Remote Communion by Monty Adkins

This work was commissioned for Casa Sonora curated by David Velez for the Explora Museum, Colombia, in 2020, a project during the first Covid-19 lockdown that compiled works to stream or download and play or interact with in a mobile phone.

As a child I loved singing in the bath. Singing may be a bit of an exaggeration: what I loved was finding the nodal point of the room, exciting it and listening to it resonate. Now that Covid-19 stopped us from singing together, I invite you to sing for 19 minutes in your bath with a virtual choir. 21 friends from around the world provided me each with two sung notes, recorded in their own bathrooms. I extended these to form long harmonic pads over which you are invited to improvise your own songs and melodies, tuning in and out at will.

Singing is good for you! Singing has been demonstrated to improve mental health and wellbeing. Not only it lowers cortisol and relieves stress and tension, but studies have also shown that when people sing, endorphins and oxytocin are released by the brain which reduces anxiety levels. Oxytocin also enhances feelings of togetherness which explains reports that singing also improves depression and feelings of loneliness. Singing also has a physiological effect on the body, studies have shown that after singing one has higher levels of immunoglobulin A, an antibody known to benefit the immune function of mucous membranes. Studies have also shown that singing can help people suffering from long-term chronic pain and can have a real impact on the amount of pain relief medication used by participants.

I encourage you to sing along with this piece in your bath and relax.

Monty Adkins is a composer and performer of experimental electronic music, primarily working on digital audio works and installations. His work is minimal and introspective, characterised by slow shifting organic instrumental and concrete soundscapes, focusing on encouraging a deeper immersive listening experience. Using a reduced sonic palette, he draws together elements from ambient, minimal electronica, acousmatic and experimental electronic music often combining instrumental and electronic sound.

Crónica is an artist-run, non-profit label dedicated to sound art and electronic, computational, and experimental music.

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