Preston Swirnoff is a multidisciplinary artist, musician, and writer based in San Diego, California. Over the past 25 years he has worked in a wide range of genres and mediums to create an extensive discography, with a long history of performances and exhibitions worldwide. Working with live performance, sound sculptures, light, natural materials, and textiles, Swirnoff creates immersive environments that center on the primacy of ritual and the intimacy of physical presence. The common thread that runs through the work is the unbroken chain between our forgotten history and the challenge of being present today. His music engages the phenomenological aspects of sound in ritual, an exploration of sonority on different instruments, and the practice of structured improvisation cycles, sustained tones, and rhythmic repetition found in traditional cultures. Preston’s solo and collaborative projects have toured across North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. He has composed music for film, art installations, and dance.

Preston is founder and director of INTERVALS Arts, curating and producing contemporary art, music, film, and literature in San Diego and beyond. He also serves on the Board of Directors as Chair of Events for Center for World Music, co-directing its concert series at Mingei International Museum.

Preston has performed, created sound and visual art installations, and collaborated with other artists at Tate Modern, LACMA, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, DWARS Amsterdam, MACBA Barcelona, MCA San Diego, MOMA PS1 Queens, UCLA Schoenberg Music Building, UC San Diego, Niterói Contemporary Art Museum Rio, Le CentQuatre Paris, Indonesian Institute of the Arts Denpasar, Kunstencentrum Belgium.