one thousand birds symphony - GRICE
‘a harmonic and sometimes dissonant conversation between humans and the natural world’
‘A study of feathered strength and Iridescence’
A premier surround sound immersive performance and playback of the 10 track award winning album and film ’one thousand birds symphony’ by British art rock artist GRICE. Performed by GRICE and accompanied by sound designer and musician Duncan Chave, the event incorporates audio from the album and the live manipulation of sound with elements of electronica, digital glitch and live improvised instrumentation set to a kaleidoscope of visual projections, film and digital imagery created by GRICE. The audio will be presented in surround sound to create a dynamic soundscape and a three-dimensional spacial audio environment.
This event emphasises the importance of the effect of nature on mental health and hopefully raise awareness of ‘The Red List’ of birds in danger of extinction. The performance is set in a virtual sonic forest of layered imagery, bird-scapes, sonics and sounds using field recordings, vocals, electronic glitch and instruments to form an ever-evolving soundscape designed to introduce new and ‘lost’ birdsong to the listener and to create a connection with the natural world.
‘one thousand birds symphony’ was created between March and December 2020 deep in ‘The Shire’, when the artist developed a personal connection with the robins, blackbirds and other passerines that surrounded him during isolation and lockdown. Throughout this period, the artist was driven to rise with the birds each morning to listen, record and archive their behaviour and songs. This obsession resulted in a thousand unique birdsongs and melodies scattered across an equal number of hard drives, discs and memory cards.
“The philosophy of birds – their iridescence, endurance, vulnerability and strength and their musical integrity is something to behold. This music is dedicated to the birds, the true masters in the art of life (and flying). These are my letters from isolation and this is my tribute to the birds. Their majesty saved me from myself and I owe them much. May there always be birdsong above the battlefields.” - GRICE
Reviews
‘This is stunningly clever, and to my mind a genius work.’ – The Progressive Aspect ‘There are bewitching passages of avant-classical beauty, a true original’ – PROG
‘This masterpiece entailed quite a sum of patience and intellectual creation in the formation of a majestic program of partial symphonic compositions mixed with actual field recordings of various birds and other nature sounds and brilliant electronically created sounds, then arranged around melodies and songs. Highly Recommended’ – Big Beautiful Noise
Awards
Best Music Feature – Mykonos International Film Awards, Greece | Best Arthouse Short Film – Sipontum Arthouse International Film Festival, Italy | Best Original Music Score – Cine Paris Film Festival, France | Best Original Score (finalist) – World Class Film Awards, Mexico | Wildlife & Environment (semi-finalist)—UFFS Universal Film Festival Samothraki, Greece | English Riviera Film Festival official selection, 10th Anniversary Screenings (2025)
