Jonáš Gruska is a proud amateur, honouring the French origin of the term (to love what you do). Curiosity and passion run through pretty much everything that Gruska engages in. In our conversation ranging from his site-specific sound installations to his hand-crafted microphones and audio tools, his recent interest in mycology, and his playful exploration of the electromagnetic spectrum, Jonáš used the word ‘fascination’ quite a lot, and for good reason. Curiosity and passion may indeed be the glue that holds together all the facets of his rather diverse artistic pursuits: the invisible thread that connects, say, electret microphone design to data sonification and oyster mushrooms. These interests and many more overlap in LOM, Gruska’s record label, audio equipment manufacturer, sound laboratory and public space in Bratislava, which emerged and gradually mutated from a punk DIY ethos, and is now a well established platform for sound experimentation and beyond.

Ràdio Web MACBA talks to Jonáš about resonating spaces, resonating surfaces, tramways, self-taught electronic circuitry, field recordings, fermentation, mushrooms, and unusual microphones.

Photo AGF