Sensing city
March 7, 2009
Sensing city was a live concert by an eleven-piece-ensemble which was occasionally influenced by urban rhythms, here the movement of cars outside the concert venue. As the passing cars triggered the rhythms that were being played, the city became audible through the musicians, even when the urban dwellers not knowingly were part of the composition
Taken from their website:
“A city has its own rhythm that affects the life of its people and is at the same time created by them. Bus schedules, traffic lights and the turn signals of cars are familiar patterns to the citizen. This interplay between creation and inspiration is also at the heart of all music. Making music means translating impression into sound, listening to music means transforming sound into impression.
So what happens if we allow these urban rhythms to occasionally have a direct influence on the musical performance of an eleven-piece-ensemble?
As the movement of cars outside the concert venue triggers the rhythms that are being played, the urban dwellers not knowingly become part of the composition, the city becomes audible through the musicians. This process happens in real-time and is guided by the framework of a video-installation that surrounds the ensemble during the performance of sensing city.”
Images of the concert are available here.
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