Pulse Memorial: A web broadcasted multichannel sound installation exploring queer grief through audience participation

The Pulse Memorial is a web-streamed sound installation that commemorates the lives lost in the mass shooting at the Pulse Bar in Orlando, Florida, where a gunman killed forty-nine Latine, Black, and queer patrons. This tragedy happened in June 2016 during a period of heightened fear among immigrant and marginalized communities anticipating the Trump election victory in November. Inspired by Toni Morrison's concept of " disremembrance," which denotes an emotional experience of erasure due to a lack of acknowledgment, this web broadcast disrupts disremembrance by using sound to evoke presence. The installation commemorates victims that continue to be erased out of broader histories of domestic terrorism and gun violence.

Participants can load the Pulse Memorial project on their mobile devices at https://pulse.memorial/. Upon entering the site, participants will receive one of eight continuously broadcasted tracks at random. The sound that the server draws from is generated by a combination of field recordings and audio created through data sonification (more details provided in the Implementation section). We used the number of victims and their ages for the sonification process, as these were the only available data points. To that end, the work participates in spiritual traditions of the past which saw numbers and music as conduits for “the hidden correspondences of nature.” The term “speculative music” is used to denote these more esoteric models and theories of harmonies [Godwin 1995].

Together as one listening unit, participants move around each other to form a moving multi-channel playback of sound-in-space. This project introduces a dual framework that views the web as both a broadcasting medium and a social network connecting communities. The web-based broadcast system utilizes global networking for local interactivity, transforming listening into an active and engaging experience. While one could “visit” the memorial alone or through playback of the website on multiple devices, visiting as a group makes the most sense for our intended purpose of communal remembrance.

Mobile devices serve as a crucial starting point for creating virtual, local, and unique spaces of connection as every mobile device might have particular defects, wear and tear, or sound enhancements that unsettle the fallibility of permanence in sculptural, physical memorials. The Pulse nightclub, a physical space still standing, also functions as a place for ad-hoc community and connection, as it currently is plastered with DIY banners, low resolution photographs, trinkets, and non-permanent ephemera that speaks to larger political marginalization in Florida, a state well-known for its public and insidious attack on queer policies. The installation's web-based format mirrors the nightclub's sense of collective repair by networking both locally and at the server level. People often turn to their phones for comfort in unfamiliar or uncomfortable environments. This installation leverages that tendency, creating local networks where participants stream various tracks from the server, each contributing unique sounds to the overall cacophony of streamed audio. During the initial demo, the dark space was illuminated by the light from the participants' phones, providing visibility for both individuals and the surrounding group, acting as digital candlelight, popularly seen at outdoor, public vigils.

We situate our work alongside and in relation to several influential figures, drawing inspiration from Fluxus, Network Music, Actor-Network Theory (ANT), histories of hermeticism, and experimental art. Critical contributors like Phil Kline [Gann 1995], Anna Xambó [Xambó et al., 2019], Gerald Roma [Xambó and Roma, 2020], Golan Levin [Levin, 2005], Benjamin Taylor [Taylor, 2017] and Jason Freeman [Freeman, 2005] have shaped our understanding of network music, participatory happenings, data sonification, and memorials. We aim to inform and elevate the Pulse Memorial project by exploring these artists' contributions. 

The Pulse Memorial project builds upon the history of network music, which emphasizes collaborative compositions facilitated by mobile technology. A significant component of network music that our project incorporates is the participatory approach, utilizing the audience's mobile devices to stream audio and transform them into a unified, one-of-a-kind instrument or spontaneous multichannel ensemble. In this respect, we share certain affinities with the eccentricities of Luigi Russolo, an iconoclastic member of the Italian futurist movement whose self-constructed noise instruments (the intonarumori) was pivotal in our understanding of self-made musical objects that enhance a viewer's cognitive abilities [Chessa, 2012]. This method contrasts with traditional composer-centric models, reflecting Xambó's influence in promoting shared collective listening and empowering participants with control over sound playback [Xambó and Roma, 2020]; [Oliveros, 2005]. This active engagement renders the audience an active participant, even a composing leader, streaming commemoration about the victims via sonic translation, abstraction, and chance operations. 

Although our project has a digital modality, site specificity is significant, not to highlight one specific site but rather the everyday nature of coming together locally with a variety of handheld, portable devices. This everyday connection draws inspiration from Fluxus Happenings and Laurie Anderson's "Car Horn Symphony" (1969). Like Anderson's orchestration of car horn synchronizations, our approach blends instructional guidance with spontaneous interaction to develop temporary, impactful experiences. 

A key component of our project is performance, drawing on Diana Taylor's concept of slow performance which emphasizes practices unfolding gradually through repetition, ritual, and the slow accumulation of meaning [Taylor, 2017]. The Pulse Memorial piece embodies what Rebecca Schneider termed, "re-live," creating a generative experience in the present while leaving media traces for future iterations [Schneider, 2011]. As a web-based performance, it transcends physical and temporal boundaries, extending beyond heteronormative family archives into public spheres of shared memory, chosen family, and claims of “queer time” and “queer space [Gratch and Gratch, 2021]; [Zucker and Simon, 2020]; [Halberstram, 2005]. Its accessibility on online platforms fosters collective memory, where trauma is shared, processed, and discussed, allowing survivors of the Pulse shooting and other U.S. American episodes of gun violence to connect and contribute to a broader cultural understanding of trauma [Menyhért, 2020].

The project combines three main components: data sonification, a speculative soundscape of each individual audio channel, and multichannel web broadcast.

3.1 Sonification

We crafted sound through data sonification¹, using available data on victims' numbers and ages to compose original musical scores. The data were scaled, translated into the MIDI scale, and arranged into a single soundscape.

Initially, the data for the Pulse Memorial were archived in a spreadsheet, lacking accessibility and emotional impact. Transforming it through data sonification made it more resonant and impactful. The process involved understanding the data, identifying gaps, observing trends, and interpreting their significance.Figure 4shows the age distribution of victims, mostly between 20 and 37 years old. In designing the scale and parameters to translate the data into sound, we utilized several octaves of the pentatonic scale. We chose this scale for its ability to convey dissonance, effectively capturing the essence of loss and absence within the memorial's composition.

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In developing this iteration for the web's immaterial space, we made several noteworthy considerations regarding technology, format, and implementation. One consideration for this web-based project is that the web serves as a place where queer identities can flourish. 

The internet provides queer individuals with unprecedented opportunities for community-building, self-expression, experimentation, and self-publishing, enabling them to shape their queer identities locally and globally [Williams et al., 2015]. Platforms like social media allow individuals to explore deviant behaviors in society, combating social isolation and fostering connections [Ferreday and Lock, 2007]. The project's sonic reimagining not only brings forgotten subjects from the past into focus but also highlights those slipping away from memory today [Richardson, 2013]. By introducing new elements into existing narratives surrounding the Pulse shooting, reimagining enables us to transform the past and confront previously unspoken truths. Given the web's capacity to facilitate representation and celebration of marginalized identities, technical and format considerations guided the selection of an appropriate platform. Unlike downloadable apps, web platforms offer immediate access without requiring downloads, aligning with the project's goal of simplicity and immediacy.

The choice of web streaming format depended on sonic quality and behavior. One way to approach synchronized playback would have been to download samples and use web timing [Borch, 2023] to tightly synchronize across devices with near-zero latency. Ultimately, we decided that prefetching audio would be too slow and that WebRTC would provide “enough” synchronization. The unknown sub-second latency inherent in WebRTC would be a speculative constraint on audio composition, working with the latency's choral-inducing effect among multiple devices instead of against it. This latency or slight WebRTC slippage is conceptually significant for memorializing the 49 human beings, as it introduces a human-like variability rather than a computational precision achieved through prefetching audio.

Our future work will explore haptics and geolocation, aiming to use the Web Vibration API (currently in development) to combine tactile feedback with streaming and enhance the Memorial's accessibility. Participants will ideally hold devices to their chest to feel vibrations. Additionally, we will integrate the Geolocation API to show the relative proximity of connected participants through multiple dots in the interface [Cáceres and Reilly, 2022]. As a memorial experience, drawing participants together in a shared moment of reflection and remembrance, the aim is to continue to grow this sense of proximity, shared space, and community that the web provides.

The Pulse Memorial project offers a virtual memorial that diverges from traditional, costly monuments known for their density and site-specific focus. While this virtual format enhances accessibility, it raises questions about whether easy access diminishes significance or value. Critics may view the memorial as too inexpensive or lacking permanence. However, the project challenges these perceptions by leveraging digital media to reach broader audiences and foster dynamic, participatory community experiences. It underscores the evolving nature of memorialization in the digital age, inviting exploration of how technology can preserve memory and engage communities meaningfully.

This paper introduces Pulse Memorial, a participatory art installation that uses multichannel web audio streaming, data sonification, and field recordings to address queer grief. Drawing inspiration from Toni Morrison's concept of " disremembrance," the project confronts the erasure of queer lives with an immersive sonic experience that encourages collective remembrance and introspection. By highlighting the power of collaborative, participatory, non-hierarchical sonic playback, the project pushes back against contemporary desensitization regarding mass shootings and violence.   

In conclusion, we harness mobile technology to facilitate collective remembrance, prioritizing community interaction and participatory listening on-site. The dedicated web broadcast prioritizes networking at a local level so that anyone in group scenario can enact the piece without relying on site specificity.  It also encourages a kind of "togetherness" where the piece can only be heard when with others.  As mass shootings become increasingly frequent, the need for memorials to honor those lost in these tragic events grows. The Pulse Memorial project seeks to find transformative power in digital media as a way to preserve cultural memory and amplify voices that may otherwise be marginalized. It invites continued exploration at the intersection of technology, identity, and remembrance, paving new paths for memorials and community engagement.