PROJECT HARPY AUDIO: Sonifications
DEPOSITS translates geological data into sound to reveal the environmental histories embedded below us.

ABOUT THE PROCESS OF SONIFICATION
I use an open source data processing program that reads visual image data (or data sets) and translates the information into musical notation known as a MIDI file. I then import this file into a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) called Reaper (Rapid Environment for Audio Production, Engineering, and Recording). Within Reaper, I assign single wav file sound recordings to each track that will play back the track in the voice of my choosing. This is akin to creating a virtual instrument out of any sound, natural or manmade.

DEPOSITS OF DUCK HARBOR
Using previously collected and analyzed sediment cores that were sponsored by the National Parks Service as part of the larger The Herring River Restoration Project in Wellfleet, MA, including radiocarbon dating and material composition, the stratigraphic data will be digitized and converted to a sound. Each layer (stratum) will be assigned sonic combinations based on its material composition, generating a musical score that renders environmental changes as an audible experience.
This project is in collaboration with geologist Dr. Katie Castagno.
Below is a visualization of the core sample with added data.

The sounds you hear above are of Vibracore (Gouge Core) Sample One. The nearly 100cm core follows from the oldest sounds to the newest. The core’s history dates from the 1800s-today and was taken from the site closest to the ‘Wellfleet’ Bay. It contains much more sand and shells than the sites further east. The piece contains field recordings from Cape Cod as well as percussion instruments recorded in a church in Grebbestad, Sweden, known as the ‘G-Town Church Sampling Project’. The piece also contains a recording by the Science Coordinator and Lead Naturalist for the Provincetown Whale Watch (Dolphin Fleet) on a trip out of Gloucester on Aril 26, 2026.
“The sounds of a large aggregation of humpbacks, newly arrived from their winter migration from the Caribbean, wasted no time getting in a much needed meal after months of fasting. The whales cooperatively herded sand lance toward the surface using a bubble net, while herring gulls, laughing gulls, and great black-backed gulls wheeled overhead, ready to steal any fish pushed within reach.”-Andrea Spence

The Munsell Soil Charts below are inspiration for an upcoming paper series depicting images that were created by interpolating the gouge core data taken in 2023 information by the geologists. The color charts will be based on the color combinations created by the late Sanzo Wada.