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Coral Sonic Resilience_Exciting progress

Coral Sonic Resilience_Exciting progress

23.01.2025

The project to revive weakened coral reefs has made great progress: the first sound sculptures have been installed on the seabed! They are now being tested, and their impact is being documented. Before this, Berlin-based artist Marco Barotti and the team led by Prof. Marco Patruno and Antonio Beggiato from the BCA Faculty of the University of Padua had to record high-quality audio of healthy reefs. These recordings serve as the foundation for breathing new life into sick coral reefs through sound. 

The sound of healthy coral reefs can heal damaged ones. What sounds like science fiction is becoming a reality on a small island in the Indian Ocean.  Relaxound  CEO Philipp Störring is delighted to support the project. He accompanied the team on-site, dove himself to capture the recordings, and helped anchor the sculptures to the seabed. The installation site is a small island in the Maldives: Feridhoo, 88 kilometers west of the capital Malé. "Here, you find dazzling white beaches and unique coral reefs. Diving felt like walking through an underwater forest. It made me realize once again how important it is to preserve this unique ecosystem! The fact that we can do this with the help of sound is both wonderful and surreal."

72 hours of recording healthy reef sounds

“The sound recordings for our installations had to be of high quality, simply authentic, to attract new life to endangered reefs,” explains Philipp. “That’s why we took two full days for our recordings. We had to head out to the open sea, as that’s where the most vital coral reefs can be found.” Near the shore, reefs are the most threatened because the shallow water warms more than in deeper areas. The recordings were particularly challenging due to strong underwater currents, and the team needed two suitable locations to capture a complex soundscape. “We searched extensively for promising spots and experimented a lot. For me, it was the first time diving that deep,” Philipp explains. “The underwater current was much stronger than I expected. It felt like being in an invisible subway!”

The first sound sculptures have been installed on the seabed

After successfully recording the underwater sounds, the team wasted no time making the freshly captured audio ready for the sculptures. “Marco transferred the recordings directly on board to the buoy’s system. The buoy floats above the underwater sculptures at the surface and ensures power supply via solar panels. A small technical unit on the buoy plays the sound and delivers it via cable directly down to our installations. We secured the sculptures firmly to the seabed with rods—they need to withstand strong currents and function reliably over the long term. What’s great is how well the elegant shapes blend into the reefs. They don’t feel out of place; after just a short time, they begin to develop a natural patina. It was truly a moving moment when the first fish came to inspect our work!” Philipp shares enthusiastically.

Fascinating to observe: Sculptures attract marine life

“Now it’s time to keep our fingers crossed! Over the coming weeks and months, a team will dive three times a week to monitor whether new life is settling in. On-site, fish are being counted, and the development of new marine life is being documented.” While this process involves numerous dives and is time-consuming, it’s the best way to get a clear picture of the project’s progress. This allows the impact of the installations to be thoroughly and comprehensively documented. “At first, we considered using 360-degree cameras, but we quickly abandoned that idea. Timothy Lamont, the project’s mentor, convinced Marco that diving provides a much better view of how well the damaged reef is recovering. It was Timothy who discovered the incredible potential of healthy coral reef sounds to revive endangered reefs and inspired Marco for his coral project. It’s a wonderful example of how science and art can go hand in hand!”

Coral Sonic Healing: A great example of the power of sound

“We’ve been exploring the effects of natural sounds for over 10 years. But this is new for us, too!” explains Philipp, who supports Marco Barotti’s project with Relaxound. “Designing spaces with sound is something that connects us. As a brand, we’re well-versed in sound solutions for interiors, but understanding how sound works underwater is uncharted territory for us as well. Coral Sonic Resilience is an inspiring testament to what people can achieve together. The project brings hope, it’s simply beautiful, and it’s a lot of fun! We feel like we’re part of something bigger. That alone makes all the effort everyone puts in every day worthwhile. What’s a little muscle soreness from diving compared to that...”

In the next Relaxound Newsletter, we’ll share updates on the progress of the Coral Sonic Resilience project. You can also follow the project on Instagram.