When you think of sound, what comes to mind?
A barking dog? People laughing? Someone whistling as they walk by?
We humans communicate largely through sounds that travel through the air. But actually, airborne sound is the rarest form of communication in the animal kingdom. Most animals, and 92% of insects (more than 195,000 species), communicate either partially or exclusively through vibrations. As humans, we have a weak sense of vibration. But through technology, we have developed ways to “listen” to the signals traveling through the surfaces all around us. And what we have discovered is a cacophony of communication as loud as Times Square, as complex as Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.
Too Hot to Sing is a sound installation based on insect vibrations captured at the Mountain Lake Biological Station in Pembroke, Virginia. Sound artist Stephen Vitiello and Evolutionary biologist Dr. Kasey Fowler-Finn recorded vibrations using surface-based devices, like an accelerometer, a laser, and a record needle. They worked across seasons to capture the sounds in different thermal conditions, ranging from cool (~60°F) to hot (~100°F). Vitiello then composed the work into four pieces, to help us experience insect communication in the face of rising global temperatures.
