Sonic Intangibles Research Group

Sonic Intangibles Research Group 
The Sonic Intangibles project (https://sonicintangibles.github.io/) based at Northumbria and Newcastle Universities is an interdisciplinary research project seeking to unlock the full potential of sonification (the translating of data into sound) for creative exploration, and for connecting researchers and curious non-specialists to scientific data and concepts. The group is particularly interested in working with intangible data sources, defined loosely to mean anything that might be hard to grasp through traditional communication methods. Sonic intangibles have been working with research and creative partners across the region to explore approaches to sonifying datasets spanning medical monitoring, coastal erosion, mineral compositions and outer space.

Members of the team are internationally recognized artists and scholars in their fields and have presented work at venues, festivals and conferences world-wide including at SXSW, MuTeK, Alternativa Festival, OCCII, Microwave International New Media Arts Festival, WORM Rotterdam, Algorithmic Art Assembly, Boundaries Festival, Museum of European Cultures (MEK), No Bounds Festival, Tor Fest, Bluedot Festival, Colour Out of Space and others.

We’ve been reaching out to the community in the Northeast. We have offered data sonification workshops last year at New Bridge Projects and Culture Lab in Newcastle, and are at work in primary schools across the region. We also presented together at Pint of Science in May 2025 and will return with a set of interactive exhibitions at Newcastle University’s Discovery Festival  in June 2026.

ARTWORK

Resonating Wonder, Sonifying the Intangible (Live A/V)
Resonating Wonder, Sonifying the Intangible is a multimedia performance event (scalable to a half or full evening) focused on artistic approaches to sonification: the rendering of data in new forms of listening.

The event will take the form of an operatic mixture of short multimedia talks and performances punctuated by instrumental ‘interventions’ occurring throughout the space. Artists and scientists from our group offer brief, informative introductions to the works presented that reach beyond this into deeper reflections on the exploration of remote and intangible realms within our world.

The evening will include a live-coded audio-visual performance by Shelly Knotts using environmental data, a spatialised, pine-cone shaped musical work by Jorge Boehringer (featuring the IKO speaker array), and Songs from Solar Storms by Dan Ratliff. These solo performances will be framed by talks and surrounded by performances presented by The Sonic Intangibles SymPHONONia, an intersection of humans, instruments, and information. This quasi-improvising instrumental ensemble will present short pieces throughout the space on themes quantum, physical, temporal, magnetic and generally Intangible!

Prior to the concert, a sonification workshop at the same venue will provide a fun, accessible and hands-on approach to creating sound with our data with no technical expertise necessary!

TALK

A Phyllotaxis of Pure Feeling

Jorge Boehringer will cover aspects and criticality arising in the development of his recent ‘pinecone music’, a musical sonification of morphogenic structures.

WEBSITE
https://sonicintangibles.github.io
http://datamusician.net/
http://jorgeboehringer.com
https://multiplesystemsofevents.wordpress.com/