Words  have been written in workshops with children from Bellingham Middle school, Highfield Middle school, Prudhoe and West Blaydon primary. Together making sonic and visual explorations inside the local river with EA scientists, the artists and children could practically discover and be inspired by the salmon’s life cycle and seasonal pattern of its habitat. Using the data generated melodies and their own, they wrote words and songs from which the libretto for the entire piece is being created.  Salmon myths worldwide were also explored together and through a typo, the salmon god Prudghor was created.  This ocean living spirit answered the question, why do salmon swim the 1600 miles from Greenland to Tyneside and then struggle not eating against the current upriver to spawn? Answer.  The river Tyne is Prudghor’s song. The salmon are sent to sing it.  Song of Prudghor‘s melody is made from the OS co-ordinates of the river north Tyne.

 

Song of Prudghor. Song_of_Prudghor_Melody

I am within the water

I am the flow the pressure

The depth that is the darkness

The movement never ceases.

 

The journey hears the sounding

The sounding is the river

The river that is our song

The cycles ever turning.

 

Ice deep ice strong

Above and below deep glittering long

Rich is the water, cold, oxygen, fat

It spirits the sounding

The sounding, the river, the sea.

 

The Sea, the sea, we leave the sea,

We must leave the sea

We bring you the sea,

The riches of ocean

We bring  you the  sea

The sea, the sea, the sea.

 

Chorus:

Whipping whipping whipping sea,

Salmon swimming, salmon swimming.

Whipping whipping whipping sea,

Salmon swimming faster.

 

Salmon swimming through the Tyne,

Passing places, passing time,

Got to go no time to waste,

Salmon swimming faster.

 

Verse, Matthews.  Chorus,  children of Bellingham Middle school, spring group.

This aria will be sung by Prudghor at the beginning of the piece to send the salmon to Tynemouth.

 

 

Melodies  have also been made using a sonification system designed by Matthews in collaboration with Max/MSP programmer Dr Adam Parkinson.  It uses the daily numbers of fish to create pitch and the river’s flow to create duration. Temperature determines volume.  Monthly melodies were made using different sound sources.

April tones melody Jon_AprilTones_cutmade on a digital oscillator using above sonification system and data for April 2010, with Jon Baker/aka Prudghor, improvising a duet.

 

Salmo_Salar chorusSalmo_Salar_cutThe underneath piano groove driving this was generated using above sonification system playing a midi piano in a pentatonic scale with the salmon effect button selected.

Words, Highfield Middle school, Prudhoe, autumn group. To be sung  by choir.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Songs of OceansSongs_of_Oceans_cut made using the last two measured positions of the river as it reached its source beyond the Kielder hatchery.

Words, Matthews post changing oceans research.

This aria will be sung by Prudghor to begin the winter  section, final scene, of the piece.  Here by Jon Baker in rehearsal.

 

Winter tones melodyWintertonesMelody 1 made on a digital oscillator using above sonification system and data for December 2010.

 

NOTE: Sonification systems will be published online with live feeds to current fish and river states  for visitors to make their own music.