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We were very happy to host Trajectories on April 19, 2024, as a highlight of our 40th Anniversary Programming. It was an evening of profound auditory exploration that resonated deeply with our community.
This performance featured a collection of works from the ensemble’s debut album, Blood & Breath, alongside pieces developed during their recent residency in the Åland Archipelago. We are incredibly grateful to the Charlotte Street Arts Centre for providing such an atmospheric space for this event, and to Counting on Downstairs and Emily Kennedy for sharing the bill and rounding out a truly unforgettable night.
About the Performance: Quiet on Kökar
The centerpiece of the evening was Quiet on Kökar, an electroacoustic work developed during the ensemble’s three-week residency at the Åland Archipelago Guest Artist Residence in Finland (October 2023).
These compositions are crafted from field recordings captured across the island, serving as an auditory reflection on Kökar’s unique ecology, the impact of human presence, and the nuances of local life. By bridging the gap between natural and cultural landscapes, Quiet on Kökar invites listeners into a serene yet challenging exploration of our relationship with the environment.
About Trajectories
Trajectories is an interdisciplinary collective of composers and artists based in Montréal and New Brunswick. The ensemble is composed of Charles Harding, Malte Leander, Connor Cook, and in memory of the late Michael Pinsonneault. Their practice is defined by a dynamic, collaborative spirit, where each member’s unique research and perspective shape the group’s evolving creative trajectory.
Credits
Archival Footage: Courtesy of Kökar Hembygdsmuseum.
Performers: Connor Cook, Malte Leander, and Charles Harding.
Venue Partner: Charlotte Street Arts Centre.
Event Organizers: Connexion ARC (part of our 40th Anniversary Programming).
Video & Audio Editing: Charles Harding.
Video Recording: Emily Kennedy, Emily Blair, Carter Boyle, Connor Cook, Malte Leander, and Charles Harding.
Trajectories Bandcamp Link: https://trajectoriescollective.bandcamp.com/album/quiet-on-k-kar
Website link: https://www.trajectories.net/
Album Description:
The album Quiet on Kökar was conceived of during a recent artist residency undertaken on the small island of Kökar in the Åland Archipelago in Finland, experimenting with a variety of recording set-ups and collaborative compositional techniques, following ideas of the non-anthropocentric positioning of the artist, both at the time of recording, composing and performing.
The island of Kökar is a quiet and serene environment, located in the middle of the Baltic Sea between Sweden and Finland, amongst a grand archipelago called Åland that consists of thousands of tiny and large islands. This particular island is home to approximately 225 people who live in a place accessible exclusively by boat and helicopter. Kökar has a deep spiritual history; having been a point on the Nordic Pilgrimage route “St. Olav Waterway” since at least the 14th century. Small enough to walk across in a few hours, the island is fiercely exposed to the weather of the sea. At one point during the stay there was a record breaking wind storm that snapped trees and shook the house. It was a very humbling experience and served as a sobering reminder of the unstoppable forces of nature. Through visits to the Kökar museum and communication with residents of the island there were new lessons learned about the vulnerability of the island’s ecosystem as well as the dutiful efforts the community is taking to maintain conscious sustainability in daily life. Throughout its settled history the island has seen many cycles of abundance and scarcity connected to the amount of energy it takes to sustain human populations. The recognition of this vulnerability was ever present while engaging in creative processes during the 3 weeks of the residency.
Throughout the stay there were efforts made to document expeditions utilizing field recorders, hydrophones and various cameras to become immersed in the sights and sounds of Kökar. The aim was to nurture gradually emerging artistic themes surrounding the island’s ecological and historical character and, as a result, engage in new work with personal meaning amplified by the island’s deeper context. Kökar revealed many things, sharing reminders of the fragility of ecosystems and the irrevocably intertwined connections between human and non-human agents in even the most remote environments, awareness of which will be carried forward into future Trajectories work.