April 22, 2008 11:23

Brain Music project wins music award

Fragmented Orchestra turns UK into giant brain, kinda

An innovative new project that mimics the human brain has won a prestigious music award.

The £50,000 PRS New Music Award has been given to the Fragmented Orchestra, a project designed to work in reflection of the neural functions of our brains.

Recording units have been set up in 24 locations across the UK, to be beamed back to the Foundation for Art and Creative Technology in Liverpool, according to the BBC.

Run on top of each other, the tracks will layer together in a kind of massive replica of how the brain processes music.

The judging panel for the new award praised the project, saying: "This extraordinary work mirrors the fundamental human activity of the brain.

"It is writ large across the country and, through cutting edge technology, we can all create, listen and play a part in it. The brain is never silent; it filters, selects and makes connections. The Fragmented Orchestra uses these neural patterns in the same way to allow us to hear the UK as music."

Fragmented Orchestra is the brainchild of sound artist Jane Grant, musician and physicist John Matthias and BAFTA-winning composer Nick Ryan, who now have until September 2009 to complete the project.