich diversity of natural ferns: intricate spore patterns, fuzzy fiddleheads, tangled root systems. From these explorations, Reid imagined a series of “mutant ferns” by altering various aspects of Barnsley’s original fractal algorithm to generate fern-like abstractions, suggesting unfamiliar ecosystems and conditions, blurring the line between natural and invented growth.

To realize this piece, Reid collaborated with musician and electronic instrument designer Ryan Gaston. This instrument translates the Barnsley Fern and eight mutant variants into interwoven streams controlled with a digital modular synthesizer system of Gaston’s design. The device produces fern-inspired voltages that animate and spatialize the sounds you hear, moving them through the quadraphonic field—like organisms spreading and intertwining.

You just have to experience this.



Despite the weather, the 14th annual Experimental Garage Sale was a shining success. Thanks to everyone who braved the m...
10/22/2025

Despite the weather, the 14th annual Experimental Garage Sale was a shining success. Thanks to everyone who braved the morning rain to bask in the glow of a beautiful October afternoon with us.

Big thanks to EGS organizer Micheal Una () for snapping it all into focus once again.

Amidst the zips and zaps of modular synths, DIY cassette drones, homemade instruments, and gently used gear, there was a palpable feeling of comradery.

Where would we be without our curious community? Attendees new and old explored every nook and cranny of ESS, which was packed with vendors from across the region. You name it, we had it, with vendors offering an array of whimsical and practical one-of-a-kind finds.

Thanks to the ESS family for showing up again and again.

Huge thanks to everyone that came out to the Forum on Saturday for a very special performance from MOTHABOARD, the duo o...
10/21/2025

Huge thanks to everyone that came out to the Forum on Saturday for a very special performance from MOTHABOARD, the duo of Angel Bat Dawid and Sophiyah E.

The event explored Sun Ra’s profound legacy through his connections to Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood. The incredible performance and community-based activation cited archival recordings from ESS’s Creative Audio Archive Sun Ra/El Saturn Collection creating a realtime reflection on Black creativity, resilience, and the cosmic power of sound.


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Our ongoing collaboration with continues with an evening of new comedic operetta and art song.Experimental Sound Studio...
10/17/2025

Our ongoing collaboration with continues with an evening of new comedic operetta and art song.

Experimental Sound Studio
Tuesday, Oct 21
7:30-8:30 PM

“On a secluded island, accessible only by ferry and forgotten by time, stands Hotel Noire. Once a haven of elegance, it now serves as a sanctuary for Madame Blanc and her unwavering code of civility...” So begins the concert premiere of “a life in four laments” by Paul Scherer, sung by Eden Hensel with pianist Marissa Kerbel. Soprano Amy Gadd and pianist Justin Pasquil open the evening with irreverent, 21st -century takes on art song as performers and composers. Presented as an Accent Concert in collaboration with .

RSVP IN BIO

This Saturday at the Forum in Bronzeville!Experimental Sound Studio is pleased to announce “Cosmic Echoes: Sun Ra and Th...
10/16/2025

This Saturday at the Forum in Bronzeville!

Experimental Sound Studio is pleased to announce “Cosmic Echoes: Sun Ra and The Bronzeville Forum—An Immersive Sonic Journey with MOTHABOARD” featuring Angel Bat Dawid & Sophiyah E.

This community-participatory performance explores Sun Ra’s profound legacy through his connections to Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood and the historic Forum. While there’s no documented record of Sun Ra performing at the original Forum, he engaged in an informal “Forum” in Washington Park, where he connected with Black intellectuals and radicals. This space embodied the spirit of community, political dialogue, and artistic expression.

This performance acts as a dialogue between Sun Ra’s ideas and the historical significance of the Bronzeville Forum, emphasizing themes of Black liberation, cosmic consciousness, and resilience. It invites audiences to experience Sun Ra’s work as a spiritual and cultural act rooted in specific historical and geographical contexts. A transformative, community-driven event, it will blend music, history, activism, and healing—creating a shared space for reflection on Black creativity, resilience, and the cosmic power of sound.

Saturday, October 16
2-4pm
The Forum in Bronzeville, 318 E. 43rd St
(soon to be The Forum Cafe!)

This program is supported in part by


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