Janet Cardiff, Forty‑Part Motet (2001), 40‑track audio installation, installation dimensions variable. NGC
The publicly and critically acclaimed Forty-Part Motet is now back on display at the National Gallery of Canada. This brilliant sound sculpture by Canadian artist Janet Cardiff is a reworking of Spem in Alium, a piece by 16th-century English composer Thomas Tallis. Forty separately-recorded choir voices are played back through 40 speakers positioned around the Rideau Chapel in the Canadian and Indigenous Galleries. The effect of the work on visitors is deeply moving.
Exhibition
Janet Cardiff: Forty-Part Motet
Location
National Gallery of Canada, Canadian and Indigenous Galleries
Rideau Chapel
380 Sussex Drive
Ottawa, ON K1N 9N4
CanadaMost people experience this piece now in their living rooms in front of only two speakers. Even in a live concert the audience is separated from the individual voices. Only the performers are able to hear the person standing next to them singing a different harmony. I wanted to be able to climb inside the music.
– Janet Cardiff
Featured Video
Live the experience of hearing Janet Cardiff’s Forty-Part Motet in our Rideau Chapel in this 360 degree video. Then come see it in person in the new Canadian and Indigenous Galleries at the National Gallery of Canada.