It’s not uncommon to hear music while walking through Interlochen Center for the Arts, a hub of constant concerts and students rehearsing their instruments. But now, the campus will feature a musical performance of their school anthem, “Sound the Call,” that never stops.
To mark Interlochen’s 100th anniversary, an interactive metallophone and 40 wind chimes will be installed throughout campus. The sonic installation will be unveiled and activated in a world-premiere performance on Saturday titled “Sounding the Call."
Interlochen’s percussion director Keith Aleo said the project commemorates the past, present and future of the institution by involving alumni and current students.
“The idea is when you celebrate 100 years, you mark … the end of those hundred years, and the mark of the next hundred years,” Aleo said. “And oftentimes, in many cultures, the sounding of a percussion instrument marks that change.”
He dreamt up this project with Doug Perkins, director of percussion at the University of Michigan. Perkins said choosing the location for each set of chimes took careful consideration.
“We walked around campus to see … how do you activate the whole campus, and which places are interesting?” Perkins said. “Outside of the visual arts building, they’re very high in the sky, so you might hear them as a faint echo, but in other places they might be right close to the ground, so you’re really kind of engaging the chimes.”
The silver pipes were custom-made by alum Garry Kvistad to play the notes of “Sound the Call,” a theme from the Interlochen Bowl March by Edwin Franko Goldman. They’re also painted and adorned with metallic flowers made by current visual arts students.
Tomorrow, percussion students will premiere a new work by alum Joey Karz that reflects on the past century by referencing the musical works of alumni composers.
Perkins said the end of the piece titled “and as it was” leads into the release of the wind chimes.
“At some point, you will see the percussionists lift the chimes and begin to bring them to life on campus, and then these will be the last chimes that get hung into the trees,” Perkins said.
But the chimes won’t just be hanging there. Students can interact with a metallophone near the school entrance that’s specially tuned to the notes of Sound the Call, ringing in the next hundred years.
The outdoor performance will start at 2:15 p.m. on Saturday at the Osterlin Mall at the center of campus.
