Untitled Installation (2001)

In 2001, the University of Maryland opened the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. As part of the opening festivities, I created a sound installation that made use of the building itself, subtly enhancing the sonic characteristics of some of the busiest parts of the building.

I was struck by Max Neuhaus’s important installation in Times Square, where he placed a nondescript sound that emanated from below a large triangular grate in the sidewalk in the middle of the square. It’s quite loud, but is also close enough to other sounds that inhabit the space that a listener can choose whether or not to engage with the art.

I wanted a similar approach to my own installation. I spent hours observing both the sonic characteristics as well as how people used the various public spaces in the building. I was drawn to an open stair that led down one level, and as you descended the sounds from the busy cafe located nearby became filtered, softer, and mixed with the sounds from other parts of the building.

I used a microphone to capture sound near the cafe, processed it through CSound, and projected it into the stair. The installation ran for 10 days, and each day used different parameters to filter, delay, and layer sounds. Thus a listener would encounter a slightly different experience depending not only on the time of day, but also the day itself - yesterday’s version wasn’t the same as tomorrow’s version.

Despite the presence of a rather large speaker, clearly visible microphone, and dangling speaker wires, most listeners had an experience like that of Neuhaus’s work - I was often asked how I got the sounds to play in the stair. The installation was meant to focus the attention of the listener to the moment (or act) of perception - and this interest in experience and phenomenology has continued to greatly impact my approach to composition over 20 years later.