Fabrica

“I placed the speakers around the room in an oval so that the listener would be able to really feel the sculptural construction of the piece by Tallis”

The Forty Part Motet is a sound installation by Canadian artist, Janet Cardiff based on the renaissance choral music Spem in Alium (1573) by Thomas Tallis.

Forty separate voices are played back through forty speakers; each placed torso-like in clusters of five and aligned in an oval.

Cardiff uses sound to create emotional experiences of space and intimacy – “You can hear the sound move from one choir to another… and then experience the overwhelming feeling as the sound waves hit you”.

The Forty Part Motet allows us to wander freely as if in the presence of live performers. We are able to home in on individual harmonies or eavesdrop on irreverent asides – we can turn or back away – follow movements of sound or find new connections within the polyphonic whole.

Cardiff is fascinated by sound as a spatial form. The physical and virtual space that The Forty Part Motet encompasses connects our bodies to the sounds we hear and allows us “to climb inside the music”.

Further Reading

Total Visitor Numbers: 38,432

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Exhibition Visitor Comments

“A Brilliant way to bring a fresh appreciation to this music and prove that now everyone can be moved by music written so long ago, irrespective of ages background or how much they know about the music! interesting how speakers generate an audience that a live choir may not. A wonderful piece of music. I am currently writing my dissertation on music and architecture so it is especially interesting to me!”

“Beautiful heavenly music- so emotionally overwhelming. I became part of the music totally lost in the sound! I want to stay here all day. Please do this again. Great venue for this type of music. A great memorable experience. Thank you.”

“At first I thought the idea was okay, then I started to like it more, then the opera came on through the speakers and I sank into it. I liked the idea, and it was brilliantly executed.”