External Corridor

Frieze
Imaging constructed from details of the wing of Hei Za Chan [black, noisy cicada - Cryptotympana atrata], a specimen in the collection of the Institute of Zoology, Beijing, China

Audio
Jing Shan Park 01              Duration: 10’ 23”
A group of women gather under the trees of Jing Shan Park, central Beijing, to sing together in the afternoon heat. Using pre-recorded instrumentation from traditional songs and microphones to amplify their voices, the women attract an appreciative audience.High above in the trees and competing for sonic attention are two groups of cicadas. These cicadas are common in Beijing and are known locally as Hei Za Chan [roughly, black noisy cicada, Cryptotympana atrata] and Hui Gu [roughly ‘dedicated group of insects’, Platypleura kaempferi]. The rhythmic flow and give and take between the insects [mechanical] and humans [vocal] created an intriguing effect of singing ‘in the round’ and constitutes, perhaps, a kind of inter-species exchange.

Jing Shan Park 02              Duration: 3’05”
I interviewed two local scientists, Professor Ai-Ping Liang [cicada expert] and Dr. Chun-Xiang Liu [cricket expert] from the Institute of Zoology who identified the species in the audio recordings for me. As scientists, they told me, it was an unusual way to identify the insects, and they prefer to either look at a photograph or handle a specimen. I found this attitude to the sounds of the insects intriguing, and realised it correlated with bird watchers’ protocol - a bird is only acknowledged when it is seen regardless of how often it is heard.
This track focuses on the Hui Gu or ‘dedicated group of insects’ [Platypleura kaempferi]. This recording takes place part way up the artificial mount to the Buddhist temples. The mount was constructed from the soil of the moat dug around the Forbidden City. Pebbles are thrown towards the end of the track which successfully disrupt the insects’ sonic reverie.

Jing Shan Park 03              Duration: 5’ 07”
Once again the Hei Za Chan or black noisy cicada [Cryptotympana atrata]. This recording was made near the stalls that pepper the paths up and down the mount

Internal Gallery

Frieze
Imaging constructed from details of the wing of Hei Za Chan [black, noisy cicada - Cryptotympana atrata], a specimen in the collection of the Institute of Zoology, Beijing, China

Audio
Shilihe insect Market        Duration: 10’ 11”
See Shilihe

San Yan Jing Hutong       Duration: 14’ 02”
In this field recording I am standing outside a private house where two crickets are     kept in cages and are singing loudly near a front window. They are distinctly audible amongst the street’s activity. The house is located in the hutong [traditional streets in ‘old’ Beijing] just north of the Forbidden City, central Beijing. These crickets are known as Guo Guo’er in Chinese [Gampsocleis gratiosa, a large bright green katydid]. As I gestured to passers-by in an attempt to explain that I was listening to the singing crickets [there are a number of ‘Ni Haos’ and ‘Hellos’ in the recording] I discovered        the Chinese name when a middle-aged man said in recognition ‘Ah, Guo Guo’er’. This exchange can be heard towards the end of the recording. While I assumed the crickets were kept as ‘pets’ and referred to them as such, I was later informed that     the idea of a pet is a relatively new concept in China, and that the best way of referring to these insects is as soldiers.

Saturday mornings in Tuan Jie Hu Park, Beijing during September/October 2007 [excerpts]

What do cricket and cicada songs mean to you?

* Cricket songs mean to me the summer night with a smooth wind that brings me a comfortable feeling.  While the cicada song brings me a hot summer feeling that is uncomfortable.

*  They give zest to life and embody the harmonious co-existence of human-beings, nature and animals.

* Cicadas’ singing is the symbol of the summer. Crickets sing at the end of summer and the beginning of fall and are the symbol of beauty and freedom of nature.

* Beijing people also call cicadas seasonal birds. They always make noise in the summer.  When the bigger birds hear their sound, they come and eat them.

* The singing of crickets is very soft, soothing. Makes you sleepy. I am a traditional Chinese medicine doctor. Cicadas, on hot days make you restless and Increase the feeling of heat. But in cool autumn days, crickets make me feel cooler. You know autumn – falling leaves - make people sad but the insects will make you feel alive.

* Their singing is beautiful which make me recall the summer nights, the country tales and beautiful nature. Cicadas are the symbol of the coming summer. Their singing sounds like the sound of Suona (a Chinese folk instrument) a bamboo stringed instrument from the south.

Have you ever had a cricket as a pet? Or do you know any friends or family who have owned crickets?

* I believe many Chinese people my age (more than 40) have the experience of keeping a cricket as his pet. In exact meaning, it is not a pet but a soldier. During my teenage years, there was a game among teenagers to fight with crickets. The winner of the cricket fight can be sold for a lot of money.  The loser must be killed.

* When I was young, I was a cricket keeper. From 1931-37, my family lived in Wuhan City, I was in primary school at that time. In the Autumn evenings, my friends and I went outdoors to catch crickets. When we caught one, we were so excited and kept it in a small jar. It’s singing was wonderful.

* Yes, my friend used to keep them. It is hard to tell you the story clearly with a few words. Both crickets and cicadas make a very loud noise. It is good to raise them for families and kids to play. My family couldn’t afford to buy a lot of toys for me in the past, and so they were one of my toys.

Do you think there is a connection between these insect songs and Chinese music?

* Yes. Many Chinese music components come from natural sounds including songs from birds and insects. Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai: The butterfly lovers’ story -  [then in discussion with older calligrapher]. A Chinese legend about their tragic romance, not unlike Romeo and Juliet. Eastern Jin Dynasty 265-420 AD.

* They must have connections. There is a famous Chinese folk song: Bai Niao Chao Feng (that literally means hundreds kinds of birds’ pilgrimage to phoenix – birds adoring the phoenix) which is the imitation of many kinds of birds singing. It sounds wonderful. I am interested in your research work and would like to give my support to you.

This residency took place between 2nd August and 31st October 2007 with Red Gate Gallery, Beijing, China

Double audio CD with essay by Amelia Swan and excerpts from interviews with local Beijingers in Tuan Jie Hu Park

Development of this project funded by Arts Victoria