INSTRUMENT DESIGN & PERFORMANCE
Commissioned by Bristol Beacon. Supported by Arts Council England through National Lottery Funding. Premiered November 2018. Exhibited at Serendipity Arts Festival, Goa, India, 2023.
"The Pineapple Orchestra" is an interactive sound installation comprising nine bow-activated string instruments. The project emerged from a two-year period of deep immersion in Ecuador, where our work on an urban regeneration project provided the context for a parallel, intensive collaborative process.
We designed the instruments, which were meticulously fabricated in collaboration with four local Ecuadorian luthiers and master carpenters. This deliberate choice to build within a post-colonial context became an integral layer of the work itself—a conscious engagement with global craft and a meaningful exchange that stood in contrast to the extractive histories the piece examines.
Each instrument operates through a unique kinetic mechanism: drawing a bow spins a fresh pineapple top, whose leaves then pluck the string to generate sound. This creates an accessible, tactile interface, allowing anyone to play regardless of musical training.
The work leverages this playful interaction to probe complex cultural narratives. The pineapple—a symbol of welcome burdened by its colonial past—is transformed into an active, sound-producing agent. By creating this work in Ecuador for a UK commission, we aimed to foster a space for participants to literally and metaphorically "replay" history, exploring how inclusive new narratives can be built through acknowledgment, exchange, and shared creative practice.
Location: 'Bristol Beacon' 2018 Bristol, Uk . Serendipity Arts Festival 2023 Goa , India
Status: Completed
