Akari Komura
Tuning to the open air - Thurston Pond Soundwalk (2022)
The project took place in collaboration with Virago, a Detroit/Ann Arbor-based ensemble formed by Sofia Carbonara (percussion), Wesley Hornpetrie (cello), BethAnne Kunert (saxophone), and Meg Rohrer (violin/viola).
The soundwalk is a silent experience open to an individual or collective journey. Soundwalk invites participants to imagine sounds of the past, present, and future that are heard internally and externally to our ears. The project is rooted in deep listening and re-attuning our aural awareness through opening our ears to the activities in the soundscape.
The event begins with a brief soundmaking act enacted by the musicians, then participants are invited to join a soundmaking at the end of the walk. They have the options of gathering natural objects to make sounds with, using their voice or body parts, or continuing to listen in silence. Following the collective soundmaking, a 10-minute open dialogue is encouraged for any participants to share their listening experiences.
An audio tour for a self-guided walk is also available here: https://gesso.fm/collections/tuning-to-the-open-air-thurston-pond-soundwalk
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Participants gathered at the meeting location prior to starting the walk, and they are invited to listen to a soundmaking act by musicians to initiate the collective listening experience.
Listening spot #6: Thurston Pond Circle Trail
With the collaborators (from left to right); Sofia Carbonara (percussion), Wesley Hornpetrie (cello), BethAnne Kunert (saxophone), Meg Rohrer (violin/viola), Akari Komura (composer)
BethAnne and Meg Rohrer, members of Virago, are listening to the soundscape and responding to the animal signals, while participants walk around the pond.
Listening spot #4: Sugarbush Trail
Listening spot #6: Thurston Pond Circle Trail
Participants were invited to explore soundmaking by finding natural objects to make sounds with or using their voices and body parts. Eventually, they carried their sounds to the final meeting point to build an assemblage of sounds to conclude the walk.