Day 3 | Sound: Ecologies of Listening, presented by DistroKid

Day 3 of MUTEK Forum 2026, presented by DistroKid, turns toward sound as both medium and metaphor, tracing the deep entanglements between sound system culture, quantum physics, immersive technologies, and the politics of who gets to build and move through sonic space. This year, the Forum deepens its commitment to sound system culture through a dedicated programming track developed in collaboration with MORPH, a queer and femme-led collective reclaiming sound system culture and technical spaces, alongside the Sound System Lab, a showcase highlighting Montreal's vibrant community of builders and operators.

From Kingston to the World: Jamaican Sound System Culture is a conversation with Jamaican legendary sound system builder and elder Uncle Ronnie (Ronald Jarrett), hosted by D’Ari Lisle (Darkspark Creative Society). The next generation of sound system builders and sonic explorers takes the stage: Fait Poms, Salima Punjani, and Afrosonic Innovation Lab share the projects and ideas carrying the tradition into new territory.

A three-part trajectory weaving together quantum physics, deep listening, and the future of immersive audio opens with a keynote, Correlated States: Listening Between Certainties, by sound artist France Jobin and quantum physicist Alexandre Blais. A panel on Quantum Listening then brings together artists and scientists, including artist Kara-Lis Coverdale, media arts curator Eva Fischer (soundframe / Civa Festival, Vienna), and poet, performer, and healer Rena Anakwe (NEW INC), to ask what it truly means to listen, and how conditions of uncertainty can reshape creative practice. The trajectory closes with Sonic States, a panel on the current landscape of immersive audio technologies and practices, featuring Laura-June Clarke (4DSOUND, MONOM), Dr. Lea Luka Sikau (ZKM), and Myriam Boucher (Université de Montréal).

Other sessions will examine key topics for the electronic music industry, including care, capital, and accountability in electronic music, presented in partnership with Debaser, and activities examining sustainable alternatives for music. Frequency and Footprint: Rethinking the Live Experience opens with an introduction by Sergio Parra Aguilera (Canadian Live Music Association), offering a first look at the Climate Contingency Roadmap project, followed by a panel with Chloé Gatignol (Courts-Circuits), Samantha Melnyk (KORG), and Amber Mundinger (L-Acoustics), moderated by Pauline Bourdon (Soliphilia). The session examines whether innovation and sustainability can truly align as the technologies powering live performances evolve at an unprecedented pace, while pointing toward concrete solutions.

The Forum comes to a close with the Canadian premiere of A Sexual History of the Internet. LA and NYC-based artist and technologist Mindy Seu (Cyberfeminism Index) delivers an interactive lecture-performance based on her eponymous book, examining the reciprocal relationship between technological development and sexuality to reveal ubiquitous and unexpected origins of our digital tools.

The day also features a worldbuilding workshop by award-winning XR filmmaker Paisley Smith, presented by the National Film Board of Canada (NFB), while sound artist and instrument-maker Evicshen will host a hands-on contact mic building workshop at DASA. World Creation Studio presents a special edition of final-bounce hosted by multidisciplinary artist Malte Leander, featuring international MUTEK artists invited to share unreleased material, demos, and works-in-progress, spotlighting what is currently emerging in Montréal's electronic music scene.