BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
Every few seconds, all day and night, sonic blasts are fired into the waters. The idea is to explore the area for oil and gas deposits. And when this seismic testing happens off the coast of Newcastle, New South Wales, it can also destroy plankton, harm whales and endangered species, and see fishermen pull up rotting fish.
So what’s all this got to do with music?
This month, the voice of the whale will be heard in Vox Balaenae – a concert that speaks for the environment and opposes seismic testing through a series of themed compositions and talks.
The event will take place as a fundraiser for the Hunter Community Environment Centre, and will feature a discussion with marine ecology expert Mark Clifton, along with works by George Crumb (Vox Balaenae), and music about the natural world from composers Sculthorpe, Fujikura, and Ravel.
Flautist and environmental advocate Sarah Monk, who will perform with pianist Joseph Asquith and cellist Naomi Smith, tells us why this is an event worth heading to Newcastle to attend.
Sarah, tell us about Vox Balaenae. How did this event come about?
I had wanted to design a concert centred around themes of nature and the environment. A concert that would not only draw awareness to its sublime beauty, but also encourage a deeper connection to its beauty. Sound is a powerful way of drawing a listener into a state of stillness. A place in which to contemplate.
I had always been drawn to Vox Balaenae: Voice of the Whale by George Crumb. This piece for me captures the ethereal, delicate, and fierce qualities of nature. Composed in 1971, it was inspired by the Save the Whales campaign and recordings of whale songs.
Early this year, I was approached by friend and pianist Joseph Asquith. He also had this thought to create a concert with environmental themes, that would raise money and draw awareness to an environmental-based charity. We decided to team up; a flautist and pianist with the same vision. We wanted to draw community together to reflect on the beauty of nature, and raise money and awareness to an important campaign.
After attending a screening of Sonic Sea, we discovered an important local issue that conceptually aligned with Vox Balaenae: Voice of the Whale. It was here we discovered that sonic blasts were being fired into the ocean floor in the pursuit of finding oil and gas reserves off the coast of Newcastle. These blasts have the potential to affect the navigation of whales, dolphins and other marine life to the point where they have been known to beach themselves. Not only is this practice directly damaging, but it seems ludicrous that money and research was been put into yet another unrenewable source of energy. Surely we should be moving away from fossil fuels as a means for creating energy? Especially as climate change is already causing destruction world-wide. We wanted to draw awareness to the Stop Seismic Testing Campaign.
In the hunt for a cellist we discovered the perfect person to join us in creating our concert. Newcastle-based Naomi Smith, a meditation teacher, cellist and mother-of-five was the perfect person. She shared our vision and passion for the environment.
The works you’ve chosen are environmentally themed, though they span many decades. How can we hear themes surrounding nature inside this music? That is, what to you is the ‘sound’ of the environment?
The works chosen have all drawn from the textural, rhythmic, and a-rhythmic structures of nature. Together they almost reveal a timelessness, capturing something familiar and yet sublime. The piece for bass flute entitled Glacier by Dai Fujikura takes you on a journey through the harsh landscape of a glacier. It captures the cold air and starkness through extended techniques such as multiphonics and flutter tongue.
Une Barque Sur l’Ocean for piano by Maurice Ravel captures the texture of water as it moves with great flow and momentum exemplified by the use of repeated undulating arpeggios, flourishes and rubato.
Threnody by Peter Sculthorpe for unaccompanied cello signifies the earth and in particular captures the dry texture of an Australian desert. It utilises the deep grounding resonant qualities of the cello, evoking didgeridoo sounds whilst also capturing something more sparse and sorrowful.
[Crumb’s] piece has the capacity to trigger a very emotional and human response in an audience. In Crumb’s work, we hear whale sounds, seagulls, and the ethereal atmosphere of a forgotten time through the use of extended techniques on flute, cello and prepared piano.Nature has many voices.
So why have you chosen Vox Balaenae as the headlining work in this event – how does this work speak to you today?
Vox Balaenae was composed at a time when the world was becoming more concerned with the human impact on the natural world. In particular, the work is concerned with how humans were causing the decline of whale population in the 1960s. The issue of human impact on the environment is becoming more and more resonant today as our sea temperatures rise and we witness more natural disasters due to climate change. This work to me is a reminder of this clash between fragility and power – nature as both fragile and also fighting back. Crumb captures this with both awe and sorrow.
Why do you think composers have been moved to write about nature and the environment throughout history, and do you feel the message has been shared beyond the aesthetic beauty of the works? Do they generate real change?
I think composers are compelled to draw inspiration from nature for many reasons. Whether there has been political motivation or not, this inspiration is inherently political. I think change can start with the individual. Music has the power to influence our emotions; transcend time, space, and encourage introspection. It encourages us to stop and listen. To think beyond our own internal voices. The individual can raise questions, start discussions and form communities. The message is inherent in the beauty or even more challenging features of the works, which I think has the capacity to provoke thought and encourage change.
What’s been your relationship with marine ecology expert Mark Clifton in planning this event?
I met Mark Clifton on the Imagine Whale cruise I went on at the beginning of the year. He was a guide who individually spoke to people on the boat about the marine life around Nelson Bay. What fascinated me about Mark was his ease with talking about the local environment and marine life. There was a knowing that went beyond the scientific research. After talking some more, he mentioned how he had been diving the seas for many years and recording the impact of carbon on sea grasses. He had also began research into the local Indigenous population living by the coast around Port Stevens, and how they have managed sea levels rising in the past. His wisdom and experience of the seas around the area led me to discuss the concert idea with him. He was more than happy to collaborate.
We all felt it was important to bring science into this event. This was another pathway from which an audience could consider their own personal impacts. Its also a way of guiding an audience to consider the pieces performed. It seemed a holistic and tangible approach to combine facts with interpretation and emotive response.
What has been your own experience of environmental activism outside music?
My own experience of environmentalism has been in the form of attending protests, such as the Stop Seismic Testing Campaign. I have also done what I can to support local campaigns, volunteer with Lock the Gate, and attend community events such as fundraiser gigs. There is often a feeling that I would like to do more, which is why this event seemed like the stepping stone into becoming more involved and realising some of the skills I have that may be helpful to support local campaigns as well as educate the public about local environmental issues.
This concert will raise funds for the Hunter Community Environment Centre. Why do you hope for audiences to build a relationship with this centre?
The Hunter Community Environment Centre have been pivotal in raising awareness to local environmental issues. They have been working hard to educate and organise peaceful demonstrations such as the Stop Seismic Testing action. They have organised and bought community together on many campaigns. The Coal Terminal Action Group’s campaign to stop T4 (Port Waratah Coal’s fourth terminal construction) involved volunteers door-knocking, promoting public education, attending hearings of the Planning Commission, and participating in peaceful direct action. The fourth coal terminal didn’t go ahead.
The HCEC are a hard-working, passionate team that are well respected for their contribution to protecting our local environment. I feel they were the perfect centre for audiences to be aware of and engage with.
See Vox Balaenae: Voice of the Whale at 7pm October 19 at Adamstown Uniting Church, with performers Naomi Smith, Joseph Asquith, and Sarah Monk (pictured below). Featured graphic design by Eloise Monk.
Shout the writer a coffee?
[purchase_link id=”12246″ style=”button” color=”red” text=”Pay what you like”]
If you like, you can give thanks to Stephanie for volunteering her time for Australian arts journalism. No amount too much or little.
Image supplied. Photo of Sarah by Jennifer Hankin.
Pay what you like securely with PayPal. We protect your personal information.
Disclaimer: Outside his performance career, Joseph Asquith is also on the CutCommon team – isn’t he doing some awesome things?!
