Pythagoras’ Garden (2018)

Pythagoras’ Garden is a sounding arbor with a structure assembled in the shape of the original proof of the theorem named after him, with a right- angled triangle in the center of three square structures. This piece was a site-specific work constructed for the Currents festival in Santa Fe, NM, USA.

The structures are made from re-claimed wood obtained locally. Hanging from the arbor are more than 30 small speakers cast from adobe using fruit and other plant- derived shapes as molds for both the inside and outside of the speakers. Local volunteers assisted in making the concrete speakers using local fruit.

Each speaker produces small sounds based on insect and bird rhythms, as well as other natural patterns. Each speaker has sounds that are completely independent from the others, and all sound is generated in real-time and constantly changing in detail. The piece presents a juxtaposition of the rational thought and planning of human-kind (as represented by the Pythagorean proof) with the rich and ever-changing world of rhythms produced by the non-human biological world.