Klangraum Stein

The acoustic installation project is situated in Sonntag Stein, a skiing and hiking area in the mountains of Vorarlberg. In this very idyllic part of Austria, people have a puristic approach to life. The respect for nature, and a culture that doesn't aim for economic maximization bring forth high quality products in traditional craftsmanship and the food sector, especially dairy products. We were asked to develop a concept for an artistic project in the mountains. Tourism is an important part of the economy, but the residents have no interest in attracting masses. Instead they advocate what they call "calm tourism". This is the area, that Gerold Amann, an elderly folklore musician who works with the echo of the mountains, lives in. He develops unheard effects by his studies of timing, position and direction of the musicians. Our project highlights an old path that we rediscovered which leads to the place where his music is performed. The idea was not only to point visitors towards the visual qualities of the landscape, but also to its acoustic qualities. When we say the word still, we often don't mean physical stillness, but generate different formal associations in our mind: Some people may think of a lying in a hammock listening to the wind in the trees, others of the sounds of rushing a river. To show the multitude of stillnesses and how important acoustics are for our perception of space, we developed this installation of furniture around sound funnels. Chairs, rocking chairs, and chaise longues are spread out, in groups or alone, by the side of the path or further into the forest.  Another part of the project is a pavilion called Klangfall. Several metal sheets are bent over a small river and forming a pavilion dubbed Klangfall, which is the heart of the project. The shape of the pavilion was developed soley by with regard to its acoustics.  Even while only standing in front of the pavilion the acoustic perception changes, and every step inside offers a shift in the acoustic experience which reaches its peek point  in the middle of the pavilion.

Year: 2012
Material: corten steel, wood
Location: Großes Walsertal, Austria
Commission: Seilbahnen Sonntag
Project partner: Michal Pecko