I went to see Andy Jones' "King of Fun" show last night at the Art Centre. He was witty, but I have to say he was eclipsed in my mind by an art piece that's on display in the room next door. It's called 'Forty-Part Motet' by the Canadian visual artist Janet Cardiff.
When you walk in the room, there are forty speakers positioned around the room. Forty separately recorded choir voices are played back through the speakers. The music being performed is 'Spem in Alium' which was written in the 1500s by Thomas Tallis, an English composer. The piece itself is incredibly beautiful, and to hear it in this way makes you feel like you are inside of and a part of the music. It's best explained on Janet's web site...
"Forty Part Motet allows the audience to experience sound from the viewpoint of the choir by physically involving them in the piece. When listening to live music the traditional position is to be at the front, looking on. In Forty Part Motet each speaker unit becomes a mouth; the audience unravels the composition by intimately moving amongst the speakers and hearing harmonies change as if singers were standing next to them. It allows sound to be heard as a changing construct, to be interpreted quite differently, to be carefully considered in a sculptural way and experienced at its best."
6:42:29 PM 
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