Moths are rather unassuming creatures, often playing second fiddle to their insect cousins, butterflies. But in a new work being premiered next month, they are far from that. In fact they have been instrumental in creating the immersive soundworld that forms the basis of composer Ellie Wilson’s piece.
“Moth X Human” is an instrumental piece, based on moth activity data collected last summer, much of it from Natural England’s Parsonage Down National Nature Reserve near Salisbury.
The piece will have its first airing in Bradford during the UK City of Culture celebrations on 7 June and then will also be played at the Southbank Centre in London on 5 July, as part of a New Music Biennial.
Classically trained Ellie said the idea to use insect activity to create music that explores declining biodiversity came to her at breakfast one morning and from there she was introduced to the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology which had created a system with high-resolution cameras to capture images of moths and record their species.
The numbers of moths visiting Parsonage Down National Nature Reserve by Salisbury were used to create this instrumental. Image by Northern School of Arts.
Ellie chose two lots of data on which to base her composition. One was from Parsonage Down, where over the course of four hours, 80 different moth species were recorded on 1 August, including elephant hawk, burnished brass, water veneer and ruby tiger moths. The second was from monoculture farmland, where pesticides have been used and on the same night. Just 19 different species were recorded.
The species were each given a unique sound or note to create the 12-minute long piece that is played alongside live musicians.
Ellie said:
At some points the moths create short melodic fragments and these can be heard later in the piece as repeating motifs in the cello and piano.
By contrast, the end of the piece uses data from a poor habitat, audibly demonstrating declining biodiversity due to human interference.
Natural England’s senior reserve manager for National Nature Reserves in Wiltshire, Stuart Hales, said:
National Nature Reserves are our most important places for nature, so it’s exciting to see Parsonage Down providing inspiration for the arts, in addition to being crucial for conservation.
We hope that this fabulous project helps connect people with nature through the power of music to bring it to a whole new audience.
Students from the Northern School of Art have created more than 100 moth designs, which are being animated to complement the music during the performances.
Be sure to catch the premiere of Moth x Human as part of New Music Biennial 2025 – a festival presented in partnership by PRS Foundation, Southbank Centre, and Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture. Free tickets available now for Bradford (6 to 8 June) and Southbank Centre (4 to 6 July).
Listen to a trailer of Moth X Human.
Background
- OCM is a unique producer and charity that works to develop and present the highest quality and most innovative new music and sound-based live events, to engage diverse local and national audiences with our work, and to deepen understanding and appreciation of musical cultures from within the UK and worldwide. OCM’s raison d’être is to bring music, artists and audiences together in ways that encourage and create memorable and meaningful experiences for all. See OCM.
- PRS Foundation and Southbank Centre’s New Music Biennial is a critically acclaimed free festival of new music, presenting a unique snapshot of contemporary music in the UK today. 20 pieces of new music will be performed across two festival weekends at Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture (6 to 8 June 2025) and London’s Southbank Centre (4 to 6 July 2025), broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and available for download from NMC Recordings. You can find out about all 20 New Music Biennial commissioning organisations and composers at New Music Biennial. PRS Foundation’s New Music Biennial is generously supported by Southbank Centre, Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture, BBC Radio 3, Arts Council England and NMC Recordings. You can find out more at PRS Foundation. Moth X Human will be presented in Bradford and London, in collaboration with Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture, London’s Southbank Centre and PRS Foundation’s New Music Biennial.
- UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) is a leading independent research institute dedicated to understanding and transforming how we interact with the natural world. With over 600 researchers, we tackle the urgent environmental challenges of our time, such as climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. See CEH.
- The Northern School of Art is a specialist art and design school based in North East England. The higher-education campus in Hartlepool, Durham, delivers a wide range of Art, Design and performance-based degrees across undergraduate and postgraduate study. The School, established 150 Years ago, and is rated TEF Gold. The School is also well-known for its further education campus, providing a range of diplomas, A-level and Foundation study across the art, design and performance disciplines, rated Ofsted Outstanding. Find more information at Northern Art.
