frey

Solar Chorus

a site-, weather-, and time- specific installation/performance for the sun

View media from Prototyping Session 2.

In Solar Chorus, sunlight is used simultaneously as a source of energy and a source of modulation of sound. Acknowledging the basic truth that all of our energy, from the simple summer warmth and light that allows us to live in comfort, to the food that we eat, to our electricity in the form of hydroelectric, wind, solar, and wave power, right through to fossil fuels, ultimately comes from the sun, Solar Chorus renders this sunlight visible in the auditory spectrum, giving us unique phenomenological access to something we might otherwise take for granted.

Fifty simple solar-powered sound generators are positioned to individually catch the light. Based around a shared base frequency, each sound generator is tuned to respond differently to varying levels of light by playing different tones, different harmonics, and different sound intensities, depending on the amount of light reaching each solar panel: sunlight, either directly or filtered through cloud cover, is used both as a source of electrical energy and as a source of sonic modulation.

The whole group is tuned so that under equal lighting conditions, the overall result would a dense, rich harmony of fifty tones and overtones. But since the sun is constantly in motion, and on some days there is cloud cover that varies over time, the light falling on each solar panel is far from constant. In fact, the levels of light striking each solar panel can vary enormously even over a short period of time, as the earth turns to gradually direct each individual solar generator first toward the light and then away from it.

Each solar sound generator is extremely simple: a small solar panel, a tunable sound generating circuit of a few electronic components, and a speaker. Through small differences in component values, and differences in the angle of the sun hitting each solar cell, each sound generator will produce a slightly different tone, leading to a chorus-like effect, even as the changing lighting conditions shift the overall sound spectrum over the course of the day.

Warmth as Sound; Sound as Warmth

One angle of the experiential component of Solar Chorus has to do with the particular construction of the circuits. The shift in pitch and in tone that occurs when the lighting levels change actually comes about because the circuit is being starved of current under low light conditions. When full sunlight returns after a moment of absence (for example, when the sun comes out from behind a cloud), the resulting rush of current causes the circuit to gorge itself, and the sound to become rich, deep, and full. For a listener sitting next to the device, the change in sound is perfectly mirrored by a change in feeling: the sudden warm sunlight causes a sense of deep physical relaxation, even as the sound expands and deepens to feel more healthy, more complete.

Solar Consciousness

The human visual system is astonishing in its ability to compensate for changing light conditions. We can make out forms in almost total darkness if we give our eyes enough time to adjust; yet we can look toward the sky on a glaringly bright day without damaging our vision. This range of lighting levels, from complete darkness to full brightness, represents a contrast ratio of billions to one, yet our vision remains through the complete range. This remarkable ability is due to our body’s innate biomechanical and psychological adjustment mechanisms: our pupils dilate or contract to limit the amount of light entering the eye, and at some level our brain compensates for white balance and renders high-contrast images understandable.

But this pre-processing robs us of a direct, raw experience of the actual level of light. We see gloom and lightness in relative terms: this space is darker than that space, outside is brighter than inside; but if the lighting is in gradual flux, we do not notice.

Solar Chorus seeks to redress this experiential theft by augmenting our ordinary biologically-mediated experience of light with a parallel experience of sound. The new combination of experiences brings about a new way of seeing, a new perception of changing levels of light. As lighting conditions shift, sound shifts; when we can hear the light changing through sound, we find our perception of the light somehow more vibrant, more fragile, more immediate, more performed.

Technical Requirements

Power: Solar Chorus is entirely self-powered and self-contained.
Electrical safety considerations: All equipment used is very low voltage/low power and represents absolutely no risk of injury to anyone.
Setup time required: 1-2 full days.

Production Budget

At present I have no external source of funding for this project. I will be completing all of the technical development and construction myself.

Construction costs:
Purchase electronic components €450
Transport costs:
Packaging €25
Shipping €20

Total: €495