THE LANGUAGE OF BIRDS | Carlos Rendón Synesthesia has been documented since the 19th century as a phenomenon that allows some people to perceive more than one sensation from a given sensory stimulus. It is possible for these people to hear colors, see sounds or taste touch. It is not something that can be taught or learned, though there are techniques that can help one to experience it. The perception one gets reading a text or looking at a painting can be altered by its form, outline or color. The same thing happens with sound and its rhythm, tone, harmony or dissonance, especially when guided listening is involved. Such was the case with Visualizing Birdsong, a workshop led by South Korean artist Jaewook Lee at the AIEP Professional Institute. Divided in two parts, the first was a presentation on synesthesia and the workings of the human brain. Using a portable electroencephalogram (EEG) machine connected to a computer, Lee was able to show his neuronal activity and how it was altered by different external stimuli. When he closed his eyes and focused, the brainwaves subsided. When he spoke or listened to music at high volume, they would increase. The same experiment was repeated with one of the workshop’s participants, and we were able to see that person’s brain activity converted into blotches of color. In the second part, Lee invited everyone to participate in a hands-on activity. Each person, with pen and paper, listened attentively to the songs of different birds, interpreting their trills, endowing each with specific color, shape and intensity. This was done with a Steller Jay, a robin, a red-winged thrush and finally the northern cardinal. All foreign birds, which made the process of turning their songs into abstract images that much more complicated. The most interesting part was that none of the images looked alike, even considering that they had been inspired by the same birdsong. Jaewook had begun the workshop talking about Olivier Messiaen, the composer famous for having translated birdsong into pieces of classical music. Regardless of the differences, within the hour workshop participants were experiencing that same mental process, which in some ways was even therapeutic. In the end, it was impossible to know who had been closest to experiencing true synesthesia, as it was about subjective, personal experience, in which birdsong served to connect an individual with his or her own brain. It’s almost as if it were easier to reveal the secrets of the mind through the chirping of birds rather than human language.
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