Alex H Smith
Cusk Collectief
Co-creation group, Jenna Vergeynst, Ruben Borges, Kristien Doumen and myself
est. 2022
The Cusk Collective is a group of like-minded creators, who work together to produce performances linking topical scientific research (predominantly around ecological concerns) with interdisciplinary contemporary performance practices. We all met as students of the Koninklijke Conservatorium van Antwerpen studying classical degrees (marimba, harp, classical voice and composition). In the context of Cusk we enjoy working outside these constraints, and we all perform on stage with our instruments, our voices and our bodies.
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Ear to Sea
Our first creation; "Ear to Sea" is a docu-music theatre piece about sound underwater.
The underwater world is rich in sounds. From snapping shrimp, to whale's, dolphins, and brownfish, many species use sound to communicate and better understand their environments.
Human activity at sea is also very present; from sonar, to ship propellers to seabed dredging.
Needless to say, this creates problems for the nature that resides in our noisy environments, but in what way?
Using music (both new and old), dance and spoken word, we explore what the problems actually are that exist because of our presence in the sea. The live performance is combined with prerecorded interviews with top scientists and field recordings of underwater sounds. We explore the impact that these man-made sounds have, as well as suggesting what that future could hold...
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Ear to Sea has been performed in Brussels and Munich and is now preparing for upcoming international performances, dates TBC.
For enquiries and bookings contact:
+32486538851
Ear to Earth
Ear to Earth, as is implied by the title, began as a spiritual successor to Ear to Sea.
This project aims to explore the role of sound for life in the soil. What sounds exist there? Where do they come from? How does humanity contribute to this soundscape? And what can we learn if we direct our ears to the ground?
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The project began with a residency at Theater National de Luxembourg as part of their TalentLAB programme. The group (this time consisting of myself, Kristien Doumen, Jenna Vergeynst and composer/field-recordist Ellen Jacobs) spent 10 days in the theatre, working from scratch on our idea.
We experimented with scientific microphones, recording sounds across the Luxembourg, we visited a biological farm to collect soil samples, and we spent many hours improvising and brainstorming.
Ultimately, we created a 20-minute performance of our work-in-progress; including soundscapes created from our field recordings augmented by live musical improvisation, and live sounds captured from our soil samples.
