As a means to imagine new ways to present music in the Philadelphia community, The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage created the New Spaces: New Formats research group to investigate inventive ways to harness fresh locations and techniques for musical performance. This past Friday, September 27, Data Garden unveiled a 24-hour project entitled “Hexidecibel” at Old City’s Christ Church Neighborhood House.

The side of Christ Church scintillates with hexagons in a projection by Don Miller.

Pollinators are integral parts of any ecosystem. Their symbiotic relationship with plants ensures that pollen is spread amongst individuals, allowing for a healthy gene pool and a mobile means of sexual reproduction for otherwise rooted lifeforms. As far as the human food supply goes, honeybees are without a doubt one of the most essential components of the agricultural process. With an ever-growing population, the demands of crop production and an alarming decline in the number of honeybees places their importance at the forefront of contemporary issues facing our world.

Sam Cusumano attaches microphones to a beehive. Photo courtesy Data Garden

Utilizing a group of beehives already in place atop the Christ Church Neighborhood House, a team of Data Garden members set out to produce an audio/visual installation as a tribute to the tiny insects that work tirelessly to ensure that we can eat. Joe Patitucci and Sam Cusumano rigged up contact microphones to the outside of the wooden beehive boxes in order to monitor the hives in real time. This audio and an alternating mix of human-made electronic instruments was then broadcast out onto American Street, providing a droning musical composition for visitors to immerse themselves in.

The sound of the buzzing bees was translated into numerical data which controlled the audio software and accompanying visuals. Don Miller constructed a projection of hexagons across the back wall and bell tower of Christ Church that faded and alternated colors in accordance with the data. The shapes themselves are clearly reminiscent of honeycombs, and with the reflection of the bricks beneath, the church’s wall took on the appearance of a psychedelic beehive-within-a-beehive that pulsated along with the amplified sounds and the colony of actual bees located just out of view.

The pipe organ in Christ Church played by Jesse Kudler for his performance with Chris Forsyth.

With live bees, real-time audio and projections, and a time span of only a day, “Hexidecibel” is a project that was both ambitious and thought-provoking. The rhythmic lights of the visual play, along with the meditative hum of the speakers, created a calming environment for reflection and inspiration. Nearby, a pair of performances provided some additional auditory treats for attendees of the New Spaces: New Formats event. An impromptu jazz composition courtesy the American Composers Forum with Norman David, Matthew Davis and Peter Paulsen, and an ethereal guitar/pipe organ arrangement in Christ Church with Chris Forsyth and Jesse Kudler, rounded out the evening with impressive exchanges of musical talent outside of the ongoing psychic meanderings of “Hexidecibel.”

The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage is located at 1608 Walnut St., 18th floor, Philadelphia; [email protected]; pcah.us.