Speaker as pendulum 

6:53 min. audio, loop. 2021.

 

Take Comfort in the Silence is an installation using a speaker as a pendulum swinging in the center of the gallery. The movement of the speaker creates a mini-Doppler effect which distorts and modulates the sound in real time: an edited recording of the Jewish song “Nachamu Ami” (comfort [to] my people). As the song progresses, the melody gradually gives way to more and more silence, allowing for the background noise and resonant frequencies of the gallery to become part of the listening experience.

 

Equal parts elegy and consolation, this work is a meditation on memory and grief. “Nachamu Ami” is traditionally chanted as a communal message of hope and comfort after the Jewish holiday of Tisha B’Av (known as the saddest day in the Jewish calendar). As the song plays the sound of the voices becomes recognizable, only to be distorted by the next swing of the pendulum: familiar yet unplaceable."Take Comfort in the Silence" serves as a reflection on the multifaceted experience of grief, inviting viewers to contemplate not only the specific cultural context of the Jewish tradition but also the broader human experience of loss and resilience.