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cold huddle-one of six-piece score

Rath Install 13 copy

(photo credit: Brian Forrest)

Nest model Oct

A BETTER NECTAR INSTALLATION UAM

“Resonant Nest” is a human-scaled native bumblebee nest sculpture that emanates human voice interpretations of bee communication. The 6-part score is composed by Venice-based sound designer Robert Hoehn and performed by the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music 40 person Chamber Choir at California State University, Long Beach’s (CSULB), one of the most prestigious choral departments of the West Coast. Bee sounds are inspired by research from the Leonard Bee Lab, University of Nevada, Reno and recordings by Dr. Stephen Buchmann, University of Arizona, Tuscon. An internal plug mold, made in collaboration with Ian Schneller of Specimen Products, Chicago, was used to create the nest’s 19 modular units, each embedded with speakers whose score shifts with sensory inputs based on current weather, time, and gallery viewer closeness to the nest. The resonance of the nest ebbs and flow with feeds from the National Weather Service report on local conditions and Arduino Uno inputs from the proximity sensors in the nest. MAX composing program translates this information to shift and layer emitting scores–languid wander, afternoon forage, quiet sleep, cold huddle, too close and single voice pollinators–from the nest. Data illustration by artist Vivian Sming displays these shifts and names score changes through the day.

 

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A BETTER NECTAR SPEAKERS & SCREENS

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A BETTER NECTAR SPEAKERS & SCREENS

A BETTER NECTAR CAL STATE CHORALE

A BETTER NECTAR CAL STATE CHORALE

Photo credits: Aisha Singleton, Gioia Licorish