Sigur Ros and an AI go on the road; poetry about our infinite coastlines; the Ode to Joy on Zoom. Some culture in quarantine
The arts and culture sector (as reported last week) is doing its best to keep our hearts tended, and minds wide open, as we endure this necessary “physical and spatial distancing” in our homes. In the UK, the BBC has just announced a Culture in Quarantine programme (press release, and site), bringing performances in drama and dance that have been cancelled to tv screens, and digging into its extraordinary archive of cultural treasures.
These items below have fallen into our laps as beautiful, meditative experiences - ones that might help us make the most of whatever contemplation time might have opened up in our lives. If you’ve any more examples, please post in comments below.
Sigur Ros - Route 1
See embedded video at the top of the post. From NPR: “You can turn to YouTube to watch people skateboard off rooftops, or you can turn to YouTube to travel 1,332 km around Iceland's Ring Road while Sigur Rós music plays — it's your choice, really. The latter will take you a mere 24 hours, a feat the band (with the help of the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service) accomplished through the use of generative music software; basically, they fed stems of Sigur Rós songs to the software to generate an ever-changing new composition.
“Titled Route One, it's truly hypnotic; the visuals are gorgeous and it's easy to drop in and out while always hearing something new. Here are parts 2 and 3.”
Matthew Caley, Alex South and Steve Smart - TRAWL
A video poem made for Stanza, Scotland's International Poetry Festival as part of Scotland's Year of Coasts & Waters 2020. 'Trawlerman's Turquoise' by Matthew Caley is published by Bloodaxe Books. Matthew Caley will be at Stanza 2020. Alex South is a composer and performer. Steve Smart works in a variety of media
Ode to Joy (on Zoom) - Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra
Everybody’s doing it, but this is a most rousing example, pulled together by the news service Reuters - members of the Rotterdam Philharmonic playing across live web cast technology, while in lockdown.