Marcus Maeder

Marcus Maeder (born 7 December 1971, Zurich, Switzerland) is a sound artist, acoustic ecologist and composer of electronic music.

Education
Maeder studied Fine Arts at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences, Philosophy at the FernUniversität in Hagen and completed his PhD in Environmental Systems Science at ETH Zürich.

Career
Maeder co-runs the music label domizil, which he co-founded in 1996 with Bernd Schurer. Maeder has worked as an editor and producer for the Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen (SRF) and has been working as a curator and researcher at the Institute for Computer Music and Sound Technology (ICST) of the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK) since 2005. Maeder works periodically as a visiting scientist at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) since 2016. Since 2023, Maeder works as a Humboldt Research Fellow in the Rillig research group of the Institute of Biology at Freie Universität Berlin.

Science
In his research at the ICST and Freie Universität Berlin, Maeder is working on acoustic ecology, ecoacoustics and data sonification of processes and phenomena related to climate change and environmental issues. In these disciplines, Maeder has developed methods of data sonification, field recording, physical acoustics and artistic research that have earned him international recognition. Maeder also reflects on his projects theoretically and philosophically, and has published a number of writings on the topics of art and science, artistic research, and sonic relationships in and with the environment.

Art
On an invitation by French President François Hollande, Maeder presented his sound art installation treelab at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference COP21.

In 2017 Maeder presented his installation AmazonFACE: Ocotea at the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington. Also in 2017 Maeder and Roman Zweifel received an honorable mention from the STARTS Prize by the European Commission at the Ars Electronica Festival in Linz/Austria for their works under the moniker treelab.

In 2021, Maeder showed his installation Silva - a commission by the Goethe Institute Tallinn - at the Estonian National Museum. Estonia's President Alar Karis visited the exhibition and held the opening speech.

Selected exhibitions and projects

 * 2023: Growth Model, Tokyo Biennal 2023, Japan
 * 2023: treelab, Examples to follow/zur Nachahmnung empfohlen, Uferhallen Berlin
 * 2023: Speculative Botany, Art and about. Artistic Research at Spreepark, Spreepark Art Space, Berlin
 * 2023: Espirito da floresta, A bruit secret. über das Hören in der Kunst, Museum Tinguely, Basel
 * 2022: Edaphon Braggio, Earthbound, HEK Haus der Elektronischen Künste, Basel
 * 2022: Acla, Art Safiental, Versam/Tenna
 * 2022: Growth Model, Touch Wood, ZAZ Museum Bellerive, Zurich
 * 2022: Edaphon Braggio, Earthbound, Esch 2022/Möllerei, Luxembourg
 * 2022: Nephoscope, Kunst forscht, Kunstverein Mannheim
 * 2021: Silva, Estonian National Museum, Tartu
 * 2021: Earth Beats, Kunsthaus Zürich
 * 2021: Landliebe, Bündner Kunstmuseum, Chur
 * 2020: Critical Zones, Zentrum für Kunst und Medien ZKM, Karlsruhe
 * 2019: Perimeter Pfynwald, Eco-Visionaries, Laboral Centro de Arte y Creation Industrial, Gijon
 * 2019: treelab, Of plants and People, Deutsches Hygienemuseum, Dresden
 * 2018: treelab, Eco-Visionaries, Haus der Elektronischen Künste, Basel
 * 2018: Sounding Soil, Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern
 * 2018: Espirito da floresta/Forest spirit, Bosque da Sciencia, Manaus
 * 2017: Espirito da floresta/Forest spirit, Inter-American Development Bank IDB, Washington DC
 * 2017: treelab, Ars Electronica Festival, Linz; BOZAR, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Bruxelles
 * 2015: trees: Pinus sylvestris, UN Climate Change Conference COP 21, Paris
 * 2014: trees: Pinus sylvestris, SoundReasons Festival, Outset India, New Delhi
 * 2014: trees: Downy Oak 2, Baum/Klang/Kunst/Mensch, Alpen Adria Universität Klagenfurt, with Ch. Kubisch, B. Traubeck, W. Ritsch
 * 2012: trees: Downy Oak, swissnex San Francisco, Workshop in Muir Woods
 * 2011: The left-hand path, A topographical radio play with Jan Schacher/Jasch, Musikprotokoll Graz and Shedhalle Zürich
 * 2010: Milieux Sonores, Grey Area Foundation, San Francisco und Kunstraum Walcheturm, Zürich
 * 2008: Sonifications and Music for theNova-Light object at Hauptbahnhof Zürich, a project by ETH Zürich
 * 2008: Die Wunschmaschinen, Surround radio play after Deleuze/Guattari's Anti-Oedipus, 40 Jahre 1968, Frankfurt und Kunstraum Walcheturm, Zürich
 * 2007: Davos Soundscape, a topographic composition with Jan Schacher/Jasch, Davos Festival 2007
 * 2004: Transient Travels, Installation and compositions, World New Music Days 2004
 * 2003: Electronic Music Archive, an exhibition by Gianni Jetzer and Norbert Möslang (Voice Crack), Kunsthalle St. Gallen
 * 2002: Music and sounddesign for Expo.02, Expoagricole, Murten
 * 1998: We Are Somewhere Else Already – Swiss Institute, New York

Discography

 * 2020: ''crepuscule, cassette, domizil 48
 * 2017: non-human, CD, domizil 45
 * 2015: Progeny, CD, domizil 41
 * 2013: topographie sinusoïdale, CD, domizil 38
 * 2010: annex, Mini CD, domizil 33
 * 2009: Wire Tapper, CD/The Wire(Compilation)
 * 2009: subsegmental, CD, domizil 32
 * 2008: Opera Calling, CD (Compilation)
 * 2008: Die Wunschmaschinen, DVD, domizil 30/ZHdK Records
 * 2007: This ship in trouble, CD/online, domizil 24
 * 2005: Transient Travels, VA, CD, domizil 23 (Compilation)
 * 2004: domizil vs. Antifrost life, - Live CD, domizil 19 (Compilation)
 * 2004: Club Transmediale, CD, Data Error (Compilation)
 * 2004: La Suisse, CD, SME (Compilation)
 * 2003: Bees & Honey, Andrey Kiritchenko, CD, Zeromoon (Remix)
 * 2002: Quiconque, CD, domizil 17
 * 2001: Poisonhats, CD, Arts Centre Dublin (Compilation)
 * 2001: Substrat CD, CD, Stattmusik (Compilation)
 * 2000: Institut für Feinmotorik: Verschiedene, CD, IFFM (Compilation)
 * 1999: solipsistic_motion, LP, domizil 10