Cantus Terram by Joy Ingle and Laura Spark
Commissioned by Delia Derbyshire Day and funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund
Cantus Terrram is an exercise in world building by Laura Spark and Joy Ingle. An alien landscape unfolds where vegetal and mineral lifeforms come to life - their daily existence culminating in the creation of an un-human song celebrating the very biosphere they create. A ritualistic cycle of organic synergy.
Directly inspired by Delia’s notes for her work on Ted Hughes’s Orpheus for radio and various productions of Macbeth, I used an authentic EMS VCS3 synthesiser as the bedrock for the piece, incorporating manipulated field recordings and physical sound modelling to complete the soundscape of an alien planet.
The collaboration is inspired by the heritage of the Delia Derbyshire Archive at John Rylands Reseach Institute and Library, the evocative world building and soundscapes of Delia Derbyshire, and to celebrate 60 years of the Doctor Who universe she played a key role in defining. Commissioned by Delia Derbyshire Day (2023). Gratefully funded by National Lottery Heritage Fund.