Technology and art unite to create dance show based on volcanic sounds of the earth | Astigan.

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Categorized | Art History

Technology and art unite to create dance show based on volcanic

sounds of the earth
Posted on 26 March 2009
Tags: dante, modern dance, seismic music, volcano music

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Technology and art unite to create dance show based on volcanic sounds of the earth | Astigan.com 4/2/09 10:29 PM

(Astigan) — For the first time ever, a modern dance company has
performed to music generated from seismic data, recorded from four volcanoes across three
continents.

This unique event was facilitated by DANTE, the provider of high speed research and education networks,
the two distributed computing projects, Enabling Grids for E-sciencE (EGEE) and E-science grid facility for
Europe and Latin America (EELA), as well as CityDance Ensemble, a prestigious company based in
Washington, DC.

The dance, titled The Mountain, was part of CityDance Ensemble’s Carbon, a work-in-progress about
climate change. Originally presented in sold-out performances on the 14th and 15th of March at the Music
Centre, Maryland, USA, it is now available to view here. Following its initial success, further performances
of Carbon will be staged on the 28th and 29th of March.

The Mountain’s choreography is based on the structure of melodies created out of seismic waves recorded
from Mount Etna in Italy, Mount Tungurahua in Ecuador, and the Mountains Pinatubo and Mayon in the
Philippines. The data was then transformed into audible sound waves using a volcano sonification technique
developed by DANTE engineer Domenico Vicinanza, who also composed the music used in the dance
performance. The technique is currently being used in research to translate the patterns in a volcano’s
behaviour into sound waves to help predict volcanic eruptions.

Research and education data communications networks, GÉANT2 in Europe and TEIN3 in Asia-Pacific,
both operated by DANTE, as well as Latin America’s RedCLARA operated by CLARA, underpin the
immense computing power provided by EGEE in Europe and EELA in Latin America. The complex
sonification algorithms harness the power of the grids, enabling the seismic data to be converted into sound
melodies, a process that would be impossible using standard bandwidth networks or computing resources.

“High bandwidth research and education internet networks together with grid computing power have played
a vital part in making this project a reality,” said Paul Gordon Emerson, CityDance Ensemble choreographer
and Carbon curator. “It proves that if we can create a musical score from the earth’s natural sounds with the
help of a global computer infrastructure, then we can find the innovation needed to improve the planet. The
fact that this work uses the voices of the earth from three continents is a very powerful metaphor for Carbon
as a project and as a concept.”

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Technology and art unite to create dance show based on volcanic sounds of the earth | Astigan.com 4/2/09 10:29 PM

“As a scientist it was my priority on this project to develop tools to help us predict eruptions and ultimately
reduce the loss of lives,” said DANTE engineer, Domenico Vicinanza. “As a musician and artist too, it was
a natural step for me to take these seismic sonification sounds and apply them to the arts. I am delighted that
the results, or songs of the earth, are being created into a dance performance that will help raise awareness
of climate change.”

Dai Davies, General Manager, DANTE said: “The power of next generation research networks has been
turning scientific research into a reality for some time now. This project is a testament to how technology
can bring researchers and academics from across a multitude of disciplines together with artists, to facilitate
their creative collaboration on a global level. In addition, it provides an innovative use for research data in
aid of increasing climate change awareness.”

Material provided by DANTE

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