City Lights Orchestra is an visual symphony for the
windows of the city.
At night, each computer connected to internet illuminates
the window of the appartment or the the office, and
blinks, pulsates, beats, fades in and out, each according
to its own score, but in rhythm with all the others.
It is a fully participative installation. The inhabitants
activate the symphony at home by simply displaying, on
their own computer or connected TV, a web page which plays
the visual symphony by blinking. They then orient the
screen so that the blinking is visible from outside, so
that their window is like a giant pixel.
Anyone can participate at anytime : the symphony is
composed to accept an unlimited number of participants
like a huge orchestra.
The whole city becomes the orchestra : both spectator and
interpret of the symphony that is playing.
It is a global city experience.
Past Editions
• NOV12 : Share Festival, Torino (IT) -
Award : Special Mention
• DEC12 : Ososphère Festival, Strasbourg (FR)
• MAR13 : Infecting The City
Festival, Cape Town (South Africa) - City Lights
Orchestra was part of the Infecting The City Festival in
Cape Town (South Africa) from March 11th to March 16th
2013. There were two highlight
events (facebook), on March 11th and March 13th at
9:15pm. The neighborhood of Church Square in downtown Cape
Town was especially mobilized, and the inhabitants
participated widely!
• MAY13 : MEDIACITIES
Festival (Buffalo, USA)
• 20NOV13 : Saint Denis (93), Square
de la Montjoie, organized by Synesthésie in
the Festival
NEMO. (Page
Facebook).
• MARCH 20 and 21 2014 from 7pm to
11pm in Mons (BE), in the rue
de Nimy (neighbourhood) within the Festival
VIA Mons 2014
• JUNE 7th 2014 : Albi (FR), organized by the Centre
d'Art Le LAIT, within theNuit
Pastel
• NOV 21 2014 : Mulhouse, Quartier des Coteaux (FR),
organized by La Filature • 31 JAN 2015, Orléans
(Quartier La Source), within Festival Orléanoïde • 14 MAR
2015, Reims (the whole city), within Festival Nuit
Numérique, with Centre d'Art St
Exupéry • 12 Novembre
2015, Strasbourg (FR), sur le Campus •
January 29th 2017 5:30PM : Tours
Labourdette (Marseille, FR) and CHB
(Berlin, DE) • May 11th 2018 : HEAD - Mapping
Festival (Genève, CH) • April
22nd 2020 : the whole France - Seconde Nature
/ Zinc (FR)
city lights orchestra is an open visual
symphony for the windows of a city : windows of houses and
buildings in the city, and windows of the screens of
smartphones in the streets.
City ensemble : Visual and totally silent
but musical in essence, the symphony is a rhythmic, highly
polyphonic, algorithmic and generative visual composition
for potentially thousands of windows that blink, fade in
and out, flicker, shiver, pulsate, etc.. all synchronously
and across the whole city. Each window score is unique,
but they are all in sync with each other, with patterns
being developed across all the windows, and global events
happening simultaneously everywhere.
Participative : Anybody with an internet
connection can join the symphony at any time by just
displaying the citylights orchestra.net web page in their
browser. This page immediately plays the visual score, by
blinking black and white, etc... By turning their browser
full screen and turning off the lights of the room, the
screen of the computer illuminates the curtains, walls and
ceiling and it is seen from outside through the window,
which becomes a giant pixel. People in the streets can
also point their smartphones to the same web page and use
their phone as a personal light instrument. Anyone can
join in and leave at anytime : the score is composed to be
open to any number of interprets.
Composition : The composition is also
open in time, as it is written through a generative
algorithm that creates new movements and forms forever,
following an initial musical DNA. The dynamics of the
beats and blinks originate both in musical structures and
in organic rhythms.
Timeframe : The symphony is designed to
be played during specific large public events, like Nuits
Blanches or festivals, which can gather a large number of
participants thanks to a strong communication.
Experience : By letting everyone be
part of the global composition, city lights orchestra
creates a strong sense of belonging and empathy among the
inhabitants. It is also very playful, while still
questionning each and everyone on his or her place in the
great system of the city.
The whole city becomes
spectator and interpret of the symphony. It is a global
city experience.
How to
This page goves
advices on how to participate simply and effectively.
City Lights Orchestra in Cape Town has been made
possible with the support of the French Institute of
South Africa.