The Golden Record
Multimedia
Let’s Send Music Into Space!
„Do aliens have record players? Are they still listening to Beethoven and Chuck Berry? Maybe the aliens need a new album from a new generation of Earthlings? What music do children in Iceland want to send them?!“
In 1977, NASA launched spacecrafts Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 on an endless journey into space. The spacecrafts were intended to explore other planets and to introduce Earth and Earthlings to aliens - should they exist!
Attached was the „Sounds of Earth“ Golden Record. On the album you could find 90 minutes of music, a selection of nature and environmental sounds, images and finally greetings from humans in 55 languages.
The Golden Record has often been hailed as the most ambitious message in a bottle ever sent. There are so many things about this project that raise questions: Is it possible to listen to music in space? Do aliens have ears? Who gets the power to choose what goes on a record on behalf of all humanity on earth?
In the school year 2022-2023, children across Iceland worked on their own material for their own new Golden Record to send into space - under the guidance of music teachers and an interdisciplinary team of artists and scientists.
This was an ambitious multi-layered project, culminating in a live performance at Harpa Concert Hall with a premiere of music written for aliens and a send-off from Earth. The piece was composed by elementary school children, performed by a 120 piece choir, brassband and an ensamble of musicians.
Crew
ÞYKJÓ produced and art directed this project alongside their colleagues from various mediums including UniSci Lab, Harpa Concert Hall, musicians Ingibjörg Fríða Helgadóttir and Sigurður Ingi Einarsson, marine biologist Edda Elísabet Magnúsdóttir and composer Sóley Stefánsdóttir, art teachers Halldór Baldursson and Dagný Arnaldsdóttir - as well as lots and lots and lots of elementary school children across Iceland and their teachers!
Crew
ÞYKJÓ produced and art directed this project alongside their colleagues from various mediums including UniSci Lab, Harpa Concert Hall, musicians Ingibjörg Fríða Helgadóttir and Sigurður Ingi Einarsson, marine biologist Edda Elísabet Magnúsdóttir and composer Sóley Stefánsdóttir, art teachers Halldór Baldursson and Dagný Arnaldsdóttir - as well as lots and lots and lots of elementary school children across Iceland and their teachers!
Workshops and Mediation
Children and their music teachers were invited to a “workshop carousel” in Harpa Concert Hall. Each group visited four different short workshops, where they were introduced to the different themes of the Golden Record to further explore in their classrooms. The workshops included; “Best of Human Music - playlist from Earth”, “What would you say to an alien?”, “Let’s close our eyes and open our ears” and “How far is the moon?”.
Workshops and Mediation
Children and their music teachers were invited to a “workshop carousel” in Harpa Concert Hall. Each group visited four different short workshops, where they were introduced to the different themes of the Golden Record to further explore in their classrooms. The workshops included; “Best of Human Music - playlist from Earth”, “What would you say to an alien?”, “Let’s close our eyes and open our ears” and “How far is the moon?”.
Composition
Workshop leaders Ingibjörg Fríða and Sigurður Ingi workshopped a final musical composition with children in five elementary schools. Every group session start- ed out by writing a few greetings to aliens and short sentences where the children described themselves and their life on Earth. Siggi and Ingibjörg took notes on all these lyric ideas and guided the children on how to put them together into song lyrics. Then a melody was written by the kids - to a chord progression and groove they chose. A final version was recorded at Greenhouse Studio by a children's choir and a brassband.
Composition
Workshop leaders Ingibjörg Fríða and Sigurður Ingi workshopped a final musical composition with children in five elementary schools. Every group session start- ed out by writing a few greetings to aliens and short sentences where the children described themselves and their life on Earth. Siggi and Ingibjörg took notes on all these lyric ideas and guided the children on how to put them together into song lyrics. Then a melody was written by the kids - to a chord progression and groove they chose. A final version was recorded at Greenhouse Studio by a children's choir and a brassband.
Big Bang Festival
The Golden Record project culminated in a music performance and pop-up events in Harpa Concert Hall at Big Bang Festival in April 2023. The program culminated with a group of 120 children, accompanied by a professional ensemble of musicians, premiered an original composition for aliens. Following the premiere, music was indeed sent from Earth, as had been anticipated. A golden EP took off the ground with a ceremony from the harbor in front of Harpa Music Hall. The record flew from earth attached to a weather balloon. The send-off was conducted by Space Iceland.
Big Bang Festival
The Golden Record project culminated in a music performance and pop-up events in Harpa Concert Hall at Big Bang Festival in April 2023. The program culminated with a group of 120 children, accompanied by a professional ensemble of musicians, premiered an original composition for aliens. Following the premiere, music was indeed sent from Earth, as had been anticipated. A golden EP took off the ground with a ceremony from the harbor in front of Harpa Music Hall. The record flew from earth attached to a weather balloon. The send-off was conducted by Space Iceland.
The Golden Record
Multimedia
Let’s Send Music Into Space!
„Do aliens have record players? Are they still listening to Beethoven and Chuck Berry? Maybe the aliens need a new album from a new generation of Earthlings? What music do children in Iceland want to send them?!“
In 1977, NASA launched spacecrafts Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 on an endless journey into space. The spacecrafts were intended to explore other planets and to introduce Earth and Earthlings to aliens - should they exist!
Attached was the „Sounds of Earth“ Golden Record. On the album you could find 90 minutes of music, a selection of nature and environmental sounds, images and finally greetings from humans in 55 languages.
The Golden Record has often been hailed as the most ambitious message in a bottle ever sent. There are so many things about this project that raise questions: Is it possible to listen to music in space? Do aliens have ears? Who gets the power to choose what goes on a record on behalf of all humanity on earth?
In the school year 2022-2023, children across Iceland worked on their own material for their own new Golden Record to send into space - under the guidance of music teachers and an interdisciplinary team of artists and scientists.
This was an ambitious multi-layered project, culminating in a live performance at Harpa Concert Hall with a premiere of music written for aliens and a send-off from Earth. The piece was composed by elementary school children, performed by a 120 piece choir, brassband and an ensamble of musicians.
Crew
ÞYKJÓ produced and art directed this project alongside their colleagues from various mediums including UniSci Lab, Harpa Concert Hall, musicians Ingibjörg Fríða Helgadóttir and Sigurður Ingi Einarsson, marine biologist Edda Elísabet Magnúsdóttir and composer Sóley Stefánsdóttir, art teachers Halldór Baldursson and Dagný Arnaldsdóttir - as well as lots and lots and lots of elementary school children across Iceland and their teachers!
Crew
ÞYKJÓ produced and art directed this project alongside their colleagues from various mediums including UniSci Lab, Harpa Concert Hall, musicians Ingibjörg Fríða Helgadóttir and Sigurður Ingi Einarsson, marine biologist Edda Elísabet Magnúsdóttir and composer Sóley Stefánsdóttir, art teachers Halldór Baldursson and Dagný Arnaldsdóttir - as well as lots and lots and lots of elementary school children across Iceland and their teachers!
Workshops and Mediation
Children and their music teachers were invited to a “workshop carousel” in Harpa Concert Hall. Each group visited four different short workshops, where they were introduced to the different themes of the Golden Record to further explore in their classrooms. The workshops included; “Best of Human Music - playlist from Earth”, “What would you say to an alien?”, “Let’s close our eyes and open our ears” and “How far is the moon?”.
Workshops and Mediation
Children and their music teachers were invited to a “workshop carousel” in Harpa Concert Hall. Each group visited four different short workshops, where they were introduced to the different themes of the Golden Record to further explore in their classrooms. The workshops included; “Best of Human Music - playlist from Earth”, “What would you say to an alien?”, “Let’s close our eyes and open our ears” and “How far is the moon?”.
Composition
Workshop leaders Ingibjörg Fríða and Sigurður Ingi workshopped a final musical composition with children in five elementary schools. Every group session start- ed out by writing a few greetings to aliens and short sentences where the children described themselves and their life on Earth. Siggi and Ingibjörg took notes on all these lyric ideas and guided the children on how to put them together into song lyrics. Then a melody was written by the kids - to a chord progression and groove they chose. A final version was recorded at Greenhouse Studio by a children's choir and a brassband.
Composition
Workshop leaders Ingibjörg Fríða and Sigurður Ingi workshopped a final musical composition with children in five elementary schools. Every group session start- ed out by writing a few greetings to aliens and short sentences where the children described themselves and their life on Earth. Siggi and Ingibjörg took notes on all these lyric ideas and guided the children on how to put them together into song lyrics. Then a melody was written by the kids - to a chord progression and groove they chose. A final version was recorded at Greenhouse Studio by a children's choir and a brassband.
Big Bang Festival
The Golden Record project culminated in a music performance and pop-up events in Harpa Concert Hall at Big Bang Festival in April 2023. The program culminated with a group of 120 children, accompanied by a professional ensemble of musicians, premiered an original composition for aliens. Following the premiere, music was indeed sent from Earth, as had been anticipated. A golden EP took off the ground with a ceremony from the harbor in front of Harpa Music Hall. The record flew from earth attached to a weather balloon. The send-off was conducted by Space Iceland.
Big Bang Festival
The Golden Record project culminated in a music performance and pop-up events in Harpa Concert Hall at Big Bang Festival in April 2023. The program culminated with a group of 120 children, accompanied by a professional ensemble of musicians, premiered an original composition for aliens. Following the premiere, music was indeed sent from Earth, as had been anticipated. A golden EP took off the ground with a ceremony from the harbor in front of Harpa Music Hall. The record flew from earth attached to a weather balloon. The send-off was conducted by Space Iceland.