The voice that had no purpose.

What is singing?

Everywhere, the auto-tune [pitch correcting plug-in] of our time creates further idealized distance towards the magnificent, little portal we bear inside, just behind the mouth. A passage to our whole body as vibratory flux amplifies through us, weaving patterns with air. Singing, undermining the pretenses of objectivity in words – by layering the language with thousands of subtle notes. It is now left to talentshows, commercial stardom and professionals. We forgot how to sing. Or most importantly: why we ever sang. And especially in the Danish language.

[Not even this writer knows how to express the deeper voices within these old structures of poetry]. The phonetic language has the simple purpose to convey a meaning. So what else to do, but to transform thoughts into a highway of efficiency, the English language? So why sing at all? But how does one condense the light of ”aften” [evening]? The birds looking for seeds under the ”sne” [snow], the feeling of angst, of ”døden” [death]. The great, or small, passages of everyday life and human experience. 

Let us go beyond mere communication: when we speak, you listen to me, I listen to you and we may interrupt each other. But if we sing, we are able to both speak and listen simultaneously, engage in dissonance, harmony, rhythm, timbre – look at this example: 

Speech, taking turns:

1             ----   --------------           --                    --   -------

2    -------     --                    -------    --------------    --           ------

Singing, simultaneously:

1    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In collaboration with Exhibition Space Spanien 19C. Supported by Montana and The Danish Art Council.