SOURCES: A sound installation inspired by the St. Lawrence Seaway

As anyone who has spent time along the along the St. Lawrence Seaway, this river is anything but the St. Lawrence Seaway, this river is anything but peaceful and  quiet, especially at daybreak when the birds start to sing. 

Using works by composer/performer Louise Campbell inspired by the birds of Georgian Bay, the bustling port of Montreal, and the vast expanses of the Magdalen Islands, this sound installation and accompanying cultural mediation is designed to encourage active listening and engagement with nature wherever one is: in urban or rural settings, on the waterfront, or in a park such as Montreal’s Frederic Back Park.

Members of the public, as well as groups from Montreal’s public school system and other organizations, will be encouraged to explore the space through a “scavenger hunt” to find QR codes that link to sound files. These sound files can be played on the viewer’s cell phone speaker at any time during the installation, making the audience an active creator of the sound experience.

An optional cultural mediation experience is also offered entitled “Taking it Outside: Art Inspired by Nature,” and a walk through Frederic Back Park led by a facilitator of the organization GUEPE. The “Taking it Outside” workshop has been offered in schools across Montreal from October 2022 to June 2023.

The installation will serve as the launch of Louise Campbell’s album Sources, a cycle of works for clarinet and electronics inspired by the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River, on Redshift Records.

Louise Campbell is a Montreal-based musician who wears the hats of conductor, cultural mediator, and musician health professional. In her work as a performer, improviser and composer, Louise wants to question and renew the way music is created. This translates, among other things, into composing works with amateur musicians through improvisation, regardless of age, ability, musical training or experience. She also practices improvised conducting of musical ensembles, interdisciplinary creation, commissioning of works, and audience development and outreach activities. She has toured across Canada, the United States, France, Germany and Brazil as a performer, guest artist, and lecturer, both in person and in virtual spaces.

louisecampbell.ca

This project was supported by the Canada Council for the Arts and the City of Montreal as part of the Montréal culturelle, verte et résiliente program, in partnership with Innovations en concert, Audiotopie, Bradyworks, TOHU, Ville en vert, and the City of Montreal.

We would like to thank the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, the Conseil des arts de Montréal and the SOCAN Foundation for their support.