Leilehua Lanzilotti

on stochastic wave behavior — eight voices, SSAATBBB (2021)

Commissioned by Rónadh Cox with the generous support of the National Science Foundation, duration 12’

Program Notes

Wayfinding, observing nature, and respecting the ocean have been present and important to me since childhood. So when Rónadh and Brad asked me to be part of the National Science Foundation-funded “A few waves do most of the work” project, I felt very connected to their ideas of integrating knowledge and research about the ocean into classrooms.

Prof. Cox’s research inspires metaphor: a few waves can make a difference, and have made our work as Kanaka Maoli artists relevant to today’s dynamic landscape where science and indigenous knowledge celebrate the power of nature.

The work is sung completely in ‘Ōlelo Hawaiʻi. A language that is changing, that is evolving, that is new, is alive. Similarly, compositional practices that engage new sounds through an indigenous lens embrace native language and ways of knowing as an active, living parts of the creative process.

*Mahalo nui loa to Kumu Patrick Makuakane for his expertise on the game nāʻū (which I have taken great liberty with in this work).

Excerpts from Rónadh Cox’s original proposal to bring coastal geoscience to the public:

Music can convey stochastic wave behavior, revealing the unpredictability of large waves in the coastal zone. [This new work] will use Roomful of Teeth's extraordinary vocal talents (Shin, 2019) to investigate the behavior of waves approaching the coast, focusing on the unpredictability of very large wave events, and including choral components representing boulder movement in response to different wave types. . . . Using music to convey the science of wave interactions and wave amplification opens new doors and prospects for engaging the public via performance. The collaborators have international reputations, providing not only an opportunity for top-notch musical interpretations of data, but also extensive exposure in concert halls and via [other music sharing platforms].

Geoscience will be explicitly linked and bundled with the music, for wide distribution. The PI will build educational content around the pieces, to contextualize and explain them, and also to draw people's attention specifically to boulder beaches and the science of high-energy coasts. . . . Roomful of Teeth regularly do campus residencies in which they seek ways to interact with students and professors, finding bridges between performative music and pedagogy. Until now, it has been difficult for them to find crossovers into the physical sciences. Collaborator Wells is particularly excited about this project, because it broadens the range of disciplines with which the music overlaps, The PI will provide the group with scientific background, accompanying images, plug-and-play PowerPoint presentations, and links to project-generated open-access articles. In both cases, the accompanying visuals and text will explicitly link the structure of the music to waves and storm seas; and will link storm seas to the work done on beaches and at the coast. They will include societally important information about coastal erosion and sea-level change, as well as the hazards of rogue and sneaker waves. Such initiatives are needed, as coastal science is not making its way effectively into the public sphere (Neal et al., 2018). . . . This different and unusual framework may help the data and the awareness to jump the divide and make their way into a more public consciousness. We hope.

// Press for on stochastic wave behavior

“en passant par la minéralité raréfiée de [Lanzilotti]” —Thomas Vergracht, Carrefour de la création, Radiofrance (responding to Roomful of Teeth’s performance of on stochastic wave behavior)

Past Performances

Friday, November 22, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, French premiere, Philharmonie de Paris, Paris, France

Wednesday, November 20, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, Concertgebouw Brugge, Brugge, Belgium

Monday, November 18, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, Festival of Shifting Sounds, De Singel, Antwerp, Belgium

Sunday, November 17, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, European Premiere, De Doelen, Rotterdam, the Netherlands

Friday, June 28, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, Caramoor, Concert on the Lawn, Katonah, NY

Tuesday, June 25, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, School for Advanced Research (SAR), Santa Fe, NM

Sunday, March 24, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, Hahn Hall, UCSB, Santa Barbara, CA

Monday, March 21, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, LA

Saturday, January 27, 2024 — Roomful of Teeth, The 222, Healdsburg, CA

Saturday, November 18, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, The Icehouse Presents, Minneapolis, MN

Saturday, November 16, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, Hancher Auditorium, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA

Wednesday, November 15, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, Des Moines Civic Music Association, Sheslow Auditorium, Des Moines, IA

Tuesday, November 12, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, Doris Grau Performing Arts Series, Buena Vista University, Storm Lake, IA

Thursday, November 2, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, West Coast premiere, Meany Center for the Performing Arts, Seattle, WA

Saturday, October 7, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, UK premiere, Barbican Centre, London, England

Saturday, May 6, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, WoCo Fest 2023: Awaken, North Bethesda, MD

Saturday, April 22, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, Private Event, New York, NY

Friday, February 24, 2023 — Roomful of Teeth, Morrison Theater, Brockman Hall, Rice University, Houston, TX

Thursday, November 10, 2022 — Roomful of Teeth, Evolution Contemporary Music Series, Baltimore, MD

Thursday, October 20, 2022 — Roomful of Teeth, Kravis Nightcap Series, New York, NY

Thursday, October 13, 2022 — Roomful of Teeth, Whitney Center for the Arts at Sheridan College, Sheridan, WY

Wednesday, August 17, 2022 — Roomful of Teeth, world premiere, MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA