September 2024
Watch the making of video here:
It's been a great honour to be asked by Jersey Heritage and Société Jersiaise to create an installation in the passage grave of La Hougue Bie, one of the 10 oldest buildings in the world, to mark 100 years of the excavation of this extremely special site: 1924-2024.
With the help of some brilliant local historians and geologists, the process involved collecting a sample of every major rock type indigenous to Jersey, recording them in a large number of combinations in a studio, with taps, scrapes, knocks, shakes, trickles and wobbles, to create this 6 speaker surround work.
Rock types used include: La Roque Granite, Rhyolite, Diorite, Flint, Aplite, Microgranite, Shale, L’Étacq granite, Mudstone, Granodiorite, Gabbro, Eocene limestone, Rozel conglomerate, Corbière granite, and Andesite.
With enormous thanks to Jersey Heritage and Société Jersiaise for your faith and trust in me, and for giving me such a great opportunity to work with a new medium in an exceptionally old and magical place.
Praise for Lithophilia:
"this extraordinary piece connects Jersey’s rich geological and historical heritage with contemporary sound art. Derived entirely from the natural sounds of Jersey’s indigenous stones, this six-minute composition breathes life into the ancient passage grave, inviting visitors to imagine its inner life. It offers an opportunity to experience La Hougue Bie—one of the world’s oldest sites—as a living, resonant entity." -Aras Amiri
"Lithophilia is a profound celebration of the island's ancient history, geology, and culture."
"I really enjoyed its, in some respects, minimalist qualities, reminding me a little at moments of the work of composers such as Steve Reich who I appreciate. But the work was unique...'of itself' also. That it included (I assume) only the sounds of the rocks and was not overly layered allowed space for the visitor's other sensory experiences of the passage grave. The sound didn't overwhelm the experience, but allowed just the right amount of input for collaboration between place, sound and visitor. The piece allowed us to experience the place in a new way, as it called forth particular aspects of the site.
It was interesting that there were moments in which I wasn't sure if the sounds were the piece of music, or coming from the movements of people in the space around me, as rocks and stones, and bodies rocks and stones rubbed together (impacting and slowly altering each other). I appreciated having second listen through for this reason and general enjoyment and enrichment!
There was a moment in the piece that sounded joyful and playful. I wondered about Charles' joy with rocks, and the skimming. If the rocks could speak.
I assume all the sounds were rocks against each other, but in the imagination, we weren't sure if it was human activity in interaction with them at times. The latter lends an aspect of the history of the place also, even if not intended. We can listen in a 'pure' way suspending interpretation or imagination of contexts, or not.
There were moments in the piece that were more dense, others spacious; some in regular rhythm and others arrhythmic; a falling both in and out of line, like the laying/formation of the stones around us: both regular and irregular; varying textures, colours, densities and frequencies, reflecting the various rocks Charles worked with. There were moments in the piece when the sound was more dominant, and others when it provided a gentle frame for other ways of experiencing the place.
I am very happy that I was able to see this piece. Thank you very much for your work Charles, enriching island experience!" -Naomi West
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