Coexistent Futures
Reimagining interrelatedness
COEXISTENT FUTURES is a multi-platform work initiated by vocalist Johanna Sulkunen.
The project is initiated and performed by the composer/vocalist Johanna Sulkunen and features Tapani Toivanen - visuals, Francesco Bigoni - interaction and audio design, and Laura Rathschau - scenography.
COEXISTENT FUTURES moves towards a collective utopia. Through our work, we present a sonic pseudo-language with traits of universality that merges intelligible elements with direct emotional expression and embodiment.
Our goal is to explore, experiment with, and evoke ways to create a temporary shared identity through pure sound, the phonetic elements of language (pitch, rhythm, microtextures, intonation, syllables, phonemes, and the lived experience of our work (perception, synesthesia, embodiment). This work manifests itself through several outlets: a collection of performances, an interactive audiovisual installation, a series of workshops, and a reflection on intercultural transformations.
Audiovisual performance
Audiovisual solo performance where the synthesized and electronically processed voice creates the musical dramaturgy. Derived from the sonic output, the whole stage becomes a living organism. Immersive audio, visuals, physical materials on the body, and the scene are all communicating together, enhancing the characters of the created pseudo language.
The setup is transformable and adjustable in the size of the room and location, from a more traditional stage set-up expanding into a site-specific total installation.
Participatory experience
Members of the audience can interact and experiment with the work using their own language through a dedicated interface to interact with a pen-plotter that will translate their personal input to a written pseudo-language form. The output of the machine can be used as a visual score during a performance.
Interactive workshop
We invite participants to join an immersive workshop where each individual voice becomes an essential element of a shared sonic landscape. Together, we will explore how individual contributions weave into an evolving narrative of collective identity, navigating the spaces where communication transcends language.
Participants will be guided through simple exercises that invite them to become part of the performance. They will be presented with the various transformations of the language and invited to contribute with their personal inputs on their own terms. This workshop reflects the experience of communicating across languages and cultures—where words feel familiar yet remain just out of reach—creating a space for deeper emotional and sensory understanding.
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What to Expect
Participants will engage in guided exercises designed to gently integrate them into a collaborative performance. You’ll experience how language transforms through sound, visuals, and interaction.
Our Aim
This workshop strives to enhance the sense of connection between performers, participants, and spectators. Together, we’ll create a shared sonic-visual gestalt that celebrates individuality while fostering a collective experience. Cultural nuances are embraced, and a sense of community is formed through the interplay of voices, visuals, and technology.
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Flexible Format
The workshop is adaptable in length and content to suit the age and number of participants, ensuring an inclusive and engaging experience for all.
Join us to discover the power of your voice as a bridge between cultures, communities, and identities.
Who we are
Johanna Sulkunen (Composer, Performer)
Vocalist, composer, and improviser based in Copenhagen. Since 2018, her work has focused on the hybridization of voice and electronics, complemented by multidisciplinary collaborations.
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Laura Rathschau (Scenography, Costume design)
Laura is a Danish visual artist, holds a degree in textile design from The Royal Danish Academy of Design. With expertise in scenography, light installations, video art, live visuals, and costume design, Laura's diverse skill set defines her artistic practice.
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Francesco Bigoni (Interface Design and Audio)
Interface design, speech-to-text algorithms, machine listening, corpus-based synthesis, spatial audio design
Francesco Bigoni is an Italian woodwind player, composer and developer based in Copenhagen, Denmark. He’s currently coordinating a PhD programme in improvisation studies at Siena Jazz, Italy.
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Tapani Toivanen (Visuals)
Tapani integrates a host of techniques, including physical matter (e.g. cymatics), projection mapping, and digital video and media art displayed at numerous festivals and medias
Crossing cultural and artistic domains
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Coexistent Futures workshop aims to offer an in-depth and multi-sensory understanding of how novel sound technology can create new forms of expression and how cultural boundaries can dissolve through shared artistic experiences.
The core of the project – voice and language – are everyday tools for most people. Through a familiar, yet odd setup, we invite people to interact, to contribute and question what language and voice can do. How our interrelatedness moves in many layers simultaneously, while language being the most dominant tool for communication. Language, seen as a bodily experience before it holds semantic or conceptual meaning, becomes a shared playground through the use of AI and language models.
Transforming language into music, Coexistent Futures fuses the unique qualities of the Japanese and Danish languages, turning phonetic transcription into a poetic tool. The compositions, their visual interpretations, and translations to other physical and digital domains create a multimodal experience regardless of the participant's background.
This collective and personal musical language transcends boundaries and leads the search of a shared identity.