An Auditory Survey of the Last Days of the Holocene presents a radical audio catalogue of our created world’s sounds as a continuous 60-minute multi-movement work for piano, percussion, and fixed electronics. The audience is faced with the echoes of our human-made environment, stripped bare of visual distractions, and taken on a journey of action and possibility.
Composed by Frank Horvat and commissioned by the SHHH!! Ensemble, this work illustrates the current state of pollution and destruction by employing over 150 different audio samples indicative of the climate crisis. The musical score augments and interacts with this soundscape, using a broad range of percussion instruments and piano. An Auditory Survey of the Last Days of the Holocene was conceived as an historical record of humanity’s potential evolution from thoughtlessly destructive actions to carefully considered choices that could result in a healthy and sustainable future.
Be an artivist and support the Holocene these ways:
- Listen to the album recording
- Advocate for concert organizers to present a live performance by the SHHH!! Ensemble
- Make presenters of media art aware of the piece so they can curate an audio installation.





RECORDING
An Auditory Survey of the Last Days of the Holocene
SHHH!! Ensemble
Producer: Carl Talbot
Label: Leaf Music
ATMOS SOUND INSTALLATION
December 9, 2023
Debaser Pique Festival
Arts Court, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada