This violinist composed a work using the data of the Falene flights (to reflect on their sad decline)

Unpublished synergy between art and science gave birth to Moth X Humana musical composition that combines electronic sounds and acoustic instruments with a completely unusual element: i Flight data of the lepidoptera. The protagonist of this experimentation is the violinist and composer Ellie Wilsonwho has transformed the movement of night motions into notesrhythm and emotion, pointing the spotlight on theirs ecological importance and on the worrying phenomenon of Decline of biodiversity in the UK.

The work was presented on June 7th inside the New Music Biennialone of the top events of Bradford 2025 – UK City of Culture, and was born from the collaboration between Oxford Contemporary Music, the UK Center for Ecology and Hydrology (Ceh) and the PRS Foundation.

The project took shape starting from a calculation sheetcontaining data collected in one Natural Reserve in Parsonage Downswhere a monitoring system recorded the landings of 80 species of moths. To every species, Wilson has associated a different sound, thus generating one Automatic composition based exclusively on the behavior of insects.

The dark ending: there are less and less moths

From that point on, the violinist has developed a musical part that accompanies the subscriptions: instruments like violin, cello, trombone, piano and synthesizers come together in an ethereal and meditative workwho accompanies the listener on a sound journey between florid habitat And impoverished ecosystems.

The final part of the song is particularly touching: it is based on data from a Monocultural agricultural environmentwhere the species monitored they are reduced to only 19 moths. The sound contrast between the two sections is clear: “It is an almost euphoric beginning, but The ending is definitely darker. The difference feels and so“The composer explained.

With Moth X HumanEllie Wilson not only experiences new musical languages, but also launches an urgent message: protect even the most neglected creatureslike the moths, means taking care of the whole natural balance. In an era in which the data often remain abstract, this composition shows that they can transform into emotional narrationsensitizing the public through the evocative force of environmental and electroacoustic music.