FRIENDS OF THE EARTH | TREE CONCERT | 2013
Every time a chestnut fell, the tree started singing / FRIENDS OF THE EARTH "TREE CONCERT"
Who would believe a tree could hold a concert? But it really happened in a park in Berlin. One night, a 100-year-old chestnut tree became a musician.
The problem
Berlin is known as a green city, but in recent years it had lost as many as 15,000 street trees. Without enough funding, trees were disappearing unnoticed. Friends of the Earth Germany was looking for a way to raise awareness of this situation and collect donations.
The insight
They flipped the old saying "if a tree falls and no one hears it" on its head. Instead of making the tree's presence something people see, they made it something people hear. If the sound of falling fruit could be turned into music, people would stop and listen.
The idea
Under a chestnut tree in Monbijou Park, they set up a membrane-like device and an LED structure. Every time a chestnut fell, the impact turned into sound, mixing with the wind and the creaking of the tree to form music. Visitors could donate on the spot, and if they sent in their name, the tree would project a thank-you message onto the device above.
What happened
The "Tree Concert" ran for just one week and won a Gold Design Lion at Cannes Lions.
Afterthought
At its core, it's simply the idea of turning a tree into a city musician. But what's amazing is how it let the tree save itself, just by making the sound of its own falling fruit beautiful to hear. Not through anger or sadness, but quietly, through sound and light. I'd love to do work like this.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Gold 2013
