SONIC SPACE

Gray’s work explores the voice as a sonic and conceptual medium through lecture-performances, radio plays, and experimental narratives. Using microphone technology and digital processing, Gray reveals perceptual and scientific phenomena with wit and curiosity. Projects include The Weirding Module, The Mouthfeel, and Rogue Syntax: Primer, blending art and linguistics. Critical Flicker Frequencies invite listeners to imagine popping in and out of different minds—not just seeing or hearing as they do, but briefly entering the sensory world of different species, with little time to acclimate before shifting into the next. Each space is colored by the last, their distinct speeds, logics, and temporalities nesting within one another. When they recur, it is with uncanny shifts.

Jana Winderen is an artist based in Norway with a background in mathematics, chemistry and fish ecology. Her practice pays particular attention to audio environments and to creatures which are hard for humans to access, both physically and aurally – deep under water, inside ice or in frequency ranges inaudible to the human ear.

The audio piece The Noisiest Guys on the Planet originally released in 2009, was created from underwater recordings made between 2007–2008. Winderen explores the mysterious crackling sounds of decapods—ten-legged crustaceans like crabs and shrimp—heard off the coast of Norway. While pistol shrimp are known for snapping sounds, they don’t live that far north, raising questions about what creatures are responsible. Consulting marine biologists revealed little certainty, highlighting how little is known about underwater soundscapes. Winderen’s work is a sonic investigation into the hidden, noisy world beneath the waves.

Acting as a lullaby, this 14-minute piece mixes together a narrative, spoken by and music. Just before going to sleep, listeners will experience Randolf Menzel’s dream and question if bees dream as well.

Dr. Randolf Menzel is a German zoologist who dedicated his life to the world of bees. At the beginning of his career, he was dreaming of becoming a bee. At nights, and sometimes during the day, he was transforming into his subject of research. These experiences helped him to build a better understanding of what it is like to be a bee, and gave him leads to his scientific inquiries. In return, his discoveries in the lab were enhancing his dreams. Dream worlds are a central part of human life. Neuroscience has shown that they are an important activity for human brain and its evolution, and not mere epiphenomena. Within these dream lands, time is telescoped, it is distorted; offering a space to try specific hypotheses.

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In the 1960s, neuroscientist and psychonaut John C. Lilly launched one of the most controversial and ambitious scientific projects of the 20th century: an attempt to establish verbal communication between humans and dolphins. Funded by NASA and other research bodies, Lilly’s work was based on the belief that dolphins, due to their large brains and complex social behaviors, might possess latent linguistic abilities. Central to this project was the now-infamous experiment involving Margaret Howe, a researcher who lived in close quarters with a dolphin named Peter in a flooded, partially aquatic house for several months. The aim was to teach Peter to speak English, a goal pursued through intense daily interaction, including vocal repetition and phonetic mimicry.

Though often remembered through a sensationalized lens, the experiment raised deep questions about the boundaries of scientific ethics, the projection of human desires onto non-human intelligence, and the risks of anthropomorphizing animal behavior. Critics have since questioned the experimental design, emotional toll, and gender dynamics involved—particularly the psychological consequences for both Margaret and the dolphins.

Additionally, Lilly administered LSD to both himself and dolphins, believing the psychedelic might enhance cognitive flexibility and facilitate deeper interaction. He hoped that under the influence of LSD, dolphins would be more inclined to mimic human speech or express higher-level consciousness. While Lilly claimed some dolphins became more vocal or responsive, these experiments were widely criticized for lacking scientific rigor and ethical safeguards. They remain a controversial example of psychedelic research intersecting with speculative science and animal experimentation.

Panayiotis Kokoras is an internationally acclaimed Greek composer and pioneer in computer music. He currently serves as Regents Professor of Composition and Director of the Center for Experimental Music and Intermedia (CEMI) at the University of North Texas. Kokoras developed the concept of “holophonic musical texture,” in which each individual sound plays an equal role in shaping the overall sonic experience.

Panayiotis Kokoras’s fascination with the acoustic qualities of animal sounds is realized in his 2015 composition Hippo. Written for clarinet, piano, and violin, the piece pushes the sonic boundaries of traditional instruments through custom modifications and extended techniques. To construct the work, Kokoras studied field recordings of hippos, using advanced sonographic analysis tools such as Izotope’s “Find All Similar” to analyze the rhythmic and spectral characteristics of their grunts. He then recreated those acoustic profiles using purely instrumental means, blending precise scientific analysis with creative artistry. The result is a composition that transcends mere imitation, immersing listeners in a sound world where traditional instruments are transformed into organic, animal-like voices. What makes Hippo particularly compelling is not just its technical inventiveness but its conceptual ambition. Kokoras uses experimental sound production to explore the boundary between natural acoustics and musical expression, inviting audiences to engage with a hybrid sonic space where biology and music interweave.