Mem1 seamlessly blends the sounds of cello and electronics to create a limitless palette of sonic possibilities. In their improvisation-based performances, Mark and Laura Cetilia’s use of custom hardware and software, in conjunction with a uniquely subtle approach to extended cello technique and realtime modular synthesis patching, results in the creation of a single voice rather than a duet between two individuals. Their music moves beyond melody, lyricism and traditional structural confines, revealing an organic evolution of sound that has been called “a perfect blend of harmony and cacophony” (Forced Exposure).

The Oxford University Press’ New Grove Dictionary of American Music describes Mem1 as “a unified cybernetic force, or complex cybernetic entity, comprised of two human artists plus their instruments and systems” whose “evolving, custom-built systems are as important an aspect of the duo’s achievements as their ever-innovative sound. Confounding the complexities inherent in human-machine and human-instrument relationship, Mem1 understands its music as a feedback loop between the past and present.”

Founded in Los Angeles in 2003, Mem1 has traveled extensively, performing at Issue Project Room (Brooklyn), Roulette (New York), REDCAT / Disney Hall (Los Angeles, Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, Electronic Church (Berlin), the Laptopia Festival (Tel-Aviv), the San Francisco Electronic Music Festival, and the Borealis Festival (Bergen). They have taken part in residencies at Harvestworks in New York, STEIM and Kunstenaarslogies in the Netherlands, O' in Milan, and USF Verftet in Bergen, Norway.

In 2009, they created Visiting Hours, a site-specific installation for the Museums of Bat Yam (Israel); in Winter 2012, they travelled to London to create Visiting Hours II, a site-specific installation for the Sonic Arts gallery SoundFjord. Their piece Aphrosia (with video by Mark Cetilia) was screened at the Institute for Contemporary Art (London) as part of an evening of audiovisual works curated by Helen Frosi; collaborative works with media artists Liora Belford and Kadet Kuhne have been screened and installed at the Hordaland Kunstsenter (Bergen), the Sundance Film Festival, and the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (San Francisco).

Throughout their career, they have collaborated with a variety of musicians and sound artists including the Penderecki String Quartet, Steve Roden, Jan Jelinek, Frank Bretschneider, and Stephen Vitiello. Together, Mem1 curates the experimental music series Ctrl+Alt+Repeat and the record label Estuary Ltd.

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