Emad Jamal • ADVIKA
Sunday, July 13, 2025
169 Bowery NYC
8:00 PM
Swarm is a realtime granular synthesis & audio spatialization environment made in Max. To create complex sound environments, incoming audio is recorded into a looping buffer and divided into 24 grains. Each grain is independently modulated and assigned to a unique sound object, which moves through simulated space as an individual in a group. Sound objects are distributed using a boid algorithm, designed to replicate the behavior of a flock of birds moving together. They consult their neighbors, match each other’s speeds, and flock around a common point of attraction. Performers can program the flock of sound objects to change their behaviors, move the attraction point dynamically, and adjust spatial characteristics of the room to affect the overall sound.
Devayani’s Curse is a long-form audio drama based on the story of Kacha and Devayani from the Mahabharata, one of the two great Sanskrit epics of ancient India. This five-movement suite retells the tale from Devayani’s perspective, exploring love and betrayal. The piece raises the question, do the ends always justify the means? When heroes fight for the general good, is it acceptable for innocent people to get hurt in the process? In a time when the Devas (gods) and Asuras (demons) were locked in endless war, the Asuras had one advantage—their guru, Shukra, who alone knew the secret of resurrection. To tip the scales, the Devas sent Kacha, their guru’s son, to infiltrate the Asuras by winning Shukra’s trust and Devayani’s heart. Devayani fell for Kacha, and when the Asuras killed him multiple times, she pleaded with her father to revive him, repeatedly. Eventually, they hid Kacha’s ashes in wine and tricked Shukra into drinking it. With Kacha trapped inside him, Shukra had to teach him the resurrection mantra from within, sacrificing himself so Kacha could later bring him back. When Kacha completed his mission, Devayani expected his love. Instead, he rejected her and revealed the truth of why he came. Enraged, she cursed him so he could never use the knowledge of resurrection. Kacha, unshaken, cursed her back—declaring no one would marry her. He returned to the Devas, victorious, leaving Devayani heartbroken and forgotten.
About the Artists
Emad Jamal is a Palestinian interdisciplinary artist and sound technician based in NY. They work primarily with loops and open systems that do not consider timelines, grids, or predetermined patterns. They are interested in feedback systems, emergent patterns, and public/audience interaction. They are currently focused on developing instruments that interact directly with surrounding environments. Their works are mostly exercises of the tools and techniques that they hope to develop to support the ideas of other artists and creative spaces.
ADVIKA is a Boston-based artist, songwriter, producer, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist whose work focuses on storytelling and world building through acoustic-electronic instrumentation and thoughtful, honest lyrics. Her work is influenced by jazz and Carnatic (South Indian classical) music. Her vocal performances are emotive and deliver the lyrics with sincerity and vulnerability. ADVIKA’s diverse musical backgrounds create a unique sound that is appealing to a wide range of listeners. ADVIKA’s musical journey started with classical piano, classical viola, and Carnatic singing. She later found her love for jazz, seeking inspiration in the music of Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Betty Carter, and over time, she began to write her own music and started experimenting with music production, modular synthesis, and sound design, incorporating elements from all the genres she loved. A recent graduate from Berklee College of Music, with a major in Electronic Production and Design, ADVIKA’s works have been featured in venues such as Lincoln Center, MIT, and NYU. Her work, Pariah, was selected to be showcased at ICMC Boston 2025.
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