David’s Harp, Alive Again!

September 1, 2006 - 7:45 PM by Sarah

Jerusalem’s Tower of David Museum is holding an exhibition called Soundscapes:

There are those that say that the Tower of David has its own sound, emanating from its stones, from its beauty, from its past. The sound changes with the light, time and seasons. Moreover, the original sound is mixed with that of the environment – the bells of the churches, the calls from the mosques and the voices of the market. This summer, however, the sound emanating around the Tower of David’s walls reinvents itself again with new acoustic dimensions that change day to day … hour to hour.

Thirty and extraordinary musical instruments have been set up throughout the citadel’s courtyard – in the water cistern, amongst the archeological finds, under the arrow slits of the turrets. They appear as an integral part of the place.

The instruments play their notes at different times and invite the guest to tour amongst the sounds that reverberate from all around in a unique concert. From time to time the notes will gather creating an intricate composition.

The mechanical arms will pluck the harp, beat the percussion instruments, play the drums ring the bells, thereby creating a visual connection between the sound heard and the action of the instrument.

Soundscape

Danya Ruttenberg’s review:

It sounds maybe a little hokey, but boy oh boy was it cool . . . . Really, it was a lot like fairyland, the colors and sound against the old white stone.

It was beautiful. Basically, the artist-folks created these gigantic sculptures that were like robotic/mechanical musical instruments that played themselves–that is to say, the mechanical part did the plucking or drumming, but the instruments were real drums and strings and such. . . . .

The music was sometimes instrumental solos, sometimes all the instruments at once, and maybe a distant cousin of Peter Gabriel’s Passion, or like walking inside a symphony.

I love this kind of magic. If you’re in Jerusalem, you should go, I think it’s open another month.

bells