Deep blanco
Jan 14, 2023, 10:55 AM
"Deep Blanco uses sounds from a recording of Ross seals that was captured at the PALAOA observatory 71°S 008°W (-70.516667 8.216667) (PerenniAL Acoustic Observatory in the Antarctic Ocean is AWI’s listening station north of the German Antarctic Neumayer station). The work aims to create a ‘sonic eco-system’ where the sounds made by the Ross seals encounter and are encontered by those made by humans (acoustic and electronic). Sounds in the work also feature Indonesian demungs (Gamelan) performed by Irish percussionist/composer Cathy Purcell, as well as electronic sounds from diverse synth sources.
"The piece has been designed so that the sounds of the seals surround the listener, who from the start immerses in a deep, luminous soundscape created by various layers of demungs and electronics cascadaing into each other. I see this work as representing a unique opportunity for humans to closely encounter the extraordinary sounds produced by the Ross seals while experiencing them in relationship with human-made expressions.
"By creating a sonic eco-system, Deep Blanco offers a new perspective from which to understand and interpret the seals’ sounds; a perspective that, although different in nature, is essentially and purposely not dissimilar to that offered by science. Through the gathering of scientific and artistic interpretations, and the dialogue between them, we can gain new insights about these creatures, and at the same time generate awareness of their existence and the need to protect and preserve them together with the other extraordinary beings of the oceans."
Ross seal reimagined by Óscar Mascareñas.
Part of the Polar Sounds project, a collaboration between Cities and Memory, the Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity (HIFMB) and the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI). Explore the project in full at http://citiesandmemory.com/polar-sounds.
IMAGE: Hannes Grobe, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
"The piece has been designed so that the sounds of the seals surround the listener, who from the start immerses in a deep, luminous soundscape created by various layers of demungs and electronics cascadaing into each other. I see this work as representing a unique opportunity for humans to closely encounter the extraordinary sounds produced by the Ross seals while experiencing them in relationship with human-made expressions.
"By creating a sonic eco-system, Deep Blanco offers a new perspective from which to understand and interpret the seals’ sounds; a perspective that, although different in nature, is essentially and purposely not dissimilar to that offered by science. Through the gathering of scientific and artistic interpretations, and the dialogue between them, we can gain new insights about these creatures, and at the same time generate awareness of their existence and the need to protect and preserve them together with the other extraordinary beings of the oceans."
Ross seal reimagined by Óscar Mascareñas.
Part of the Polar Sounds project, a collaboration between Cities and Memory, the Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity (HIFMB) and the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI). Explore the project in full at http://citiesandmemory.com/polar-sounds.
IMAGE: Hannes Grobe, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons