Forskare och tonsättare utsedda till Baltic Sea Festival Science Lab 2024
Östersjöfestivalen och dess samarbetspartners Stockholms universitet, Voksenåsen Musikkakademier och Formas har valt ut tolv internationella deltagare till en ny omgång av Baltic Sea Festival Science Lab – där forskning presenteras i specialskrivna musikverk.
Sex kompositörer och sex forskare har valts ut att delta i 2024 års upplaga av Baltic Sea Festival Science Lab. Tillsammans med regissören Elisabet Ljungar skapar forskarna och kompositörerna verk som kombinerar Östersjörelaterad forskning med specialkomponerad musik. Årets teman är viabilitet och cirkularitet. Forskningen som presenteras kretsar kring nya visioner och innovationer samt hur samhället kan ställa om från linjära till cirkulära system.
De specialskrivna verken framförs under Östersjöfestivalen av musiker ur Sveriges Radios Symfoniorkester tillsammans med forskarna själva. Förhoppningen är att både publiken och deltagarna berikas med nya perspektiv på musikens kommunikativa kraft samt nya insikter och nyfikenhet på forskning som bedrivs i Östersjöregionen.
”Vi hade en vision om hur Baltic Sea Festival Science Lab skulle bli inför årets festival. Resultatet levde med råge upp till förväntningarna: publiken fick uppleva ett helt nytt scenkonstkoncept där forskarna utmanades att tillgängliggöra sin forskning i samklang med musiken och kompositörerna skapade musik utgående från forskningsämnen som kan bidra till en mer hållbar miljö” säger Emma Nyberg, projektledare för Östersjöfestivalen.
De deltagande forskarna är doktorander eller postdoc verkande i något av länderna runt Östersjön. Forskningen ska kunna appliceras på Östersjöregionen och dess framtida utmaningar. Forskarna utses av Institutionen vid Miljövetenskap vid Stockholms universitet och Formas. Tonsättarna är på sitt sista år av utbildningen eller har redan en mastersutbildning i komposition, och väljs ut av Voksenåsen Musikkakademier. Regissören är närvarande i hela skapandeprocessen, för forskarnas del med att få fram de viktiga poängerna i föreläsningarna och med det verbala framförandet, för kompositörernas del med att stärka det musikaliska uttrycket och att binda ihop framförandet till en helhet.
FORSKARNA
Åsa Callmer
Forskare, Örebro universitet
”I believe that music can engage our emotions and help us to better understand complex interconnections – something that we urgently need to address the world’s sustainability challenges. The Science Lab makes it possible to communicate my research to a wider audience in new and engaging ways. I feel very inspired about this collaborative and creative process, and I am excited to see what will happen when music and science blend together!”
Greta Gyraitė
Forskare, Klaipėda universitet/Vilnius universitet
”Music and its pitch, rhythm, and structure are full of meaning; they help to develop a context for verbal understanding. Therefore, through my involvement in the Baltic Sea Festival Science Lab, I expect to engage and connect with a broader audience, effectively conveying complex scientific concepts related to emerging diseases in the Baltic Sea by utilizing music as a universal language and a powerful tool in science communication.”
Robin Bonné
Forskare, Århus universitet
”About 10 years ago in Aarhus, a microbe was discovered that made us rewrite our biology textbooks: cable bacteria. These creatures conducts electricity just like an electric wire, in the mud of the Baltic Sea and beyond. Like many researchers working with cable bacteria, I fell in love with these unique lifeforms and want to share their story with the world. Having a personal passion for music and science communication, I’m thrilled that cable bacteria will soon be able to listen to their own song.”
Natasja Börjeson
Forskare, Stockholms universitet
”By participating in the Baltic Sea Festival Science Lab I hope to contribute with a small piece of knowledge on the challenge of reaching a Baltic Sea that is unaffected by hazardous substances from human activities. I also hope to be inspired, find new ways of thinking and to meet a new audience.”
Isolde Puts
Forskare, Århus universitet
Emilia Witkowska Nery
Forskare, Institute of Physical Chemistry Polish Academy of Sciences
”The work of a scientist is very similar to that of an artist. We develop our manual skills and techniques in the laboratory, spend hours discovering what people did before us and need creativity to think of something new. I hope that, through interactions with other creative minds at Science Lab of the Baltic Sea Festival, I can look at my work from another perspective and maybe discover some new angle.”
TONSÄTTARNA
Otto Nuoranne
Sibelius Academy
“It’s exciting when, as a composer, you get to step out of the sandbox of music and use your craft to communicate and collaborate with other forms of art or thought. I’m greatly looking forward to learning, making new connections, and sharing the whole experience with others this coming August. See you in Stockholm!”
Luis Fernando Amaya
Norges Musikkhøgskole
“As a composer, I rarely find inspiration in musical or artistic matters. Rather, the world around me and the beings who inhabit it have always fascinated me and often make their way into my creative processes, one way or another. Collaborating with a researcher, especially one focused on ecology, immediately caught my interest. I’m genuinely looking forward to learning from and finding inspiration in the works of composers and researchers across the Baltic Region. I’m excited to explore how my music and perspective can contribute to their endeavours.”
Pietari Kaasinen
Alumn, Kungliga musikhögkolan
“Applying to the programme felt like a natural continuation of what I have been occupied with in my creative work recently – dealing with musical depictions of ecological themes, often in interdisciplinary settings. I am very much looking forward to learning more about communicating topical concepts through music and performance.”
Agita Reke
Institute of Sonology, Haag
”This project intrigued me and I felt curiosity to create music through a collaboration with a researcher. As a composer and sound artist I believe that raising awareness about Baltic Sea issues and protecting nature in general is important. I am excited to see what possibilities this collaboration holds!”
Dominik Puk
Alumn, Paderewski Academy of Music in Poznań, Poland
”I am deeply convinced that music is a way and means (and sometimes an obligation) of transmitting knowledge, experiences, beliefs and will. Especially about the most important things – a sustainable society is certainly one of them. It is a great privilege and honor to be able to join the team. Thing which I am most looking forward to is a cooperation with a researcher, which may lead to amazing new areas of meeting art and science.”
