(S)E(A)SCAPE, music and underwater acoustics combined to raise awareness of the acoustic ecology of the oceans
- Jul 2
- 9 min read
by Irène Mopin (Lab-STICC UMR 6285, ENSTA) and Noémie Favennec (MUSIDANSE Université Paris 8, ENSTA)
Noise pollution is one of the least understood forms of pollution. Invisible to the naked eye and difficult to detect without specialised listening equipment, it nevertheless profoundly disrupts marine ecosystems. In her PhD thesis, Noémie Favennec explores this issue. Her research, supervised by Makis Solomos (University of Paris 8) and Irène Mopin (ENSTA), lies at the intersection of art, scientific research, education, and societal and ecological challenges. It leads her to explore how artistic and sound-based practices can become tools for understanding, engagement and transformation in the face of contemporary ecological crises.
The ocean is a sensitive environment in which the acoustic dimension is fundamental. Contrary to the collective imagination, which readily associates it with silence and a mute immensity, the marine environment is permeated by intense sonic activity. Natural sounds (the crashing of waves, the crackling of coral reefs, the vocalisations of marine mammals, the rustling of crustaceans and fish, and so on) form a structured acoustic landscape that is not merely a backdrop but plays a part in the very organisation of ecosystems. In an environment where visibility is often limited, sound is a key means of perception and interaction, enabling communication, reproduction, spatial orientation, prey detection and social cohesion among many species.
The little-known impact of noise pollution on marine life
For several decades, the intensification of human activities at sea has been profoundly altering this acoustic balance. The increase in global maritime traffic generates continuous noise that travels over long distances. Added to this are impulsive emissions from seismic surveys for hydrocarbon exploration, high-intensity military sonar, offshore infrastructure works and certain tourist activities (jet skiing, water skiing, etc.). This combination of noise sources produces diffuse, persistent and cumulative noise pollution.
The effects of this pollution are long-lasting and affect biological dynamics at several levels. Behaviourally, noise can mask signals essential for communication, forcing animals to alter their vocalisations or migratory routes. Physiologically, prolonged exposure can cause chronic stress, impair hearing and disrupt vital functions. Certain incidents of cetacean strandings have been linked to the intensive use of military sonar, highlighting the particular vulnerability of these acoustically dependent species. More broadly, changes to the soundscape can compromise the ability of fish or invertebrate larvae to locate suitable habitats, thereby affecting population renewal.
Scientists and artists join forces to give the ocean a voice
(S)E(A)SCAPE is one of the practical applications of Noémie’s research-creation PhD thesis. It is based on a collaboration between scientists and artists aimed at creating a sensory experience that interweaves scientific data, music and visual arts. Through an immersive installation, sound and musical compositions, as well as 3D visual creations and street art, the aim is to make the transformation of marine acoustic environments perceptible.
I felt like I was in a film and even underwater! An immersive experience! Well done!” – Anonymous audience member, 2026
(S)E(A)SCAPE explores the ways in which knowledge is produced and transmitted. Science describes, measures and quantifies phenomena in order to establish correlations and propose explanatory models; its results, expressed in frequencies, decibels or graphs, may seem abstract to the non-specialist. Art engages emotion, the imagination and sensory experience. When combined, art and science make it possible to perceive and tangibly experience what science documents and analyses. Their symbiosis transforms objective reality into a lived experience, reshaping our perspective on ecosystems that would otherwise remain imperceptible. The art-science experience allows us to experience the saturation, disruption or disappearance of a living soundscape. In (S)E(A)SCAPE, art does not replace science – nor does science replace art: it extends the reach of science by making phenomena that are difficult to observe accessible.
Beyond raising awareness, this inter- and transdisciplinary collaboration also opens up new perspectives for research itself. Exchanges between scientists, musicians, musicologists, sound engineers and others foster novel modes of representation and working methods, encouraging us to view data differently and to listen in new ways. Artistic research feeds into scientific topics, just as scientific results and data fuel creative expression. By combining scientific rigour with sensitivity, the alliance between art and science seeks to help restore a form of collective attention to the submerged worlds on which a vital part of life on Earth depends.
(S)E(A)SCAPE, a project in constant evolution
It all began in 2023 when an artistic and scientific consortium was formed around the Oreille Indiscrète collective, with the aim of staging a debut concert at the Le Mans Sonore biennial, scheduled for January 2024. The first concert, featuring the flautist and electronic composer Marie Delprat, attracted an audience of over 400 people.
“At any moment, we can be captivated and discover these seabeds that we’ll never have the chance to explore. The flute interlude was magnificent. Thank youuuuuu” – Anonymous audience member, 2024
The musical composition, combined with a photoluminescent mural by the artists of Street Art Reskate at the back of the stage, draws the audience into a gradual immersion at the heart of marine sounds, from the open sea to the deepest depths. Technophonically generated sounds and natural acoustic phenomena intertwine within the composition, transformed, modulated and reinterpreted in real time by the musician on stage. ’s sensory immersion experience in the underwater landscape — the (S)e(a)scape — where listening becomes at once an exploration, an awakening of awareness and an encounter with the underwater soundscape, is enhanced by the incredible acoustics of the Oratory Chapel in Le Mans (France).
The year 2024 then saw a new direction for (S)E(A)SCAPE’s stage production. The show, originally conceived as an intimate indoor concert, moved outdoors and was enhanced by the addition of two new musicians: Simon Carbonnel (electronic instruments) and Victoire Fellonneau (Paetzold flute). Naturally, the composition evolved too. A monumental mural created by Reskate Studio and painted on the ‘cube’ at the Plein Champ festival in Le Mans unfolds at the back of the stage, whilst at the front, visual designs by Tania Cortes-Becerra are projected onto a tulle screen, lending the work an enhanced visual and immersive dimension. More than 5,000 standing audience members are fully immersed in the soundscape of the oceans. This musical duo will continue to perform in 2024–2025 on an international tour of indoor concerts in France, Spain and Switzerland.
Building on this positive feedback, 2025 provides scientists and artists with the opportunity to explore the intertwining of art and science in depth. A new concert format, (S)E(A)SCAPE Confluence, immerses the audience in a world where science and art are fully intertwined. On stage, the contemporary ensemble Sillages, conducted by Gonzalo Bustos, joins the two soloists, enabling the performance of a musical composition inspired by the rhythms and textures of marine ecosystems. Water, ever-present on stage, helps to create an atmosphere of oceanic immersion – enhanced by the spatialised sound system – in which the audience is enveloped by the underwater world.
Projections onto the tulle at the front of the stage transform the space into a poetic and scientific landscape, blending shifting forms, dreamlike colours and visualisations of acoustic and biological data. Every sound and every image invites the audience to listen, contemplate and experience the depths of the sea, straddling the line between wonder and unease. The concert thus becomes a complete sensory experience, where dreams, oceanic imagination and scientific findings come together to offer a unique journey to the heart of the underwater world.
Raising awareness through educational engagement
From 2023 onwards, following the first concert, a scientific discussion session will be offered to the audience in the form of a short talk. Whilst the musical composition draws on emotion and poetic expression, Bill François’s scientific presentation sheds light on its foundations, providing educational insights into the world of underwater acoustics. Drawing on the sound materials heard throughout the composition, he extends the sensory experience through accessible and informed commentary. With poetry and humour, he invites the audience to deepen their understanding of these invisible landscapes, whilst inspiring a renewed sense of wonder and respectful attention towards the underwater world and the species that inhabit it.
It’s really interesting to have the introduction at the start; it encourages active listening” – Anonymous audience member, 2026
Alongside each guided concert, the experience continues for the most dedicated audience members: the public is invited to explore three interactive booths, designed in collaboration with ENSTA Bretagne, the LAUM acoustics laboratory and Reskate Studio, and run by the project team. The first booth, ‘Luminescences’, invites visitors, equipped with ultraviolet torches, to explore the world of bioluminescent marine creatures, which is barely visible to the naked eye; the second booth, ‘The Sound of Bubbles’, offers an introduction to measurements using hydrophones, the scientific devices used to capture and analyse ocean sounds; finally, the third booth, named ‘Marine Sounds’, invites visitors to recognise and identify the sounds heard during the concert through an audio quiz in an interactive space.
To complement these activities and tools designed to raise public awareness, the ‘school’ version of the (S)E(A)SCAPE concert has been created to be accessible to younger children and is performed for school groups, sometimes accompanied by classroom workshops. In 2023, more than 200 primary school pupils from the city of Le Mans attended the performance. Then in 2025 in Spain, and in 2026 back in Le Mans.
A unique and multifaceted musical composition
For each version of the concert, the musical and soundscape composition is conceived as a gradual immersion into the oceanic world, following a symbolic narrative that leads the listener from the shore to the depths. As one moves further from the coast, the acoustic space transforms and guides the listener’s experience through a subtle progression.
Near the shoreline, the ear perceives a teeming world: the crackling of sea urchins, the clattering of shrimps and the hum of small boats weave a tapestry of sound blending biological life and human presence. Then, as one dives deeper, the landscape becomes vaster and deeper: the majestic songs of large cetaceans resonate, mingling with the rumblings of tectonic activity and the distant booms of underwater explosions. Nature and human activity engage in dialogue, clash or give way to one another.
This dramatic progression highlights the specific characteristics of soundscapes across different bathymetric layers, whilst exploring the phenomena of superposition, propagation and acoustic interference. It reveals how sounds combine, mask one another or are modulated depending on distance, the density of the environment and the disturbances caused by human activities.
The music, when the seal is illuminated by UV light, brings a sense of calm and relief” – Anonymous audience member, 2026
The sound material is also carefully selected: not only on the basis of its origin – biophonic, geophonic, anthropophonic or technophonic – or the depth at which it was recorded, but also for its aesthetic and evocative qualities. The timbres, textures and resonances spark the imagination and bring the ocean to life, placing the audience in a constant dialogue between scientific rigour and artistic poetry, between attentive listening and sensory wonder.
The composition was created collaboratively by a quartet comprising Noémie Favennec, experimental composer and artistic director of the project; Simon Carbonnel, electronic composer; Victoire Fellonneau, flautist; and Irène Mopin, underwater acoustician. This collaboration has given rise to a unique compositional style, at the crossroads of oral and written music, classical compositional techniques and more intuitive and sensitive approaches, whilst also incorporating scientific, physical and technical dimensions.
A shared curiosity and a desire to explore together
By bringing together a large number of people from a wide variety of backgrounds and career paths, the (S)E(A)SCAPE project serves as a meeting point for a multitude of talents and a wide range of professions, making the collective work particularly enriching, especially in the quest for artistic coherence in the performance. Over the course of nearly three years of collaboration, everyone has been encouraged to step outside their own perspective, to pay attention to others’ practices, their expectations, but also their constraints and limitations. A shared curiosity and the desire to explore together the possibilities offered by this exceptional creative environment have drawn not only the project’s artists, scientists and technicians into the adventure, but also the entire support staff (production, logistics, communications, etc.) who have contributed to its realisation.
Within the creative team, a shared vocabulary gradually developed. Scientific terms merged with those of musicology and with more technical terminology related to sound engineering, electronic devices, and so on. The lexicon of written music theory became intertwined with the more intuitive expressions characteristic of oral practices. From these exchanges emerged a language specific to the project, enabling everyone to express and share their ideas and inspirations.
"At the start of the project, some team members discovered the issue of ocean noise pollution and the role of human activities in causing it. Today, we all share the conviction that it is essential to convey our beliefs and questions on this complex subject to the public through sensory experience and music. Through (S)E(A)SCAPE, we are learning something new every day, whether it be scientific knowledge, working methods, or even how to connect with and listen to others – human or non-human. We hope that these explorations and questions will resonate across the stage and manage to touch the audience deeply.” – Irène Mopin
Conceived as a long-term project, (S)E(A)SCAPE seeks to demonstrate how listening can transform the way we perceive seascapes, and in particular underwater soundscapes. Transdisciplinarity and the intertwining of art and science invite the audience to pay fresh attention to the ocean. Through an approach that is at once poetic, sensitive and immersive, (S)E(A)SCAPE reminds us that the soundscape is invisible but can be heard, felt and experienced.
Underwater noise pollution is just one example of the pressure exerted by human activities on the biosphere. Whilst (S)E(A)SCAPE highlights the technological dominance that alters even the sound conditions of non-human underwater life, it also seeks to renew our relationship with the marine world. By making audible what was previously ignored, it invites us to rethink human responsibility towards these environments on which, directly or indirectly, the balance of life on a global scale depends.
Reference : Noémie Favennec'PhD thesis : “Raising awareness of ecology through musical and sound creation”, supervised by Makis Solomos (Professor of Musicology at Paris 8 University), with guidance from Irène Mopin (lecturer and researcher in underwater acoustics at ENSTA)
Contact : Oreille Indiscrète
Read more : https://www.oreilleindiscrete.fr/seascape
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