Paper short abstract:

This contribution presents and discusses the concept of more-than-human karaoke as a collaborative tool. It stirs the question if post-anthropocentric perspectives can be practiced through our voices that bring us closer to the environments we are part of.

Paper long abstract:

Today's environmental challenges require a deepening of collaborative skills at all levels of society. The arts not only provide creative tools for renewed collaboration between knowledges and worldviews, but also push boundaries through playful explorations of in-between territories.

The concept of more-than-human karaoke, as proposed for this session, invites reflection and experimentation with a creative tool that aims to bring humans and more-than-humans closer together. Through the performance of sounds of nature and wildlife, the work raises questions such as: could more-than-human karaoke contribute to shifting our attention towards a more holistic perception of our environment? And may the exploration of more-than-human sounds allow for a closer connection with our environment?

The more-than-human karaoke will be presented as a video work (without sound), featuring more-than-human encounters. The participants of the session are invited to dub the video work. The performance is a multi-dimensional experiment that incorporates and merges the voices of the karaoke singers and the various environments shown in the video installation.

The karaoke itself was exhibited at a more-than-human festival as well as a research conference where insights were collected from the singers through a simple questionnaire. Both the discussion of these insights and the exploration of the creative tool itself will be part of the presentation at EASST.