Developed @ High Concept Laboratories (Summer 2014)
electronically controlled vibrating objects
Performances:
- High Concept Laboratoires @ MANA Contemporary, Chicago, IL – 09/20/2014
- OSCILLATIONS – Experimental Sound Studios, Chicago, IL – 11/07/2014
- Galvin Hall, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL – 04/29/2018
- Earth Day Art Model 2021 (telematic performance from Boone, NC)- 04/22/2021
Program Note:
when we speak of the land investigates the decidedly human urge to control natural forces despite overwhelming odds and often fleeting successes.
Versions:
Illinois 2008 version
Scientists and government agencies have long warned of the possibility of devastating earthquakes in the New Madrid Seismic Zone, urging Midwesterners to prepare for an impending catastrophe. Yet, the last major eruption occurred over 200 years ago. The work explores the second largest earthquake recorded in Illinois (April 18, 2008) through sonification. Data extracted from seismographs is used to create and control the vibrations of sheet metal and drums by exciting their natural resonant frequencies. The metaphor is rather direct: the vibrations of these surfaces correspond to the mysterious intraplate earthquakes. Part musical composition, part sound installation, when we speak of the land aims to create an immersive sound experience for the listener by fine tuning the network of vibrations and spatialized sounds to the acoustics of the performance space.
Oklahoma 2011 version
This version explores the surge of induced earthquakes related to wastewater disposal wells in Oklahoma. The 5.7Mw earthquake on November 6, 2011 near Prague, OK is one of the largest earthquakes potentially related to human activity. Seismic data is used to control and excite the natural resonances of bass drums. Each of the four bass drums represent a seismic station in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Illinois, and North Dakota. The data is reproduced in real-time; the energy from the initial event travels hundreds of miles in a matter of minutes. In April 2018, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission ordered a well to reduce its volume of injection after more than a dozen earthquakes occurred near the injection site between April 6-9th.
Ohio 2011 version
This performance uses data from a MN4.0 earthquake that occurred near Youngstown, Ohio on December 31, 2011. Numerous studies have found the seismic event was triggered by wastewater injection from oil and gas related operations. The intensification of natural gas extraction over the last several decades has led to a rise in pipeline projects like the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline project that would carry natural gas from West Virginia to North Carolina (currently being challenged in the Supreme Court). The profitability of natural gas carries with it numerous environmental consequences: unstable terrain, erosion and sedimentation, natural gas leaks and explosions, contamination of watershed and wildlife habitats, and the growing concern over methane emissions (a potent greenhouse gas) from natural gas extraction.