Montreal, like many modern cities, contains abundant examples of urban architecture which is optimized for motor vehicles, with pedestrian access provided as almost an afterthought. Suspension is an attempt to criticize the utility of this kind of traffic-oriented space from a human perspective, by reducing the transparency of the sonic experience of its users. The distinct timbral quality of suspension is designed to invoke a feeling of detachment and unease, driving listeners to question the security of the relationship between themselves and the built environment.
The goal of suspension is moreover to musicalize the everyday experience of the urban pedestrian: first by drawing environmental noise into relief against a more or less static “descant” voice using simple, embedded audio electronics; and second, by determining its temporal unfolding in relation to a field of social activity. The spatial situation, in this sense, furnishes suspension with both a physical medium (ambient/traffic sound and architectural acoustics) and a temporal enclosure (the time required to traverse the bridge). Audible content is not mapped to time but to space, being not only geographically specific, but also especially listener specific. As such, it defies recording. Perceived content will change depending on traffic flow, weather patterns, and most importantly on the body and behaviour of each individual listener. No time-based inscription of suspension could ever be complete.
Arrays of piezo resonators, connected to independent solar DC power sources, are concealed at regular intervals on the outer wall of a pedestrian route along the ca. 500 meter span of the Rosemont – Van Horne Viaduct in central Montreal. The frequencies produced by the resonators are chosen in the range of 2000-4000 hz, where the threshold of audibility for humans is generally lowest, so as to optimize subjective effect with a minimum of decibel output. The combinations of frequencies are also chosen so as to emphasize non-linearities in human sound perception, specifically in order to effect the sensation of difference tones in the range of 100-1000 hz and the intermittent coalescence of phantom fundamentals. Since frequencies in this range are also generally difficult for humans to localize spatially, the effect from the point of view of a pedestrian crossing the bridge will be a kind of sustained counter-voice of shimmering high frequencies, accompanying the normal noise of wind and traffic from an indefinite location inside the head. The rhythm and duration of the composition are determined by the behaviour of the listener while crossing the viaduct. The exclusive use of solar energy to power the resonators restricts the system’s operation to daylight hours and relatively clear weather. Ideally, there should be no visual indications at the site to show where or why the piece has been installed.
The energy normally required to diffuse sound electronically in a public setting presupposes access to an infrastructure which supports the modern industrial practices underlying mass energy production. The design of the audio diffusion system for suspension is an attempt to address our implication as electroacoustic musicians within this economic and ecological dilemma. Our goal is to significantly reduce the amount of electrical power required to drive the diffusion of multichannel audio installations, making it possible to build simple, practical systems for ubiquitous, portable, and outdoor applications. Perceived volume level is a function of the diffused sound in relation to the listener’s auditory system. Rather than spend power transducing low frequencies, high frequencies are combined so as to invoke these tones as subjective illusions.
Materials:
100 piezo buzzers (resonant frequencies between 2000 and 4000hz)
20 6-12v photovoltaic cells
wiring, attachment, casing, and weather sealing materials as required
Site research and audio testing took place in March, 2008 in order to determine the audibility of the piezo elements and to find optimal installation points. Solar-powered prototype testing is planned for late May.
