Speak Up For The Ocean | Ocean Voices

Press Release

Ocean Revolution and Monkey Business Launch Ocean Voices iPhone App in time for World Oceans Day and Jacques Cousteau’s 100th Birthday

Ocean Revolution 6 Poster

SAN FRANCISCO (May 10, 2010) – In honor of the second annual World Oceans Day and the 100th anniversary of Jacques Cousteau’s birth, Ocean Revolution and Monkey Business announce the release of the Ocean Voices iPhone app. Ocean Voices connects ocean lovers around the world with the global OceanVoices.org project.

The “Ocean Voices” project was launched by sound artist Halsey Burgund and California Academy of Sciences marine biologist Dr. Wallace J. Nichols, who hope to spread awareness about the importance of the world’s oceans by helping people connect to the topic of ocean conservation on a more emotional and creative level. Together, they developed and promoted the Ocean Voices web site oceanvoices, which they have used to collect voice recordings from around the world. On the site, they asked people to respond to one of several questions about the ocean, including “What would a world without oceans be like?” and “What does it feel like to be in the ocean?”. Hundreds of respondents lent their voices to the project, including fishermen, school children, scientists, scuba divers, U.S. Congressman Sam Farr and several members of the Cousteau family.

“This iPhone app allows all of us to collect ocean voices and inspiring ideas for the project wherever we travel without the hassle of a computer or sound booth,” says Nichols, adding “People can also record themselves and their friends very easily wherever and whenever they choose”. All recordings are tagged with geographic and demographic data, allowing voices to be filtered and grouped in interesting ways. The iPhone app also allows for participants to listen to custom-generated audio-collages of the voices and music, thereby spreading the words and thoughts of all participants around the globe.

The free iPhone app is available from Apple’s iTunes App Store and was built by Earsmack Music, a small software development shop specializing in music-based iPhone and iPad apps.

The debut performance of Ocean Voices will take place at the California Academy of Science on Thursday, June 3, at 7:30 and 8:30 pm. Burgund will “play” selected spoken voices on his electronic marimba, while his band backs him up on cello, violin, guitar, and keyboard. The Ocean Voices project will continue to collect voices well beyond this performance and will collaborate with other educational, artistic and research groups to promote ocean conservation.

Mike Patton of Monkey Business describes Ocean Voices as a creative, high tech, and constantly evolving way to engage and connect people and adds that his company, through its collaboration with Ocean Revolution is rethinking the manufacturing and packaging of skateboard products. “We are working to make our products and industry as sustainable as possible, by introducing green hardware, risers, clothing and all our packaging,” he says. He points to the Monkey Business bamboo risers, recycled cardboard boxes and plans to decentralize production as examples of how skateboarding, an inherently human-powered “green” activity, can shrink its environmental footprint even more. “Everything we do is connected to the ocean in some way.”

“There is something about the spoken human voice that transcends the words used and the literal meanings conveyed,” says Burgund. “Each of us has a unique way of speaking, unique feelings to relate and unique experiences to recount. With Ocean Voices, we are using technology to capture a wide variety of these individual expressions, and hope that by combining them with original music and beautiful images, the resulting piece will communicate something more powerful than any of the individual voices could on their own.”

In addition to celebrating the second annual United Nations-designated World Oceans Day, which falls on June 8, the “Ocean Voices” debut will also pay tribute to Jacques Cousteau, whose underwater documentaries inspired hundreds of future scientists, including Nichols. “I’m just like a lot of people—I grew up with a Cousteau sticker on my skateboard and his films on my mind,” says Nichols. “Through the Ocean Voices project, we wanted to honor the enormity of Jacques Cousteau’s legacy in a way that was inclusive and open to everyone. We hope that by calling on both art and science to inspire humanity to respond to the ocean crisis, 2010 can be a pivotal year for ocean protection in many important ways.”

Jacques Cousteau was born on June 11, 1910, making this year the 100th anniversary of his birth. Two of his grandchildren, Celine Cousteau and Fabien Cousteau, will co-host the “Ocean Voices” debut at the Academy with Nichols and Burgund on June 3 and will give a brief talk before each performance about the importance of ocean conservation.

Additional support for the “Ocean Voices” project was provided by SchoolMessenger an innovator in fostering school-parent connections, and Oceana, the largest international organization focused solely on ocean conservation.

Additional information:
http://www.OceanVoices.org
http://www.monkeybusiness.com