A Review of the Isle is Full of Noises - Grant Doney

The Isle is Full of Noises sets out to encapsulate the atmosphere and emotional impact of a tropical island, removed from familiar society and yet corrupted by humanity nonetheless. Composed by Michael Century, the sound art piece combines passages from William Shakespeare's The Tempest, pieces of human vocalizations, birds, animals, and pieces of music. Utilizing Wave Field Synthesis speakers to project an 8 channel track throughout the space, the piece also attempts to introduce movement and focal points, creating a feeling of noise washing over a listener. Other contributors include local actors Kevin Craig West as Caliban, Erica Tryon as Miranda, students Eric Miller and Matt Wellins who assisted in designing the audio merging software.

Walking into the art space, it initially appears empty, a large black void filled with mysterious and seemingly nonsensical sounds. Off to the side, however, are a set of chairs illuminated by spotlights. Audience members are free to wander throughout the space listening to the otherworldly chorus, but the chairs offer the strongest listening points, existing at the focal points of the Wave Field Synthesis speakers. The sound pulses through you at these points, creating a different feeling form other listening points. The sound itself takes some rather deep reflection to pinpoint each sound. The vocalizations become lost in the cacophony of tropical sounds merged together, forming an indistinct harmony of human and natural. Caliban recites a soliloquy, framed around the titular line "Be not afeard; the isle is full of noises", creating a path for the listener to follow. The passage highlights the intended effects of the piece, the different sounds melded together to form a cohesive environment. Miranda's response, woven throughout the soundscape, reflects on the European colonialism, marveling at the brave new world, one which isn't in fact new, especially not to those already living there, but actually just a world through a different lens. These guiding quotes and fluctuating atmosphere of sound work together to stimulate a state of deep thought, where a person becomes from reflective of the different sounds and their interactions. 

Personally, the piece takes a certain head space to become fully immersed. The overlaying sounds, while rather hypnotic at times, would often become annoying and disjointed. Contemplation on the actual soundscape led to internal thought, pulling my away from the immersive island and problems of modern life. While this kind of self reflective meditative state could be something to encourage, the messages behind the Tempest, colonial Europe, and the fusion of humanity and nature become lost. When the theming is lost the complexity of the sound overlays, the audience lacks the proper framework to interpret their emotions, the lens of the art is lost leaving only scattered feelings and thoughts. Again, I wasn't in the right head space to experience the art as intended, but perhaps that's the point. We can't become connected with a pseudo natural world when completely entranced in our modern one.