«European Melodic Parliament» - 2011/2012 -

Sound sculpture :  EMP is an "instrument", cavity wall consists of 630 holes-birdhouses brick on the back, and a white screen "partition" on the front, has 10 cables stretched perches in stainless steel, dim : 20.1 x 1.25 x 8.6 ft

 

EMP is an “instrument,” a hollow wall made up of 630 brick nesting holes on the back and a white “score” screen on the front, equipped with 10 taut stainless steel perch cables. Feeder-like notes are drilled into the wall/screen to create food reserves. The arrangement of these note-holes corresponds to the patterns of the four constellations: Capricorn, Boötes, Cygnus, and Virgo.

The stars of the constellations constitute the notes of the two musical scores, echoing star charts in which stars serve as potential nocturnal landmarks for European bird migrations. The score lines were designed as perches (the size of these wires is adapted to small birds). When birds land on the cables, they vibrate the strings, which resonate through the brick cavities in the wall. The wall acts as a soundboard (resonating body) for the instrument. Their presence on the wires adds further notes to the stellar score…

The circular cavities in the bricks can be used as nesting boxes or shelters for birds. The front face of the wall (the side with the nesting box) is visible from the mezzanine of the student residence building, allowing for potential observation of nesting birds (with binoculars). The top of the wall is designed as a birdbath/basin, filled by rainwater.

 

The sculpture-instrument is installed at the foot of the student residence, very close to the dining facilities, on the path connecting the dining facilities to the school's inner courtyard. This allows students to leave crumbs and seeds in the designated cavities to feed the birds. The more food the students leave, the larger the population of vulnerable residents will be, and the more spectacular the a cappella concert will become.