These tones, called spontaneous otoacoustic emissions (or SOAE), are produced – without external stimulation – in people’s ears. Each emitting ear produces something akin to an acoustic fingerprint. Whereas the combinations of tones emitted from one ear can be dissonant, microtonal and complex, tones emitted from another ear can be harmonious and perceived as ‘in tune’. Recorded with specialized microphones inserted directly in the ears of students, during Jacob Kirkegaard’s sound-artist-in-residence at St. John’s College at University of Oxford in 2016, these tones now form the basis of this composition:

Connecting two sensory organs of the human body, the ear and the mouth, Eustachia for two voices presents SOAEs interpreted entirely for voice

Eustachia – for two voices (12:00) Composed by Katinka Fogh Vindelev & Jacob Kirkegaard, 2014-2016

* The Eustachian tube extends from the middle ear to the pharynx and connects the ear and the voice

Eustachia for two voices has been performed at
Louisiana – Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark
ARoS – Art Museum, Aarhus, Denmark
Munkeruphus – Dronningmølle, Denmark
Ribe Art Museum, Ribe, Denmark
Fridman Gallery, New York City, USA

Video from 9 Evenings + 50, Fridman Gallery, New York City, September 2016
Katinka Fogh Vindelev & Jacob Kirkegaard – Eustachia for two voices
Jacob Kirkegaard – Eustachia for twenty voices
Katinka Fogh Vindelev – Eustachia for one voice